West Somerset Railway General Discussion

It was stated above that 9Fs have to run over the line with half empty tenders. Why is this so when the greatest axle load is 18T 10C on the back. I realize that the overall weight of loco and tender is high at nearly 140 tons but it is spread over many axles.

 

Peter, I didn't even suggest that the PLC problems were in any way the fault of the WSRA, I merely suggested symptoms are similar.

DJB.

 

Others have already picked up on this point but I wish to comment too. If it is a simple choice of selling to A at price X or to B at price Y, all other things being the same, then the directors would need a very good reason for accepting the lower price. But in this instance all other things were nowhere near the same. Selling to 4110 Ltd, the WSRA or some combination thereof would have kept the loco on the line, available for service in due course, and would have kept the goodwill of the people concerned. Both the loco and the goodwill have been lost for the sake of a bit of extra cash. Is that a good way to run the company?

Edit

And yet there is also that quote from JPP about "using locomotives which would not have operated on our line in British Railway days".

 

Selling the family silver and not listening to anyone that doesn't agree with you sounds like the government of the late 80s and early 90s and really didn't think much of them, as it's the management of line that at least seems lacking then maybe it's time for a new brush, I haven't got much of an opinion on the WSRA as it's pretty evident that whatever the ORR found it wasn't them that were at fault in this case at least

 

I thought the current chairman was the new brush? How quickly do brushes wear out in Somerset?

This is speculation, but I have always assumed the WSRA upper management were at the very least aware that the ORR had been asked to come and give the WSR a once-over, if not directly involved. I remember Peter Yorkshireman admitted a few months back on this thread that he was one of the people who had written to the ORR, and that he knew there were others - I assume I'm on his blocklist too, so someone else will have to prod him if you want him to reconfirm that, unless I can be bothered to trawl back and dig it out.

 

Neither can I, but that is my recollection as well.

 

Luckily, I'm not doing much else right now!

In response to this post on November 7th:

Peter said:

I'm sure we can all draw our own conclusions about who might have asked Peter to write to the ORR with them.

(many thanks to the software behind Nat Pres for having an efficient search function!)

 

There does not seem to be any reasonable reason for commenting on anything Yorkshireman writes as many of us, it seems, are on 'his list', thus making any sensible debate with him rather pointless.

 

For clarification.

The only time that a 9F has had a restriction on coal and water was in 1989 and the operation of Evening Star for the season. At that time the Minehead branch was still a "Blue" route with an axle weight limit of 17 Tons 12 cwt. Evening Star itself had a lower axle load than this but the tender fitted was higher when fully loaded (sorry, I cannot now recall the actual figure). To allow the locomotive to run it was necessary to restrict the water and coal carried. The coal space had a line painted all around it internally to indicate the maximum level, this line may still be evident inside the tender. The water had a line on the level gauge to indicate the maximum level.

In the mid 1990's the axle limit was raised after bridge, culvert and rail surveys, and such restrictions have not been necessary on any subsequent 9F visit, of which there have been several.

Andy.

 

Up the page a bit selling the family silver was mentioned, with 4110 occupying a lot of people's thoughts the sale of a number of 'reduntant items' (by the plc) slipped through unnoticed. Any idea of what they may have been?

 

Are you really bothered.

 

I thought Andy's post to be very thoughtful and deserves of close examination. It is very sad when a well known footplate crew member and active in other areas makes a significant post such as this.

Foal is incorrect - The WSR PLC originally agreed to sell 4110 to the 4110 group for a fixed price of £100,000. They raised the required amount in pledges in next to no time from active volunteers in the loco dept etc. Then these valuable volunteers get a kick in the teeth from both the WSR PLC shifting the goal posts, and the WSRA interfering. The Dartmouth Line were always going to outbid the 4110 group with or without the WSRA's interference. So the WSR PLC reneges on all previous statements and sells 4110 regardless to the highest bidder.

All those WSR valuable and dedicated loco dept volunteers who were prepared to spend their own money on 4110 must now feel like - well, how Andy now feels like.

What a very sorry state of affairs.

A GWR Castle now seems to appear on the Chairman's list - his own loco - a type that a press release describes as not having run on the railway, and takes occupation at Williton. I hope the WSRA can explain in due course all of this and produce a properly costed bill and contract with the new WSR PLC Chairman.

We still have not a shred of evidence where the black hole is in the WSR PLC's finances are that caused 4110 to be sold off in the first place.

If 4110 was going to be sold off in any event to the highest bidder, the WSR PLC should have made this clear at the outset.

Cheers,

Julian

 

And surely, it's not just about the price? By selling to the 4110 group, the company would have got am injection of £100,000 and would be no worse off in as far as the loco would still be on the line.
By accepting a higher offer , the WSR has now lost the loco. That can't be good?
It's got to be about the right balance hasn't it, not just the price?


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Absolutely, I'll be curious to find out how much more the Plc got when it inevitably leaks out.

 

One assumes it would have to be substantial to justify letting the engine go.

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What's the expression? 'You can tell a Yorkshireman, but you can't tell him much'

 

Perhaps it's the same old brush but having had many new heads and many new handles?

 

A DMU centre car has already been sold to the South Devon Railway, and I believe that there are several other pieces of rolling stock that are in need of complete overhaul which have been identified as surplus to requirements.

 

And the class 04 was sold on

 

Ah, the black hole in finances.
Not so long ago we were told Flying Scotsmans visit was going to bring significant money in, even if there was a need to spend a part of this on infrastructure to make the event happen.
Are we now realising that this really wasn't the case?
Is it really too much to expect the Plc to give just a little basic info on why the finances are in such a mess. Their concept of communication seems very odd to me.
All the musical chairs on the boards of the last couple of years doesn't give a very good impression of either the Plc or WSRA to volunteers like myself. But it seems to me the WSRA is the sideshow here and the problems essentially lie with the Plc's apparent inability to run a ****** in a brewery for some time, and yet some faces never change.