Tyne and Wear Metro

[142094]

In the event of not sounding the horn, would the track brakes be applied?

No, the track brakes would only be applied if the over-ride button wasn't pressed. Standard procedure to stop, speak to control, obtain permission to over-ride the magnet, sound horn and proceed.

 

[Tramfan]

4017 has returned from Doncaster, it was parked in Hylton Street siding this morning at 8.30 and then was taken back to the depot via the Coast at 11.30, after being briefly shunted into the bay platform at North Shields as well.

 

[davo882000]

so where are the metros being placed overnight during the works? back at the depot or pelaw sidings etc...

 

[ModernRailways]

so where are the metros being placed overnight during the works? back at the depot or pelaw sidings etc...

Pelaw, South Shields, and I've also heard some are being stabled at Haymarket and Monument.

 

[Kryten2340]

Pelaw, South Shields, and I've also heard some are being stabled at Haymarket and Monument.

I wonder if they are also using Stoddard St or the overrun tunnels at St James to get trains out on that section early instead of going around the coast?

 

[AutoKratz]

Nexus have uploaded a really interesting video about Metro from the early 80s. Well worth a watch...

Metro - the way ahead

 

[ModernRailways]

Saw that the other day. I can't help but think it's just a sneaky way for Nexus to show how the integrated transport used to run. Especially, since right now they are on the crusade to make it all like London.

A great video nonetheless!

 

[142094]

Nothing at Stoddart Street or St James, the first train around the coast is about 05.00 from Longbenton.
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Should also add that there are a number of services going empty from the depot in the morning to Tynemouth, into platform 2, then entering service and running back towards Longbenton. Normally this only happens once per day.

 

[142094]

4023 had a brake dynamic test run yesterday between the depot and Monkseaton, so should be ready for service soon. 4011 has been having work done before it goes to Doncaster, so that might be the next one to go.
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Just about at the end of the big blockade, so hopefully everything will run properly on Saturday.

Another car back/going down to Wabtec next week.

 

[valenta]

Severe disruption at the moment due to major signalling problems following the major line closure. No trains Haymarket - Regent Centre and Four Lane Ends, thus meaning delays on other sections of the system.

 

[cdonnigan]

its time for a public investigation into all these problems metro is having, Breakdowns daily a refurbished system that aint even working, Was it tested before even been handed back. Metro is now becoming very unreliable and glad i now have use of a car to get around.

 

[14xxDave]

Well signalling problems are common but I must agree that it seems time was not allowed for proper testing at the end of the suspension......

 

[valenta]

Normal service has resumed, though a day later than scheduled.

 

[blue sabre]

Severe disruption at the moment due to major signalling problems following the major line closure. No trains Haymarket - Regent Centre and Four Lane Ends, thus meaning delays on other sections of the system.

Metro did themselves no favours mind, they announced everything was finished within deadline and services would run as normal on Saturday. Clearly the test trains they ran in the early hours uncovered the issue, but by then they has all of their social network autoupdates preset to announce service was running normally and the line had reopened.

 

[ModernRailways]

its time for a public investigation into all these problems metro is having, Breakdowns daily a refurbished system that aint even working, Was it tested before even been handed back. Metro is now becoming very unreliable and glad i now have use of a car to get around.

Are you being serious?

Metro is having trouble, but they have always had this trouble. It's more noticeable now because of Social Media etc.

I travel with Metro daily (including weekends) and have been delayed (more than 5 minutes) five times over the course of three/four years. Some people appear to be delayed daily, and then complain they are late for work. If you're cutting it that fine to get to work on time then you need a reality check. I would always aim to get to work earlier daily, rather than get there just on time and then be late if Metro is delayed.

I find Metro very reliable and it shows. Buses simply can't handle when there are problems, and Tyne and Wear comes to a standstill. People don't really realise how much Metro does for us!

What would a public investigation do? The Metro works well, and whilst it has a few problems most of the time the system runs flawlessly.


As for the delay caused by the line closure, it couldn't be helped. Trains hadn't been tested on it when Metro started saying it was finished etc. Once trains were being tested it was found that the signalling wasn't working as it should which was causing issues.

Most people are complaining yet don't seem to understand it was only closed for their safety otherwise trains would have still operated! I also thought the Metro wasn't restarting on that section until today (01/09), with yesterday being a day for testing etc. That's what I made from the announcements.

 

[Kryten2340]

Are you being serious?

Metro is having trouble, but they have always had this trouble. It's more noticeable now because of Social Media etc.

I travel with Metro daily (including weekends) and have been delayed (more than 5 minutes) five times over the course of three/four years. Some people appear to be delayed daily, and then complain they are late for work. If you're cutting it that fine to get to work on time then you need a reality check. I would always aim to get to work earlier daily, rather than get there just on time and then be late if Metro is delayed.

I find Metro very reliable and it shows. Buses simply can't handle when there are problems, and Tyne and Wear comes to a standstill. People don't really realise how much Metro does for us!

What would a public investigation do? The Metro works well, and whilst it has a few problems most of the time the system runs flawlessly.


As for the delay caused by the line closure, it couldn't be helped. Trains hadn't been tested on it when Metro started saying it was finished etc. Once trains were being tested it was found that the signalling wasn't working as it should which was causing issues.

Most people are complaining yet don't seem to understand it was only closed for their safety otherwise trains would have still operated! I also thought the Metro wasn't restarting on that section until today (01/09), with yesterday being a day for testing etc. That's what I made from the announcements.

I agree with everything you've said. The biggest one that annoys me are the ones who miss trains/flights because of Metro issues then have the cheek to expect to be reimbursed or complain they've missed a job interview. If its that important you leave in ample time and have a back up. Hell if needs must you get a taxi. Half the people on the Facebook group are thick as pigs **** in my opinion. The compensation culture we live in is ridiculous too where we sue everyone for trivial things. I used to work as a Complaints Manager so know exactly what this is like.

The only point I agree with some of the complainers is that they should have factored in a day to test everything was working. Clearly they left this right to the death hoping they would get lucky.

 

[ModernRailways]

The only point I agree with some of the complainers is that they should have factored in a day to test everything was working. Clearly they left this right to the death hoping they would get lucky.

Indeed! It was why I thought service was resuming today (01/09) fully with a possible skeleton service yesterday, as it was being tested.

Lessons will have been learnt however and so hopefully next time it will be tested properly!

 

[142094]

Agree with what has been said - supposedly the plan was to allow test trains to run through the blockade area around three hours before normal service was to start. However, of course by the time they did this the signalling system went caput. Would have made more sense to keep the possession on until Sunday morning at the latest, but have all the work ready to hand over on the Saturday.

In other news 4081 should be returning this week, with 4011 going down.
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If it's not one thing, then it's another - a Metro has hit a taxi at Callerton.

Metro hits taxi

 

[Kryten2340]

Agree with what has been said - supposedly the plan was to allow test trains to run through the blockade area around three hours before normal service was to start. However, of course by the time they did this the signalling system went caput. Would have made more sense to keep the possession on until Sunday morning at the latest, but have all the work ready to hand over on the Saturday.

In other news 4081 should be returning this week, with 4011 going down.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
If it's not one thing, then it's another - a Metro has hit a taxi at Callerton.

Metro hits taxi

A couple of things spring to mind here. Now whilst there will be an investigation if we assume for a moment that the taxi driver has jumped the lights then the question has to be asked if the cameras that were installed on the crossings are working. It could of course be a signal failure but I would hope there would've some fail safe to prevent this.

What I also don't understand is why couldn't trains carry on to Bank Foot or is there no longer a crossover in place there from pre-airport days?

 

[142094]

A couple of things spring to mind here. Now whilst there will be an investigation if we assume for a moment that the taxi driver has jumped the lights then the question has to be asked if the cameras that were installed on the crossings are working. It could of course be a signal failure but I would hope there would've some fail safe to prevent this.

What I also don't understand is why couldn't trains carry on to Bank Foot or is there no longer a crossover in place there from pre-airport days?

AFAIK the cameras are exactly the same type as those found at red light signals at controlled junctions - so in effect they will only record pictures when the red wig wag signals are in operation. Unfortunately they do not offer any other protection. Of course I expect this to be investigated, but no doubt they will be looking at whether it was a case of the taxi jumping the lights, or whether the lights were working correctly. The good thing is that all the open crossings on the Metro system have speed limits for the Metro, so damage is usually minimal.

Yep, the nearest turnback is at Kingston Park, Bank Foot was remodelled when the second platform was added.

 

[ModernRailways]

Nice to see it was a refurb involved too!

Hopefully not too much damage as Metro need as many Metrocar's as possible now!
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Think I saw 4089 back out today on a Pelaw short service, so it looks like it was very minor damage!
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Central Station Platform 1 appeared to have some form of acid dripping from a sign today. Was turning crusty as it fell so was sticking to the sign.

Anyone have any idea what it was?

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Central Station Platform 1 appeared to have some form of acid dripping from a sign today. Was turning crusty as it fell so was sticking to the sign.

Anyone have any idea what it was?

Probably calcium carbonate or something that behaves in a similar way leaching through and dripping, forming a nice stalactite. This is quite common on underground parts of any network.

 

[hacman]

Probably calcium carbonate or something that behaves in a similar way leaching through and dripping, forming a nice stalactite. This is quite common on underground parts of any network.

Spot on - best place to see it is in the cross-walk between the two platforms that houses the lift. There are places on the floor where the deposits have actually mounted up rather nicely on the floor!

Jon

 

[142094]

4089 is still at the depot undergoing repairs following the incident with the taxi last week.

 

[Kryten2340]

It amazes me that these people exist.

 

[ModernRailways]

It amazes me that these people exist.

http://s24.postimg.org/549yygh2t/image.jpg

Happens all the time when people decide to dash on. Or in my case, get pushed off! Thankfully I only got a strap caught in and it was on the right side for the next station.

Someone sprinted on at Heworth once and got their bag caught like in the image. They wanted off at Central, but where still there when I got off at Haymarket since the doors hadn't opened on that side. She asked for someone to help, and some elderly man as he was getting off said 'Next time, slow down and get the next train. Don't expect any help from me.'
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Today, I was chatting with a guy from the depot and we got talking about the new stock.
He says the first should be rolling off the production line in 2021, another depot will be built as current trains will be kept for additional peak time services and a possible new route which is in the planning stages.
He also said that a requirement by Network Rail is that all new trains will have to either be dual voltage, or Metro will have to switch to the national rail voltage. Apparently, this is because they want to electrify the Durham Coast Line to allow for electric trains to use that route.

Does anyone see any truth in this or do you think he was just taking a guess?

 

[142094]

Today, I was chatting with a guy from the depot and we got talking about the new stock.
He says the first should be rolling off the production line in 2021, another depot will be built as current trains will be kept for additional peak time services and a possible new route which is in the planning stages.

2025 is the earliest according to many people. What I should say is that if the economy doesn't start to improve in the next few years, it is going to be very difficult for Nexus to get any investment for new rolling stock. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Metrocars going for another 15 years at least. What is certain is that there will be no new routes until after the current network has been upgraded, and there are none currently in the planning stages (although there are still various plans, they are not being worked on). A new depot would be nice (plus if you look at the location of the current one, there is a lot of land in an expensive part of Newcastle), but probably will be a small outlying one. The big project at the minute is of course the bus quality contracts - that is the main aim for Nexus.

He also said that a requirement by Network Rail is that all new trains will have to either be dual voltage, or Metro will have to switch to the national rail voltage. Apparently, this is because they want to electrify the Durham Coast Line to allow for electric trains to use that route.

Have not heard of this requirement, but it would make sense for any new rolling stock to be dual voltage in case Network Rail decide to electrify the Durham Coast. However, I'm sure this is will be a long time in the future.

 

[markydh]

I'd actually suggest the opposite is true. IF the economy doesn't improve, that makes capital investment in things like metrocar replacement and new routes more likely as all major political parties now subscribe to the view that capital investment is the best way of getting things moving in the right direction.

 

[ModernRailways]

2025 is the earliest according to many people. What I should say is that if the economy doesn't start to improve in the next few years, it is going to be very difficult for Nexus to get any investment for new rolling stock. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Metrocars going for another 15 years at least. What is certain is that there will be no new routes until after the current network has been upgraded, and there are none currently in the planning stages (although there are still various plans, they are not being worked on). A new depot would be nice (plus if you look at the location of the current one, there is a lot of land in an expensive part of Newcastle), but probably will be a small outlying one. The big project at the minute is of course the bus quality contracts - that is the main aim for Nexus.

One thing he also said is that it's DB who are doing the talking about new trains with the possibility of them stumping the money up.
If I remember correctly DB already tried that when they took the system over.
The new depot will apparently be in Pelaw/Wardley and will only be relatively small, will fit 20 metrocars inside with another 24 (space for 25) stabled outside.

 

[Stats]

What is certain is that there will be no new routes until after the current network has been upgraded, and there are none currently in the planning stages (although there are still various plans, they are not being worked on).

What about the feasibility study of the 9 potential corridors and type of rolling stock that will feed into the Metro Strategy? Hasthis finished?