jnc's Recent Activity
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jnc liked thb17's post in the thread Oswestry Update.
I dare to say in the examples given people are visiting in spite of there being a pacer rather than for it. I don’t think a railway could be successfully commercial operating just pacers. On the less busy days a diesel and loco hauled stock at...
Apr 18, 2026 at 12:44 PM -
jnc liked M59137's post in the thread Llangollen Railway.
The 110 set was sought as a direct replacement for the 104. Neither are owned by Llangollen Railcars. For info, the nine 104, 108 & 110 vehicles are all hires from private groups/owners, whilst the four 105, 109 and 127 vehicles are owned...
Apr 18, 2026 at 9:28 AM -
jnc liked M59137's post in the thread Oswestry Update.
There are plenty enough Pacers for them to settle down in a select number of locations and a representative slice be held and preserved properly to tell the story. Several sets will be lost, and that's fine, spares will change hands and an...
Apr 18, 2026 at 9:27 AM -
jnc liked Jonnie's post in the thread Spa Valley Railway - Latest News.
The last time I drove a train over Broom Lane Bridge at 25mph was in 2017 when the speed restriction came into force. It was certainly a real privilege to be the first to drive 31430 over our brand new bridge at 25mph this evening! Chris...
Apr 17, 2026 at 10:11 PM -
jnc liked pmh_74's post in the thread Rother Valley Railway.
While we're ranting about car parking, this reminds me of a visit to a hospital car park in Nottingham some years ago. ANPR on entry, find your vehicle on the system and pay on exit. Which on the face of it seems like a good idea. My vehicle's...
Apr 17, 2026 at 2:49 PM -
jnc replied to the thread GWSR General Discussion and Operations.
Ash may have been a factor in the most recent GWSR slip - "the soil here .. appears to be mostly ash and spent ballast." Odd that there's spent ballast in there too - that all can't date to the original construction of the line, then! As @Breva...
Apr 17, 2026 at 12:22 PM -
jnc liked Jamessquared's post in the thread GWSR General Discussion and Operations.
I don't think there is a "one size fits all" answer - you would have to look at each structure and dig into its history, the local geology, subsequent maintenance etc. One issue on some lines - certainly an issue on the Bluebell - is the extent...
Apr 17, 2026 at 12:03 PM -
jnc liked NWRail's post in the thread Oswestry Update.
I personally think it's a generational thing, what most people associate with their formative years and experiences, naturally they would like reenact their youthful years, Steam, diesel locos, DMU and EMU all have their followings and played a...
Apr 17, 2026 at 12:02 PM -
jnc liked Breva's post in the thread GWSR General Discussion and Operations.
Interesting is that the section north of Broadway to Honeybourne West Loop (say 4 miles) is perfectly flat, with no cuttings or embankments.
Apr 17, 2026 at 8:09 AM -
jnc liked flying scotsman123's post in the thread GWSR General Discussion and Operations.
Many mainline embankments have had significant works done over the years to be fair, much larger scale than we can contemplate affording proactively.
Apr 17, 2026 at 8:09 AM -
jnc liked 5944's post in the thread Spa Valley Railway - Latest News.
[ATTACH] https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18Xw6Q7qc2/ Class 31/4 31430 ‘Sister Dora’ stands proudly on Broom Lane Bridge as it becomes the first locomotive to pass over the brand new structure! We reopen to Groombridge and Eridge this...
Apr 17, 2026 at 2:40 AM
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jnc liked Jamessquared's post in the thread Oswestry Update.
'Twas ever thus. Look how older, more established, heritage railways essentially burnt through cheap Mark 1s. A lot are likely to be scrapped in the next ten years. Hopefully the ones that survive will be the ones that are historically most...
Apr 17, 2026 at 2:39 AM -
jnc liked mdewell's post in the thread Oswestry Update.
My point was that people do pay to travel on them. We often make more money on Wednesdays than we do Saturdays - with much less effort (Although not nearly as much fun for those of us who just want to play trains ;):D ) Most failures seem to be...
Apr 17, 2026 at 2:38 AM -
jnc liked mdewell's post in the thread Oswestry Update.
Basically, it costs a lot less to operate a DMU (aka Pacer) than it does steam, so for mid-week opening a Pacer makes a little money, whereas a loco hauled (diesel or steam) would lose money. It also only requires 2 train crew. PS. I won't argue...
Apr 17, 2026 at 2:38 AM -
jnc replied to the thread GWSR General Discussion and Operations.
Maybe those heavily-used lines on the national network got better maintenance; maybe they had improvements during those long lives. You'd need to study the detailed records for each. Noel
Apr 16, 2026 at 7:43 PM
