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Incongrous road sign at Penryn

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Peter Fox

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Taken July 2020 next to Penryn station (Cornwall). How long since this line had a steam loco on it?PenrynSignpost.jpg
 
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SargeNpton

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The brown sign indicates a tourist attraction, so perhaps for those a steam engine is the default icon.
 

ainsworth74

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The brown sign indicates a tourist attraction, so perhaps for those a steam engine is the default icon.

Yes I think the question here is why has the Falmouth branch, an active part of the National Rail network, gained a tourist attraction sign rather than the more usual BR double arrow that would be used to point out railway stations?
 

pompeyfan

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Yes I think the question here is why has the Falmouth branch, an active part of the National Rail network, gained a tourist attraction sign rather than the more usual BR double arrow that would be used to point out railway stations?

by the same logic though, why are the Gunnislake and Looe branches both advertised the same way? In some respects the branch lines themselves ARE a tourist attraction.
 

Devonian

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I may well be wrong, but I seem to remember that road signs use the double arrow only with the single word word 'Station' in almost all circumstances, rather than the name of the station(s), as can be seen on this very sign. I think the exception is where there are multiple stations nearby which require clarification. That means that a different style has to be used for a sign pointing to the named branch line, so the brown tourist sign style is the only available option.

Why a steam train? The same argument for why it's a steam train on the 'level crossing wthout gates or barrier' signs: it was always an anachronism, but a steam train has a more distinctive 'train' outline than a boxier diesel or electric train/bus/tram.
 

ainsworth74

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by the same logic though, why are the Gunnislake and Looe branches both advertised the same way? In some respects the branch lines themselves ARE a tourist attraction.

Oh interesting, I didn't know that they were! They're interesting enough and perhaps Looe does warrant the moniker but I'm not sure I'd considering rattling up to Gunnislake in a 150 to be particularly "attractive" to anyone other than enthusiasts and the Falmouth branch even less so :lol:
 

Peter Fox

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Oh interesting, I didn't know that they were! They're interesting enough and perhaps Looe does warrant the moniker but I'm not sure I'd considering rattling up to Gunnislake in a 150 to be particularly "attractive" to anyone other than enthusiasts and the Falmouth branch even less so :lol:
Being on the train (except for vibrationaholics) is not very exciting. But if you take your (e- recommended) bike you can enjoy the Carnon viaduct at SW 785 405 from beneath. I was also impressed with the scale of the embankment at SW 785 405. Those railway builders must have been mad! As I've discovered, having just moved to Totnes from Essex, all of Devon and Cornwall is up,up, uppety-up then immediately down,down, downity down and then UUUU,DDDD, and repeat. (Hence my trip to Penryn to the specialist e-bike shop.)
 

bramling

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Oh interesting, I didn't know that they were! They're interesting enough and perhaps Looe does warrant the moniker but I'm not sure I'd considering rattling up to Gunnislake in a 150 to be particularly "attractive" to anyone other than enthusiasts and the Falmouth branch even less so :lol:

The Gunnislake branch does seem to be regarded as a tourist attraction. When I went up there there were two separate groups of elderly people, one group had taken the train all the way from Camborne just to do the trip. They were rather peeved with the 150 as not many seats align well to the windows, so there was a lot of faffing around deciding where they were all going to sit!
 

Mag_seven

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Why a steam train? The same argument for why it's a steam train on the 'level crossing wthout gates or barrier' signs: it was always an anachronism, but a steam train has a more distinctive 'train' outline than a boxier diesel or electric train/bus/tram.

To most people it really doesn't matter one jot what type of train is shown on the sign as they all understand the meaning of it i.e. level crossing ahead. It only seems to matter to pedantic rail enthusiasts. ;)
 

pdeaves

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Yes I think the question here is why has the Falmouth branch, an active part of the National Rail network, gained a tourist attraction sign rather than the more usual BR double arrow that would be used to point out railway stations?
The picture shows the 'more usual BR double arrow' as well.
 

plymothian

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All the Cornish branch lines, plus the Tarka Line, are marketed as tourist attractions through the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership, so they all have brown tourist direction signs as well as National Rail direction signs.
 

Master29

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Oh interesting, I didn't know that they were! They're interesting enough and perhaps Looe does warrant the moniker but I'm not sure I'd considering rattling up to Gunnislake in a 150 to be particularly "attractive" to anyone other than enthusiasts and the Falmouth branch even less so :lol:
I`ve been from Fort William to Mallaig on a 150 and probably the most scenic journey I`ve ever had in the UK. Cheaper than the Jacobite rip off.
 

ainsworth74

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I`ve been from Fort William to Mallaig on a 150 and probably the most scenic journey I`ve ever had in the UK. Cheaper than the Jacobite rip off.

You sure it was a 150 and not a 156? They're very different from a passenger comfort point of view...
 

Master29

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You sure it was a 150 and not a 156? They're very different from a passenger comfort point of view...
I`m happy to be corrected as you're probably right but the idea remains the same. However, I would still have had the same experience on a 150. It was the experience itself rather than the class of carriage. Even a 143 would have been adequate. All relative to preference of course.
 

Tetchytyke

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Yes I think the question here is why has the Falmouth branch, an active part of the National Rail network, gained a tourist attraction sign rather than the more usual BR double arrow that would be used to point out railway stations?

Railways in touristy areas often do- some of the S&C stations in the Dales have them too.
 

Master29

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Railways in touristy areas often do- some of the S&C stations in the Dales have them too.
There are a few rail groups that promote lines as tourist attractions in the South West. The St Ives, Tarka lines etc.
 

Surreytraveller

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I imagine the sign was designed back in the day when steam engines were still commonplace, and simply hasn't been updated. Same as the level crossing without barriers sign.
 

DelW

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I imagine the sign was designed back in the day when steam engines were still commonplace, and simply hasn't been updated. Same as the level crossing without barriers sign.
Not really ... our current signage designs result from a comprehensive review done by the Warboys Committee in the early and mid 1960s, when steam, while still around, was very definitely on the way out.

Their remit was to improve the readability and recognition of signs, enabling drivers to read them better in fast moving traffic, and the outline of a steam loco is far more recognisable than a diesel or electric outline would be. Even now young drivers are likely to have encountered Thomas the Tank Engine during their early years!
 

PR1Berske

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I'll be corrected happily, this is cribbed from memory.

Any tourist attraction which earns a brown sign gets designated one based on what they are: a tree and picnic table for a public park, an elephant for zoo, and a steam train for heritage rail, that sort of thing.
 

pdeaves

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I'll be corrected happily, this is cribbed from memory.

Any tourist attraction which earns a brown sign gets designated one based on what they are: a tree and picnic table for a public park, an elephant for zoo, and a steam train for heritage rail, that sort of thing.
An elephant even if the zoo has no pachyderms. A steam engine even if the railway does not run steam.
 

Master29

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The icons are familiar, much like the Monopoly icons. Look at the age of the car and boat. Who wears a top hat nowadays ordinarily and who uses a steam iron or thimble yet most of us recognize them.
 

Mojo

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It’s just a standard national road sign, the symbols are all the same. You can have a look at them all here: http://www.followthebrownsigns.com/brown-signs/

I went on a school trip once to Bristol Zoo, apparently they get a lot of complaints/questions about where the elephants are, because all the road signs across the city taking you to the zoo have an elephant symbol. There are no elephants at Bristol Zoo! As an aside I was amused to see at the weekend a small zoo in North Lincolnshire has made its own brown tourist signs and put them up at the side of the road. Very convincing with the right colours and nearly the right font, the main giveaway being the use of a kangaroo pictogram rather than an elephant. Of course there are no kangaroos in Scunthorpe either...
 

Brissle Girl

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Cheaper than the Jacobite rip off.
That's a matter of opinion. Yes of course it's expensive compared with a service train, but you are not comparing like for like. It's reasonably priced compared with shorter preserved railways, or a full length tour, offers an all summer round service, and as you say offers stunning scenery. It brings in a lot of tourist revenue to the Fort William area, and I suspect Mallaig retailers enjoy the benefit it brings too. No doubt without it there would be a small employment hit too, both directly and indirectly.

So sure, if you want to take the cheap option, that's fine, but don't knock a service that brings great enjoyment for many, boosts the local economy, and whose success suggests that it's priced at a sensible point for what it offers.
 

Harpers Tate

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That icon appears in many places, not just for tourist attractions:

1595659409983.png

...and, no, that's not a preserved railway - the most likely sight here would be a 156, although it may see an odd steam train "special" from time to time.
 

AM9

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It’s just a standard national road sign, the symbols are all the same. You can have a look at them all here: http://www.followthebrownsigns.com/brown-signs/

I went on a school trip once to Bristol Zoo, apparently they get a lot of complaints/questions about where the elephants are, because all the road signs across the city taking you to the zoo have an elephant symbol. There are no elephants at Bristol Zoo! ...
Only on a rail forum could there be so much debate about a standard road sign. I'm waiting for somebody to say that the colour is correct for a line on Cornwall, but the engine is totally the wrong class for a GWR branch line.
 
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Hadders

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Not really ... our current signage designs result from a comprehensive review done by the Warboys Committee in the early and mid 1960s, when steam, while still around, was very definitely on the way out.

Their remit was to improve the readability and recognition of signs, enabling drivers to read them better in fast moving traffic, and the outline of a steam loco is far more recognisable than a diesel or electric outline would be. Even now young drivers are likely to have encountered Thomas the Tank Engine during their early years!

I think the brown backed tourist signs were introduced in 1994 following a review of signage.
 
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