Pointless signs - Lichfield Trent Valley

Railway Garden Competition - York

Reading offers railway's most pointless seat?

This from the late Professor Sir Misha Black...

Emboldened by your contributor’s picture of a pointless clock (or clocks) at Kidsgrove, I attach for your consideration a pointless seat at Reading platform 4.

Now, it’s not that I’m ungrateful for the opportunity of more exercise as I yomp between the ‘south western’ platforms and the rest of the station and I appreciate that after such a slog, some may wish to rest their weary bones on the recently installed benches, but I can’t imagine many who would like to lean back against the comfort of a clear plastic sack filled with the detritus of modern life.

To be fair, the litter bin/hoop was there first.  And the aesthetic of the bench seat would have been completed ruined by, say, moving it a foot to the right.

East Coast tops greyhounds league

This from the late Sir Nigel Gresley...

In the week that we celebrate the setting of the world speed record for steam by my locomotive Mallard, how cheering to read that locomotive hauled trains on the East Coast Main Line still reign supreme on the UK rails.

According to the latest Railway Gazette International world speed survey in that eximious journal's July issue:

"Perhaps surprisingly, Britain’s two fastest runs are found on the conventional network, with East Coast’s 18.55 York to Stevenage pipping Virgin Trains’ 19.42 Stafford to Watford Junction to the top spot with an average of 109.7 mph (176.6 km/h) for 161 miles. 

"Southeastern’s fast commuter services on High Speed 1 take third place with a best timetabled booking of 107.6 mph (173.1 km/h)."

It is clear that Italian tilting EMUs and even Japanese EMUs running at 140 mile/h on high speed track are no match for British heavy metal on the incomparable racing ground that is the ECML.  

And, of course that is running at only 125 mile/h when the IC225 has a top speed of 140 mile/hour and achieved 162 mile/h down Stoke Bank - scene of Mallard's triumph - during a test run,

This should give the Department for Transport even more cause to reconsider its ludicrous proposal to force bidders for the East Coast franchise to replace IC225 with the Incredibly Expensive Procurement.

Pointless signs - Kidsgrove

This from the Manxman...

In this instance more a case of pointless clocks!

Two time zones on display at Kidsgrove station, depending on your direction of travel! 

Not of course that accurate time is in way essential to the smooth operation of the railway.

UPDATE: This from a Mr Steve Kilometer...

The station clocks around the network depend on the time signal from the MSF radio signal transmitted from Anthorn.

As do many of the watches issued to railway employees with time-critical jobs, like Train managers/Guards or whatever they are now called.

The MSF radio signal is a dedicated time broadcast that provides an accurate and reliable source of UK civil time, based on the NPL time scale UTC(NPL). It is available 24 hours a day across the whole of the UK and beyond. The signal operates on a frequency of 60 kHz and carries a time and date code that can be received and decoded by a wide range of readily available radio-controlled clocks. The MSF signal is transmitted from Anthorn Radio Station in Cumbria by Babcock (formerly VT Communications), under contract to NPL.

Sadly they don’t have a backup clock thingy (“we can put a man on the moon, but TWO clocks?”) so when it is maintained the signal is turned off and clocks just drift. Sometimes wildly.

Here are the current outages:
 
Essential maintenance work - signal off-air

Please note that the MSF 60 kHz time and frequency signal broadcast from Anthorn Radio Station will be continuously off-air for maintenance work from:

Monday 1 July, 08:00 BST to Friday 5 July, 18:00 BST
- service off-air continuously

Then it will be off during the day from:

Saturday 6 July to Thursday 18 July, between 08:00 BST and 18:00 BST
- service off-air each day (but will be back on air overnight)
 
So, sadly the inability of this system to have a back-up means many clocks and watches could go wrong in the next few weeks.

It'll be interesting to see whether this has a noticeable affect on PPM.

Siemens out of Crossrail running

This from Siemens...

Crossrail rolling stock procurement
 
Siemens confirms that it will not be proceeding further in the Crossrail rolling stock procurement process.

This is a strategic decision that has been taken based on current business activity levels. Crossrail is a very large project and, since first undertaking our initial assessment of capacity and deliverability, Siemens has won multiple additional orders. To pursue another project of this scale could impact our ability to deliver our current customer commitments - something we believe would not be a responsible course of action.

Siemens has an excellent working relationship with the Crossrail bid team and believe that they have conducted a fair and diligent process.   We remain fully committed to ensuring the success of the Crossrail project through the continued delivery of the signalling and communications / control systems through Siemens rail automation business.

Wow! That is all.
 

Why not let Open Access provide ECML services?

The Fact Compiler's latest column in Passenger Transport published on the 21st June... 

The next edition of Passenger Transport will be published on the 5th July.

Eye assumes the decision to franchise East Coast passenger services is the only way to give the kiss of life to Mr Kipling's Incredibly Expensive Procurement.

Mallard 126mph - unbroken for 75 years

Okay!

It would be churlish not to mention the 75th anniversary of the LNER's 126mph kettle triumph today.



But only because Sir Nigel was brought up in Derbyshire and served his apprenticeship on the LNWR (therefore, de facto, an LMS man!).

That is all. 

UPDATE: This from the late Col H F Stephens...

With speed in mind might I congratulate Lord Mandelson of Foy in the County of Herefordshire and of Hartlepool in the County of Durham, for his intervention against HS2.

As I proved, the hoi polloi are quite happy travelling very slowly, with chickens, sheep and goats if necessary.

Meanwhile terribly grand people can continue to 'monetise' their time by taking private jets to their terribly important meetings across the globe.

East Coast acknowledges Christian Heritage

This from East Coast...

Train operator East Coast today named a locomotive “Durham Cathedral”, as thousands of visitors flock to the North East to see the Lindisfarne Gospels in the shadow of the iconic Norman cathedral.

The locomotive, number 91114, was unveiled by the Dean of Durham, the Very Reverend Michael Sadgrove, accompanied by the Vice Chancellor of Durham University, Professor Chris Higgins, and East Coast’s Managing Director Karen Boswell, on Platform 2 at Newcastle Central Station today

The Durham Cathedral Choir provided musical accompaniment to the ceremony, and also sang for passengers on-board the train’s inaugural journey from Newcastle to Durham. The East Coast Railway Chaplain, the Reverend Stephen Sorby, blessed the newly-named train prior to its inaugural departure for Durham, and on to London King’s Cross.

Very good.

So whilst the Girl Guides have abandoned God, it would seem that East Coast is still prepared to acknowledge our Christian Heritage.

And a perfect opportunity for members of the erastian national church and the nation's erastian train operator to share the same platform.

Pointless signs - Southampton Central

This from Some guy who works for SWT... 

Not really a pointless sign, in fact a poster...

...but it shows what a lack of proof-reading can achieve

BR totem anschlussed!

Oh dear!

Is DB (prop Angela Merkel) about to fall foul of the mighty Heritage Railway Association?

Regular followers of the railway scene will of course know that the HRA is one of the most powerful lobby groups in the industry.

So what are we to make of this slightly sad rendering of an iconic railway brand on DB owned Arriva CrossCountry's website...

As any fule kno "Copyright of the former British Railways' Totem is the property of the Heritage Railway Association".

Eye looks forward to a stand off between the bicycling and bowler hatted David Morgan MBE and XC supremo Andy Cooper.

Seconds out!

Miller's alive!

Good news from Neville Hill for fans of both Valentas and clag!

41001's engine was successfully started just after 18:00 last night.

Congratulations to all involved at Project Miller.
 

Pointless signs - Norwich

Good luck in finding either a footbridge or subway...

UPDATE: This from a Mr Oliver Cromwell, another satisfied reader...

Dear Fact Compiler, you silly old fool.

You've already done this one, in 2010.

And it wasn't funny then either.

UPDATE: This from a Mr Tony Miles... 

If Eye covered this in 2010 then it’s been there for three years without anyone in “authority” doing something about it – which makes it even more funny than it was at that time.

If Mr Cromwell doesn’t think that’s amusing then I’d like to know why!!

Juicing the network whilst the lights dim...

This from the PM's spokesman in today's Lobby...

"The clear view of the Government is that the lights are not going out.

"We are confident there are adequate supplies available. Power is not going to be rationed. Lights are not going to be turned off.

"The fundamental questions here are: are the lights going to go out? No.

"Will power be rationed? No."

What an excellent time to be embarking on a major programme of electrication, eh?

Reports of the demise of diesel trains appear somewhat exaggerated!

A reminder of Ministerial double speak

Time to compare and contrast.

This from the Earl Attlee on the 25th April...

Earl Attlee (Whip, House of Lords; Conservative)
Rolling stock deployment is a matter for the train operators with the Government's role primarily focused on ensuring that this represents value for money when the taxpayer's interest is involved. It is therefore for franchise bidders to determine the rolling stock requirements for routes within the franchise area and to work with the rolling stock owning groups to make decisions on investment in both new and existing rolling stock.

The Department for Transport is currently investing in rolling stock for the Thameslink and Inter City Express programmes. These procurements will significantly increase the national fleet size, enabling the department's investment strategy requirements to be met.

Existing rolling stock procurement programmes (including Thameslink and InterCity Express), and potential cascades of trains to other lines will not be delayed by the franchise schedule announced in March 2013, including during periods of direct awards contracts. The department will be working with both the train operators and rolling stock owning companies to understand any further rolling stock needs identified by them during the direct award periods.

Quite so and quite right!

Let the market decide!

Alas, here is the Earl Attlee on the 26th June...

Earl Attlee (Whip, House of Lords; Conservative)
Bidders for the East Coast franchise will be required to enter into arrangements for the use of trains procured through the InterCity Express Programme for use on East Coast in any agreements finalised by Her Majesty's Government.

So My Lord, it is not really 'for franchise bidders to determine rolling stock requirements' at all then?

Stand by your beds!

This from Whitehall...

Several hundred civil servants who serve in the Reserve Forces are proudly wearing their military uniforms to work today, 26 June, in job centres, tax offices and government departments across the country to mark Uniform to Work Day.

And quite right too!

After all Saturday is Armed Forces Day.

But who is this we spy in the accompanying pictures?

 
Well blow me, if it isn't Sgt 'High-tops' Stargazey, of the Queen's Own Regiment of Spinners!

Eye wonders if a certain Lt Col in the trade press isn't tempted, just very occasionally, to pull rank?

Glasto' and the railway

Nice video from First Great Western!

In their own words...

Castle Cary is normally one of the quality (sic) stations on the First Great Western network, seeing around 1000 passengers pass through it each day.

But, during Glastonbury Festival week, the station turns into the central hub for revelers traveling to the festival - with passenger numbers increasing by five or six times that number.

This video shows the transformation on day one of the festival this year.


 
Over the course of the festival First Great Western will be providing more than 50 extra trains and 13,000 extra seats to help get customers to Glastonbury, avoiding thousands of additional car journeys to the site.

Good effort - shows the railway doing what it does best; moving large numbers of people, safely.

Dean's 'getting the band back together'...

This from National Express...

Mary Grant, former chief executive officer, Phones 4U, will join National Express in July 2013 as Managing Director, Business Development. Her role initially will be to work on international growth opportunities. She will increasingly focus on UK Rail opportunities during 2014.

Who'd have guessed?

Pointless signs - Norman's Bay

This from The Albatross...

In the middle of the barren salt marshes of East Sussex lies Norman's Bay station, with it's very own 'Meeting Point'!
 

Who? Why? When?
 

Baker and Burns lead the cuts...

This from Confused of Whitehall...

I note the following from the Chancellor's  Comprehensive Spending Review statement today:

"The Department for Transport will make a 9 per cent saving in its day to day resource spending, bearing down on the running costs of Transport for London and rail administration"

Is this in addition to, or instead of, this year's planned 50% reduction in the DfT ministerial team?

Perhaps Eye, or its readers, can clarify?