That information is transmitted in a series of data codes at each stop in the schedules. Freight has a default activity code of setting down and picking up wagons at any stop, and if the codes are not entered right the default can crop up again downstream.
The gaining/losing vehicles is an unfortunate quirk with the train planning software
I assume that description is a general catch-all and in this case it is more likely to be for pathing or staff change purposes. In fact it only appears to have spent a quarter of a minute there anyway! It does seem a bit strange though that they have seemingly lugged empty wagons about 300 miles from Kent to North Wales then about 250 miles from Manchester back to Kent, for a loaded journey of barely 100 miles - doesn’t appear to make sense either economically or environmentally.
Economically I have to agree, but environmentally, even with the massive amount of empty running, the train has still not emitted as much CO2 as HGVs carrying the same load, assuming the HGVs ran one way empty to collect the load.
As mentioned above, 'Stops to detach and attach vehicles' is the default activity for freight trains (in the same way 'Stops to set down and take up passengers' is the default activity for passenger trains). RTT renders this as 'service gains/loses coaches'. Some codes override the default activity, but others (such as 'stops or shunts to let other trains pass', also known as stopping for pathing reasons) do not and the planners who input the schedule in the system need to enter an dummy activity in the first position and then put the actual activity in second place.
It is avoidable if people put the star first when it's needed! However once the schedule has acquired the -T/OP they tend to be left in because people tend to think they're intended rather than data errors.
www.realtimetrains.co.uk
Thanks for the heads up - got my fingers crossed and will keep an eye out. I have a feeling it being a bank holiday tomorrow will negate the need for it to run
Now that it's looking more promising, we'll have to see if it's operated by 56049 or 70811, as both are at Carlisle, should it run. 70811 would be the real interesting option since, as far as I'm aware, no Class 70s have ever operated along the portion of the Mid-Cheshire Line between Hartford Junction and Mickle Trafford
There was one a handful of years ago, again on a log diversion. I remember seeing it at Altrincham
Double 70s is certainly interesting if that's true. I can remember last time a 6J37 Mid-Cheshire diversion appeared on RTT, a few folk raised questions about some of the steep gradients between Blackburn and Manchester but single 66s have managed it fine with 6J37 diversions in the past - should be no problem for a 70. Could be incorrect allocations on TOPS or could be a case of one of the 70s being DIT and just being moved to another yard like what GBRf often do on the Biomass?
This train is going round through Euxton and Chorley to get from Blackburn to Bolton, not up the bank through Darwen.
Would be interesting to see if this becomes regular. Those locos operated the Ravenhead flow yesterday, I'm assuming DCR are sort of allocating the pair as a substitution for a single 60?