MHR Goods Weekend 16/17 January 2010

If your timetable runs late enough then you will be getting a visit from me. Will only be able to get over after work so sometime in the afternoon dependant upon shift, but if the place packs up early then wont be worth me coming. I don't mean run till silly o'clock (though I wont complain if you do) but to buy a Rover for 1/2 return trips when I could visit on a normal operating day is a bit pointless in my mind.

 

You have a point about a late timetable, I will ask Tim for his advice on this.

Regards
Chris

 

Cheers. Have you guys got a fitted freight which will allow us to ride in the brake vans, or is your freight set unfitted ?

 

Fitted , and there will be BV rides a;though it is not confirmed as yet whether this will be in the confines of the station area or longer.

Regards
Chris.

 

Would it be possible to make the last trip of the day with a couple of BV's along the whole line? I'd like to travel in the 'Wembley' van as I've followed its restoration. I'd be happy to pay extra for something like this.
Steve

 

Seconded. I was starting to think I'd missed that fact that this was a diesel only freight weekend.

 

To yourself and others who have raised this query. I understand that there is no problem within the confines of a yard or station , but am unsure as to the regulations for the whole length of the line though the wagon group had a ride in the so called "Wembley" van at the Steam Gala last September as a thank you to us just after it had been restored with Danny Hopkins Editor of Steam Railway, so cannot foresee too many problems there.

However I have sent a private E-Mail to Tim Beere on how we stand on this, and will report back once I get an answer.

Regards
Chris

 

Brake Van Rides

Below is recent correspondence between Chris & Tim about a possible extended Brake Van trip over the freight weekend.


""Tim Hi:
Just to say that on national preservation alone there has been over 1200 hits concerning this weekend, and very favourable comments they are too.
A number of them though have asked if they can have the Brake Van rides the whole length or even most of the line. I am not sure where we stand legally as to the braking for example, however these guys have expressed a willingness to pay for that privilege and I said I would pass on the message to you.
Do you have an answer for them at this stage please?""

""Hi Chris
This is something I will be discussing with Bob D. My understanding is it can be done, but requires adequate staff and this has always been a problem.
Capacity is the other biggest issue. Having been in a brake van with your good self on a trip, I can certainly see the appeal, it’s a great way to see the line. However, we will need to work out how best to cater for this from a capacity perspective and also whether there would be a fare. I realize there may be some willing to pay, but there is always going to be the negative on having already paid a fare, then having to pay more for what could be considered part of the event itself. Clearly, charging a fee for the ride would make it more feasible for us to run, certainly the length of the line. The other proposal is shorter rides, say from Alresford to Ropley as part of a shuttle, but these too would need to be charged, such is the cost to run such shuttles.
There is a 3rd option and this could be brake rides using the cattle dock and then as far down the line towards Itchen Abbas as possible. This could be worked with the 08, but really depends on how we decide to use the cattle dock itself, which could make this difficult to execute.
I don’t yet have a final answer, I hope to get this soon. It is very encouraging that we are getting this level of interest however.""


It appears this could be made possible but would incur an extra cost as detailed above. I personally would be happy to pay for this opportunity. How do other people feel? With enough interest this may become reality.

Steve

 

Bit of advice......if you are going to charge extra for the brake van rides make sure it is well advertised well in advance...

From a different point of view I find it amazing that there is a need to charge extra for brake van rides. It aint going to cost a huge amount of monies to put it on. Plenty other put van rides on at no extra charge.
Some might even call it a rip off by charging extra......but it would not be fair of me to comment on such a view.....

 

Which is exactly what Tim said to me earlier today Lewis, you have a point.

Some would be willing to pay while others would not which is precisely why I/we would be gratefull for as much feedback as possible although the Bluebell has been very sucessfull with the Queen Mary brake van rides on the Ardingly siding at £3 a time.

Just a thought.

Chris

 

I agree if it was a short shuttle as many other lines do then the cost should be inclusive of the event price. I was however thinking more about the chance for an extended ride covering the whole line if not most of it. I think this justifies an extra (reasonable) charge for something that is rarely, if at all, provided at other lines of this length.
I also agree advertising in advance is paramount.
Steve

 

At llangollen we charge a supplement of £5 for a brake van ride, though this is for a full return trip Llan - Carrog - Llan. We try to limit it to 10 people per brake van as each BV HAS to have a rly rep. onboard supervising and ensuring passengers are safe. 10 is a figure felt to be manageable for such volunteers. At SSS2 this side of the gala was hugely popular and I believe at one point we were forced to turn some people away.

I myself have no problem paying extra for such, as it is something totally different and it all helps with the cost of such events. If you can include it full length I will definately be having a ride, so long as the timetable is late enough for me to get there!

 

Thanks for that Lil Bear, most informative.

I have passed on a link to Tim.This is all fairly new to us and we are learning from you guys, it is appreciated.

IMHO this is what preservation is all about.

Best regards
Chris

 

The Llangollen runs its freight train all day but it is helped by having a loop at Deeside which isn't on a passenger station. This permits the freight to be put 'inside' while the passenger, revenue, trains run. I have known it take a couple of hours for the Llangollen freight to run from end to end, but it does break up the service nicely from an observational point of view.

The Deeside loop is a most useful feature of the line.

Regards

 

It is going to be a close thing to have our second 20t Brake Van in traffic for this event due to working outside in the bad weather.

However if I can get some time undercover either in the main Ropley shed or in the new C&W shed which should be completed just after Christmas, then I think we will make it.

Fingers crossed.

Chris

 

Guys, I have just been informed that a full page advertisement of this event is going into the next Steam Railway.

It appears that we will have two freight trains operating with the 9F 92212 doing the whole length of the line and the USA Tank 30075 doing shuttles between Alresford and Ropley..

Tim Beere has not come back to me as yet as to how the Brake Van rides will operate , but they are definately on and as soon as I have been informed so will you.

There is also to be a display of modern road vehicles at Alresford in addition to the Thorneycroft vintage vehicles.

Best regards
Chris

 

It is not the fact that Deeside is there, nor that it is not a passenger stop that makes it easy to 'loop' the freight, but more that we have such short sections throughout the entire line. We are able to release a train into section roughly every 15mins which means we are able to run trains every 30mins, as I did for SSS2. This also enables us to loop the freight for a perod of time to let a passenger overtake. Personally though I'm not too keen on this as it disrupts the flow of the half hour t/t meaning less trains. Hence most of the time this is done is early morning or early evening when there is less to disrupt.

Anyway, I digress. Nice to hear of your plans Chris, it is definately getting more and more tempting. I await further details for what will more than likely be my first gala of 2010

 

Just a small update folks.

Please see the advert for this event in the latest Steam Railway on page 78, note that all Brake Van rides are free although it is still unsure whether this is between stations, in the station vicinity or the whole length of the line.

Best regards
Chris

 

Any ideas when timetable info will be released, and what sort of availability there will be ie working timetables ?

 

The 2010 WTT's have just been issued to MHR Staff, but they don't include the FW. I assume a P Notice will be issued soon before. Public timetables will appear shortly - hopefully!