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433N Rambling (on and on and on ... )

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433N

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Very clear. I type this approaching Putney, using the wifi on what would presumably be 707-012-8! :)

Well, mebbee. I have to say though that I haven't managed to get the right digit yet from a real loco ... I think you might need a degree in Maths or something to do it correctly ... oh, hang on .... :(

Must get back to doing this TR, soz for delay ... alot of stuff on and having to teach my daughter to drive which is causing me to suffer from nervous exhaustion and needing to spend alot of hours in a darkened room. :(
 
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Techniquest

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That really can't be easy at all, credit where it's due for taking on that challenge though good sir!

I'm sure we can wait for the trip report, real life gets in the way for all of us at one time or another! Indeed, I do have a mini trip report to do myself but I haven't got around to it yet
 

433N

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That really can't be easy at all, credit where it's due for taking on that challenge though good sir!

I'm sure we can wait for the trip report, real life gets in the way for all of us at one time or another! Indeed, I do have a mini trip report to do myself but I haven't got around to it yet

I take it you've met my daughter. :)

Actually, I've already got my son (who is younger) through his test, but he is a different kettle of fish.

Anyway, no need wait ... I just needed to focus ...
 

433N

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Apols for being a bit late with my train report homework. I've gone back to pdfs because I find them a bit quicker and easier for the photos ... soz.
Contribution removed
 
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Kite159

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Beware of those train themed flower beds ;)

It was days like that I bet you wished the Edinburgh Days Out pass was still in existence :(
 

433N

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Beware of those train themed flower beds ;)

It was days like that I bet you wished the Edinburgh Days Out pass was still in existence :(

Luckily for you lot, I resisted a temptation to include a photograph of the bruise on my back !

I have been lamenting the demise of the Edinburgh Days Out, for sure. I'm thinking of trying to get them to re-implement it by pointing out that Glasgow has still got one of sorts ... that should focus some minds. ;)
 

Kite159

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Luckily for you lot, I resisted a temptation to include a photograph of the bruise on my back !

I have been lamenting the demise of the Edinburgh Days Out, for sure. I'm thinking of trying to get them to re-implement it by pointing out that Glasgow has still got one of sorts ... that should focus some minds. ;)

Maybe they knew it would be purchased by haulage hunters going between Edinburgh & Falkirk to hunt down 385s for decent mileages ;) It was a shame because they were useful for weekend trips in the Edinburgh area, a lot cheaper than the full fat 3-day Central Scotland ranger.

The ones in Glasgow are not so good to hunt down 385s from Queen Street, connections at Croy are not the best
 

433N

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Maybe they knew it would be purchased by haulage hunters going between Edinburgh & Falkirk to hunt down 385s for decent mileages ;) It was a shame because they were useful for weekend trips in the Edinburgh area, a lot cheaper than the full fat 3-day Central Scotland ranger.

The ones in Glasgow are not so good to hunt down 385s from Queen Street, connections at Croy are not the best

At least the Daytripper allows decent mileage on the 385s out of Central (Shotts, Carluke) ... and you can do fairly decent distances daytripping (obvs - clue is in the name) .

The whole Edinburgh (and Glasgow) Days Out tickets were a bit bizarre.
They were probably brought in to spread tourists from Edinburgh since it is pretty full of tourists all year now and ScotGov probably wanted to spread the joy around. Anything you bring in for Edinburgh, you have to bring in for Glasgow (although obviously not the other way around since there was/is no SPT equivalent). Unsurprisingly few tourists used them ; they would probably only appeal to tourists spending a week in Edinburgh - and who can afford that ! They weren't very well advertised and then they got withdrawn after a period of time which seemed too short to assess demand.
Before I got the time and inclination to use one, they were gone.
 

Far north 37

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Friday 28th June - Tuesday 2nd July

This is my third, and probably final, visit to Berlin. Each visit has been at roughly 15 year intervals and, boy, has it changed since 1991. Then it was two distinct cities and two distinct cultures making it unique - cranes offering bungee jumps on the old No Man's Land. Now it is one homogenised mass of commercialism which only pays lip service to the former East Germany because 'they lost'. [see https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/german-reunification-in-the-1990s.183735/ for further reading]. In the old Berlin, the overly-commercial western showcase Ku'damm was always the most soulless part of Berlin. I think the glass dome on the Reichstag is rubbish and out of place. I shudder at seeing a Primark in Alexanderplatz, the heart of old East Berlin ... and can't even find the statue of Marx and Engels any more. When I first visited, I fell in love with Berlin and thought I'd like to live there for 6 months when I retired. Now, I have no inclination to visit again. The destruction of the Palast der Republik is the true story of Berlin and I made a point of listening to Einstuerzende Neubauten's gig there shortly before its demolition when I got home. End of rant, back to the trains.

On the first day there, I made a point of recording the traction of S-bahn rides which we used mainly since it was slightly cooler in the stifling heat than the U-bahn. The S-bahn trains, however, seemed to be random formations of 481 and 482 units without apparent rhyme or reason to numbering and so I gave up.



We also managed a ride on an 885 on S fortysomething. Sunday 30th June when the temperature was predicted to touch 40 was reserved for a trip to the Technikalische Museum and we were hopeful for air conditioning ; we weren't lucky. For some reason, much of it was closed (maybe due to the weather) and it wasn't the impressive collection that we remembered from our previous visit. Luckily the engine sheds were still open though, allowing a squint at the V 200.



The next day, we accidentally bumped into former East German express 175 015 at Berlin Lichtenberg after having visited the Stasi Museum; a mighty fine sight.



Then it was time for the long trek west. For the homeward leg, we had booked an ICE from Berlin Hauptbahnhof but, again, I deemed it would be easier to go to Spandau since we had much lugguge in tow. In actual fact, the train started at Berlin Gesundbrunnen which would have been easy for us but took an inordinate amount of time to get to Hauptbahnhof. So we caught DMUs 648 121 and 648 110 to Spandau, passing the surprising sight of a BR 132 in the yards on the way.



Again, some middle cab action was observed on arrival at Spandau.



Our onward journey was on ICE 2 pairing 402 027 - 808 027 on the Berlin - Koeln run. Knowing the length of journey, I had made seat reservations and outlined to my son the diagram on the station platform which showed the train formation and where we would be sitting ... only to find that the unit had been switched around and so we had to walk through 8 carriages to find our seats. Needless to say on finding our seats, they were occupied and so I had to use my best German (although probably not my politest having had to walk through 8 carriages) to throw people out of them.



The ICE made a nice change from our, by now, usual regional offerings and the 4 hour 20 minute journey flew by. I particularly like the leaflets that come on the ICE which detail the intermediate stops and the connections that you can make at them. The train was fairly rammed until Hannover where the majority alighted and was quite lightly loaded onwards. The German network is such that in most cases to travel from Berlin requires doing the Berlin - Hannover hop if going south (e.g. Munich) or east. At Hannover, we were treated to the sight of another couple of stabled 218s (831 and 834). Somewhere between Hamm and Wuppertal, we pass 272 201 which does a passable impression of a Class 58

We arrive at Koeln in time for a quick PNB and wander to have a good squint at the cathedral before catching ICE3 No 406 085 (or 4685 as it says on the tin) to Brussels.



Before arrival, we are treated to sweeping views of Schaerbeek depot in all its glory and catch a glimpse of some glorious diesel beasts lined up, presumably awaiting their trip to Belgian Booths.



Rather than make the final leg of the journey to London, we have booked to go to Antwerp to stay the night and have a look around and we change for that purpose at Bruxelles Nord. We hop aboard the train to Antwerp which is travelling DVT first and revisit the glorious sight of Schaerbeek again. Obviously, our interest in trains doesn't go unnoticed and on the approach to Mechelin we receive some gold-plated gen from the Belgian gentleman across the aisle who informs us (in broken English that is much better than my Flemish) that there will be some interesting freight trains on his side of the line in a minute. I venture over and get the opportunity to photograph 4 of the aforementioned diesel beasts on engineering trains constructing the new lines (and platforms) at Mechelin.



I thank this wonderful gent profusely ; but he's not finished. Outside Antwerp he informs me that there is a special train coming up and so it is ... Infrabel ECTS 165 202 is parked up.



which (from what I can gather) is part of the new Belgian fleet compatible with European Train Control Systems (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Train_Control_System). How wonderful it is to have a local rail guide with the gen !

We arrive in Antwerp Centraal to find that our traction for the journey had been SNCB 2735.



Not for the first time on this journey, we are hoping to explore a place more than we had done previously. Our previous visit had been at the end of a camping holiday in 2005 which had seen 40+ temperatures and we had been confined to a hotel in Antwerp docks area, only venturing into town for a quick smash-and-grab on a pizza. This time we get a more leisurely visit and explore more. For those who like their trams I attach a picture of one of their wonderful 'legacy' trams which, at first sight, I think is a tourist novelty tram until I realise that actually they are just in regular service (although soon to be replaced). They do seem older than those on the Kirnitzschtalbahn which we visited a few years ago.



We eat pizza out and to round off our last night, I buy 3 local beers to celebrate, blissfully unaware of the existence of Kriek. Whilst my wife and son get normal ones, I am left with the Kriek that I ordered. Strange that cherry beer can be so bitter ; if you have never experienced one, you really should.

After overnighting in Antwerp (not a very positive airbnb experience) it is July 3rd and we head to Antwerp Centraal for an early morning train back to Bruxelles, this time powered by SNCB 2154.



We arrive in Bruxelles without a hitch and with enough time to have a quick stop and look around the grand central square in Bruxelles / Brussels which my son doesn't remember visiting 10 years previously; the Belgians certainly know how to do a grand square. We give the weeing boy statue a miss. We then head back to Centraal to hop on a train to Zuid / Midi - (kind of getting lost in an English/French/Flemish language warp now). Haulage is by SNCB 1806 but the stock is quite exceptional and exquisitely retro. In fact, it is so unusual that two youngish women are so freaked out that they ask whether it is a first class carriage presumably thinking it is akin to the Orient Express.





We arrive at Zuid and proceed to the Eurostar waiting area which is hot, humid and airless for our jaunt back to Blighty. Today, our chariot is 373008 which seems to be one that is dodging the cutter's torch. At Calais, our attention is drawn in the yards to a 67 which looks much like its counterpart UK class 67. Unfortunately, we are so distracted that we miss ID'ing a double-headed freight with DBC grey 92s (which would have been winners) and, on arrival in the UK, we ID duds 92032 and 92044 at Dollands Moor but fail to ID a further grey DBC 92 (which would have been a winner). Spotting sucks sometimes.



Having left a goodly amount of time to transfer, we proceed up the Pentonville Road to get a cold sandwich (it's strange the things you miss in Euroland) from the Sainsburys Local and tube it to Marylebone to sit and eat it. Whilst Marylebone is a nice station, all seats seem to be taken by the looks of it by people called Harriet or Rupert. 68010 is about to pull out, but unfortunately not on our train. We ID 3 x 165 winners (012,034,038) and our chariot back to Banbury is 168001 which is a winner for everything.



Wembley CS throw up another couple of dud 68s (where is 11 ?), 3 more 165 winners (001,023,035) and 172102 which heralds the firing of a microclass clearance water pistol (172/1s). Preserved shunter D3018 puts in an appearance at Princes Risborough and arrival at Banbury is accompanied by an additional 165 winner (014).

... and there ends my essay on what I did on my summer holiday. Thanks for reading and apologies for the tardiness of this final chapter.
The two dbc class 92s you seen in france that day were 92019 and 036 if that helps.
 

xotGD

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If the housing estate is still being built then there is every chance that the roads are not yet 'public roads' and still owned by the developer. So they are at liberty to clamp cars they don't like. Glad to hear they didn't get you!
 

Kite159

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If the housing estate is still being built then there is every chance that the roads are not yet 'public roads' and still owned by the developer. So they are at liberty to clamp cars they don't like. Glad to hear they didn't get you!

They can clamp but then they will be breaking the law as clamping was effectively banned in 2012

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19782680
 

433N

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They can clamp but then they will be breaking the law as clamping was effectively banned in 2012

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19782680

Yes. Thanks for that, I suspected that it would be the case but you've saved me googling. If it were allowed, it would be a minefield over safety and how the car would be unclamped - let alone whether they could charge. Having suffered the unpleasantness of endless harassing letters from UKPC over a parking incident, I have realised that at the end of the day Persimmon would not have much of a leg to stand on.

To be fair, I think the word 'may' in 'may be clamped' is telling and indicating they won't be. Persimmon are probably just a little peeved trying to get construction vehicles down roads (which are surprisingly narrow actually and) clogged with parked up cars. However, the situation was entirely predictable and perhaps they should have thought about mitigating it a bit more.
 

433N

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Monday March 9th 2020 : Merseyrail - This time its personal

With TPE turning into Poundland last month, I decided to book a day out for further pursuance of those pesky 507/508 blighters.

Having just done a trip report on Merseyrail, I'll keep this one brief. Prior to set off, I spent far too long planning to see every daytime unit running in the hours that I'd be there (roughly 11:30 - 16:00), go past the depots, get a bit more haulage and see some daylight. First, was a quick trip to Lockerbie. Arriving by car at around 8:15, I wanged round to the Tesco car park on the off chance that the Mossend - Daventry DBC 90s were there ... and they were - always a lovely sight (90040 and 90028). Unfortunately, they took fright and started to pull away just as I was about to park up and get the mother of all photos. :(

To the station I went and, on not finding the machine, I asked the lady in the ticket office if there was a machine. She told me that she was it and so I apologised as I didn't really know how to talk to human beings any more. I was delighted to see the 09:02 departure Glasgow Central to Liverpool Lime St was a 3 car train. To this point, I hadn't had the pleasure of a long journey on a 185, but a very lightly loaded 185141 came along to take me on my way. Both Carlisle North Yard and Kingmoor had a good smattering of locos and my first winner of the day was 397001 which was parked up in Preston carriage sidings (although this one is even worse to ID than the rest of them since it only has a number on one end). 331005 and 195103 presented themselves as winners passing Edge Hill and then it was into Lime Street and a scurry down into the tunnels.

My movements are probably best described by my haulage and itinerary ... so here it goes :

507029 Lime St - Birkenhead Central
508115 Birkenhead Central - Hamilton Square
508112 Hamilton Square - Wallasey Village
507001 Wallasey Village - Birkenhead North
508112 Birkenhead North - Moorfields
507031 Moorfields - Sandhills
508122 Sandhills - Moorfields
507018 Moorfields - Sandhills
507023 Sandhills - Kirkdale
508123 Kirkdale - Moorfields
507010 Moorfields - Lime St

A full spreadsheet of what was working what and what not, is attached. All in all 6 x 507 winners and 4 x 508 winners - not bad at all for the ridiculously small monetary outlay.

As before though, I am puzzled as to where the units that I didn't see actually were. These comprised 7 x 507s and 8 x 508s and I had chalked off one stabled at Birkenhead Central, 2 stabled outside Birkenhead EMUD (which were coupled together and ran ecs to Kirkdale) and 3 stabled outside Kirkdale. The buildings at Birkenhead and Kirkdale don't seem big enough to house a large number of units. I guess some must be at Southport, although on the day in question I notice that they didn't couple up any to strengthen rush hour services. Where can you hide 15 EMUs on Merseyrail ????

On returning to Lime St, incredibly winner 350115 was waiting for a service ; I don't need many, but I need one less now. My return journey to Lockerbie required a change at Lancaster from (again, rather nicely) 185144 onto 397006 running a Manchester Airport - Edinburgh service. It has to be said, the 185 was a much nicer ride than the 397 in my opinion.

I'm hoping for another trip down to Merseyside at some point ; coronavirus permitting. I actually have another journey booked but the chance of not being in quarantine on that day seem quite slim at the moment. :(
 

Techniquest

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Ouch to not feeling great at the moment! I thought I was in the line of fire for a nasty illness too, having not dosed up on meds when I should have at the weekend, but I've fought it off and I'll be back to normal tomorrow. I need to be, I'm missing my cycling, I want to get back onto my intense exercise regime!

Hopefully you'll be fine soon too :)

Good to see you had a decent result on MerseyRail, you'd be surprised how many EMUs you can store at Birkenhead. Don't forget there is/was space to do so at Birkenhead Central too, and New Brighton can certainly play host to more than a couple of EMUs off-peak. In short, there's a surprising amount of space to put the units, and that depot at Kirkside or whatever it's called is rather big!
 

433N

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Ouch to not feeling great at the moment! I thought I was in the line of fire for a nasty illness too, having not dosed up on meds when I should have at the weekend, but I've fought it off and I'll be back to normal tomorrow. I need to be, I'm missing my cycling, I want to get back onto my intense exercise regime!

Hopefully you'll be fine soon too :)

Good to see you had a decent result on MerseyRail, you'd be surprised how many EMUs you can store at Birkenhead. Don't forget there is/was space to do so at Birkenhead Central too, and New Brighton can certainly play host to more than a couple of EMUs off-peak. In short, there's a surprising amount of space to put the units, and that depot at Kirkside or whatever it's called is rather big!

Sorry. Didn't mean to imply that I had the coronavirus now. As far as I know, I don't - I was just meaning that we'll all have it soon and have to be locked down.

I wondered about New Brighton but from what I can see from Google maps, there only seems to be a couple of spare lines which could play host to a couple of units. About the same situation at West Kirby. I've haven't seen any Merseyrail units stabled at Chester when I've been and there doesn't seem to be a facility for doing so at Ellesmere Port or Ormskirk. Seems to me either Kirkdale and Birkenhead depots are like the tardis or 50x's can be flat-packed for easy storage.

I think they'd need to do some gardening before putting anything in the shed at Birkenhead Central.
 

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Techniquest

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Oh wow, that has got overgrown then since I was last in the area!

If I get that bloody virus I'll not be happy, 2 weeks off work and unable to leave the house? I get super bored after just an afternoon at home!
 
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