How difficult is it to arrive or leave at all timetabled platforms. 5 year project to achieve this.

[All platforms]

Saw this at Piccadilly earlier and you popped into my head lol

Yeah, P14b is my one remaining platform at Manch picc, and i have seen it pop up once or twice - but at the same time i still have to have a closer look at the Airport a and b variants which come out of the woodwork late at night, and keep meaning to try and combine the two targets. Oh and a triple combo with the Sheffield/Airport overnighters that do the Woodburn/Tinsley Junctions. Over the next few weeks my time should once again start to become my own as the real life commitments that have been ever present this last 12 months start to diminish. Thanks for reminding me i am still not done in Manchester!

I did have a look at possible weekly tickets in SW land recently, but am not yet convinced they are much of a saving, especially with the wider spaced stations. It needs a lot more work yet but its definitely one option to explore, but I will keep that conundrum on ice for a while longer as i turn my steely gaze back to Greater London over the next few months. That will be after a few more East Anglia/Essex jaunts however...

 

[All platforms]

Day 295: Sunday 29/10/2023 - Colchester to Whitham - £6.40 - Super Off-peak Return. Colchester to Ipswich - £6.95 - Super Off-peak Return. Ipswich to Manningtree - £5.20 -0 Off-peak Return. Ely to Littleport - £2.10 - Super Off-peak return. Anglia Plus 1 Day ranger - £17.45 - Valid all day at Weekends. CP Colchester £6.20
Total time today 783 mins - time on trains 439 mins and time waiting 344 mins. Stations completed today 3. Total completed 1532. Platforms completed at completed stations 3511.

"The East Anglian grind continues"

Mightily glad of the extra hour in bed today before the long slog down to East Anglia and beyond, and a new starting point for me in the guise of Colchester, which has a super large car park. I even got to have a bonus half hour snooze upon arrival.

Colchester was chosen for the very unusual starting moves on offer as the lines south of Witham were closed today. First off was a P6 start going to Witham P3 which would involve a crossover from UM to DM at Kelvedon. Big tick and time upon arrival to shuffle off to a local petrol station which very surprisingly had cheap drinks and proper sandwiches so that was a good breakfast sorted then. Coaches galore at Witham too and a slick operation was underway to ensure folks were directed to/from as appropriate without too much fuss. By far the longest wait of the day, but i reckon it was worth it as we would be going back to Colchester from P1 and travelling on the UM to boot. Originally we were due to crossover to the DM at Marks Tey but as we were a few minutes down this turned into the other crossover at Kelvedon instead. Its all good - a few new platforms track and crossovers in the book before turning to matters Ipswich. With regard to Colchester P6. For the most part this can normally only be done as a first or last move so under my rules counts, but i do flag it in case a move pops up at a later stage which can be done as a second or later move, and i do see one such opportunity, so i may be back for this.

So what remains to be done at Ipswich? Lots really, but as is the case around here its extremely difficult to craft a decent itinerary that flows, so i just took the "lets do this one job at a time" approach. First job then was a P2c departure to Felixtowe. 3 different sets arrived from Crown point in Norwich as one, and were then separated so P2C,b and then a all had departures north in quick succession. Neat actually. I wonder if this happens every Sunday? Anyway a first ride to Felixtowe and back with a very short turnaround so no time to even get off the platform before returning to err Ipswich. A nice enough line with a couple of freight branches to the Port together with what looks like a freight line/loop either side of Trimley, and indeed i did see quite a bit of freight on this line as i explored it Sunday and Monday.

Next up was another new Ipswich platform, P3b which is one of the easier remaining ones and a quick out and back to Manningtree. Just a functional duplicate move this one but another tick was the result. The Greater Anglia services were pretty much running on time today and i have to say they are fast turning into my favourite TOC to travel with. They just seem to get the job done and everybody has time for you and displays the right attitude. Not something you can always say elsewhere. I like the coaches they use and if i had one niggle its that they always, always charge for even the most rural car park. It is very apparent that folk are refusing to use these and are parking elsewhere and walking in.

My next task was something that has been bugging me for a very long time and that is the track South of Soham to Chippenham Junction. Its a near 2 hour wait on a Sunday if you turn at Soham, but i had time to continue to Ely and polish off another outstanding station, namely Littleport. By the time i returned to Ipswich over 4 hours had elapsed with most of it on trains, and i do admit to a bit of a doze here and there. Where does the time go.....

Westerfield is a semi tricky station to do P2 there with a Sunday service being the best option although there are a few peak hour services as well. The Felixtowe service also calls but uses P1 each way as the branch line junction starts at the end of the platform. P1 is one of the very few GE stations that does not have platform signage up although the P2 one is quite prominant. The way i did this was to alight on P1 from the Felixtowe service and wait nearly 15 mins for the Lowestoft service which uses P2. My third and final station completion of the day. I wasn't finished with track however as i needed a crossover and some track into Lowestoft P2 despite being there a number of times in the last 12 months. Somehow the P2 arrival line has eluded me however, a point i was soon to rectify albeit after a 90 minute journey - and of course another one on the return. It was still just about light enough on arrival but pitch black on the return so yet again i got comfy and had, you guessed it another snooze. Anyone would think i got no sleep the night before........

The easiest of things to then take the next service South to Colchester and drive the 20 mins back to Ipswich where i was once again bolstering the coffers of a Premier Inn, albeit a whisker over £50 once more. A very successful day and what i haven't mentioned is the number of bonus crossovers in/out of Ipswich which were woven into my choices. In the end no real wasted time and at least one part of every out and back yielded a tick so i am happy. No interesting people encountered today apart from the usual annoying sort who have no idea thet they are err annoying.

Colchester	Depart	6.57​	P6	GE			stations	platforms
Witham	Arrive	7.18​	P3	GE	wait 71m		completed	completed
Witham	Depart	8.29​	P1	GE
Colchester	Arrive	8.45​	P1	GE	wait 16m
Colchester	Depart	9.01​	P2	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	9.18​	P4b	GE	wait 37m
Ipswich	Depart	9.55​	P2c	GE
Felixtowe	Arrive	10.18​	Single	GE	wait 7m
Felixtowe	Depart	10.25​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Ipswich	Arrive	10.48​	P2b	GE	wait 23m
Ipswich	Depart	11.11​	P3b	GE
Manningtree	Arrive	11.20​	P2	GE	wait 4m
Manningtree	Depart	11.24​	P3	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	11.33​	P3	GE	wait 21m
Ipswich	Depart	11.54​	P4a	GE
Ely	Arrive	12.51​	P1	GE	wait 33m
Ely	Depart	13.24​	P1	GE
Littleport	Arrive	13.30​	P2	GE	wait 21m
Littleport	Depart	13.51​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Ely	Arrive	13.57​	P3	GE	wait 35m
Ely	Depart	14.32​	P2	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	15.31​	P1	GE	wait 24m
Ipswich	Depart	15.55​	P2b	GE
Westerfield	Arrive	16.00​		GE	wait 14m
Westerfield	Depart	16.14​	P2	GE			1​	2​
Lowestoft	Arrive	17.33​	P2	GE	wait 27m
Lowestoft	Depart	18.00​	P2	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	19.32​	P1	GE	wait 11m
Ipswich	Depart	19.43​	P2	GE
Colchester	Arrive	20.00​	*****	GE

 

[All platforms]

Day 296: Monday 30/10/2023 - Ipswich to Saxmundham - £6.40 - Anytime Return. Ipswich to Derby Road - £2.10 - Off-peak Return. Ipswich to Manningtree - £5.20 - Off-peak Return. Anglia Plus 1 Day Ranger - £17.45 - valid after 8.45 Weekdays. CP West End Road CP Ipswich £6.20
Total time today 643 mins - time on trains 283 mins and time waiting 360 mins. Stations completed today 6. Total completed 1538. Platforms completed at completed stations 3521.

"Ipswich back to Ipswich - again and again"

Thankfully, there was no need to get up at silly o'clock today as i was just a few minutes away from my starting point and a start time of 6.20am is fine by me. Saxmundham is normally a crossing point for the services between Ipswich and Lowestoft, (Beccles is another) but as can often be the case the early morning services don't get into this groove straight away, and i was off and enjoying the early morning light on this excellent line as we slowly made our way North just set back from the coast. Saxmundham was an ideal point to get some early supplies into the back pack, and a quick explore of this great little town into the bargain. I will be returning to Suffolk in a weeks time for yet another holiday (retirement allows multi holidays to occur - at least whilst everything still works!), and i will most certainly be returning to a good chunk of the stops on this line, to do them justice. I am very much looking forward to it. I say a holiday, but i will be out for a few full days and some early morning stuff as well and hopefully ticking off more stuff in this slightly awkward part of the country to get to for me.

With my first station of the day in the bag, i returned to (let me think now) Ipswich and patiently awaited a second trundle on the Felixtowe line. There are only 3 stations on this line and i would be alighting at the first of these - Derby Road. Quite a few folk were already littering the platform (not literally) awaiting the return service which was a surprise given the 30 minute wait that would occur. A word about my ticket here. I actually bought todays tickets at Witham the previous day as the ticket office was thankfully open quite early. I know i asked for an anytime return, but i ended up with an off-peak return and didn't check carefully enough at the time although the 20p difference in price between the two ticket types should have alerted me. Sorry GE... (not really)

My next move was a bit of an oddity. I have tried for this one before but managed to get on the previous service in error which was running late. I am not sure why but a Norwich 5 car starter is timetabled as P2a, and in truth it makes a good job of going as far as it can down the far end of the platform but i think there is a signal which prevents it going all the way. The P2a then changes on the board to the full fat P2 - but - i do count it as P2a because more than 3 of the 5 carriages were in the P2a slot. I may return to get a northbound service from here whioch will use the whole platform to be super completist but for now its a tick. So a quick out and back to Manningtree before taking another trip on the Lowestoft line.

Melton was my first stop, and which had the delight of a deli/butchers on site, and i do confess i did have a go at a hot proper hand made sausage roll (which is not my normal go to). Yum. Again, a location i will be back to in 10 days time, as will Woodbridge which was my next stop. Wickham Market was used to get me back to you know where, before a brief pause before for my final trip on the Felixtowe line and another couple of new crossovers was the bonus here. Multi tasking eh? Trimley was the turn point this time which has a singled platform with the other line being used for freight primarily as a loop option. By this time it was inching towards 3pm, but i still had a couple of moves up my sleeve once back at Ipswich as i still had time to continue.

A double dip to Stowmarket and back resulted, the first of which got me my final completed station of the day, and the second my last crossover. Unbelievably i only have one remaining crossover to do here, although i will not be chasing this unless it can be combined with a P2a northbound starter - which is possible actually. I also need one more platform variant - P3c, and i do have a plan for this whilst away. Further North i will be leaving a Shippea Hill set down until next year as i have no desire to walk out in the dark. That just leaves 3 platforms at Norwich - 2 on a Saturday only and one best done on a Sunday. From observations from being there and also from afar, these are not gimme's and i will be waiting until the engineering stuff has gone away - there is just too much of it currently to have confidence in outcomes. Norwich is capricious at the best of times with constant platform changes in evidence for no obvious reasons (although there will always be one in the background of course) so i might park these also until next year also and concentrate on new areas. Having said all that i too can be capricious at times so lets see....

I have looked at a number of options for this next weekend but for various reasons nothing is standing out as a clear winner. I don't want to go too far from home given we are away on the Monday early doors, and this does restrict options somewhat. I do want to get to 60% of this whole enterprise next time out which gives me some wriggle room over the winter months approaching but i guess i need to go away and do some planning for this now.

Ipswich	Depart	6.20​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Saxmundham	Arrive	6.57​	P2	GE	wait 30m		completed	completed
Saxmundham	Depart	7.27​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Ipswich	Arrive	8.07​	P4c	GE	wait 8m
Ipswich	Depart	8.25​	P1	GE
Derby Road	Arrive	8.35​	P2	GE	wait 34m
Derby Road	Depart	9.09​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Ipswich	Arrive	9.22​	P1	GE	wait 30m
Ipswich	Depart	9.52​	P2a	GE
Manningtree	Arrive	10.00​	P2	GE	wait 12m
Manningtree	Depart	10.12​	P3	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	10.23​	P2	GE	wait 53m
Ipswich	Depart	11.16​	P1	GE
Melton	Arrive	11.35​	Single	GE	wait 37m
Melton	Depart	12.12​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Woodbridge	Arrive	12.16​	P2	GE	wait 15m
Woodbridge	Depart	12.31​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Wickham Market	Arrive	12.41​	Single	GE	wait 23m
Wickham Market	Depart	13.04​	Single	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	13.34​	P4b	GE	wait 24m
Ipswich	Depart	13.58​	P3b	GE
Trimley	Arrive	14.17​	Single	GE	wait 15m		1​	1​
Trimley	Depart	14.32​	Single	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	14.52​	P3b	GE	wait 29m
Ipswich	Depart	15.21​	P4b	GE
Stowmarket	Arrive	15.33​	P2	GE	wait 13m
Stowmarket	Depart	15.46​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Ipswich	Arrive	16.00​	P1	GE	wait 21m
Ipswich	Depart	16.21​	P1	GE
Stowmarket	Arrive	16.33​	P2	GE	wait 16m
Stowmarket	Depart	16.49​	P1	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	17.03​	*****	GE

 

[Kite159]

A couple of busy productive days in GA land

 

[All platforms]

Perhaps time for a little recap before i have a small divert to do the line between Cheshunt and Stansted Airport tomorrow and then mop up a bit more of Suffolk and Essex on my hols from next Monday.

When i started this journey i was originally intending just to focus on platforms, and not counting my first or last stations of the day as part of that, so no driving to an obscure station etc to get an easy hit. Then a slight extra occurred to me so as to alight and set down at all stations which affected how i did the single line obscure stuff. Essentially it made it a bit harder as i would have to walk in and out of a few of the lesser served single line/platform stations.

Then i learnt about the PSUL variations (Passenger Services over Unusual lines) that abound in this country and whilst the numbers can vary a little at each timetable change, i think i have completed 95 of the c.157 passenger line variants that currently exist. The "official" list does include a few tram and underground ones as well but i have excluded these from the project as i am not doing those. I also realised that engineering works would throw up opportunities to do platforms that are not normally timetabled, and whilst i am not quite being completist with these i am taking as many opportunities as i can in this regard. Inevitably however i find these opportunities often compete with each other, or real life intervenes. Basically you can't do everything all the time - it would drive me nuts chasing my tail like this after a while, and there is still plenty of time between now and the end of 2025 which was the original arbitrary goal i set myself. These obscure platforms can sometimes appear as a moveable feast from timetable to timetable so its a bit difficult to differentiate the two categories in my records, so i just include everything. A win is a win! That said there are platforms that are regularly used in times of engineeering, and others less so, but if you are patient there is a reasonable chance of success. Then there are the stubborn ones that sit in the nether world - no one really knows if they will come back into use but are still technically available to be used. Thankfully i only have a handful of these in my to do pile, one of these being Hereford P4 which has popped up as a possibility on RTT early December.

There are also platforms that kinda still exist but are seemingly locked out of use such as at Hadley Wood, Esher and New Malden for example. Not holding my breath over these. Lastly there are the platforms that do get timetabled but very rarely/never get used as intended for a number of different reasons. Bromsgrove P1 for example currently has 4 opportunities most days but almost never do these services end up there. Conversely the platform does get occasional random use by northbound trains so good luck with that unless camping out there for potentially days at a time. The loop platform at Marsden has been timetabled during engineering but so far hasn't been used for a few years now, which is the same as Wellington P3 as far as i know. There are a few others.. I still have to do due diligence in parts of Scotland and most of the South West and South of England so i know my current list of objectives will grow but i have finally had time this week to assess progress to date this week and i am a whisker away from completing all platforms and variations thereof at 60% of all stations.

The main gig remains platforms and PSUL, but increasingly i have realised i really want to cover every blade of "normal" grass err track as well. The ability to accurately record this to my satisfaction has come about because of the excellent UTtracker site which is a fantastic resource in this regard, and has helped enormously in my planning too. Whenever i encounter a new part of the country i now try hard to do far more than just platforms, and make a good effort to include all normal track wherever possible as well. So loop lines and track at junctions between different lines have been unofficially included too it seems. Oh and what about doing all track in/out of every platform as well? Where does it end? - i don't want to disappear down the ever finer gricing opportunities that are presented but i fear i am looking down the rabbit hole at times.

I am not averse to seeking out an unusual crossover too but it mustn't detract from the main goal, just a little extra dusting of icing here and there. What i will be doing at some time is revisiting my first years areas to tidy up the track and platform ends, but there are no plans afoot yet in this regard. Too many new opportinities to look forward to......

So a bit of a random take on my current thinking on the project. I have done loads of platforms not normally timetabled and there are about a dozen or so left to do in the sub category of semi unlikely possibles (Scotland + the South of England excluded for now) which could be timetabled randomly at any time, and to be honest if i do see any of these i will tend to prioritise them - it has generally paid off so far. I do need to have a closer look at the fast platforms on the Shenfield to Stratford section which look very awkward, and there are some stubborn fast lines south of Hither Green too as well as the likes of Shortlands and Bickley. I really do need to make more of an effort with these.

I should have time on Sunday to report back on Saturdays jaunt and then at least a week before i am back again to post further updates. I am pretty certain i will then be focusing on my remaining Zones 1 to 9 targets for the rest of the year, which of course includes nearly all the London terminals, with Kings Cross the only one completed thus far. Loads of PSUL opportunities too...

 

[Kite159]

Keep dry when out and about tomorrow as the weather isn't looking the nicest. Ironically if the weather was dry I was going to walk the canal which follows the line towards Bishop Stortland.

I guess the PSUL in the Cheshunt area is the connection from the Overground line (via Southbury) to the main line rather than into the bays (especially since GA don't run as frequently via Seven Sisters these days, I think*) [*I know in the past peak time extras for Hertford East went that way, but I'm sure those now run via Tottenham Hale]
Plus the random overground service which goes via South Tottenham

 

[Techniquest]

60% complete is pretty good going! I'd also suggest that out of all the London termini to complete, Kings Cross is a good first one to clear. Euston will inevitably take some effort, but the others shouldn't be too bad. I do feel the temptations of micro-pricing will soon have their grips around you even more, but I also think the main mission will keep you away from that minefield!

 

[All platforms]

Keep dry when out and about tomorrow as the weather isn't looking the nicest. Ironically if the weather was dry I was going to walk the canal which follows the line towards Bishop Stortland.

I guess the PSUL in the Cheshunt area is the connection from the Overground line (via Southbury) to the main line rather than into the bays (especially since GA don't run as frequently via Seven Sisters these days, I think*) [*I know in the past peak time extras for Hertford East went that way, but I'm sure those now run via Tottenham Hale]
Plus the random overground service which goes via South Tottenham

Thankfully Greater Anglia do not seem to be affected by the recent storm, but there is no doubt it will be pretty wet tomorrow morning unfortunately. I have just sense checked the route for tomorrow and all seems well currently.

I am not sure the non bay links between Cheshunt and Southbury is an official PSUL, but its an awkward so and so to do under a normal timetable, although there often seem to be other variations that crop up at slightly less anti social hours. However that will all have to wait until another visit i'm afraid, as i have a full itinerary already formed to complete track and platforms north of Cheshunt up to Stansted. It kinda works out Ok that way, so next time i can concentrate just on the track south from Cheshunt on a Day Travelcard. This also leaves a final day at Cambridge to polish off some track there and add in the walk out of Shippea Hill too, but that can wait till the clocks go forward again. Yeah, not looking forward to the rain tomorrow - its been quite a while since i was out and about in the wet stuff.

60% complete is pretty good going! I'd also suggest that out of all the London termini to complete, Kings Cross is a good first one to clear. Euston will inevitably take some effort, but the others shouldn't be too bad. I do feel the temptations of micro-pricing will soon have their grips around you even more, but I also think the main mission will keep you away from that minefield!

I did have a quick ganders at Euston to see just how spread out the London NorthWestern trains were platformed there, and i think they do use all but 4 or 5 at various parts of the day. With my current fixation on track, i will be just as focused on the paths they take in/out as well, so as i seem to have a bit more time available again it will be interesting to see what i eventually come up with here. I am fairly sure it will involve at least 2 visits however. If i have to do platforms i might as well see what track i can get whilst doing so, and an extra hour here and there shouldn't be too onerous. I will probably move on elsewhere once i get the platforms ticked (as i have with Kings Cross), and maybe return as a side project once the main one is is complete. Not sure to be honest, and no decision is necessary just yet. Keep your eye on the prize is my advice to myself haha.

 

[gazr]

Hereford P4 on 03/12 looks VERY dubious... Looking at RTT, there is nothing to suggest any empty shunt into the platform, and the previous service 1W54 departs P3.

 

[All platforms]

Hereford P4 on 03/12 looks VERY dubious... Looking at RTT, there is nothing to suggest any empty shunt into the platform, and the previous service 1W54 departs P3.

We can't yet know for sure either way and i am keeping an open mind for now. Here's my thinking. 3 units arrive the previous evening and RTT shows one of these to be a P1 arrival from the South which is not possible i am told. It must go somewhere. I have a feeling it will be a P3 arrival. The previous P3 arrival from Canton Sidings probably gets put in P4 overnight. I have seen with my own eyes loads of examples of empty shunt moves that never make it to RTT but have absolutely no idea why this may be, so... this is why i am keeping an open mind. P1 can't be used for stabling as the platform is in use early doors from an out and back from Shrub Hill so the LM starter 10.05 has to be elsewehere and again doesn't get mentioned on RTT. Somehow 3 services to Manch Picc are booked to leave Hereford in the morning and with the early hours blockade to the South they either have to be empty moves from the North, or are stabled overnight there. Its an interesting conundrum....... I will certainly be checking back beforehand but i may go for it as i can always tag some track/platform end stragglers onto the day regardless.

I have been burnt quite a few times with these teaser platforms, but it would be disappointing if it did happen and i missed it... FOMO for sure.

 

[All platforms]

Day 297: Saturday 04/11/2023 - Cheshunt to Stansted Airport - £8.75 - Off-peak Return. Stansted Airport to Bishops Stortford - £5.05 - Off-peak Return. Broxbourne to Bishops Stortford - £6.20 - Super Off-peak Return. Cheshunt to Harlow Town - £4.55 - Super Off-peak Return. Cheshunt to Enfield Lock - £3.55 - Off-peak Return. CP Cheshunt £5.00
Total time today 653 mins - time on trains 161 mins and time waiting 492 mins. Stations completed today 7. Total completed 1545. Platforms completed at completed stations 3540.

"This was difficult to plan - and then an engineering day made life so much simpler"

I have been waiting to do the short stretch of track between Broxbourne and Stansted Airport for quite some time. The difficulty has been the loop platforms at said Broxbourne and also Harlow Town, and the need to get both track and platforms done as efficiently as possible. The loops are often used to allow the faster services to overtake but its not always done on the outer loop as one may expect and with all northbounds using the Airport because of the blockade at Audley End it gave a different set of options, and i found i could work something that would cover almost every normal piece of track too.

A very early start once again in order to hedge against traffic closures and any other unforseen complications as i had no back up plan today if i was late starting. Arriving in plenty of time and with only a brief encounter with the rain on the way down i was ready to go. However, the first issue was that the Car park machine refused to allow me to pay stating i had already done so. hmm.... you just know what will happen if you don't pay so with the ticket office itself not yet open for business i resolved to check on my return. I did try both machines but they both gave the same message. Very strange.

So, the first order of train business was a linear hop to the Airport via Harlow Town p4 thus getting both platform and track ticked in an efficient way. Broxbourne and Harlow Town do look very similar to my eyes but i wasn't here to do an architectural critique and only a short wait err awaited before i was off for my first look at Stansted Airport. With 12 car's being the norm on the Express services they more than comfortably fit into the 2 outer platforms there. I will have to return to do the short middle platform and the link line North, as well as Audley End, but that can all be done on Shippea Hill walk out day next year. Interestingly, both services i used today in/out of the Airport used the main platform lines in entirety rather than the crossovers at the platform ends. I really don't know if this normal or not. I will have a closer look next year to see if the crossovers can be incorporated or not.

A quick visit to Bishops Stortford before doing the Platform 1 line at Stansted and then back off again at the Bish to await the bay service South and my first station tick of the day. I turned at Broxbourne and the next few hours would be spent doing linear hops back to the Bish, although there would be a number of hour long waits on the Northwards leg, but strangely nothing like the same waits comiogn South. I think it was something to do with the platform line at Harlow Town i needed in retrospect. The weather was drizzly veering into light rain for a chunk of the morning and nothing like the doom and gloom that the national weather forecast would leave one to believe. I was quite glad as the waiting shelters/areas on this line are very hit and miss it has to be said and i count myself lucky not to be caught out by a downpour today.

I did get some supplies at Roydon as i was getting hungry - it was gone 10.30 for goodness sake, and that's late by my standards without sustenance intake being experienced. The level crossing barriers here and elsewehere today were being tested to the max, with them being lowered and raised every few minutes it seemed, and was it just me but did the time gap between lowering and trains passing seem less than might be expected elsewehere? Harlow Town next up for the P3 line and platform before a first visit to Harlow Mill where a thankfully shorter wait was in store. Sawbridgeworth was the remaining station on this section before reaching Bishops Stortford again. Thinking about it i should have turned at Sawbridgeworth as i already had the Bish in the bag. Or did i? looking back i still need a (very) short piece of track south from p2 to meet up with the p3 line and perhaps this was what i was aiming at? No matter its a nice to do not a need to do... Easy to add to an itinerary i guess - either the Cambridge day or from the South when i do Cheshunt from the London side. Linear hops south ticked me Sawbridgeworth, Harlow Mill and Roydon, where to my surprise there was a large heated waiting room on the Up line. Yay. Harlow Town P2 line was also included on the trip back and this time i was turning at Cheshunt as i still needed to get the remaining bits at Broxbourne, and i needed to approach from the South to get the full p3 line done. By now i was getting a bit dizzy with a bunch of deja vu thrown in so all i will say is that a few more trips back and forth netted me all requirements and some piece and quiet from the male youths that seemed to have come out of the woodwork as soon as the rain went off. A bonus trip to Enfield Lock in the dark finished the day ebfore back to Cheshunt.

The ticket office was still open thankfully, and the machine said i had still paid, but i did get some advice as to how to proceed. I have subsequently paid on-line via the GA parking site which should hopefully prevent the bailiffs turning up. Screen prints obtained too!!

Off to sunny Suffolk tomorrow for the last weeks hols of the year. Yes we don't do half bad with time away, but this is a rail based one so i will be venturing forward and exploring Colchester/Town and the myriad options there as well as more Manningtree and Harwich variants and hopefully a completion of Ipswich as well as a bunch of more straight forward stuff as far away as Ingatestone. Other old favourites may make a guest appearance if time allows.

Cheshunt	Depart	7.18​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Harlow Town	Arrive	7.28​	P4	GE	wait 11m		completed	completed
Harlow Town	Depart	7.39​	P4	GE
Stansted Airport	Arrive	7.59​	P3	GE	wait 14m
Stansted Airport	Depart	8.13​	P3	GE
Bishops Stortford	Arrive	8.23​	P2	GE	wait 20m
Bishops Stortford	Depart	8.43​	P1	GE
Stansted Airport	Arrive	8.54​	P1	GE	wait 21m
Stansted Airport	Depart	9.15​	P1	GE
Bishops Stortford	Arrive	9.26​	P2	GE	wait 20m
Bishops Stortford	Depart	9.46​	P3	GE			1​	3​
Broxbourne	Arrive	10.11​	P2	GE	wait 22m
Broxbourne	Depart	10.33​	P4	GE
Roydon	Arrive	10.37​	P2	GE	wait 62m
Roydon	Depart	11.39​	P2	GE
Harlow Town	Arrive	11.42​	P3	GE	wait 60m
Harlow Town	Depart	12.42​	P3	GE
Harlow Mill	Arrive	12.45​	P2	GE	wait 19m
Harlow Mill	Depart	13.04​	P2	GE
Sawbridgeworth	Arrive	13.06​	P2	GE	wait 12m
Sawbridgeworth	Depart	13.18​	P2	GE
Bishops Stortford	Arrive	13.26​	P3	GE	wait 20m
Bishops Stortford	Depart	13.46​	P3	GE
Sawbridgeworth	Arrive	13.51​	P1	GE	wait 11m
Sawbridgeworth	Depart	14.02​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Harlow Mill	Arrive	14.05​	P1	GE	wait 18m
Harlow Mill	Depart	14.23​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Harlow Town	Arrive	14.25​	P2	GE	wait 44m
Harlow Town	Depart	15.09​	P2	GE
Roydon	Arrive	15.12​	P1	GE	wait 17m
Roydon	Depart	15.29​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Cheshunt	Arrive	15.42​	P1	GE	wait 11m
Cheshunt	Depart	15.53​	P2	GE
Broxbourne	Arrive	15.57​	P3	GE	wait 26m
Broxbourne	Depart	16.23​	P3	GE
Harlow Town	Arrive	16.29​	P4	GE	wait 36m
Harlow Town	Depart	17.05​	P1	GE			1​	4​
Broxbourne	Arrive	17.10​	P2	GE	wait 29m
Broxbourne	Depart	17.39​	P1	GE			1​	4​
Enfield Lock	Arrive	17.47​	P1	GE	wait 19m
Enfield Lock	Depart	18.06​	P2	GE			1​	2​
Cheshunt	Arrive	18.11​	*****	GE

 

[Techniquest]

Quite a productive day! It must have got a bit dull and boring at times though, what with the same stretch of line featuring!

 

[All platforms]

Quite a productive day! It must have got a bit dull and boring at times though, what with the same stretch of line featuring!

Very boring by the end i have to say - and also expensive. Over £28 to do these non Rover/Ranger stations today, even with my railcard. Am i being too honest with my ticket purchases? Still over 100 stations to complete in the no Rover/Ranger category. Its not so bad if they are just 2 platforms but i think i am in the grit my teeth and get on with it phase right now.

 

[Kite159]

A productive day between Cheshunt & the Airport, all the linear hops.

Another case of car parking machines being not fit for purpose, the sooner ANPR controlled car parks are given the boot to see a return of someone who monitors the car park for any non-payers, anybody parking sideways or misusing the disabled bays. Also allowing for the case of trains running late, but sadly the parasites are only in it for the money rather than customer care.

 

[Kite159]

Something which you might be interested with. Platform 2 at Margate (normally no booked use*) is getting used on the 10th December due to engineering works between Margate & Minster.

Also if you need the Minster-Sandwich curve that's got an hourly service that day rather than the once/twice a day it normally receives

(*I think)

 

[All platforms]

Something which you might be interested with. Platform 2 at Margate (normally no booked use*) is getting used on the 10th December due to engineering works between Margate & Minster.

Also if you need the Minster-Sandwich curve that's got an hourly service that day rather than the once/twice a day it normally receives

(*I think).

Another case of car parking machines being not fit for purpose, the sooner ANPR controlled car parks are given the boot to see a return of someone who monitors the car park for any non-payers, anybody parking sideways or misusing the disabled bays. Also allowing for the case of trains running late, but sadly the parasites are only in it for the money rather than customer care.

Don't get me started on (mainly) station car parks.... ANPR is too patchy and about as forgiving as a charging Rhino, and i will always actively look for somewhere else to park if possible. Not always practical to do this sadly.

I haven't looked at Kent or anywhere else South of London as yet, but thanks for the info - i may have to park it for a short while as i work out my next few weeks outings. Hopefully i can fit this in..

Just when i thought i would be enjoying more time to myself, this morning brought news that casts this into doubt - so a bit of a head scratcher right now. Lots of stuff to report about last weeks escapades in Suffolk and Essex...

 

[All platforms]

Day 298: Tuesday 07/11/2023 - Witham to Hatfield Peverel - £5.90 - Anytime Return. CP Bridge Road Witham - free.
Total time today 47 mins - time on trains 7 mins and time waiting 40 mins. Stations completed today 1. Total completed 1546. Platforms completed at completed stations 3542.

" An almost totally superfluous day" - What was i thinking?

Yup, in retrospect the only thing i got out of a 90 mins each way trip to/from Witham, that i wouldn't also get later in the week, was a paltry crossover between P4 and the UM. Nice and all that but hardly worth the effort in itself. Yes, i would be getting a new station in the bag, namely Hatfield Peverel, and where i sourced tomorrows tickets from the ticket office as it was thankfully open for business. Very impressed by the quick service too. So, what about the station? Nothing of great note really, so i wandered off into the centre for some breakfast in an effort to keep the cold at bay. Two very short journeys and then a long trip back to my Suffolk base for the week near Southwold. Tomorrow will prove to be a much fuller day, maximising the daylight and then some.

Witham	Depart	6.57​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Hatfield Peverel	Arrive	7.00​	P1	GE	wait 40m		completed	completed
Hatfield Peverel	Depart	7.40​	P2	GE			1​	2​
Witham	Arrive	7.44​	*****	GE

 

[All platforms]

Day 299: Wednesday 08/11/2023 - Witham to Cressing - £7.70 - Anytime Return. Witham to Hythe - £12.00 - Anytime Return. Witham to Chelmsford - £9.70 - Anytime Return. Witham to Braintree - £5.05 - Off-peak Return. Witham to Hatfield Peverel - £3.55 - Super Off-peak Return. Witham to Marks Tey - £5.40 - Super Off-peak Return. Witham to Wivenhoe - £6.20 - Super Off-peak Return. CP Witham - £8.00
Total time today 728 mins - time on trains 255 mins and time waiting 473 mins. Stations completed today 10. Total completed 1556. Platforms completed at completed stations 3563.

"As many unusual bits as possible today"

Today was much better planned and i was armed with magnified track maps of both Witham and Colchester to tick off all and sundry as it (hopefully) all went to plan. I am not going to describe each move in detail but suffice it to say i was very happy with the outcome. Back at Witham again and not having a great deal of time upon arrival, it was the unofficial official Car Park near Morrisons i was using. Basically it proclaims itself to be an official station Car park but the proper one is on the other side of the tracks. I wasn't complaining because it had a proper ticket dispensing machine - and it was cheaper.

First off was a trip to Cressing, but the return service was the one i was really waiting for, being as it was a service to Colchester, which would reverse in P4 at Witham and then use the Down Passenger Loop which is not often seen. Tick. Once at Colchester it was time to find somewhere warm to await the next service from P2 which would use the crossover onto the P1 line and under the main line to Hythe. Again a bit of an unusual move and why i was splashing the cash around on full price tickets so early in the day. Hythe was chock full of commuters on the other platform as i arrived and i joined them via the Level Crossing for a a return to Colchester. 2 stations in the bag by 7.30 and a few unusual moves as well.

A P4 departure South to Chelmsford was next and a short wait to return as far as Witham P4 and a wait for a couple of linear hops towards Braintree. Having already ticked off Cressing it was White Notley first - a station in the middle of nowhere on a single line and not much shelter available, but it was just about warm enough to sit and read for a while before heading to Braintree Freeport, where i did go explore the shopping Outlets there. I even bought a pair of shoes from Clarks at a bargain price, something i had not anticipated doing! The time while away nicely it was back to the station and a very short hop to Braintree itself. Further distractions were provided opposite by some men in Orange feeding cut down tree branches into an industrial strength chipping machine. Almost hypnotic to watch.

No time to explore at Braintree with a 10 minute turnaround there and back to Witham where i completed the station by taking a P2 service South to Hatfield Peverel. Not all services stop at all stations and there are plenty of gaps to thwart a series of linear hops, but i did get to do this via Witham and Kelvedon up to Marks Tey before returning to Whitham but missing out Kelvedon ( i would return later though). The reason was that i needed to be on a Clacton service that would cross the main line at Colchester onto the Clacton line, again not many services do this. Turning at Wivenhoe for the win i would return to Colchester in to the bay Platform (P5) which also completed the station. Technically i could return to fully complete under my rules as P6 was only done by a first service of the day. I think there may be an opportunity later in the month to do it under my rules, but its parked for now.

A linear P1 hop at Kelvedon completed the days proceedings in the dark. Remarkably pretty much everything went to plan so kudos to Greater Anglia for an efficient service today. If only they didn't insist on charging for every single rural car park (which are nearly always empty). A small gripe in the scheme of things though. I will be out in some capacity every day this week with tomorrow being another short hop.

Witham	Depart	5.20​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Cressing	Arrive	5.30​	Single	GE	wait 18m		completed	completed
Cressing	Depart	5.48​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Colchester	Arrive	6.17​	P2	GE	wait 46m
Colchester	Depart	7.03​	P2	GE
Hythe	Arrive	7.07​	P2	GE	wait 24m
Hythe	Depart	7.31​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Colchester	Arrive	7.35​	P4	GE	wait 9m
Colchester	Depart	7.44​	P4	GE
Chelmsford	Arrive	8.11​	P1	GE	wait 12m
Chelmsford	Depart	8.23​	P2	GE			1​	2​
Witham	Arrive	8.31​	P4	GE	wait 4m
Witham	Depart	9.35​	P4	GE
White Notley	Arrive	9.43​	Single	GE	wait 59m
White Notley	Depart	10.42​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Braintree Freeport	Arrive	10.47​	Single	GE	wait 59m
Braintree Freeport	Depart	11.46​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Braintree	Arrive	11.49​	Single	GE	wait 10m
Braintree	Depart	11.59​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Witham	Arrive	12.15​	P4	GE	wait 13m
Witham	Depart	12.28​	P2	GE			1​	4​
Hatfield Peverel	Arrive	12.32​	P1	GE	wait 13m
Hatfield Peverel	Depart	12.45​	P2	GE
Witham	Arrive	12.49​	P3	GE	wait 31m
Witham	Depart	13.20​	P3	GE
Kelvedon	Arrive	13.25​	P2	GE	wait 28m
Kelvedon	Depart	13.53​	P2	GE
Marks Tey	Arrive	13.59​	P2	GE	wait 19m
Marks Tey	Depart	14.18​	P1	GE
Witham	Arrive	14.28​	P2	GE	wait 35m
Witham	Depart	15.03​	P3	GE
Wivenhoe	Arrive	15.23​	P2	GE	wait 9m
Wivenhoe	Depart	15.32​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Colchester	Arrive	15.51​	P5	GE	wait 52m	P6 1st trn	1​	6​
Colchester	Depart	16.43​	P4	GE
Kelvedon	Arrive	16.52​	P1	GE	wait 32m		1​	2​
Kelvedon	Depart	17.24​	P1	GE
Witham	Arrive	17.28​	*****	GE

 

[All platforms]

Day 300: Thursday 09/11/2023 - Oulton Broad South to Beccles - £5.00 - Anytime Return. CP Bridge Road Oulton Broad - free.
Total time today 50 mins - time on trains 17 mins and time waiting 33 mins. Stations completed today 1. Total completed 1557. Platforms completed at completed stations 3566.

"However you cut it, i can be certain i am finally over the 60% mark"

I still had one outlier on the line between Ipswich and Lowestoft to do, and it was only a short hop from my base for the week to go tick this one off. There is no official car Park at Oulton Broad South but get there early enough and you can use the approach road. I was getting the first service South to Beccles and then of course returning. Beccles itself is a very wide platformed station and unusual in these parts for having no platform numbers on display which always slightly vexes me when i chance upon this situation. Not the warmest morning but what can you expect at this time of year? It was no hardship to wait this one out and get me to 1557 stations in the bag.

Oulton Broad South	Depart	7.34​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Beccles	Arrive	7.42​		GE	wait 33m		completed	completed
Beccles	Depart	8.15​		GE			1​	2​
Oulton Broad South	Arrive	8.24​	*****	GE

 

[All platforms]

Day 301: Friday 10/11/2023 - Colchester to Chelmsford - £16.40 - Anytime Return. Witham to Ingatestone - £13.90 - Anytime Return. Witham to Wivenhoe - £13.80 - Anytime Return. Marks Tey to Sudbury - £5.80 - Off-peak Return. Marks Tey to Walton-on-the-Naze - £8.80 - Super Off-peak Return. CP Colchester - £11.00
Total time today 615 mins - time on trains 270 mins and time waiting 345 mins. Stations completed today 7. Total completed 1564. Platforms completed at completed stations 3576.

"Brutal ticket prices early doors" or "Colchester every which way"

Somehow i got my timings wrong and i was very much against it on the journey down from Southwold. So much so i contrived to miss a junction at ipswich and then miss the Car Park turning once at Colchester. Add in more car park ticket machine woes and i found myself missing my first intended train. A quick perusal showed me that the intended awkward move would be replicated leter in the day, so it was superfluous after all. Nevertheless the early moves were all ruinously expensive by my standards and after the (once again very efficient) ticket clerk had relieved me of almost £60 i was ready to start. Yes, the early moves were all awkward things to do, so i just had to suck it up.

Another P6 start, this time i was turning at Chelmsford again, in order to take advantage of the return North which would terminate in P1 at Witham, and you guessed it, a lesser used crossover. i would be staying on board to go back to Chelmsford and wait for a P2 starter going South and using the crossover. Turning at Ingatestone, (which is the station before Shenfield) this would mean i had track to there all done and i could focus on Shenfield some other time.

Time to criss cross the many track options between Colchester, Colchester Town and Hythe, which i would achieve including a fee rarities. I have done as much as i could do here in the time allotted and the individual moves are not that important really. Once all this was in the bag i decided to go have a look at Thorpe-le-Soken for track and continuing to Frinton and then Walton in a linear fashion before it got too dark. I haven't studied the individual services but for me i experienced right hand working both times, and also waiting for the Clacton service to overtkae on the other line. It makes sense looking at Track maps and whilst i will have to return for Clacton and 4 other stations nearby i am hoping the Thorpe conundrum can be solved.

I have just realised i have missed out the Sudbury line in all this which was added in during the middle of the Colchester mayhem. The station at Chappel was a real throwback, and it was unfortunate i arrived on a day when the East Anglian Railway Museum was closed, but if i ever return to these parts i will be sure to pay a visit when it is open. Lovely stuff with quite random carriages and wagons on the other line. No time at Sudbury - or indeed at Walton-on-the-Naze later on to do anything else but take a few pics, but i do like the Sudbury line a lot - or should i call it the Gainsborough Line. I still have a few Greater Anglia terminus stations to negotiate but the majority are now in the completed column.

Colchester	Depart	6.35​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Chelmsford	Arrive	6.58​	P1	GE	wait 21m		completed	completed
Chelmsford	Depart	7.19​	P2	GE
Witham	Arrive	7.31​	P1	GE	wait 16m
Witham	Depart	7.47​	P1	GE
Chelmsford	Arrive	7.58​	P1	GE	wait 31m
Chelmsford	Depart	8.29​	P2	GE
Ingatestone	Arrive	8.35​	P1	GE	wait 10m
Ingatestone	Depart	8.45​	P2	GE			1​	2​
Wivenhoe	Arrive	9.24​	P2	GE	wait 7m
Wivenhoe	Depart	9.31​	P1	GE
Colchester Town	Arrive	9.40​	Single	GE	wait 19m
Colchester Town	Depart	9.59​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Colchester	Arrive	10.06​	P1	GE	wait 5m
Colchester	Depart	10.11​	P3	GE
Marks Tey	Arrive	10.16​	P1	GE	wait 35m
Marks Tey	Depart	11.01​	P3	GE			1​	3​
Chapel & Wakes Colne	Arrive	11.06​	Single	GE	wait 61m
Chapel & Wakes Colne	Depart	12.07​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Sudbury	Arrive	12.20​	Single	GE	wait 6m
Sudbury	Depart	12.26​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Marks Tey	Arrive	12.44​	P3	GE	wait 47m
Marks Tey	Depart	13.31​	P2	GE
Colchester Town	Arrive	13.47​	Single	GE	wait 20m
Colchester Town	Depart	14.07​	Single	GE
Frinton-on-Sea	Arrive	14.47​	Single	GE	wait 61m
Frinton-on-Sea	Depart	15.48​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Walton-on-the Naze	Arrive	15.51​	Single	GE	wait 6m
Walton-on-the Naze	Depart	15.57​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Colchester	Arrive	16.50​	*****	GE

 

[All platforms]

Day 302: Saturday 11/11/2023 - Manningtree to Harwich International - £5.00 - Off-peak Return. CP Causewayend Colchester - free.
Total time today 96 mins - time on trains 29 mins and time waiting 67 mins. Stations completed today 1. Total completed 1565. Platforms completed at completed stations 3579.

"A satisfying tick"

Harwich International takes some planning to complete, which essentially means threading the needle on the use of P1, which is the platform nearest the ferry terminal. Out of use in normal working hours, that means an early or late visit. Under my own rules Saturday morning is the best time as i can arrive before the P1 to London (Witham today because of engineering) departs. As a bonus it uses the connecting lines from the DM to the Harwich line and so i was able to get the bonus tick i was looking for here. Harwich is pretty windswept at the best of times so i was glad the terminal building was open and i could keep out of the weather whilst waiting. I was in good company with the staff members for the P1 service also waiting it out, and having arrived on the service i also did.

Once again the crossover nearest P2 was not used, and i am not sure if i have just been unlucky or not in not achieving this. The rail looks well used but this is 3 from 3 that has used the first crossover (London end). I am not returning any time soon so it doesn't matter in the scheme of things, but i do like to get a tick wherever possible of course.

Today was another one that wasn't too far from base and as i was able to park on a close by industrial estate being early weekend, i avoided the curse of the Station Car Park. Just one more day left, and one that would prove to be a tad different than what has preceeded it.

Manningtree	Depart	5.56​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Harwich International	Arrive	6.12​	P2	GE	wait 67m		completed	completed
Harwich International	Depart	7.19​	P1	GE			1​	3​
Manningtree	Arrive	7.32​	*****	GE

 

[Kite159]

Some busy and productive days in Essex.

 

[Purple Train]

Lovely to read about your visits to one of my favourite areas of the country

The EARM is definitely well worth a visit, brilliant place - although ironically I visited on a day when the station was closed due to strikes!

How easy is it to do Clacton station? I seem to recall that has quite a few platforms (though again, I visited on a strike day).

 

[BJames]

Keep dry when out and about tomorrow as the weather isn't looking the nicest. Ironically if the weather was dry I was going to walk the canal which follows the line towards Bishop Stortland.

I guess the PSUL in the Cheshunt area is the connection from the Overground line (via Southbury) to the main line rather than into the bays (especially since GA don't run as frequently via Seven Sisters these days, I think*) [*I know in the past peak time extras for Hertford East went that way, but I'm sure those now run via Tottenham Hale]
Plus the random overground service which goes via South Tottenham

You're correct on that and this was a very recent change over. I was at Seven Sisters today and a bridge strike had all the GAs coming this way. Otherwise best bet to do this connection is during an engineering works diversion. In normal service GA have three services (one each from Cambridge/Stansted/Hertford) towards London which are booked to run via and call at Seven Sisters, and there are a couple of early morning Stansted Expresses which run via Seven Sisters non-stop, but none during any daylight hours anymore.

The random overground service via South Tottenham is the 0530 from Liv St to Enfield on a Saturday only, but it does get diverted direct via Stoke Newington semi often. It doesn't actually call at South Tottenham though. I remember over 10 years ago taking direct Enfield to Stratford services and sometimes think about how that would be quite useful for me...

Don't usually comment on this thread but it's great to see the progress - and I hope you're enjoying yourself along the way!

 

[All platforms]

Lovely to read about your visits to one of my favourite areas of the country

The EARM is definitely well worth a visit, brilliant place - although ironically I visited on a day when the station was closed due to strikes!

How easy is it to do Clacton station? I seem to recall that has quite a few platforms (though again, I visited on a strike day).

Thanks. I have really enjoyed doing the GA branch lines with a proper terminus (I think there are 11 altogether if you exclude Colchester Town and Norwich which are also terminus stations). I have 3 of these to complete including Clacton. I am gathering a long list of heritage places to visit once i have this current project under control, and the EARM did look most evocative and nostalgic to my eyes, even though i don't think they have that much track. Probably a lot of micro shunting so like a model layout but full scale!

Clacton's most awkward platform is P3, which when i looked does get a Saturday 20.xx service which seems to hold up on the occasions i checked. I think P4 is also not used frequently, but enough to offer hope to the collector of such things. With 5 intermediate stations still to do as well (Alresford to Kirby Cross) i reckon there is a winters day out doing those and the 4 Clacton platforms too. I haven't looked at this in detail yet so don't hold me to it.

 

[All platforms]

You're correct on that and this was a very recent change over. I was at Seven Sisters today and a bridge strike had all the GAs coming this way. Otherwise best bet to do this connection is during an engineering works diversion. In normal service GA have three services (one each from Cambridge/Stansted/Hertford) towards London which are booked to run via and call at Seven Sisters, and there are a couple of early morning Stansted Expresses which run via Seven Sisters non-stop, but none during any daylight hours anymore.

The random overground service via South Tottenham is the 0530 from Liv St to Enfield on a Saturday only, but it does get diverted direct via Stoke Newington semi often. It doesn't actually call at South Tottenham though. I remember over 10 years ago taking direct Enfield to Stratford services and sometimes think about how that would be quite useful for me...

Don't usually comment on this thread but it's great to see the progress - and I hope you're enjoying yourself along the way!

It's always good to have local input to these things so thanks for the info. I have a feeling i will be back before the end of the year to make a start on both lines South from Cheshunt. I still have Liverpool Street and most of Stratford to contend with too, so that whole thing will keep me occupied for a while. Thankfully there are no fast platforms to contend with at most (if not all) stations.

 

[All platforms]

Day 303: Sunday 12/11/2023 - Colchester to Bures - £5.50 - Super Off-peak Return. Colchester to Ipswich - £6.95 - Super Off-peak Return. Ipswich to Trimley - £3.60 - Off-peak Return. Ipswich to Needham Market - £3.55 - Off-peak Return. Thetford to Norwich - £7.85 - Off-peak Return. CP Colchester £5.00 + Station Road Thetford - free.
Total time today Stations completed today 2. Total completed 1567. Platforms completed at completed stations 3593.

" Ipswich is finally and properly in the bag, but Norwich is still kicking and screaming"

Today started out with 2 objectives, which then got added to, almost by accident. So, off to Colchester once more and the chance to do the connection to the Sudbury line which is a weekend only opportunity, but with the Sunday option at a more palatable time, and in the light, that is what i went for. Another early P6 departure from Colchester got us under way and barely 20 mins later i was stepping down to the platform at Bures. Like pretty much all stations locally, Bures has a large comprehensive double noticeboard thingy telling the history of the local village and railway. They have pretty much all been excellent additions for anyone even vaguely interested in these things and i have very much enjoyed reading them. There was also a very early station helper in evidence cleaning up the leaves...

A mere 20 minutes later i was back up the line to the normal turning point of Marks tey and a chunky wait for the next train North to Ipswich. A decent waiting room shletered me from the weather in the meantime. Once at Ipswich (which unusually arrived in P2) it was a quick scoot over the bridge and onto the Felixtowe service which was going from my last official platform, namely P3c. A turnaround at Trimley saw me back at Ipswich well before 11am, and that was going to be that.

However i then spotted P2a on the boards. Hmmm. I have been thinking about the whole A B C thing at Ipswich and without exception they have been the 3/4 car Flirts much in evidence with the 5/10 car variants being allocated whole platforms. I wasn't happy therefore to claim P2a with a 5 car even though it nearly fitted as it were. Here was a Cambridge train that was sitting wholly within the variant , so i thought why not and extended my trip with an extra ticket. I could still get back to Colchester at a decent time, so a quick bonus trip to Needham Market was had and a much happier me was the result.

In for a penny as it were so i then decided to have yet another go at the Sunday only afternoon P2a and P2b at Norwich, something which has eluded me a few times even though it regularly does seem to happen as planned. I therefore calculated i had enought ime to get myself to Thetford which is the only logical start/finish point to do this. Well, it was all going so well this week in Suffolk, until the Norwich curse once again reared up amd necessitated yet another weekend (at least) visit. Essentially we landed in P6 on the GE service where the hordes were expecting the Lowestoft service and indeed it was off again within a minute to fulfil that, rather than languishing in P2b for an hour as was supposed to happen.

I was semi surprised when an empty did turn up in p2b 10 mins later, and both the P2a and P2b departures were still on. i could only do one of those of course so i plumped for the P2a just in case the same trick was pulled on my return. The Norwich grind (it really is a grind no question) continues so i still have to do P2b on a Sunday and P4a which is best done on a Saturday. I do have a decent all day itinerary for a Saturday when the sun returns to this world, but that Sunday platform is looking very isolated right now.

A very productive week then, but there is nothing planned in detail yet going forward. Plans may have to change so i will prepare a Sunday/Monday combo in the London area in case it can happen. Fingers crossed.

Colchester	Depart	7.06​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Bures	Arrive	7.27​	Single	GE	wait 22m		completed	completed
Bures	Depart	7.49​	Single	GE			1​	1​
Marks Tey	Arrive	8.01​	P3	GE	wait 63m
Marks Tey	Depart	9.04​	P2	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	9.47​	P2	GE	wait 7m
Ipswich	Depart	9.54​	P3c	GE			1​	13​
Trimley	Arrive	10.14​	Single	GE	wait 14m
Trimley	Depart	10.28​	Single	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	10.45​	P2b	GE	wait 35m
Ipswich	Depart	11.20​	P2a	GE
Needham Market	Arrive	11.28​	P1	GE	wait 23m
Needham Market	Depart	11.51​	P2	GE
Ipswich	Arrive	11.58​	P2b	GE	wait 13m
Ipswich	Depart	12.11​	P4	GE
Colchester	Arrive	12.28​	*****	GE	drive + wait
Relocate to	*****	*****	*****	*****	123 mins
Thetford	Depart	14.31​	*****	GE
Norwich	Arrive	15.09​	P6	GE	wait 44m
Norwich	Depart	15.53​	P2a	GE
Thetford	Arrive	16.22​	*****	GE

 

[Kite159]

A productive day, well done with that connection at Marks Tey, took me 3 attempts to do it staying overnight in Ipswich

 

[All platforms]

Day 304: Sunday 19/11/2023 - Watford Junction/London Day travelcard Zones 1-6 - £14.50 - Off-peak. CP Westerfield Road Car Park Seven Sisters - free.
Total time today 762 mins - time on trains 285 mins and time waiting 477 mins. Stations completed today 5. Total completed 1572. Platforms completed at completed stations 3616.

"Finally - some Elizabeth Line Fast platforms!"

Back to London for the next few days and an opportunity has finally surfaced (at a time i can take advantage of) to do some fast lines on the Elizabeth Line. Its all kicked off behind the scenes again and opportunities i was looking forward to may have to take a back seat again for now. Its like sticking a plaster on a sinking ship......... I exaggerate (a little)

First off was a trouble free trip to Seven Sisters which would be my base for the day and a free Car Park being a Sunday. I needed to be south of Cheshunt as there were opportunities today to do the lines in/out of P2/P1 there on the Seven Sisters Line. It was just light enough to see the crucial moves, on what could otherwise be tricky bits of track to do, and they were in the bag both ways by 7.30am. A good start. Also a good trip down to Liverpool Street, but we were diverted across the lines to P14 from a promised P1 - and this may be something to do with cancellations on trains to Cheshunt due to ????? problems. ????? - the word in question was garbled on the driver announcement so i am none the wiser why.

A big hike to the Elizabeth Line and then those 2 monster escalators down to the depths to pick up trains going East on Crossrail. The Engineering work today would use the crossovers either side of Seven Kings to gain the Main Line using P3 there as an unusual stop point. The next four stations were all fast platforms before using the crossovers to regain the Electric Line before Harold Wood. The reverse would use the complementary crossovers just after Harold Wood going West, and then running fast all the way to beyond Ilford and then using the Up Passengere Avoiding Line to rejoin the Electric Line again before Manor Park. A total of 10 Fast platforms were therefore on offer today and i would spend the next few hours hoovering them all up and doing as many normal platforms as were available. With the Engineering finishing around Midday i was therefore able to pick up extra normal platforms, and in fact i was able to complete 3 stations. The itinerary is listed below but i had a great time just going backwards and forwards and mixing it up towards the end with some linear hops as the service levels returned to normal.

Great for people watching those who were so engrossed in their lives that they never noticed the platform alterations, and in some cases oblivious still as we pulled out and past them on the other line. Wake up folk!

All done by 1.30pm and time to move on. I will be keeping an eye open for further engineering on the line and hoping i can rejig things to have a pop at those as and when. Next up is the newish single line going up to Meridian Water and with a decent frequency it didn't take long to do the all the Platform 2's at Northumberland Park, Tottenham Hale and Meridian Water before doing an out and back to Lea Bridge and taking in P11 and P12 at Stratford and an arrive and depart basis.

Stratford was notable for the chap who was stopped on one of the stairs there and who had proceeded to take off his trainers and just sit on them. I know not why.

There was some unfinished bits of track and the lesser used P10a to also do at Stratford and i was hoping to get an incoming version of this but was foiled by the display at Hackney Wick showing times to the next service rather than the actual service times as would normally be the case, and so didn't spot that the service i boarded at the correct time was a late running one. grrr. No matter i did board the next service back at Stratford which was departing from P10a so i have at least completed the station for platforms now. P10a and P11 (West) use the Up Channelsea Curve which is now in the bag and the Down will have to wait for another time on an incoming service.

P3 at Liverpool Street took me back to Seven Sisters and a 10 minute jaunt to my £50 hotel which is becoming the Sunday night norm. I got a lot done today, but that only serves to remind me how much there is still to do. When i return i may have a look at Liverpool Street to see how completist i can be there. In my favour, there doesn't appear to be too much rare track to do at the station itself but Bethnal Green Junctions seem to offer more of a challenge.

Seven Sisters	Depart	6.52​	*****	GE			stations	platforms
Cheshunt	Arrive	7.04​	P2	GE	wait 25m		completed	completed
Cheshunt	Depart	7.29​	P1	GE
London Liverpool Street	Arrive	7.57​	P14	GE	wait 29m
London Liverpool Street	Depart	8.26​	A	XR
Chadwell Heath	Arrive	8.53​	P2	XR	wait 6m
Chadwell Heath	Depart	8.59​	P1	XR
Manor Park	Arrive	9.08​	P1	XR	wait 7m
Manor Park	Depart	9.15​	P2	XR
Seven Kings	Arrive	9.22​	P3	XR	wait 16m
Seven Kings	Depart	9.38​	P1	XR
Ilford	Arrive	9.40​	P1	XR	wait 4m
Ilford	Depart	9.44​	P4	XR
Gidea Park	Arrive	10.03​	P2	XR	wait 4m
Gidea Park	Depart	10.07​	P1	XR			1​	4​
Romford	Arrive	10.09​	P2	XR	wait 11m
Romford	Depart	10.20​	P3	XR
Harold Wood	Arrive	10.26​	P3	XR	wait 10m
Harold Wood	Depart	10.36​	P4	XR
Goodmayes	Arrive	10.50​	P1	XR	wait 10m
Goodmayes	Depart	11.00​	P2	XR
Brentwood	Arrive	11.16​	P4	XR	wait 14m
Brentwood	Depart	11.30​	P3	XR
Maryland	Arrive	11.58​	P1	XR	wait 8m
Maryland	Depart	12.06​	P2	XR
Forest Gate	Arrive	12.08​	P2	XR	wait 7m
Forest Gate	Depart	12.15​	P2	XR
Seven Kings	Arrive	12.23​	P4	XR	wait 8m
Seven Kings	Depart	12.31​	P4	XR
Goodmayes	Arrive	12.33​	P4	XR	wait 7m
Goodmayes	Depart	12.40​	P4	XR
Chadwell Heath	Arrive	12.41​	P4	XR	wait 9m
Chadwell Heath	Depart	12.50​	P3	XR			1​	4​
Goodmayes	Arrive	12.51​	P3	XR	wait 14m		1​	4​
Goodmayes	Depart	13.05​	P3	XR
Ilford	Arrive	13.06​	P3	XR	wait 7m
Ilford	Depart	13.13​	P3	XR
Forest Gate	Arrive	13.17​	P1	XR	wait 9m
Forest Gate	Depart	13.26​	P1	XR
Stratford	Arrive	13.30​	P5	XR	wait 26m
Stratford	Depart	13.56​	P12	GE
Northumberland Park	Arrive	14.08​	P2	GE	wait 14m
Northumberland Park	Depart	14.22​	P2	GE
Tottenham Hale	Arrive	14.24​	P2	GE	wait 12m
Tottenham Hale	Depart	14.36​	P2	GE
Meridian Water	Arrive	14.40​	P2	GE	wait 9m
Meridian Water	Depart	14.49​	P2	GE
Stratford	Arrive	15.03​	P12	GE	wait 39m
Stratford	Depart	15.42​	P11	GE
Lea Bridge	Arrive	15.46​	P2	GE	wait 37m
Lea Bridge	Depart	16.23​	P1	GE			1​	2​
Stratford	Arrive	16.28​	P11	GE	wait 20m
Stratford	Depart	16.48​	P9	GE
London Liverpool Street	Arrive	16.55​	P14	GE	wait 26m
London Liverpool Street	Depart	17.21​	P14	GE
Stratford	Arrive	17.28​	P10	GE	wait 19m
Stratford	Depart	17.47​	P1	LO
Hackney Wick	Arrive	17.50​	P1	LO	wait 5m
Hackney Wick	Depart	17.55​	P2	LO
Stratford	Arrive	17.58​	P1	LO	wait 15m
Stratford	Depart	18.13​	P10a	LO			1​	9​
Hackney Wick	Arrive	18.16​	P1	LO	wait 17m
Hackney Wick	Depart	18.33​	P2	LO
Stratford	Arrive	18.36​	P2	LO	wait 11m
Stratford	Depart	18.47​	P5	XR
London Liverpool Street	Arrive	18.53​	B	XR	wait 22m
London Liverpool Street	Depart	19.15​	P3	LO
Seven Sisters	Arrive	19.34​	*****	LO

 

[Turbo004]

I've still been reading your trip reports over the past year or two without commenting. They are always very interesting. That last trip sounded very good especiallythe people watching side of things. Well done for completing so many platforms. I've yet to do the Ilford Down Passenger Avoider. It's one of my top four targets left but rarely seems to come up at a suitable time of day.

I'm aiming to do Gas Factory Junction - Bow Junction in December. This rarely comes up in daytime so maybe one to watch out for.

My January trip which I'm aiming for is Laverstock Junctions near Salisbury which seems to come up once a year or so. This year though its available in December and January.

Keep up the really interesting trip reports and hope things pick up at home.