Flooding at Farringdon

[DelayRepay]

Any insiders have thoughts on the likeyhood of a normal(ish) service in the morning? The website says the core is closed until 6:00. I am trying to decide whether to get to St Albans station early or go straight to Hatfield.

 

[ItchyRsole]

Any insiders have thoughts on the likeyhood of a normal(ish) service in the morning? The website says the core is closed until 6:00. I am trying to decide whether to get to St Albans station early or go straight to Hatfield.

Same as that.

 

[mrmatt]

The signal spacing in the Thameslink Core is very close, with a maximum of 100m between signed. An 8 car is 160m long. Likely the train was held up at the next signal hence not clearing the platform.

Understand that but in these situations surely you are better not to release the train? The dispatcher had to make repeated announcements to not board the train that had half left.

 

[Bald Rick]

Any insiders have thoughts on the likeyhood of a normal(ish) service in the morning? The website says the core is closed until 6:00. I am trying to decide whether to get to St Albans station early or go straight to Hatfield.

There's a second leak being fixed now by Thames water. What isn't known is how saturated the surrounding ground is and thus how much is still to come out.

Tonight there is a big sucker (not rhyming slang) going in to get rid of some more of the water. That's on top of the SIX pumps in there already. The maintenance teams are also in there tonight testing the signalling. Hence the core block.

Assuming this goes to plan, normal service tomorrow, albeit still signalling on the POSAs.

 

[RichardN]

My understanding is that guards are not to dispatch trains if they would still end up partially in the platform if they do so. This evening on Thameslink the back 4 coaches were stuck on the platform with the front 4 in the Snow hill tunnel. Is the procedure different for DOO services? Will ATO when is is introduced be programmed to avoid this?

In that case why bother with so short spacing between the signals? If you don't dispatch on single yellow, then you might as well make the block twice as long and drop the restriction. I'm rather looking forward to seeing the back end of a train in the platform, while the next train has stopped at the mid platform signal. I expect it can't happen due to overlaps though.

 

[Bald Rick]

In that case why bother with so short spacing between the signals? If you don't dispatch on single yellow, then you might as well make the block twice as long and drop the restriction. I'm rather looking forward to seeing the back end of a train in the platform, while the next train has stopped at the mid platform signal. I expect it can't happen due to overlaps though.

Because usually when you start dispatch on a yellow, it has cleared up to YY or G by the time the wheels roll. Didn't happen tonight because of the (very) slow progress north of Farringdon causing a queue.

 

[STPBTN]

Ended up stuck at Loughborough Junction when trying to travel from Brighton to St Pancras on the 1606 today. It took a long while for the driver to give an update to what was going on - and by the time he did, I'd already figured it out through the NR website. After a significant while, the train crawled to Blackfriars where I thought it best not to chance it to STP so took a bus back home. The train ended up arriving over an hour late at STP.

Highly sceptical about what's going to happen tomorrow morning. Hoping that they will have ticket acceptance set with the tube and Southern from VIC if in doubt...

 

[user15681]

Line blocks taken not long ago at Farringdon for tonight's work.

Couple of units need checking as a precaution, too, although believe one was damaged.

 

[21C101]

Understand that but in these situations surely you are better not to release the train? The dispatcher had to make repeated announcements to not board the train that had half left.

It sounds like a practice that was observed when there was slam door stock and if a train set off then stopped half way down the platform more people would start getting on, with the guard possibly unsighted. Not really a problem now there are door locks.

 

[Saint66]

All lines open and signalling looks to have been fixed. Over 135,000 litres pumped out over night apparently.

 

[SpacePhoenix]

Have Thames Water put any sort of CCTV probe type thing down the pipe to inspect it? Is it a pipe that's getting near the end of its working life?

 

[Class377]

Was caught up in this last night, coming back from the Millwall match.

Journey down (about 3ish) was fine, no sign of any disruption and certainly no warning that the flooding had come back and that the journey back could be disrupted.

Before getting on the tube at London Bridge, happened to check my phone and saw that nearly every train north from St Pancras was cancelled so absolutely legged it once at St Pancras from the Northern line platform to the TL platform, just about made it for the 22:32. Apparently after that there was nothing until 23:48?

As usual with Thameslink, things can go wrong and usually it's outside their control, but a little bit of communication really wouldn't go amiss!

 

[ItchyRsole]

Talk of a separate water main rupture now?

 

[fairysdad]

Talk of a separate water main rupture now?

Another one?! I hope Thames Water doesn't see this message and gets ideas out of it, but I wonder if the Crossrail works are in any way causing this? I'll admit that I'm not sure of the geography of this area, but just wondering maybe if vibrations caused by the works are causing pipes (that may be weakened already) to give up?

Just a thought!

 

[ItchyRsole]

Text from a statement just issued through Thames Water / Thameslink


Thames Water teams are looking into possible further leaks on water pipes near Farringdon station after engineers discovered water entering the tunnels again on Tuesday.

The water company managed to stop the original leak from the 16” in diameter pipe on Sunday morning, but the flooding problems which disrupted rail travel last Friday (January 23) returned yesterday.
Thames Water continue to work around the clock with Network Rail to try to manage the water levels with pumping equipment, and specialist teams are carrying out full assessments of the pipe and checking roads nearby for any other additional leaks.
Chris Featherstone, head of operational control at Thames Water said: “We’re very sorry for the delays commuters have experienced since Friday. We know this is a critical job and we’ve got our best teams working as fast as possible to discover where this water is coming from. We’re investigating every possibility, including checking all our sewers and water pipes in the area, and we will leave no stone unturned to find out what is happening in that tunnel.”
Repair work on the original leak is taking place in the bus lane of Farringdon Road at the junction of Vine Street Bridge. Engineers are also testing water pipes in the area as part of investigations to find out where the second problem has come from. As a result of this, some customers in the area may experience disruptions to their water supply.
Mr Featherstone added: “We’d also like to extend our apologies to any customers affected by road works or fluctuations in water supply while we test the pipes. We’re doing everything we can to sort out this problem.”

 

[Class377/5]

Major service alterations will be in place for the rest of the week.

 

[tsr]

Railway Gazette have stated that GTR have advised that Thames Water will face a multi-million pound bill.

 

[W230]

Word on the street is that the core is closing at 2100hrs tonight...

 

[21C101]

Railway Gazette have stated that GTR have advised that Thames Water will face a multi-million pound bill.

A bit odd. GTR would bill the track authority ie network rail. I would expect an announcement like that to come from NR?

 

[tsr]

A bit odd. GTR would bill the track authority ie network rail. I would expect an announcement like that to come from NR?

I'm sure there is way more to it than a message on Twitter suggests! What you've said does of course sound pretty much what I'd expect to be right for the overall process.

 

[LBSCR Times]

Word on the street is that the core is closing at 2100hrs tonight...

Until Monday at the earliest, though the core is shut all weekend due to planned engineering works.

It's a case of getting the best available units south of the block!

 

[fusionblue]

Major service alterations will be in place for the rest of the week.

When will we hear more about this?

 

[user15681]

Word on the street is that the core is closing at 2100hrs tonight...

Can confirm this.

Four more leaks were found, and supposedly fixed, but there's still water coming in...

 

[asylumxl]

Major service alterations will be in place for the rest of the week.

Wow. My commute shall be fun.

 

[Class377]

Major service alterations will be in place for the rest of the week.

Word on the street is that the core is closing at 2100hrs tonight...

It would be really nice if Thameslink could actually confirm this themselves rather than having to find out via Chinese whispers....I've said this numerous times but most passengers will accept disruption as long as communication is fine. Unfortunately Govia don't seem to understand the word communication!

 

[carriageline]

Until Monday at the earliest, though the core is shut all weekend due to planned engineering works.

Yep, I believe they are doing a dress rehearsal of the move of the signalling to Three Bridges ROC

 

[infobleep]

It would be really nice if Thameslink could actually confirm this themselves rather than having to find out via Chinese whispers....I've said this numerous times but most passengers will accept disruption as long as communication is fine. Unfortunately Govia don't seem to understand the word communication!

I think rail companies should be fined for poor communication the may be they would improve. Govia to seem to be bad at this in my experience.

Pergaos there would be some best practice sharing evasions with Stage Coaches South West Trains because they seem to be able to do a far better job in this respect.

 

[transmanche]

Pergaos there would be some best practice sharing evasions with Stage Coaches South West Trains because they seem to be able to do a far better job in this respect.

I wonder if this is connected with the oft-vaunted SWT/NR alliance? I.e. better communications between NR and the TOC lead to better communications with the customer?

 

[RichardN]

Because usually when you start dispatch on a yellow, it has cleared up to YY or G by the time the wheels roll. Didn't happen tonight because of the (very) slow progress north of Farringdon causing a queue.

I understand this. My comment was related to the previous poster who said that trains won't be dispatched if they would end up partly on a platform, which doesn't make much operational sense outside slam door stock to me. There is not much difference between a train mainly off the platform with doors locked and not going to be opened, and a train wholly on the platform when the doors are locked and are going to stay that way.

 

[asylumxl]

I made this. It sums up my feelings on TL at the moment.