Freight train speed limits

[TOCDriver]

Yes it is just you - I never once compared police officers advanced driver training.

I never said you did but like I say, some of you think you're a cut above the rest. Relax and chill, please; you take these forums much too seriously

 

[A-driver]

I never said you did but like I say, some of you think you're a cut above the rest. Relax and chill, please. you take these forums much too seriously

Well with respect id recommend re-reading the thread as you have completely the wrong end of the stick and seem to have mis-understood what the argument is.

No one is suggesting train drivers are superior, all that has been said is that train drivers receive more training and monitoring than ordinary car drivers, nothing to do with advanced emergency service drivers etc. and that much is true without any possible argument.

Sorry, but you have jumped in and completely mis read the posts on here so far.

 

[cjmillsnun]

Cars/bus/lorry drivers are prone to exceeding their legal speed limits. As for the other I did mean vehicles on public roads and not emergency vehicles responding to emergencies.

Commercial and passenger service vehicles are fitted with Tachographs, and although they are not as fancy as OTMR, they can be used to see if a professional driver is driving within the rules, including speed, meal breaks, sleep breaks. If a driver's route is known, then the speed along a given part of the route can be accurately shown (they are a calibrated instrument).

These devices are now not the old fashioned piece of paper in the back of the tacho head, but instead are digital and use a smart card.

Commercial and Passenger service vehicles are also speed limited (commercial class 2 and class 1 are limited to a maximum of 90 km/h (56 MPH) and Passenger service vehicles are limited to a maximum of 100 km/h (62 MPH)

In other words, tachographs now are good enough to act as a deterrent to speeding and the RSL should make it impossible on NSL dual carriageways.

 

[TOCDriver]

Well with respect id recommend re-reading the thread as you have completely the wrong end of the stick and seem to have mis-understood what the argument is.

No one is suggesting train drivers are superior, all that has been said is that train drivers receive more training and monitoring than ordinary car drivers, nothing to do with advanced emergency service drivers etc. and that much is true without any possible argument.

Sorry, but you have jumped in and completely mis read the posts on here so far.

I don't think I have. You convey an aura of superiority and arrogance but that's just an opinion in my view, like it or lump it. Topic finished as far as I'm concerned

 

[A-driver]

I don't think I have. You convey an aura of superiority and arrogance but that's just an opinion in my view, like it or lump it. Topic finished as far as I'm concerned

Fair enough but I don't see where I have stated that or come across like that in this thread. All I have done is state facts.

 

[TOCDriver]

Fair enough but I don't see where I have stated that or come across like that in this thread. All I have done is state facts.

Fair do's. No offence intended

 

[notadriver]

Commercial and passenger service vehicles are fitted with Tachographs, and although they are not as fancy as OTMR, they can be used to see if a professional driver is driving within the rules, including speed, meal breaks, sleep breaks. If a driver's route is known, then the speed along a given part of the route can be accurately shown (they are a calibrated instrument).

These devices are now not the old fashioned piece of paper in the back of the tacho head, but instead are digital and use a smart card.

Commercial and Passenger service vehicles are also speed limited (commercial class 2 and class 1 are limited to a maximum of 90 km/h (56 MPH) and Passenger service vehicles are limited to a maximum of 100 km/h (62 MPH)

In other words, tachographs now are good enough to act as a deterrent to speeding and the RSL should make it impossible on NSL dual carriageways.

I'm a coach driver myself and yes whilst the RSL prevents speeding on dual carriageways and motorways it is common for my 'professional colleagues' to maintain that maximum speed on single carriageway roads. Tachograph evidence alone cannot be used to prosecute a driver for speeding.
Talking of RSL - can you imagine what would happen if these things weren't mandated ? This is why I like to go on about the professionalism of people who drive trains - speeding is extremely rare.

 

[455driver]

I don't think I have. You convey an aura of superiority and arrogance but that's just an opinion in my view, like it or lump it. Topic finished as far as I'm concerned

Fair do's. No offence intended

Well if the top post is not meant to be offensive what would you write if you were being offensive?

 

[Rugd1022]

With regards to what speed a passing train is doing when viewed from a platform, it can sometimes seem as though we're going faster than we actually are, especially with a fully loaded freight train which makes one hell of a racket over pointwork etc - take the Up Slow platform at Luton for example, the max. permitted speed is 55mph but from an observer's point of view it probably seems more like 65 or 70. I always make a point of approaching this particular restriction at just over 50mph, so that by the time the rear of my train is clear of the platform I'll be doing 55 anyway due to the gradient and momentum already built up coming down the bank from Leagrave, then, once clear I can accelerate back up to 60. If you were stood on the south end of this very narrow paltform it could easily look as though I was overspeeding alarmingly (but this isn't the case!)

 

[tra1nsp0tter]

Slight difference here, but not so long ago, I was waiting on my train at Edinburgh Park station, when a class 170 (think it was falkirk bound) went through the station at what seemed to be easily 100mph. I say the word SEEMED, because as has been said already on here, standing on the platform, when a train passes through at a rate of knots, it is hard to say what speed it is doing.

I am also in no way implying that the train in my post was speeding, it was just the perception of the speed as it passed through the station....which was fast..

 

[michael769]

No seemed about it! The linespeed at EP is 100mph and 90-100mph is the norm for the shuttle along there.

 

[Silv1983]

It's a funny thing that this thread has gone into comparisons between police driver training and train driver training. I have done both (well - 'doing' on the train side: only weeks from passing out however), and could give an objective view on both. I won't though, as it's adding fuel to a potential fire!

 

[A-driver]

It's a funny thing that this thread has gone into comparisons between police driver training and train driver training. I have done both (well - 'doing' on the train side: only weeks from passing out however), and could give an objective view on both. I won't though, as it's adding fuel to a potential fire!

I don't think anyone has compared police driver training to train driver training-they are completely different and police drivers are obviously by far the more skilled in many ways.

That comparison was taken way out if context and was about the difference between 'ordinary' car drivers and train drivers of which the point was that a car driver does a test and is good for life-a train driver is re-assessed constantly and knows their traction and road inside out aswell as being fluent in the rules through constant training and assessment. A car driver could have read the Highway Code 50 years ago and drive any car over any road.

Police and emergency service drivers is a completely different kettle of fish.

 

[notadriver]

It's a funny thing that this thread has gone into comparisons between police driver training and train driver training. I have done both (well - 'doing' on the train side: only weeks from passing out however), and could give an objective view on both. I won't though, as it's adding fuel to a potential fire!

It was taken out of context by someone who I believe doesn't appreciate the special skill set train drivers have and that they are vastly overpaid thanks to their union. All because I dared to claim our training is better than a car/bus/lorry driver and we are the only ones allowed to routinely exceed 70 mph legally.

 

[tra1nsp0tter]

No seemed about it! The linespeed at EP is 100mph and 90-100mph is the norm for the shuttle along there.

I didn't know that it was 100mph linespeed at EP, thank you for pointing that out