Steam Dreams 2016

Or the ORR tbf

 

EWS/DBS Haven't seemed that interested in building up their steam portfolio over the last 20 years so why start now? I suspect there is too little financial return in the mainline steam industry..
... as for volunteer crews on the mainline, would you want the responsibility of crewing a mainline locomotive (and associated liabilities) without the financial return? I certainly wouldn't!

 

I see that most of the Flying Scotsman trips have disappeared from the SD website. I presume this is because they are now fully booked?

6201 down to take the first train of the year to Worcester on 12th March. Let's hope she will be ready in time - it's less than four weeks now.

 

It appears that Steam dreams don't think the FS trips will be affected by the WCRC situation...

 

One FS tour that I don't think can/ will go ahead in the form originally proposed (albeit not as a consequence of WCRC issues) is the Chilterns Lunchtime Circular on 1st June. As I recall it, (and as UKSteam currently suggests) the itinerary proposed for this would have utilised the reconstructed Bicester-Oxford line through Oxford Parkway, echoing an earlier tour proposal to do something similar with 6201 en route to a Salisbury destination in mid-April - subsequently canned.

I have read somewhere that Chiltern's reopening of services on the Oxford Parkway-Wolvercote Tunnel-Oxford North section to access Oxford station has now been put back to December, and I'm not sure that there is any track in place at the moment over this section. So I think its unlikely that FS would traverse this section six months ahead of the date when the incumbent TOC believes that it will be feasible to operate its first services into Oxford.

This tour is chronologically some way down SD's list of planned FS trips, and I'm sure that right now they have a few other rather more pressing priorities to deal with. But it is shown as a "SOLD OUT" tour on NRM's "Scotsman on the Tracks" webpage, and in the event that this itinerary really is infeasible, I wonder what steps may have been taken or will be taken by SD to advise its committed clientele of the problems of delivering what has been promised - i.e. a Chilterns Circular.

Or maybe their T&C's are just so robust that they don't need to worry about trifling issues like this anyway.

 

SD say they are still hoping to run 12th, 17th and 19th March but I don't share their optimism as Lizzie hasn't done any kind of test running yet. The 6201 website isn't being updated, nor has their faceache page anything to indicate a test run is imminent. Apart from Tornado which has a Belmond on the 12th anyway, there is no other locomotive available for DB to run them steam hauled, unless LSL provide 46100.

 

If you mean the new spur connecting the old LNWR line with the GWR at Bicester - http://www.globalrailnews.com/2015/09/29/test-train-running-on-new-chiltern-london-line/

 

tornado is out on 12 March with DB booked for them to operate.

12 march also see SD and RTC trips which are still showing as running and would need crewing

although RTC have cancelled the last weeks and next weeks similar trip already

UK railtours will be using a set of stock from Riviera on 12 march for The ‘Tre, Pol and Pen’ tour

 

The question is whether there is track connection Oxford Parkway to the Oxford/Banbury line. The junction between the Oxford/Banbury line and the former branch to Bicester was some distance to the north of Oxford station ('bout a mile I think). If the current plan is to have that connection where is was previously it may be possible that this section will be ready some time before the reworking of the track actually into Oxford station is done and if so it may be ready for June 1st. It would be available for the rubbish trains and the MOD trains to Bicester that used to use this route and also for any further diversions of GW HST traffic via the Chiltern line that may be planned in future.

 

No (but thank-you for the link anyway), I really did mean the section of track between 27m 74c (from Bletchley) which is currently designated as "End of Line" just on the Oxford side of the new Oxford Parkway station, through Wolvercote Tunnel and extending to round about 30m 09c, which is where the line joins the GW/ XC main line at Oxford North Junction. I haven't seen any updates on when it is expected that this section will have been relaid and re-opened to traffic - but I'd be very interested to know.

 

Without wishing to perpetrate/ perpetuate too much thread drift (although this does have a major bearing on the feasibility of SD operating a Sold Out Flying Scotsman railtour), the following link contains a good deal of information relating to Work in Progress on the civil engineering works for this two mile section, and it suggests (to my untutored judgement) that 1st June availability could be optimistic. Hope I'm wrong but.......

http://www.bicestertooxfordcollaboration.com/in-your-area/wolvercote-first-turn.html

 

Friends locally are talking about Chiltern services to Oxford commencing in December this year. Work to refurbish the bay platforms at Oxford has recently started. Sending a charter over the line on 1st June seems a little optimistic to me. I'd expect it to be re-routed. Options include the Basingstoke - Southampton - Andover - Basingstoke loop, or Woking - Eastleigh - Fareham - Hazelmere, which have worked well for both SD and VSOE in the past. I guess it depends on how much extra traffic there is on these routes nowadays.

 

I see. I got the wrong end of the line.

 

Apart from 1 Tornado on the BBP , I think the whole of March has got a big red cross through it. I'm not planning on filming anything else.

 

SD website updated. 12th March Worcester trip from East Grinstead has disappeared. The next three trips originally booked for 6201 are now allocated to 34067. 6201 still donw for thre Queen's 90th birthday trips.

 

Allocating Tangmere must be on the assumption that WCRC will be operating them.

 

Tangmere has air brakes so it's conceivable I suppose that she could be operated by DBS. She's worked the VSOE in the past.

 

Might there be an issue with WC being concerned about DBS having adequate traction knowledge though, if the supposed letter about DBS operating 60103 is true?