Shrewsbury Platform 3

[strettonarms96]

Platform 3 at Shrewsbury does not seem to be used much now after it it was used for most xx24 departures to Holyhead, from Cardiff in 2011/2012.

Does anyone know what services it is use for now, I can think that it is just the 1824 B. International - Llandudno?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Funny how the P3 upgrade was considered an "essential" capacity scheme (paid for by the Welsh Government I believe), just in time for two timetable changes:
- closure of WSMR, which used P3 northbound
- joining/splitting of Birmingham-Holyhead trains (can't be done in P3)

It might yet be used for the extra Cambrians (depending on where they go beyond Shrewsbury - if anywhere).

 

[transmanche]

Does anyone know what services it is use for now, I can think that it is just the 1824 B. International - Llandudno?

RTT shows a mixtures of services booked to use platform 3 across the day.

 

[Tracky]

3 gets a lot of use. A few trains are booked off 3 through the day - these tend to be when the train from Birmingham does not divide so the up and the down pass each other in the station. It is very useful when trains don't follow the plan, when units need attaching or removing and when trains run late.

 

[strettonarms96]

3 gets a lot of use. A few trains are booked off 3 through the day - these tend to be when the train from Birmingham does not divide so the up and the down pass each other in the station. It is very useful when trains don't follow the plan, when units need attaching or removing and when trains run late.

It doesn't get 'a lot' of use compared to 4 or 7. When travelling back from shrews at various times of the day i rarely see it used. I use train from craven arms to shrewsbury and arrive in at 0822 (ex swansea?) which is booked to terminate at P3 but it is always 5!

 

[craigybagel]

Operationally, why would you want to use Platform 3? It is much more limited than the other platforms in terms of what routes can be used, it has no barriers (the train you mention is often full by the time it arrives at Shrewsbury and the guard isn't always able to issue tickets to all passengers by the time it arrives), any time a train departs from there platform staff need to be sent over from the other side of the station to dispatch, it has much more limited customer facilities, HOW and Cambrian services often have many passengers connecting from Manchester-Cardiff trains that have to use 4 or 7 - if these run from the bays it's a much shorter walk for connecting passengers......need I continue?

It's a useful thing to have when you need it, but if you don't, it's much easier not to use it.

 

[strettonarms96]

Also, have LM Class 170 on Shrewsbury - Brum ever used any other platform excluding 5/6?

 

[PHILIPE]

HOW trains use Platform 3 on occasions, especially if 5/6 have something extra there which does on occasions. They use 3 on Royal Welsh Show days in July due to strengthening and blocking 5/6 up due to the extra vehicles. I doubt LM 170s have ever used another platform. They could run into 3 but could not return from there as the signalling only allows trains to depart only for Sutton Bridge but not for Abbey Foregate.

 

[Tracky]

From 3 you can only reach Wrexham and Hereford/HoW/Cambrian routes. From time to time LM units are stabled in there but they can't depart in service...

 

[broomster]

Also, have LM Class 170 on Shrewsbury - Brum ever used any other platform excluding 5/6?

I'm in Shrewsbury most days - and I've only ever seen LM 170's on Platform 4 once about 2 years ago at 7am.. And that was a complete cock up as it blocked the platform for about 20 minutes... Never seen them in any other platform than 5/6 apart from this one incidence..

11th June 2012 was the date...

 

[Gareth Marston]

I'm in Shrewsbury most days - and I've only ever seen LM 170's on Platform 4 once about 2 years ago at 7am.. And that was a complete cock up as it blocked the platform for about 20 minutes... Never seen them in any other platform than 5/6 apart from this one incidence..

11th June 2012 was the date...

With the 0514 from Aber arrived 10 minutes early as usual.

 

[Parallel]

As others have said, quite often a "platform alteration" will show up for trains that are booked to use platform 3. From personal experience, platform 3 tends to be used when there are no free platforms. I alighted there a year or so ago when I left a delayed service from Aberystwyth, it did throw me as I didn't know I had to leave the station and then re-enter. - IIRC unusually platform 6 was being used by a service going to Aberystwyth, 5 was being used by a terminating LM service, 4 was a delayed service to Manchester and 7 was a service to Milford Haven (which I manically had to run for!)

I think when the Cambrian gets its hourly service, platform 3 would be a good place to terminate them - it takes about 1h50 between Shrews and Aber (including trains splitting) so ones on this new service should have more than 10 mins turnaround time because they aren't splitting at Mach - Also, the time between stops is quite generous so it should make it easier to check tickets. Perhaps a ticket gate can be built on platform 3 as they have done at Bath Spa to access the carpark.

 

[PHILIPE]

As others have said, quite often a "platform alteration" will show up for trains that are booked to use platform 3. From personal experience, platform 3 tends to be used when there are no free platforms. I alighted there a year or so ago when I left a delayed service from Aberystwyth, it did throw me as I didn't know I had to leave the station and then re-enter. - IIRC unusually platform 6 was being used by a service going to Aberystwyth, 5 was being used by a terminating LM service, 4 was a delayed service to Manchester and 7 was a service to Milford Haven (which I manically had to run for!)

I think when the Cambrian gets its hourly service, platform 3 would be a good place to terminate them - it takes about 1h50 between Shrews and Aber (including trains splitting) so ones on this new service should have more than 10 mins turnaround time because they aren't splitting at Mach - Also, the time between stops is quite generous so it should make it easier to check tickets. Perhaps a ticket gate can be built on platform 3 as they have done at Bath Spa to access the carpark.

The HOWs (2 of them) are booked to use Platform 3 which is no doubt due to the fact that they are there for approx. an hour and could cause problems in 5/6 if anything causes variations to the LM or Cambrian trains. Sometimes, I have seen a 170 stabled there waiting to attach to a later one.

 

[craigybagel]

The HOWs (2 of them) are booked to use Platform 3 which is no doubt due to the fact that they are there for approx. an hour and could cause problems in 5/6 if anything causes variations to the LM or Cambrian trains. Sometimes, I have seen a 170 stabled there waiting to attach to a later one.

Booked to but very rarely do. Plus given that all bar one service (04:31 SWA-SHR and it's return to CDF at 0900) are booked for 153's, you can always put the LM or Cambrian train on top if it goes into one of the bays - this does sometimes happen.

 

[Greenback]

I thought I would never get to use platfrom 3 when I first saw it at the age of 14. I had to wait 30 years, but finally, in 2012, I boarded the early afternoon Heart of Wales train there!

 

[PHILIPE]

Booked to but very rarely do. Plus given that all bar one service (04:31 SWA-SHR and it's return to CDF at 0900) are booked for 153's, you can always put the LM or Cambrian train on top if it goes into one of the bays - this does sometimes happen.

The 14 06 and 18 05 from Shrewsbury are the HOW trains booked from Platform 3 and when this arrangement firstly took place, people were complaining about having to drag luggage across to the island platform which can be a bit of a route march having to go out of the station and back. What happens now is that if there are no problems on the day accommodating in 5/6 they will go there.

 

[craigybagel]

0900 should be booked in 3 as well, or at least on the CIS it always shows as a platform alteration when it goes in one of the bays. The 0516 has to go from Platform 4 though.

There are a surprisingly large amount of passengers from the HOW line travelling beyond Shrewsbury, so it does make sense to keep them on the same side of the station as their connecting services - the same applies for the Cambrian.

 

[Gareth Marston]

More cambrian trains coming see main threads

 

[The Informer]

More cambrian trains coming see main threads

Just seen it on news. We knew it was coming.

 

[Gareth Marston]

Just seen it on news. We knew it was coming.

then you must claim credit for it as every opposition politician this side of the Dyke has!

 

[The Informer]

Hahaha... I'll throw my name in!

 

[andypops]

- joining/splitting of Birmingham-Holyhead trains (can't be done in P3)

To get back slightly to the OP, can you explain why not? I'm not completely familiar with this platform, but is it for a signalling reason?

 

[craigybagel]

To get back slightly to the OP, can you explain why not? I'm not completely familiar with this platform, but is it for a signalling reason?

It is indeed, trains can't depart from Platform 3 to the Birmingham line, and I don't believe that they can arrive into there from the Chester line either. The only platform that is signalled bi-directional for movements to and from the Chester and Birmingham lines is Platform 4.

 

[PHILIPE]

The regular pattern for trains from Birmingham to Holyhead is to drop a set at Shrewsbury which is attached to a Holyhead to Birmingham Intl only a few minutes later so they have to use Platform 4. A train from Birmingham to Holyhead will use Platform 3 if there is no unit to be detached.

 

[HowardGWR]

The regular pattern for trains from Birmingham to Holyhead is to drop a set at Shrewsbury which is attached to a Holyhead to Birmingham Intl only a few minutes later so they have to use Platform 4. A train from Birmingham to Holyhead will use Platform 3 if there is no unit to be detached.

On another thread, they are discussing poor stations. I think that stations that have unused platforms exude a depressing image and I visited Shrewsbury recently and found it very depressing indeed. Admittedly it was a dank day and a Sunday to boot, but it struck me that this is no location for a tourist to think, wow, I'm here!

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

It is indeed, trains can't depart from Platform 3 to the Birmingham line, and I don't believe that they can arrive into there from the Chester line either. The only platform that is signalled bi-directional for movements to and from the Chester and Birmingham lines is Platform 4.

It's one of the maddening things about Shrewsbury that despite the 180 levers of Severn Bridge Junction box, none of them now allows a route from P3 towards Birmingham (though the trackwork is there).
NR put in a signal recently to allow departures towards the Hereford line, and so P3 can now be used to reverse Hereford/HOW/Cambrian trains.

Northbound, P3 only connects towards Chester. There is no physical connection either from the Chester or Crewe directions.

 

[Tomnick]

It's one of the maddening things about Shrewsbury that despite the 180 levers of Severn Bridge Junction box, none of them now allows a route from P3 towards Birmingham (though the trackwork is there).

The box diagram suggests otherwise...!

 

[craigybagel]

The box diagram shows that the only way from Platform 3 towards Birmingham is along the Down Main in the Up direction, but as the arrow shows, that line is only signalled for movements in the Down direction, towards Shrewsbury, so there is no signalled move along that route.

 

[Tomnick]

Sorry, should have quoted more selectively! That was my point (ha) - that the box diagram shows that there's no physical connection back towards Birmingham. Now suitably edited!

 

[headshot119]

The box diagram suggests otherwise...!

You'll note signal 99's lever lead is marked "Platform 3 to Up Hereford"