Network Rail builds icy weather trains for South East

[ushawk]

From the BBC website -

A fleet of snow and ice-treatment trains is being built by Network Rail in Derby to help keep services running in the South East during icy weather.

Passengers suffered cancellations and delays on Southeastern services in Kent, Surrey and Sussex last December.

Hundreds of passengers were stuck for several hours overnight on trains.

The snow treatment train will consist of a snow plough, locomotive and treatment wagon at each end, meaning it can travel in both directions.

The six trains were developed at a cost of £10m and will be brought into service next month.

They are part of a £40m investment to improve services during the winter months.

Two will operate in Kent, two in Sussex and two for Surrey, Hampshire and Dorset.

Network Rail said the south east of England has "the only railway in the world of this size, complexity and high level of usage".

The snow treatment train is designed to clear snow from the rails to 50mm above the track at the front of the train.

A snow plough is pushed by a locomotive, with a treatment wagon behind equipped with sleet brushes to scrape ice from the conductor rail.

Hot de-icing fluid is also applied to the rails from the treatment wagon with up to 30 hours of continuous operation possible.

Southeastern was heavily criticised in December after passengers suffered delays, cancellations and amended timetables during the snowy weather. Southern Railway services also suffered during the severe conditions.

In September, Southeastern announced that stranded train passengers would be provided with glowsticks and foil blankets as part of its severe weather contingency plans.

Anthony Smith, the chief executive of Passenger Focus, said passengers would be pleased to hear about the winter planning.

However, he added: "The proof is in the pudding and the industry will be under the spotlight this year."

Snow train treatment

Clear snow from running and conductor rails to 50mm above the rail
Ice scrape and de-ice using a heavy duty sleet brush/ice scraper
Apply hot de-icing fluid onto the conductor rail.

Link to a Diagram of what the trains would look like, looks rather like a class 73, or maybe its just an example - http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/56607000/jpg/_56607670_snow_train.jpg

 

[Anonywave]

Great, looks like there is finally some decent preparation for winter.

 

[150222]

These trains will be formed of ex-virgin class 57/3's.

 

[haloweenhamste]

Can't see why more train don't have there own onboard deicing
Don't know what class but some bombardier trains have deicers

 

[SS4]

I'd be very interesting to see the reaction if poor train weather fails to arrive

 

[Blindtraveler]

how about a cupple for Scotland? Pritty please?

 

[Hydro]

I'd be very interesting to see the reaction if poor train weather fails to arrive

Can't be any worse than when it does arrive and the railway has it's pants around it's ankles.

 

[Nym]

Hydro, it's the south, there'll be international news coverage for weeks on end because one line closed thanks to a few inches of snow...

When we still had 156s running to Bridlington, thanks to minature snow ploughs they carried on through drifts that they really wern't ment to, never any issues there.

Not of course that I'm implying a north south divide here at all...

 

[150222]

how about a cupple for Scotland? Pritty please?

They are designed for 3rd rail!

 

[steamybrian]

I beleive it when I see it...!
Wow -- it will clear snow from 50mm above rail level but that is about TWO INCHES. ..!

 

[Nym]

And Scotland has ploughs anyway...
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I beleive it when I see it...!
Wow -- it will clear snow from 50mm above rail level but that is about TWO INCHES. ..!

From 50mm above track level, so it doesn't end up taking all the AWS and TWPS loops with it...! It will leave 50mm of snow that will be gotten rid of by the de-icer it's pulling behind it...

 

[KBD1]

50mm? thought the rails would be ok at that.
Is this snow or ice?
Thats not much of a cover.
There again i do not know regarding 3rd rail.

 

[Nym]

Looks like somone screwed the press release, if the diagram is correct it looks like a standard low level plough, so can clear up to 4ft deep snow, that includes drifts in platforms.

 

[Blindtraveler]

They are designed for 3rd rail!

addapted naturally! Even just deicing the rails would help!

 

[Hydro]

Not of course that I'm implying a north south divide here at all...

Yeah, the north has much better trains for dealing with snow! Miniature snow ploughs/ 15x style obstacle deflectors, unheard of in the south!

 

[Nym]

Although the 158 ended the minature snow ploughs... They really did work!

 

[RichmondCommu]

Its good to see that the rail industry is showing signs of getting its finger out this winter!

 

[GB]

GBRf will be the operators and will be for next 5 years.

Will be 24 hr cover.

 

[amcluesent]

Won't these just get stuck behind stuck trains? Or will they run at night?

 

[BestWestern]

GBRf will be the operators and will be for next 5 years.

Will be 24 hr cover.

So GBRf will operate NR's 57s on their behalf? Or have the plans changed now?

 

[driver9000]

Although the 158 ended the minature snow ploughs... They really did work!

What you see on the front of a 15x unit isn't a snow plough, it is an obstacle deflector. The plate is too high to be considered a plough.

Some Scottish region 156s had their deflectors modified to act as miniature ploughs and the ScotRail 158s also had suitably altered skirts to act as a plough.

I don't see a problem with it clearing 50mm above the the rail, trains can run normally with the rails covered up to 200mm without ploughs. The 57s had work done to their Dellner couplers to enable them to haul stranded 37x units which didn't seem to like the cold weather last year. I believe this is one of the main reasons the 57s were chosen. This is hardly a revolutionary idea though, the Southern region already has de icing units and 73s for ploughing, I remember the outcry last year when the de icers were sent for overhaul a day or two before the bad weather hit. Weren't most of last years problems caused by the computer controlled 37x units getting upset by current interruption and tripping themselves out? Well done to Network Rail for adding to its winter fleet and looking at its winter plans though.

 

[michael769]

how about a cupple for Scotland? Pritty please?

Scotland is getting its own kit:

The initiatives revealed today include a new £1m winter-weather engineering train – which can be used to defrost key junctions during periods of prolonged sub-zero temperatures and to transport engineers and equipment quickly around the rail network when roads are closed.

The company will also be using a helicopter to thermal image the network to identify spots where severe weather could take hold and more off-road vehicles are being made available to the company’s engineers.

This winter will also see the launch of new on-track technologies designed to keep the railway infrastructure, and points* in particular, free of ice and snow, including:

Trialling a new system of insulating points heater strips which will help them work for longer in the worst of the winter weather
Fitting snow displacers at selected points to stop snow building up between the point ends and blocking the points
Reducing the ballast depth beneath sets of points to prevent the metal components sticking to the stones below during periods of prolonged sub-zero temperatures
Using NASA-grade insulation material currently used on space suits to insulate the inside of points machines to help prevent water building up or freezing inside them
Installing current monitors at various sets of points to check changes in power and warn when points are starting to fail

The company’s fleet of 10 Scottish-based snow clearing trains will also be in full operation throughout the winter and teams of engineers will work around-the-clock through any severe weather to man key pieces of infrastructure.

http://www.breakingtravelnews.com/news/article/network-rail-ready-to-beat-the-next-big-freeze/

 

[Tottenham Flyer]

So GBRf will operate NR's 57s on their behalf? Or have the plans changed now?

That would explain why GBRf drivers have been driving 57305 around North London the last couple of days...

 

[tbtc]

What you see on the front of a 15x unit isn't a snow plough, it is an obstacle deflector. The plate is too high to be considered a plough.

Some Scottish region 156s had their deflectors modified to act as miniature ploughs and the ScotRail 158s also had suitably altered skirts to act as a plough

Presumably after the incident with the cow at Polmont?

(obviously that was a 47/7, not a Sprinter, but the legacy of that crash meant an "obstacle deflector" was seen as a priority)

 

[pemma]

how about a cupple for Scotland? Pritty please?

Good idea. Some form the cross Pennine routes as well. Shutting down the Sheffield-Manchester route due to snow earlier in the year wasn't any more acceptable than shutting the London commuter routes.

 

[driver9000]

Presumably after the incident with the cow at Polmont?

(obviously that was a 47/7, not a Sprinter, but the legacy of that crash meant an "obstacle deflector" was seen as a priority)

Yes although it was the DBSO leading that derailed. The DBSO fleet was fitted with them soon after Polmont. It was still several years before the Sprinter fleet gained the deflectors. They were delivered without them.

 

[swt_passenger]

Can't see why more train don't have there own onboard deicing
Don't know what class but some bombardier trains have deicers

More trains are having de-icing gear retro-fitted - Southeastern particularly have already announced this a few months back...

A number of the LO 378s were fitted from new.

 

[Electrostar]

Whatever happened to the huge snow ploughs you'd see not the turntable at Old Oak Common and Network South East's wonderful Snowtrain?

 

[mallard]

Whatever happened to [...] Network South East's wonderful Snowtrain?

Moved to Scotland in 2002 (according to this). Maybe that's why winter disruption has been so much of an issue in the south east recently!

 

[starrymarkb]

Yeah, the north has much better trains for dealing with snow! Miniature snow ploughs/ 15x style obstacle deflectors, unheard of in the south!

We have them in the South West. Main issue in the South East is keeping the conductor rails clear to prevent excessive arcing and motor burnouts. And then it seems to be Derby's Finest that are most susceptible.

Have a look a the arcing here - the running rails are OK!
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