Hi everyone,
This was a good discussion that didn't treat the subject matter lightly. Personally, I have never been a lover of push-pull trains and thankfully never had to work any, albeit I have travelled in many just like yourselves. Prior to the electrification from Basingstoke to Southampton, around 1966, I hadn't given this much thought until they introduced the new high-speed push pull units. Before this (steam days) push-pull was restricted to a maximum speed of 50 mph and suddelnly going up to 95 mph seemed strange indeed. We worked over this line from the steam days and from day one of the electrification and I always felt uneasy when passing a push-pull on the opposite line. If the front ever lifted off the track you didn't stand much chance should that train come charging your way.
Thankfully, such derailments proved very few but I have never forgotten that the possibility has always been there. Even more so when the Southampton line speed was raised to 100 mph. Then there were the DTV's on the Northwestern lines and working over those lines kept my feelings alive on that issue.
Increasing the weight of the driving trailers came about after the Scottish accident and mainly to stop the vehicle lifting off the tracks in a similar incident. No-one ever expected that a Cow would create such a disaster when hit by a train. but if these left the track for any reason the extra weight and the fact the train is being pushed woud make no difference to the eventual outcome. It would still be pot-luck. I remember my driver and I relieving a train at Reading once that had hit a heard of cows near Banbury and the train managed to continue it's journey to Southampton, albeit with some delay, and the underside of the coaches looking like a butcher's shop!! The loco, a 47, was sent to the shed for servicing.
Another thing that came from this incident was pushing in-cab radios to the fore and a flashing light warning on front of locomotive operated by the driver. The sad fact of the Scottish incident was that the Cow on the track was reported to the signalman but was too late to get the approaching train stopped.
The Glasgow-Edinburgh push-pull Class 26's (or was that 27's) didn't ease my worries. They used radio waves and transmitters and receivers along the lenghth of the train to operate the controls of the rear locomotive and hopefully you didn't loose the signal anwhere on the way!! However, as with HST's, having power at both ends is a lot different and equalises the pressures throughout the train more evenly, but both driving units have to be well serviced so that power starts andcuts off within tight equally specifications. If you ever travelled on the HST + Class 91 formation in the early days of Class 91's between King's Cross and Leeds you may still remember the very rought ride you got and the heavy jolts when the 91 would power faster than the HST, or vice-vera, and you felt as if the sole bar was going to come up through the coach floor, or if it ocurred when taking a curve your shoulder would be slammed against the window edge. I saw many a worried look from fellow passengers at such times.
Thankfully this was resolved when class 91's and driving trailers came together in greater numbers. But it all proves the inherent difficulties of running high-speed push-pull trains. Personally, I will never be happy about them but perhaps as the law of averages has proved over the years, with so few serious incidents, then this is how we have to live with it.
In regard to 'crushability' it is interesting that B.R. baulked at passengers travelling up front in high-speed DVT's, or using a DMU type train for long distance travel, but here we are today accepting both!
Having worked on and travelled all these years on the railway and understanding many of these incidents it still counts that the railway is very much a safe way to travel. Staff in all departments DO see safety as the priority and many of these incidents ocurr in spite of everything possible being done to avoid them and keeping them to the very minimum. However, push-pull still doesn't sit very squarly with me, personally. Unless it is two power cars at each end.
Regards.
Bill EWS.