Oakydoke

The Guardian has changed its article at least twice since the first report yesterday. Not uncommon for online news reporting, as the stories unfold, or more details or facts become known. However, there is still no mention or emphasis in their reporting, that what these people were doing was both illegal and antisocial, as well as being very stupid. I don't happen to think it's a decent news story as it completely ignores the reality that this tragedy is a result of the victims own reckless and criminal behaviour. It's typical of the artificial PC bubble mentality that seeks to blame someone else, for one's own failings. Sorry, for the rant, so let's get back to level crossings.

I agree Phil. I don't condone how he leaves his unwelcome work on public and private property, but he's obviously talented, unlike these vandals. The three dead men are said to be in their 20's. You'd think they would have grown out of this nonsense.

How on earth could the commentators say that England were playing some of the best football seen so far in the tournament? Certainly on the front foot in the first 20 minutes. Positive, attacking play and should have had a least another goal or two before they became ragged and lacklustre for most of the remaining 70 minutes. It was dire compared with other teams who drew or lost to lesser opponents. Despite not getting wins, Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Spain and Portugal looked miles better than England. Kane's late winner got them off the hook and saved them an almighty panning by the press and other media. Hopefully a better performance will come against lowly Panama.

Banksy IS an artist though, whether or not you may agree with some of the political and cultural statements he makes with his work. Quite different from the graffiti VANDALS who cause an appalling mess with everything they do. Artists my a@@se.

Rashford on for Sterling and although he hasn't done much so far, he's already contributed more than Sterling showed for 68 minutes.

The Guardian article covering this story is treating these 3 victims as fallen heroes . https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/jun/18/brixton-three-people-killed-by-train-near-brixton-south-london

Sorry Gordon, I don't mean to be rude but the first two lines of that are incorrect. The third line is just ignorance of the various bits of kit that have been available, in some cases, for years.

Manston was retained by the RAF as an emergency diversion airfield, long after they had any operational use for it, until they finally withdrew from there in the late 1990's. Charter flights have operated from there from the 1960's. Some airlines have intermittently used Manston for training flights at various times over the years, but this was less common over time as the emphasis on training moved over to the use of more a more sophisticated simulators. The main commercial use of Manston was for air cargo and some charter flights. Air cargo operations became quite busy in the late 1990's through to the late 2000's. For a short time in the 2000's, scheduled operator EUjet flew a small network of flights from Manston airport before going bust. Later on Flybe operated some domestic links from the airfield, but gave up on them after a couple of years. The last operator bizarrely was KLM, who ran a twice daily link to Amsterdam shortly before Manston closed down.

The Silver Arrow rail-air-Rail service from London to Paris was BUA's way of circumventing the tight regulatory restrictions on scheduled flights that protected state owned BEA and Air France, in the 1960's. BUA had already established an airline terminal at Victoria station to link central London to the newly developed Gatwick airport and Freddie Laker convinced the French authorities and SNCF to build a short branch from the local line into Le Touquet airport, to allow a direct rail service from there to Gare du Nord. When BUA was merged into British Caledonian Airways in 1970, they continued to run the service for just a few years, before subcontracting it out to British Island Airways (BIA), itself a former subsidiary of BUA, prior to being separated into an independent entity when BUA became part of BCAL. BIA ran the rail-air-rail link until it merged with other airlines to form Air UK in 1980. Air UK dropped the route in the early 1980's a decade or more before the Channel Tunnel was opened. Wider and quicker air competition, including regular flights from Gatwick to Paris and much cheaper air fares killed off the service. Not the opening of the channel tunnel. The coach-air service from London, original via Lympe (Ashford, Kent) and later via Lydd to Paris didn't stop with opening of the Gatwick rail-air service. It continued to be operated by Skways, who ran it through to the early 1970's, when they were taken over by Dan-Air. The flights ran between Lydd and Beauvais airport, halfway between Paris and the channel coast. Despite a much reduced service, Dan-Air ran the coach-air link until the mid/late 1980's. The coach-air link also succumbed to the increased availability of quicker and cheaper flights between the main London and Paris airports. Dan-Air themselves flew between Gatwick and Paris CDG. Several small companies have run, or attempted to run the Lydd-Beauvais route over the years since, but primarily as a link to serve south and east Kent, rather than London.

I wouldn't be surprised if no money has been spent on station upkeep, with the long pending total redevelopment saga rumbling on. Now that the city council and Network Rail have more or less agreed on funding, local residents are fighting the rebuild because it will make the station "too big" !

The DafT have said the new operator is to be called LNER. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/lner-to-run-east-coast-mainline-services-from-london-to-yorkshire-the-north-east-and-scotland "London North Eastern Railway (LNER) is taking over the running of your East Coast Mainline services from 24 June 2018.".

Grayling made a big play about bring track and trains closer together under future ECML plans. Could LNER be the prelude to separating out the ECML infrastructure from NR, to form a joint rail and train operating company, that could be sold off, lock stock and barrel?

But VTEC outperformed East Coast in terms of the amount of revenue they raised for the taxpayers.They just couldn't meet the increasingly large and unacheivable payments required by the contract they overbid for and that the DafT were happy for them to sign up to.

The term "state ownership" is commonly misused with regard to these franchises. It has remained in "state ownership" all along. The service has been franchised out to be operated on behalf of the DfT by a contractor, now it's going to be operated in-house by an agency contractor on behalf of the DfT.

They dare not speak his name.

How many of the prototype are in DB Schenker, compared to DB Cargo red, bearing in mind the rail cargo business was split off from the Schenker Logistics business more that 2 years ago and more 60 re-paints have appeared since then? Have any of those carrying the Schenker branding, had it removed since the change?

Maybe it will be just as well, if they do expire. They appear to be just scrabbling for a straw to clutch onto to save themselves from drowning.

3+2 seating should be removed from all UK rolling stock. Even more so with the average person now being larger than 50 years ago; not because of obesity, but because the average is now taller and larger in frame.

...or hang a bucket on the back ?

Bluetooth train control? Is Hornby the new partner that BlueRail Trains have teamed up with?

I think Joseph has hit the nail on the head. The Thameslink service should have been reigned in years ago, to a much smaller range from central London. The 700's shouldn't be running out as far as they do, but who is going to make such a drastic change to the scope of this route and franchise?

The number of GWR 9 car Class 800/3 's is building up outside at the Newton Aycliffe factory. When are the first of these due to go into service?

Barbie's brother. Diversity is all the rage this year, don'tcha know.

World Cup merchandise. 1:76 scale models of gangs of Russian thugs attacking fans from 23 other national teams. Mini plastic footballs, emblazoned with the flags of all 24 competing nations. Collect the full set. Barbie sized Russian girls looking for western man dolls. Dressed in the national costumes of the Russian federation.

Someone should tell them that HS2 plan to plant a million, billion, trillion, gazillion trees or whatever, to hide their new railway from public view - where it isn't buried in tunnels, cut and cover, or hidden in cuttings or behind noise reducing earth mounds and screening.