The Diamond Jubilee Express

I see that Torbay Express have added two new destinations from Poole and Southampton this summer: Oxford and Windsor. The Windsor trips interest me. Which Windsor branch? The Southern branch from Staines to Windsor & Eton Riverside, or the GW branch from Slough? What route will they take to get there? There almost certainly needs to be a diesel on the back for use on the branch in one direction. The simple thing would be to run steam hauled the direct route to Staines and be diesel hauled over the branch. The ECS would then be steam-hauled up to Clapham Jnc / Kensington Olympia for turning and servicing, and back the way they came.

It would be a bit of a shame if the diesel did the passenger-carrying leg on whichever branch. So, just to think through the problems, how would you get from Bournemouth onto either the down line at Staines or the down line at Slough? Basingstoke - Reading - Acton - Kensington O - Staines?

 

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[TD="class: railtourrow, width: 90"]70000 or 71000or 4492 (60019)[/TD]
[TD="class: railtourrow, colspan: 2"]The Diamond Jubilee Express
Poole (pu) - Bournemouth (pu) - Brockenhurst (pu) - Southampton Central (pu) - Windsor & Eton Riverside[/TD]
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Guessing.. but from Southampton it could go Woking to Clapham, round Kensington Olympia to Willesden and Kew Bridge onwards to Staines and Windsor.
Theres any number of triangles between Staines and London. (Hounslow, Kew Bridge, Clapham, Battersea etc) for the return working, guess would suggest servicing at Southall (which would have may be suggested Windsor and Eton Central would have been an easier destination).

Could be a clever trip as it offers Windsor, but a stop in Clapham or Kensington would offer passengers a London day out as well.

 

I assume it'll be the same logistics as when Ollie ran to Windsor for the Girl Guides, seem to remember the diesel dragged the stock all the way to Clapham where she was serviced and then the whole formation turned on the triangle there.

 

Windsor central on the GW can only handle 3 coaches now so it has to be Riverside.