West Somerset Railway General Discussion

Over the years a policy has been adopted on the NYMR that for renewals we use new rail and if not new then good condition sleepers with current fastenings with spacings of at least 26 and more if needed.

Until a few years back we used to use all second hand and had sleeper spacings of 24 per length or equivalent.
Deep stone ballast is another change form the earlier years.
Coupled with the use of our tampers and computer control of design of the alignment and levels, the quality of our relaid areas of track has seen a dramatic improvement.
With ALC the opportunity is there to select a design standard suitable for a variety of speed bands.
Do we use the lowest band?
Of course we don't, we use the highest we can reasonably achieve and in places that means the alignment is selected for 125 mph although that may be a bit over the top.
We have also started to increase the amount of CWR in place on the line, I think we now have 4 sites in place.
Rail greasers correctly sited and maintained with more being fitted.

However before anyone shouts up Sacrilege and Ash Ballast and wooden sleepers etc.
In public ares at stations we do install BH Rail on timber sleepers and have even been known to install black ferrules so they do not show up for filming etc.
But the BH rail may be new as well such as at Pickering the other year.

Why do we do it?
It might cost a bit more initially but the long term savings in less maintenance, Less wear and tear on locos and stock will show up in the figures.

How do we do it?
Permanent staff of 5 and about another 5 - 8 regular volunteers. May not all be on site at once.
12t Plasser rail crane to take out the old track.
Strip all the track as we go and either load old sleepers straight away if possible or stack ready for loading later.
Medium sized tracked digger to blade off the formation to level.
Relay sleepers with the crane or digger and rerail with the crane or the digger.
All joints correctly gapped for temperature or welded as needed.
With an average of 5 - 6 men on site generally about 5 length per day completed.
We have over recent years been doing about a mile and a quarter per year but may not be all on one site.
4 sites this last winter.

 

We in Devon have always maintained this of course:
https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2006/nov/12/foodanddrink

 

Oh, I dunno. A little optimism isn't neccessarily a bad thing .....

 

Is clanline in the bay platform or the shed at bl today please

 

...and you will no doubt respect the opinions of WSR folk who also have been involved with heritage railway matters for quite some time, Alex?

Steve (another one )

 

There is no plan to do this. There will be no public access to the BL compound and the loco will not be on the Bay platform as it was on Sunday.

 

As stated no plan to display to the public today.

 

A little less sniping at each other might be helpful.
Running a 20+mile long heritage railway is no easy thing to do. It's very easy to sit back and be critical of the efforts of others.
A little bit more of "What can I do to help?" would be most useful. Unless the enthusiasts who populate this forum actually want to see heritage steam railways failing that is?
If you love the WSR then join the Association, buy shares in the plc, offer to become a trustee or offer to become a director of the plc or simply volunteer if you don't already do so.
If none of that appeals then simply take one more ride on a WSR train this year than you would do normally.

 

Absolutely so. With bells on! However, running a tourist railway of this length is entirely the choice of its supporters (or a previous generation of them) and others of us are perfectly entitled to think the structure to be a Byzantine one.

PH

 

I'm not sure "Byzantine" is the right description Paul. My impression was that the WSR thinks of itself as the Empire of the West...

 

This does sound to be the way forward using modern technology to make the work to as high standard as possible and as cost efficient as it can be. There are now lots of tourist railways with long stretches of welded rail and is only going to get more I am sure the vast majority of visitors don't even notice.

 

I would have thought the absence of the "clackity-clack" would be one thing that they did notice.

 

Indeed, I think many people who remember railways of the past can associate that noise more than period benches, huts and other 'olde tyme' artefacts. It is a sound which I have heard on the Paignton line and that line does have timber sleepers in station areas.

 

53808 waits the road at Williton at the end of the Bank Holiday

 

One certainly notices it when it is present, especially on the bits of the national network that still have jointed track. I'm less sure how noticeable its absence is.

 

The amount off extra work to maintain it is a definite the majority of the extention to broadway is all welded and I don't see to many people complaining

 

Rebuilt Merchant Navy 35028 “Clanline” at Minehead 26/5/18 after arriving from London Paddington.

 

I think it would be noticeable by its disappearance when the train pulled onto welded rail, having been running on jointed rail. I suppose you could always grind grooves into the welded rail to give the impression of jointed track. They wouldn't have to be very deep.