West Somerset Railway General Discussion

I'm guessing here but I doubt it. The greatest danger is to road users if train speeds are low so I can't see that as being a limiting factor in its use. Upgrade work on the crossing would be difficult, but not impossible, if it was in constant use so that might be reason for the decision to not use it. There is also the need to hand signal trains across the crossing although, again this shouldn't be a show stopper.

 

Lots of complete relays over the years. I don't know how many. My guess is that most of the the line has been relayed at some point.

This year a contractor was employed to spray the whole line in a rather nice road/rail land rover. Pictures in the forthcoming journal that is now at the printers.

Ian Coleby

 

I don't see how that would be possible since there is a drainage ditch on the north side, I don't know who owns the land on the south side, and passengers would be exiting the platform onto a busy road. Also, there would need to be a run round loop unless the train is top and tailed.

 

AHB's were on local control. I suspect the movement was made under a T3 Full engineers possession of the line to Blue Anchor.

 

Not feasible and I know nothing about the specifics, but a temporary platform is simply a new station with all that for approvals from various agencies.

Sent from my SM-A405FN using Tapatalk

 

Breaking news....

WSR charter trains will run to Dunster, where all passengers can disembark and have a conducted tour of the PW's eclectic collection of historic lineside furniture. The Stationmaster will sell old pre-decimal 'pennies' so that visitors can use the coin-operated telescope at the west end of the platform to look down the line to MD, where the GM may be seen standing on the platform waving a giant 'Welcome to Minehead (almost)' placard. Please form a socially-distanced orderly queue along the platform - there will be a separate one at the BA end for the toilet.
Please be aware that all carriage blinds will be drawn down while passing through WD station so that passenger will not be upset by the scenes of dereliction as we attempt to re-create the early 1970s. Anyone overheard expressing an interest in 'S&D' will be confined to the luggage van for the rest of the trip and charged a penalty fee.

 

Maybe they said "S and *T*"? There's lots of room for ideas in that department ...

 

Interesting, ecological reasons were given last year; from what I remember. Maybe someone thought differently this year.

 

It gets curiouser and curiouser as Alice would say......

The crossing was taken out of use because suddenly the crossing didn't work. Hand signalling with Crossing Keepers became the only way to move trains so the ORR took away the crossing order as they were told it couldn't be fixed i.e. we needed a new one. It can't be used for passengers now because hand signalling/crossing keepers is not safe for passenger trains. The issue is perhaps some people believe that once the crossing order is gone, a new crossing is needed to get a new crossing order.

However, the barriers and lights/sirens are working again and a train can go over with no crossing keepers keeping the traffic back, just a signalman holding a flag because the signals are disconnected. No crossing helpers are needed because the lights, sirens and barriers work and trains pass at normal speed under a green flag (not a yellow one) and are not restricted to 5 mph. So its fully operational other than no crossing order !!!

So it leaves the question why is the crossing working now but wasn't working before and couldn't work again ........ which is the reason for stopping all the trains ? If the crossing was broken then somebody has fixed it, or if it was never broken then why was the ORR told it was ?

Perhaps a word with the ORR could result in the opening up of the full length of the line and we can capitalise on the current tourism boom that everywhere else in Somerset is enjoying ?

 

Well, if the crossing is OK for ECS working, as it appears it is, could not the charter passengers be disembarked at Dunster to be bussed to Minehead or Dunster, if they prefer? The train could then work empty to Minehead, where the tour passengers would be able to photograph it in the station whilst it is serviced, then they could all rejoin the train after they have been bussed back to Dunster. All the tour passengers will miss out on will be a relatively uninteresting stretch of line between Dunster and Minehead, whilst getting the bonus of being able to look round Dunster, for those that prefer it. No-one need feel that they've missed out.

 

If you can fix a 50 year old diesel loco, a 25 year old AHB set shouldn't be much of a challenge.

 

Which includes of course the array of 'stock awaiting repair' in Dunster West siding

 

How did the former inmate at Minehead get there and also escape?
I think that it may just be a bit more than 17T 12cwt.

 

On a serious note when I asked RTC about the trip on 24th July on which I am booked they told me that they’ve asked the WSRly how they intend to get their passengers to Minehead and it seems by road is an option. Wouldn’t it be an option to take the charter so far then bus? Or would that not be practical due to having to return the stock to BL for servicing and to avoid blocking up the line. I suspect it will be cancelled

 

I guess they could run the stock to MD and service it after passengers have got off at DR.

I'd be surprised if it got cancelled.

 

Plenty of buses about looking for work these days.