Swanage Railway General Discussion

Well....

If we assume post-2020 there will be checks on goods crossing the border, this will slow down things crossing the border, leading to pinch points and potentially queues. Ie motorway to becomes a lorry park. One solution would be to spread out the crossing points and so sailing would potentially be faster than waiting say three days to cross using the tunnel. The same argument is behind dredging Margate, etc etc Whether you believe this to be realistic, or good use of resources is another matter.

I do and I always found him very pleasant, friendly and interesting, but I could understand why other people might find him difficult.

I tend to think lines tend to attract people who are very very passionate about what they do, that means they often achieve what they achieve in the face of almost impossible odds, but that unwillingness to compromise to achieve a goal is what makes them difficult. What I found interesting when I was volunteering was the gap between casual volunteers such as myself and a more hardcore group for whom the railway was their life, their social life, and almost a proxy family and who were hostile to anyone who didn’t share that worldview. There is perhaps a whole thread to be had about the psychology of people involved in railway volunteering.

Anyway, back to the point, I first visited Swanage in around 1989 and I can’t believe how far it has come.

 

As much to the point, why would you invest in container handling at Hamworthy when Southampton is a huge container terminal? If I ran a shipping line, I can't see why I'd take a container vessel into Poole Harbour without very good traffic prospects indeed, while the sort of traffic being talked about could surely be taken in containers on the back of lorries.

 

You can make this argument for any number of things where duplicate facilities exist. However exist they do for many reasons. Not everything destined for the continent goes through the Chunnel and I doubt it would have the capacity in any case. Getting to Folkestone by road is not the easiest of journeys if you are coming from the west side of the country. Another significant factor is port costs. If you undercut the competition you have an advantage. Size doesn't always win with this. I'm not saying that there is a business case for any of what has been suggested, just putting a counter argument.

 

I think you meant to put Ramsgate. Margate is not an enclosed harbour, just a harbour arm with a drying area behind it.

 

Why is Britany Ferries advertising that they carry containers from Poole then?

 

How big a ship can Poole Harbour take? I'm not really a shipping expert, but I've always got the sense it is primarily coastal vessels, plus the cross channel ferries. Certainly not large enough for the huge ships that visit Southampton. How deep is the channel through Sandbanks - that must put a limit on the size of vessel that can visit, surely? [Edit: if Wiki is to be believed, 7.5m maximum depth in Poole Harbour, but 16m in Southampton).

Tom

 

The Pelican takes Trailers at present from Poole to Bilbao. Poole harbour is looking for additional trade and with Brexit who knows.

 

AFAIK Barfleur is the largest ship that uses Poole, BUT its big enough for the sort of small cross channel container ships that might be used for a service to France or Spain

 

At present Britany Ferries take trailers to Bilbao https://www.brittanyferriesfreight.co.uk/fleet/freight-only-ferries/pelican and Poole Harbour is looking for any additional trade.

 

Sorry, yes you are correct. I just remember the ferry company with no ferries and the harbour not being suitable. Hopefully Poole is in a slightly better position.

 

I believe there was some trial of container trains to Hamworthy, but it was a lot of years ago. The need to accommodate Hi-cubes probably means that the bridges through the Forest are too restricting. As too whether there is any demand, didn't a Japanese company buy Portland Harbour, when the RN left, with a view to handling containers there? I could be wrong, of course, but if that was the case it died the death.
Pat

 

Bit of thread drift going on here.

 

And I'm not surprised considering the on going weather conditions. You're bound to drift no matter how many if any anchors you've dropped........................

 

Yes, I think it is time to stop and sum up that Steam trains to Hamworthy from Swanage (or other way round) are at least many moons away, if ever.

 

It was a trial in the spring and summer of 1980 for imported traffic in 30 foot containers. The idea was to save multiple hgv movements across the New Forest and minimise crane lifts at Millbrook. The wagons were attached to the 2150 Millbrook - Willesden but about half the boxes were transhipped onto the Garston/Trafford Park service.
The containers could only be 8' high and even then there were a number of speed restrictions under bridges , particularly between Sway and Poole . ( The 1885 bit of the route!)
Much to my regret now I never went out to photograph it as we were told it was likely to be permanent but the trade stopped with a few days notice.

Cheers, Neil

 

There may well be some container trade through Poole harbour, but I was specifically questioning the viability of transhipment between rail and ship at Hamworthy in preference to taking containers that are already on rail through the Tunnel.

 

Steam trains between Swanage and Hamworthy, Really? I think the only steam trains you will ever see at Hamworthy will be the specials from and to London Victoria.
I totally forgot about the Millbrook to Hamworthy Freightliner, I remember it was a silly O Clock start, Think it left Millbrook at 0400-0430ish and as
Neil said was very restricted, both with only being to use 8ft high containers and several speed restrictions, It was only a five wagon set hauled by a class 33. The guard then acted as secondman between Hamworthy goods and Weymouth and we worked the empty vans from the newspaper train
to Clapham Yard, working them as far as Eastleigh.
I remember working the turn a couple or three times.

 

The tunnel only goes to mainland Europe. Ships from Poole can go where the tunnel doesn't.
https://www.1stcontainers.co.uk/shipping-locations/poole

 

Deleted: we shouldn't pursue the Poole containers thread drift any further.

 

If the Wareham DMU service works, 31806 or 31874 (with a 33 as backup) could run to Wareham.
Very possible weekly day trips from Bournemouth and Poole to Swanage and Corfe with 31806 or 31874 (with a 33 as backup) could be run? If so any visiting cruise ship at the South quay could add it as a day excursion for the passengers with a short coach trip to Poole station? Maybe something for the future? Key thing this year is making the Wareham DMU service launched and successful.
I see new timetables with Wareham blank, hopefully be added when the 117 is tested with trained staff? (In time for the Diesel gala?https://swanagerailway.co.uk/events/detail/diesel-gala-2
A "Rail Replacement Bus Service" will operate between Wareham Station and Norden Station
Maybe not!)
Will the Wareham service start May?