4464 Bittern to do 90mph on ECML - 29 June & 27 July 2013

Weatherwise it doesn't look too promising for steam in the near future.
Next week in the South temperatures knocking 30 degrees are predicted for next week with little or no rain.
10 day forecast from MSN.
Here in Reading.
http://weather.uk.msn.com/tenday.aspx?wealocations=wc:UKXX0117 Hot, dry & no rain.

And in York.
http://weather.uk.msn.com/tenday.aspx?wealocations=wc:UKXX0162 Slightly cooler (not by much), & still very little, if any rain.

 

Where's all this "abuse and bad language"? NR's responsibilities and priorities are recognised but to cancel a tour twelve hours before it's due to depart demonstrates a shocking disregard for railtour passengers.

My last three steam charter attempts were
* RTC A4 tour from Newcastle to London. I booked AP rail tickets and hotel, tour cancelled because NR could only provide a path at 05:00 (07:00 was the provisional start time). I travelled to Newcastle anyway, and spent the time looking round the city.
* York to Saltburn, operated by West Coast. Passengers were informed on the platform that NR had refused steam at the last minute because of fire risk, disappointed passengers had a t'n't trundle with 57601/47826 through the drizzle.
* Tyne-Tees streak

I'm throwing in the towel, I'll photograph tours that come here and visit preserved lines, and if the Cambrian Coast steam ever returns I'll go on that again, since I can pay on the day and don't need a hotel.

 

Another thing on all this yet again down to NR is Tornado. Who covers the Tornado group's losses because it is stranded at the MHR due to NR's overrunning works & couldn't forfill it's NNR commitments. Also costs of steaming it & FTR on Thursday where it was all ready to go, but couldn't. Will NR compensate? Don't think so somehow. Like they won't to all the people who incurred losses, some quite large, over the A4 trips.
Yet NR are the first to impose penalties (which they want to increase) when delays are caused by trains, they are on the various TOC's backs straight away then.
Talk about one way traffic!
Look at all the grief Railtrack had & they were forced out, are NR any better?

 

To me, it seems that NR like Railtrack are deliberately trying to force steam off their lines, by being as obstructive as can be, by cancelling tours when it seems fit.
This is what they want, for us to not bother going on tours because of their foul ups, but by also putting steam loco owners out of work, through non payments to overhaul engines, and tour operators that go out of business too.
Steam is a tourist attraction here,it generates a social atmosphere,and is one of the only things we have these days, as pubs are shutting at a rate of 30 a day, but should be given more assistance than they do get.

 

I think the suggestion of raising the delay penalties came from the ORR.

 

Totally agree, at least some costs could have been prevented ie. FTR examiner and so on. The passengers may have also had a chance to gain some money back as well or even been able to change the date with hotels/B&B's etc to when the rescheduled trains will run.

You have to see a balanced view for both sides but unfotunately NR haven't really done themselves any favours at all with this scenario but, unfortunately it's their train set so to speak so until anything changes, this could always happen at the last minute!

I just hope that those involved passenger wise can get some sort of refund for expenditure that has been lost.

 

There may be some truth in the suggestion that mainline steam isn't so welcome nowadays. The 1 year plus steam ban around Reading hasn't really been fully explained (or if it has, I can't find it anywhere) and that must add huge expense to the TOC's. Just look at the time it currently takes for LE's to get from Southall to Bristol or vice versa, 5 hours each way now which is probably more than double the time before the ban. Add that to the cost of a box on most trips and I wonder how they manage to make any profit.

 

On reflection, I agree with that. Tuesday 27th was the right time to cancel. I just remember there being little or no prospect of serious rain before the bank holiday weekend, and some concern being raised whether the tours would run. A decision then, albeit one based on a calculated risk might have sat better in the long run with those travelling, but would of course have been controversial, and a gamble.

It's all academic now anyway. Lets just hope new dates are agreed soon and damage is limited as much as possible.

 

I wonder if we are missing something here? Without knowing what was going on behind the scenes, we can't know for sure, but...

The week before last, NR York area lifted their fire-risk restrictions and The Waverley ran without assistance on Sun 25th.
Scots Guardsman started a fire on level track at lunchtime on Tuesday 27th. NR re-imposed their restrictions immediately and the SSE had diesel assistance on the return trip.
However, Pathfinder didn't immediately postpone the A4 trains. Why not? Could it be that work was going on behind the scenes on Wednesday and Thursday to investigate Tuesday's incident in an attempt to get permission for Bittern to run? (I'm sure it hasn't escaped anyone's notice that Scots Guardsman has had more than one such incident this summer. Maybe there's a problem with the loco?)

I think it's a big shame that the overhead lines came down at Retford on Thursday afternoon. York control suddenly had to deal with all those diversions, shuttle services, engineering possessions, wrong-line working... I can see how any thought of steam-hauled charters went out of the window.

I'd like to know when Railway Herald had the conversation with Pathfinder in which Pathfinder said everything was going ahead as planned. They reported it here on Thursday afternoon, which gave the impression that it happened after York control re-imposed their restrictions. But maybe the conversation actually happened before that?

 

It's not just a steam ban around Reading - it's all day-time special workings. The cause is pretty clear: the station and the whole track layout is being completely rebuilt. It must be the biggest civil engineering project on the Great Western for a generation. The surpise is that special trains running through Reading are being advertised as early as April next year. If they get everything done in time, I for one will be very impressed.

 

A good sound post Al. Maybe the issue will die down once we get through what has been described as the hottest and driest summer for 7 years. Or maybe mixed traction at the front will become the norm in the risk months. With the really special steam trips, like these 90 mph runs, only being scheduled in the lower risk months in future. Aah, the wonders of hindsight!

Re the bird, (which I did not know about), reading the NR website I know they at least try to take wildlife issues seriously, as they have to of course stay within the law. And UK wildlife does get a fair degree of legal protection, and believe me from what I have personally encountered, there are places and times when it very much needs it.

As for Pathfinder, the loco owner etc who are trying yet again to get these 90 mph runs to happen, well I take my hat off to them for their patience and tenacity. As buseng has already said the forecast is not good, with the heat due to return again next week. We just have to hope for a nice long wet spell very soon, so that all can get back to some sort of normality. Whatever that may be!

 

Frankly its a surprise any trains are running through Reading. NR certainly didn't manage that with the engineering works at Alton this week, with an engineering possession over run of over 4 days. That is work that was planned for three days and has stretched to 7 so far and still not complete. NR does not have any ulterior motives, or secret agendas, they are simply a badly run organisation.

 

How does that square with the likes of DCR running spoil trains to and from Calvert in the middle of the day?
Are railtours with water boiling devices strapped the front a different kind of STP move then?
Perplexing....

 

And quite right too...

 

In the world of Freight, Trucks rule.

 

Dare I suggest in the world of distribution, trucks rule. I doubt road hauliers would welcome having to keep power stations or steel works going with coal or other raw materials - and quite a lot of trucks carry containers trunked round the country by rail!

Road and rail can compliment each other - it is shame that more operators don't make a bigger effort to do so in the UK.

Steven

 

With the closure of Daw Mill, and Didcot A, the only coal carried by rail south of Nottingham will be in Bitterns Tender!

 

I guess that kind of brings us back on topic, : )