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

Joined this forum (previous regular browser here) to thank all for the info above. I was on this tour last night, and we weren't provided with any information at all while we spent an hour just forward of Virginia Water station.
I'm waiting to see what SteamDreams offer us in terms of recompense...

 

Welcome. That's poor, even if they didn't want to admit/refer to a SPAD, there should have been something said, not least because there is only so much time that some people will let pass before they try to de-camp.

 

Welcome to the forum.
That is pretty poor customer service from SD. Be interested to hear what response you get from the company.

 

It was in platform 3 I believe, was watching it. Definitely not 1

 

Yes I can't imagine LORO being happy with p1 being used, and why would the ECS have needed to reverse into a platform at CJ anyway?

 

I'd be impressed if they used Platform 1 - it's actually a bay platform with a set of buffers at the West end. The original Platform 1 was taken out of service years ago due apparently to the arches underneath being in a dodgy condition. So there was Platform 2 and 3 with a through road in between. Then changes happened when the Overground came along - Platform 2 became Platform 1 with a set of stops half way along, and a new Platform 2 appeared to the West of the stops allowing trains Overground trains to run into what had been the through road. Rather hard to explain but look on Open Train Times maps and you'll see what I mean!

 

So what was the explanation given for the train reversing and going back the way it came?

 

Immediately before starting back we were told it was a signalling fault. No further detail given.
I can also confirm we arrived at platform 3 at Clapham Junction.

 

I did wonder about that but my Quail does not show the LO revisions made to CJ.
Did not think of the OTT maps, although I did look at OTT as the outward journey times still show on there unlike RTT.

 

Well thats fair enough, I can't see that anyone is going to tell a trainload of passengers "Sorry the driver jumped a red light*, but don't worry, the same train crew is going to drive you back"

*If a SPAD (is it still called SPAD?) was the actual event.

 

Presumably, though, it was a different train crew on the diesel?

 

Fireman and or Ti may have been qualified, but my jocular point remains, you don't tell the PAX your train crew has jumped a red light.

 

Possibly a tad harsh, as no-one was hurt and the passengers at least got back to London in reasonable time. A serious incident, yes, but not one that necessarily precludes a little light-heartedness, surely?

 

I think you need to read what was written, in context, and not get word blind in your rush to be offended. That which you seem prone to suffer from.

 

I've noticed before that some posts appear quite different when read on their own (as happens when scrolling through a "latest posts" view) than they do when read as part of the thread that prompted the response. Also, a jocular tone is hard to convey effectively.

 

I'm very pleased to report that Steam Dreams have offered a re-run of the tour at no additional cost, so we've rebooked for the 24th May.
I can't fault their customer service on this basis.