Sunset Steam Express. Selected Tuesdays, July/August 2022 (Windsor trips cancelled)

So is the problem with the train or some issue on the network?

 

NRE says nothing on the area, and RTT shows cancellations of SWR workings as being issues with the train crew, which is one of their vague cover-alls.

 

Has this incident whatever happened tonight put the tin hat on it for the the Hampshire hills circular tours next week?

 

Not very clear what is going on at the moment. I can only find trespass incidents near Redhill reported on the National Rail twitter feed. I wonder also if the fire at Virginia Water from six days ago shown below has caused problems again?
Daniel who writes the Main Line column in Steam Railway is travelling on the train this evening but he hasn't posted an update yet.

Sent from my XQ-BT52 using Tapatalk

 

Someone on mainline steam specials around the U.K. Facebook page are saying the delay was cos of a S.P.A.D. (personally I hope it's not that serious) I'm only going to take that as hearsay until it's official from S.D. why the sunset steam express had to return on the same route it came out of London Vic from Virginia waters.

 

There has been a lot of resignalling going on at Virginia Water recently which could've caused such an event, but hopefully it wasn't.

 

Seen a post off Katherine Russell on facebook mainline steam specials around the U.K. I don't know if she works for steam dreams or if it's official she said the sunset steam express was heavily delayed due to a incident with a train crew at Chertsey not sure if she means on the Excursion tour or a service train.

 

The cancelled Victoria to Southall ECS move now has the following statement posted above the schedule:
"This service was cancelled due to a problem with a steam locomotive (ME)."




Sent from my XQ-BT52 using Tapatalk

 

5Z84 22+36 Victoria - Southall D is shown cancelled on RTT due to a problem with the steam loco (ME) as reported by green five
But
Open Time Trains shows a 5Z84 sat in Willesden SWS as I type this at 2202.
I don't think the resignalling had anything to do with the delay. Hounslow to Staines is still controlled from Feltham Panel.
1815 VIC-CHY had lost 7 minutes in running by Brentford but was already returning to London and overwriting the time reports on RTT by the time I saw the schedule.
According to data from Charlwood House data links, only 8 minutes late arrival at Virginia Water.
http://charlwoodhouse.co.uk/rail/liverail/train/27098193/10/05/22

Cheers, Neil

 

Unlikely she knows, we already know the reason given on RTT is 'due to a incident with a train crew' and it did not make it as far as Chertsey

 

Presumably though the ECS still has to get back to Southall?

 

on @SWR_Help twitter it has been said "due to an operational incident at Virginia Water the line towards Weybridge is blocked". Does not sound like signal issues to me

 

The ECS move used this schedule below to get back to Southall after dropping off the passengers at Clapham Junction:
https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:37802/2022-05-10/detailed

Sent from my XQ-BT52 using Tapatalk

 

Can confirm that it was indeed a SPAD. Word is it was caused by the new signalling that's been installed at Virginia Water and the driver wasn't aware of it.

 

Which driver, I wonder, and surely all drivers should be looking out for signals anywhere even if their locations may have changed? Anyway, too soon to know and pure idle speculation, of course.

 

Indeed - what a shame the season has started thus.

 

We all want to know what went wrong and why, but we need to be patient until we're told something official.

 

Indeed, my previous message was just what's been heard and is complete speculation, not necessarily what actually happened.

 

If RTT is to believed that is a rare use of P1 at CJ for a loco hauled train.