Railway General Knowledge.

[krus_aragon]

Is it one of those places where a (long) train can pass over itself as it works its way over a mountain range?

 

[DerekC]

@Marton, I think that's good enough. The Gallitzin Tunnel takes the PRR main line under the summit of the Alleghenies, which are a range of the Appalachians. It's about 5 miles west (as the locomotive climbs) from Horseshoe Curve.

There is a footbridge just outside the western portal from which you can see quite a long way into the tunnel. A colleague and I took his 3- and 5-year old boys there a few years ago after a trip to Horseshoe Curve - they were very excited to see the locomotive headlamp coming closer and closer …. and burst into tears when about 10000hp of diesel, still pulling the back end of the train up the gradient, emerged from the tunnel and roared under the bridge at 35 mph or so!

Your viewpoint.

 

[Marton]

Thank you. You have given a lot of help. I was tempted to do open floor but that just slows things down so a quickie (I think)

From which city did the Devonian begin it’s journey to Devon?

 

[DerekC]

Hmm - I guess not London - too obvious! Since it was presumably a GWR service, how about Birmingham?

 

[Marton]

Afraid not.

 

[AndrewE]

Thank you. You have given a lot of help. I was tempted to do open floor but that just slows things down so a quickie (I think)

From which city did the Devonian begin it’s journey to Devon?

Leeds?

 

[Marton]

Much closer

Leeds?

 

[martinsh]

It was Bradford (Forster Square ?)

PS I knew that even without the help of the Leeds guess

 

[Marton]

It was Bradford (Forster Square ?)

PS I knew that even without the help of the Leeds guess

It was Bradford. FS till the 70s when it changed to Exchange.

The walker reference I have is to beyond Paignton at kingswear.

The first part of the route was Midland from FS via Cudworth to Sheffield and Derby

Your floor.

 

[martinsh]

OK. Another easy one (hopefully)

What feature was shared by first generation DMU classes 123, 126 (some) and 128 (some) - but no others ?

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

Gangways?

 

[martinsh]

Gangways?

Yes, those classes had gangways for through access to other sets

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

I wasn't sure....a guess with not much confidence.

Where has the longest platform in the UK?

 

[DerekC]

Cambridge used to have that record, I think. Not sure of it still has, though.

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

Not Cambridge. There are a couple longer than there.

 

[martinsh]

Colchester seems to ring a bell

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

Colchester and another station are argued a lot about which is longest.

I haven't said i was looking for a station though....

I asked where has the longest platform in the UK .

 

[Whistler40145]

Manchester Victoria including Manchester Exchange?

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

No.... sorry.

As a clue. There isn't a passenger station where this platform is . It is also the longest in Europe.....

 

[Marton]

Eurotunnel vehicle loading in Kent ?

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

Yes !! Cheriton @ Folkestone is 2595ft long

 

[Marton]

Yes !! Cheriton @ Folkestone is 2595ft long

I didn’t get the place and you helped so it’s Open Floor from me.

 

[Calthrop]

As it's Open Floor:

This involves a person who was the offspring of two quite progressive and "edgy" artistic / aesthetic folk -- artists in their own right, and members of a movement sharing similar artistic ideals; the bod's given name, being after the name of another prominent artistic figure. Plus, the then Poet Laureate was an "honorary uncle" of our bod. This person nonetheless took very different paths in life, from those typical of the milieu into which born; and became a personage of considerable note among students of the British railway scene, and especially of one particular sector of it.

Who was the person concerned?

 

[Whistler40145]

Sir John Betjeman?

 

[Calthrop]

Sir John Betjeman?

No -- of an earlier generation; and I believe Betjeman was the "arty" offspring of quite plain, ordinary folks.

 

[Whistler40145]

No -- of an earlier generation; and I believe Betjeman was the "arty" offspring of quite plain, ordinary folks.

Sorry

 

[Calthrop]

No need ! "Might have been, but wasn't..."

 

[Calthrop]

Hint -- our bod chose to enter the armed forces -- AFAIK in a section of same, which featured hearing few if any shots fired in anger; still, looking rather like rejection / rebellion vis-a-vis family background. Was subsequently involved with a fair number of British railway undertakings.

 

[DerekC]

I thought of Robert Graves but I don't think it can be him - his role in WWI certainly did involve hearing shots fired in anger ("Goodbye to All That"). And I don't think he had much to do with railways.

 

[Calthrop]

No -- not Graves. Our chap was "career military" -- I believe his World War I role was home-based and quite comfortable and easy; though he was getting on in years by then, anyway.