Pandora

The Great British Transport Report: A number of smaller alternatives schemes with which to devote the £56 bn budget of the cancelled HS2 (sorry about the £86 bn) https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/taxpayersalliance/pages/16562/attachments/original/1558213640/GBTC_REPORT_FINAL_REVIEWED_18MAY2019.pdf?1558213640 The BCA for HS2 assumed the passengers salaries averaging to £70k per annum each, let us hope the HS2 review commission clearly see the HS2 project as a "social - need " railway, and most definitely not a perk for the wealthy and privileged.

The Boris review is smoking the Doublespeakers of HS2 Ltd Big Brother and their HS2 Ltd Thought Police from living (lying) from behind the safety of their Telescreens

I am aware this is being reported in the Sun, ( the popularity of such as a marker for our under-education system), but also the Times, Parliament is anticipating an announcement confirming the rumoured 3 years of delay of completion and a further £24 bn for the budget for HS2 . https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/hs2-facing-three-year-delay-as-its-budget-spirals-to-80-billion-dvlmm3zb9 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/transport-secretary-grant-shapps-to-come-clean-on-soaring-costs-of-hs2-gknqwstbt

The HS2 review is being triggered by Brexit, HS2 "Notice to Proceed" being kicked into the long grass while the Brexit / General Election situation is settlled once and forever

If a Baker bakes 100 loaves of bread and he has 125 hungry buyers then (sellers market) the Baker has an easy life and sells each loaf at a premium price, If the BAker bakes 150 loaves and only 125 hungry buyers , the Baker has a hard time and risks his income

German economy has been in great shape until recent months, trade surplus, gdp/head 130% of UK, the straitjacket and strangelhold of the Euro currency over competing economies, it is the Mediterranean economies who are suffering chronic economic malaise ( waiting for the Italian / Greek Bank crashes in the pipeline), and also who will plug the Eu budget hole without the massive net contribution of billions from the UK ?

The dieselgate issue with VW and other car companies was an example of the under the counter protectionism and "telling everyone what to do" by Germany, by creating an EU-wide taxation system for vehicles skewed consumers to choose diesel cars over petrol tipping the EU 27 market in the direction of German /French cars products to the detriment of Korean/japanese car makers

London City airport drops fliers on the doorstep of Canary Wharf and the city of London, both financial centres of high pay and employment, and the airport serves the city gents on their way to and from Amsterdam, Berlin–Tegel, Billund, Dublin, Düsseldorf, Edinburgh, Florence, Frankfurt, Geneva, Glasgow, Ibiza, Isle of Man, Luxembourg Málaga, Manchester, Milan–Linate, Munich, New York–JFK,1 Nice, Palma de Mallorca, Prague, Rome–Fiumicino, Rotterdam, Zurich etc, transport links are Crossrail ( when it opens), Docklands Light Railway, the Tube, road via taxis etc, I reject any assertions of a "small backwater", I think it would be an ideal focus for the experiment of assessing suppressed demand for an HS2 travel corridors. I'd rather throw some money into such a trial than risk the £100 bn which HS2 will most like cost us

Having read the official case for HS2, projections of passenger and journey numbers of HS2 tripling the existing capacity, I believe it it would be a good idea to test the assumptions first, I suggest an experiment or trial to operate a frequent service of low-cost aircraft flights between single purpose temporary airports on the proposed HS2 route and London City (Docklands) airport, the fares and frequency of service could be devised to mimic the HS2 timetable, such an experiment would surely test those assumptions of the "suppressed" demand for HS2 travel.

My advice is to cultivate contacts with Network Rail and museums such as NRM York, NR may donate, NRM may loan from their not-for-display archives. How severe is your problem, let me tell you, 25 years ago I was on major renewals, where we had to remove mechanical signalling such as ground frames, the mechanical locking dept would send out men to stand over the contractors to ensure correct and careful dismantling of lever frames etc, saving for future use and replenishing their dwindling stocks of useable spare parts, without supervision the contractors would simply disc cut or break up with heavy hammers the coveted bits and pieces.

In his book, Top Shed, Peter N Townsend, the Shedmaster at Kings Cross, refers to the diesels of 1959, (page 170/171) NB1000bhp, EE1100 hp and BRCW 1260hp as all being too heavy to work over Blackfriars Bridge to the Southern Region lines, was not for another two years when the weight-lightened Derby Sulzer type 2s began to replace Hornsey J50s. PNT refers to the NB1000s as poor performers, "on the 1739 ex KX loaded to 9 they were likened to an L1 short of steam". If they were too heavy for Blackfriars Bridge, would they be fit for use on the North and West London lines over Battersea (Cremorne) Bridge towards the Southern route Wandsworth Road-Nunhead-Hither Green?

The Johnson review is about slicing the ball out of play to be lost and then found in the long grass as an interlude while other important matters are settled.

It is not always the landlords who drive up rent rises, operations such as coffee baristas with their high margin habit-forming wares identify and bid up rents for their favoured outlets

I hope HS2 is cancelled. working for the railway I have zero confidence in management to deliver, 100% confidence in their ability to snatch defeat from victory

I believe there was an act of Parliament dating from the 1860s which gave authorities the power to force the railway to provide bridges for the use of the public where the railway had provided only a level crossing, , a clue to these being found on old maps where bridges have been constructed in parallel with a level crossing

Few towns can support a model shop, if the area is prosperous, rentals too high, low rentals, not enough disposable income or money circulation to keep one afloat, Doncaster is a wretched place, i recall the town centre so busy the pavements were too narrow for the footfall and we would takeover the roads, the town open and covered markets are a tiny fraction of their presence 30 years ago, many stall holders simply gave up, from 100% occupancy and a very long waiting list for tenancy, to 20% occupancy of the market stalls. Yhe town was more prosperous during the 12 month coal strike than the present

Plenty of Windhof MPV units to be seen at Tonbridge Yard south of the station, for OTM plant they ride quite well, some units have two engines, other four, and they do overheat due to debris such as dried leaves blocking air flow to the coolers

Plasser & Theurer have a depot/office at West Ealing on the GW main line, I wonder if they can send you a drawing?

The magnetic field of the traction current travelling in the running rails is significant, AWS magnets in the four foot are stronger on the Southern, identified by the green casing, (yellow elsewhere). Point machines are different too, HW1000 for DC third rail, HW2000 for 25kV, the machines have to be immune to electrical noise which could cause the point to attempt to self motor and unlock the switch

The 750VDC of the conductor rail is the simple part, it is the the running rails which is the complex part, the traction return current passes from the train into the running rails back to the electreical substation or TP hut, and therefore the traction return current shares the running rails with AC rack circuits in the running rails, ( track circuits operate the signals ). As an ex S&T I would not know where to start an explanation, here are a few terms: single rail and double rail AC track circuits, res bonds, ally plates, sideleads, black dogs, impedance bonds, fishplates: Benklers, Edilons, our raili, their rail ie to describe if S&T or Pee Way are responsible for the electrical connections to the rail.

The line did not warrant the use of loco hauled trains, , I believe end to end trials with the emu M594XX sets were unsuccessful due to overheating of their traction equipment, a four-car DMU would be adequate (preferably Trans-Pennine sets), I think TP sets were used when Woodhead carried Sunday diversionary services. what was the status of Woodhead Tunnel with regard to diesel haulage through the tunnel? Was it by derogation such as the need for diversions due to engineering work on the Hope Valley line?

I think there was a tract of land reserved and protected for a planned direct link between Sheffield Victoria and Midland stations, having travelled behind EM2 and EM1 locos on the route prior to closure of passenger services, I can confirm the ordeal of the tightly timed dash between the two, the breathless ascent of the ramp up to Victoria, and how Victoria platform and gate staff would keep a sharp lookout to give latecomers the benefit of delaying the departing service to let them board.

The Streisand effect indeed!

Post 2015 testing showed the LR products to the worst performers of all, eg 2200 /km vs the Euro 5 limit of 180 for Nox refererence fig 5.7 in the pdf : https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/548148/vehicle-emissions-testing-programme-web.pdf