Very nice, thanks for sharing. Looks like you had nice weather for the trips, which is good - the Class 700 in that lighting at East Croydon is impressive.
Loco switch at eridge Station Southern class 171 departing on the opposite platform I like the way both heritage and main line share a station. I know the bluebell railways does the same at East grinstead. Can anyone mention more stations working like this?
East Grinstead's Bluebell and National Rail Stations are actually separate, but the track is linked and the two are within sight of each other. The first that comes to mind is the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, which shares four stations with National Rail (Grosmont, Sleights, Ruswarp and Whitby), as for a good few miles both the heritage and main line share the same track. I believe Alton station on the Mid Hants Railway (or the "Watercress Line" as it prefers to be known) is also shared between heritage and mainline trains. Like the Bluebell Railway, the Mid Hants is basically just an extension of the mainline. Same goes for Paignton- the mainline ends and beyond the platforms the line joins the Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway down to Kingswear. In this case however the heritage railway has it's own platform (technically station) at Paignton, however they're right next to each other. A couple of years ago you could have counted Bishops Lydeard on the WSR. GWR used to have a 150 shuttling between there and Taunton but they've stopped now. Those are all the ones I can think of at the moment.
Was your train a Class 380 or 385? If 385 That can go onto Cathcart Circle 2xx trips during the peak time
On the 24th of March of this year, I visited Salisbury to see what is probably the most famous steam locomotive in the world- the LNER A3 Pacific no. 60103 Flying Scotsman. The crowds were unlike anything I've ever experienced for a steam special, as the photos show. It really goes to show that this engine's mythical status goes beyond just rail enthusiasts. The loco is probably more famous in it's LNER Apple Green livery, but I personally prefer it in the BR Brunswick Green seen here, I think it's more appropriate for showcasing the ultimate development of Gresley's Racehorses- complete with German style smoke deflectors and double chimney. This engine is most famous for being the first (actually probably 2nd, but let's forget City of Truro for now) steam engine to reach 100mph in 1934. However what most don't know is that this record was incredibly short lived, lasting only a year. Flying Scotsman was still an A1 at that time, with all the shortcomings of the design which were highlighted during the 1925 exchanges with the GWR. In 1935 another trial run was made with A3 no. 2750 Papyrus, which smashed the Scotsman's record with a speed of 108mph on the same stretch of line, and with a slightly heavier load too. If you can believe it the Flying Scotsman wasn't converted into an A3 until 1947. It's a terrible shame no other A3s survived into preservation. They were truly outstanding engines- in their final forms enginemen reckoned they were practically equal to the streamlined A4s, and while Thompson's and Peppercorn's later LNER Pacifics were much more powerful they didn't quite have the same reputation for high speed running. It's highly appropriate that the majority of the class were named after racehorses.
No doubt the Flying Scotsman was/is a fine engine but I was always drawn to the Mallard. Not because it hold's the speed record but its looks really.
That's understandable, the A4s are probably the most beautiful engines to have ever run in Britain. The streamlining is simply gorgeous, especially in Garter Blue. Here's a fun fact though- one person who wasn't so keen on the streamlining was Sir Nigel Gresley himself! He was rather sceptical about it, and it was only due to the publicity minded LNER, as well as the insistence of his assistant Oliver Bulleid (the same Bulleid who went on to design the Bulleid Pacifics of the Southern Railway), that they were streamlined at all. One incident that showcases Gresley's feelings on the streamlining (as well as demonstrating the A3s parity with the A4s) came in 1939 when Gresley was having a meeting with the managing director of Westinghouse. A clerk entered the room and handed him a slip of paper, which reported that an A4 had failed on the up Coronation express at Newcastle, and an A3 had taken over the train. Despite leaving Newcastle 8 minutes late it was only one minute late arriving into London, and would have arrived early if not for temporary speed restrictions. Gresley smiled and is quoted as saying "There you are Peter; any of my bloody engines will do the job, whether they have a tin case on or not!"
"Tunnel vide" (clear tunnel) signal in Montreal Metro Berri-UQAM station - orange line (square is full for stop signal)
So Avanti are currently imploding, running a greatly reduced timetable, and even then they're struggling. So I thought it would be nice to look back to their predecessors, Virgin Trains. They held onto the West Coast franchise for a long time, and I always thought they were one of the more charismatic TOCs, and I find myself missing them. On the 13/9/2019 I found myself at Lancaster, and I took this photo of 221105, en route from London Euston from Glasgow Central. The Voyager's days are numbered with Avanti, as they'll soon be replaced by new bi mode IETs. A sensible move given that they spend most of their time under the wires, but I'll miss them quite a bit. They're hated by most enthusiasts but I think they're some of the best trains running in the UK personally. People only hate them because they're short, if they had even two extra coaches I'm certain they wouldn't get anywhere near as much criticism, you need only look at EMR's Meridians to see that. If you're on one that isn't overcrowded (which in my experience is more common then their detractors would have you believe), then they're very comfortable, with what I would argue is one of the most pleasant interiors on any British multiple unit. Not to mention they're bloody quick. I think they'll outperform any diesel unit made before the 800s, and even then while the 800s are quicker off the mark the Voyagers would catch up at higher speeds. They're also remarkably reliable. CrossCountry's sets work incredibly long distance services day in and day out, on some of the hardest diagrams in the UK, yet not once can I think of an occasion where one has broken down in my experience.
I miss the HST 125's. I remember them being comfortable on long journeys. I don't know what speeds these new trains will do but the comfort is often overlooked in the interest of keeping prices down. They had a few problems with those 800's yeah?
Yeah the HSTs are pretty much unbeatable in terms of comfort. Especially when compared to the 800s, which are far from the height of luxury.
Troon Station by TSW Nathan posted Aug 20, 2022 at 4:32 PM 20220801_113400 by TSW Nathan posted Aug 7, 2022 at 5:16 PM 20220801_113539 by TSW Nathan posted Aug 7, 2022 at 5:16 PM P1020354 by TSW Nathan posted Aug 7, 2022 at 5:16 PM 20220611_102930 by TSW Nathan posted Aug 7, 2022 at 5:16 PM 20220801_154610 by TSW Nathan posted Aug 7, 2022 at 5:16 PM 20220801_170034 by TSW Nathan posted Aug 7, 2022 at 5:16 PM 20220801_101001 by TSW Nathan posted Aug 7, 2022 at 5:16 PM
192 Waggoner looking like a loco once again while she is under overhaul at Havenstreet (isle of wight steam railway)
Yesterday I had a trip down to the South Coast of England and visited the East Coastway route. As you'll see from my pictures, this is part of the route not included in the TSW version (between Eastbourne and Ore) and, in my opinion, why the ECW should be extended in the game: the absolutely stunning scenery - plus don't forget the awesome opportunity for the Class 171 as a loco DLC for the Ashford-Eastbourne route. A Class 377 heads east on the Brighton-Ore service as seen here along the gorgeous coastline between Bexhill and St Leonards. As seen from a pedestrian footbridge, another Ore-bound service with the Southeastern St Leonard's depot in the background. Seen from the same pedestrian footbridge as seen above, but looking west in the direction of Bexhill. Despite Southern being my local, this was my first-ever time on one of their Class 171s, as seen here at Eastbourne. Class 171/802 at Eastbourne, alongside 377/119 (which was with 377/465) which later took me home on the London Victoria-bound service.
Some extra pictures I took as part of my trip yesterday: This Eastbourne-bound Class 377 is seen here alongside a Gatwick Express 387 at Haywards Heath and below that, the 387 is later seen departing on the service to Victoria on this beautiful day. This below is a bonus picture I took back in July at Peterborough and was from an entirely separate trip, but was worth it as this is one of my favourite pictures.
With the exciting extended version of SEHS soon, I went to London yesterday for my first-ever trip on a Class 395 from St Pancras to Stratford International: Class 395/007, which is joined to 028 to form a 12-car service, seen here at London St Pancras Class 395 016/020 formed the 13:12 service to Margate which I went as far as Stratford International
Class 395 016/020 departs Stratford International for Ebbsfleet International and Ashford International on its journey eventually to Margate At Stratford International, I saw the 13:29 Paris-London St Pancras service pass very fast through - epic!
Interesting article from Wired on the current state of the U.S. freight system. https://www.wired.com/story/a-us-freight-rail-crisis-threatens-more-supply-chain-chaos/
TSW3 is out today, with SEHS extended to Ashford and Dartford. To celebrate here are a couple of shots I took at Ashford International on the 23/7/2022, when I was last there. The first photo is of 395004 and the second shows one of Southeastern's 377s, specifically 377505.
Last month I spent a week in a holiday cottage on the outskirts of Whitby. The cottage was separated from the line shared by Northern Rail and the North Yorkshire Moors Railway by the River Esk. In this view 37403 is about to pass under Larpool Viaduct with a NYMR service.
Near Canterbury West. If you look in the middle of the picture there's a lever connected to a hydraulic pump. You have to stand there pumping it for a minute to raise the barriers. Then hopefully get back in your car and cross before a train comes, otherwise you have to lower the barriers and start again! Wouldn't like to be living up the dead end Rd on the other side that's for sure.
Waiting for a bus today, I got to watch a freight go by on a nearby overpass. Five locos, first four long, fifth one shorter (yes, that's about the extent of my railfan skillz), 147 cars. What struck my eye was a grain car with a very nice Saskatchewan livery. Found a picture and explanation here: https://www.pwrs.ca/announcements/view.php?ID=639
Excellent picture and if you look at it in terms of in terms of bushel which is actually the load inside this is actually larger than it's American counterpart. In game the American Grain Car is found on Sherman Hill Cajon Pass real life Sand Patch grade and Horseshoe curve routes 35.239l Winchester Bushel (US) while Oakville Subdivision and The one in the picture from the province of Saskatchewan grain car 36.235l Avery Bushel (Canada)