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Trivia: Longest Time a Rail Unit has served a Diagram?

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J-2739

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Hello. I'm just wondering if there are any units that has been stuck on a Diagram for a particular length of time (for example, a 156 unit on a brach line).

If so, what are the longest time periods?
 
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PHILIPE

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Hello. I'm just wondering if there are any units that has been stuck on a Diagram for a particular length of time (for example, a 156 unit on a brach line).

If so, what are the longest time periods?

I don't quite understand. A diagram is the daily duty for a unit and any unit can be on the diagram according to it's length unless it gets swapped. Diagrams can last any length of time between 0001 and 2359
 

Quakkerillo

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I think the OP means 'how long has a unit been on a fixed diagram'.
So if there was only *one* class 139 train, that unit would've been doing the same diagram day in day out on the Stourbridge Junction line.
With there being three, I'm certain the same one unit might have gone out two, three, maybe more days in a row to fulfill the same diagram. But for how long? And what others might be going the longest.
 

J-2739

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I mean that which particular unit has been on a particular route for the longest time. Such as a particular 390 on the London to Liverpool segment of the WCML, for example.

Sorry for being unclear.
 

J-2739

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I think the OP means 'how long has a unit been on a fixed diagram'.
So if there was only *one* class 139 train, that unit would've been doing the same diagram day in day out on the Stourbridge Junction line.
With there being three, I'm certain the same one unit might have gone out two, three, maybe more days in a row to fulfill the same diagram. But for how long? And what others might be going the longest.
Yes, that is what I mean

What got me the idea of this thread was me seeing a 155 on the Leeds-Knottingley route for a while. I wonder if there has been a singular unit that has stayed on a route for a long time?
 
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43096

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I think the OP means 'how long has a unit been on a fixed diagram'.
So if there was only *one* class 139 train, that unit would've been doing the same diagram day in day out on the Stourbridge Junction line.
With there being three, I'm certain the same one unit might have gone out two, three, maybe more days in a row to fulfill the same diagram. But for how long? And what others might be going the longest.
There's two 139s, and the usual pattern is for them to do alternate weeks, swapping over on a Sunday.

I've had the same sets on my journey to work on the same train each day for a week on a couple of occasions.
One week in September 2013 with 458018/019 on 2C12 0612 Reading-Waterloo and again in May 2016 with 450098/555 on 2C86 0623 Reading-Waterloo. It is rare as normally diagrams are cyclical so they work through different diagrams each day - the SWT diagrams certainly weren't planned to work like that.
 

Kite159

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Something like the St Albans Abbey 319 which stays on those services for a week?

Or the DMUs for bletchley - Bedford which stay on that line a week at a time (used to get swapped over on Sundays)
 

xotGD

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I would nominate 08 and 09 shunters that can perform the same duty for months on end before being swapped.
 

cactustwirly

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Not strictly a unit, but 43480 & 43484 were on diagram the same diagram (DY22 I think?) for 4 days in a row last week!
 

dubscottie

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Not a unit, but there were 2 Mk1 buffet cars that almost solely worked every Clansman (Euston-Inverness) in the late 80's/early 90's.

If I remember correctly, these 2 buffets worked that service almost everyday for about two and a half years.

Also there were several 156 units that were "stuck" North of Inverness while the Ness bridge was rebuilt. Once they arrived by road, they did not stray far for months!
 

Peter0124

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This diagram has the same 350 unit working it Monday throughout to Friday. Only one TPE service stables at Craigentinny overnight Mon-Fri therefore this same unit will reappear on the same diagram. It will also work the same morning service on Saturdays but instead ending in Ardwick T.M.D.

5M93 0739 Craigentinny T.&R.S.M.D to Edinburgh
1M93 0811 Edinburgh to Manchester Airport
1S56 1210 Manchester Airport to Edinburgh
1M91 1612 Edinburgh to Manchester Airport
1S88 2010 Manchester Airport to Edinburgh
5S88 0002 Edinburgh to Craigentinny T.&R.S.M.D
 

big all

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yes definatly a shunter as rotation involves back to depot for example the circuit around the 90s was between redhill 3 bridges and horsham in a circuit
typical situation was friday after shift le[light engine] from horsham to 3b and or or 3b to redhill
then sunday night redhill to selhurst to 3b or horsham
so basically a shunter would be away from selhurst for 3 or perhaps 4weeks
to mods saying 16 mistakes ? on grammerly
 

Peter Mugridge

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Would the shunter be working the exact same movements each day within those four weeks, though? I think the original poster is looking for exact daily repetition?
 

big all

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Would the shunter be working the exact same movements each day within those four weeks, though? I think the original poster is looking for exact daily repetition?
well they tend to be fully shunting and seldom trip working so shunting at a depot or sidings
from memmoy a 08/09 had 850 gallons in the tanks plus 70 in the header
in other words shunt at horsham for perhaps 2-3 weeks transfer to 3b for 1-2 weeks then in circuit to redhill on a friday [may have even been saturday morning thinking off it ]
so every 2-3 week a 08/09 would transfer from horsham to 3b on a friday so would spend perhaps 2 weeks at horsham then one at 3b to reach sehurst after perhaps week 3 or 4
 

bramling

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Hello. I'm just wondering if there are any units that has been stuck on a Diagram for a particular length of time (for example, a 156 unit on a brach line).

If so, what are the longest time periods?

On GN, some of the KX-Cambridge/Cambridge North 2Cxx diagrams can see the same unit for several days in a row, sometimes for the full five days of a week. In the past the same used to apply to some of the GN 321 diagrams.

Another one springing to mind from the past is the HEx T4 shuttle unit?
 

pdeaves

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The first GWR 2+4 HST workings used the same stock for several weeks as there was only the first set available for use. The power car with yellow dragon (and Geraint Thomas name) was one of the vehicles.
 

swt_passenger

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Didn’t the dedicated SWT Lymington units (3CIGs) work for many days at a time on that branch? I don’t think they alternated use each day anyway.
 

sd0733

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When the 350/3s came out they had set diagrams for a few weeks, only one was a Crewe start, Crewe finish which began 0540 Crewe-Liv and finished 2234 Liv-Crewe and 350370 was on it for quite a few weeks until they were merged into the general pool.
 

Llama

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The 150/2 currently with Northern cobbled together IIRC from 57209 and 57212 vehicles and therefore which has no toilet was usually found on the same diagram (Rochdale-Blackburn) which started and finished at Newton Heath. It ran coupled with varying 153s though to provide facilities.
 

sd0733

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The 150/2 currently with Northern cobbled together IIRC from 57209 and 57212 vehicles and therefore which has no toilet was usually found on the same diagram (Rochdale-Blackburn) which started and finished at Newton Heath. It ran coupled with varying 153s though to provide facilities.
I was surprised to see that unit over in Liverpool twice last week. Always thought it stuck on that diagram unless that's no longer the case. Was in a pair with another 150/2 both times.
 

700007

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Near a bunch of sheds that aren't 66s.
I think I am right in thinking 315858 does the same one or two diagram on weekdays at London Overground where 315s don't split during off peak due to an issue with the unit not being able to run alone.
 

mervyn72

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On GN, some of the KX-Cambridge/Cambridge North 2Cxx diagrams can see the same unit for several days in a row, sometimes for the full five days of a week. In the past the same used to apply to some of the GN 321 diagrams.

Another one springing to mind from the past is the HEx T4 shuttle unit?

I concur. I had 700050 8 weekdays running on the 1827 of Cambridge back home last month
 

Bikeman78

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I think I am right in thinking 315858 does the same one or two diagram on weekdays at London Overground where 315s don't split during off peak due to an issue with the unit not being able to run alone.
There are eight pairs of 315s in the peaks. Four pairs split into singles, two stay out all day as pairs and the remaining two stable at Chingford off peak. So there's four different options for 315858.
 

Dr Hoo

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Funicular railways always have the same stock on the same track. Some have effectively been on the same diagram for 100 years or so.
 
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