|
Mail Rail exploration
This is great fun. Kudos to the urban explorers - some amazing pics:
http://www.silentuk.com/?p=2792 JB |
Mail Rail exploration
On 19/04/2011 16:16, John B wrote:
This is great fun. Kudos to the urban explorers - some amazing pics: http://www.silentuk.com/?p=2792 JB Bunch of questions: What is the status of that system these days? What are its prospects? Is perhaps Boris looking at possibly bringing it back, at least to some degree, in line with efforts to cut carbon emissions in London? What are the chances of getting down there and viewing it? What are the chances of getting a ride on it, as I know that they have passenger yorks. Are there any manually controlled trains down there, besides the automatic ones? What about any sort of a signalling system down there? (I only glanced the URL, to be honest.) |
Mail Rail exploration
On Apr 19, 9:12*pm, " wrote: On 19/04/2011 16:16, John B wrote: This is great fun. Kudos to the urban explorers - some amazing pics: http://www.silentuk.com/?p=2792 Bunch of questions: What is the status of that system these days? Mothballed. What are its prospects? Zilch. Is perhaps Boris looking at possibly bringing it back, at least to some degree, in line with efforts to cut carbon emissions in London? No. (Though, being Boris, he's probably made some vague aside about it being a potential secret salvation of London, so long as someone else pays for it.) What are the chances of getting down there and viewing it? Break in. Except, don't. What are the chances of getting a ride on it, as I know that they have passenger yorks. Every chance. If you win the EuroBillions lottery and buy it from Royal Mail, refurbish it and run it yourself. Are there any manually controlled trains down there, besides the automatic ones? What about any sort of a signalling system down there? (I only glanced the URL, to be honest.) A harder glance would lead you to spot the references to Sub-Brit, whose "countless years of sitting in chairs has resulted in quite the in depth collection of historical fact and technical nerdery regarding the place" - at least that's the take of the urbexers. (The urbex contingent and those of the Sub-Brit persuasion don't quite see eye to eye, you see - though I doubt the urbex verdict on utl would be all that glowing either!) |
Mail Rail exploration
"Arthur Figgis" wrote
wrote: What are the chances of getting a ride on it, as I know that they have passenger yorks. We tried asking on an official visit, and it was made very clear that there was not any chance at all, even when it was still operational. I know for sure that there was an enthusiasts' trip in September 2008 which traversed the line from Paddington to Whitechapel. I personally travelled (with an organised group) from Mount Pleasant to Whitechapel and back on the 10th March 1994 in the 14-seat 'VIP' coach. I seem to recall we had to detrain whilst the train ran round the turning circle at Whitechapel. |
Mail Rail exploration
On 2011\04\19 23:25, John Salmon wrote:
"Arthur Figgis" wrote wrote: What are the chances of getting a ride on it, as I know that they have passenger yorks. We tried asking on an official visit, and it was made very clear that there was not any chance at all, even when it was still operational. I know for sure that there was an enthusiasts' trip in September 2008 which traversed the line from Paddington to Whitechapel. I personally travelled (with an organised group) from Mount Pleasant to Whitechapel and back on the 10th March 1994 in the 14-seat 'VIP' coach. I seem to recall we had to detrain whilst the train ran round the turning circle at Whitechapel. Was this part of Open House? How did you find out about it? I don't recall it being mentioned here. |
Mail Rail exploration
"Basil Jet" wrote
John Salmon wrote: I personally travelled (with an organised group) from Mount Pleasant to Whitechapel and back on the 10th March 1994 in the 14-seat 'VIP' coach. I seem to recall we had to detrain whilst the train ran round the turning circle at Whitechapel. Was this part of Open House? How did you find out about it? I don't recall it being mentioned here. Four trips in 1994 were organised through the Branch Line Society. I think it entailed us all joining a 'Friends of the Post Office' (or some such) group. If your question related to the 2008 trip, I only know about it because a friend went - I don't know how that trip was organised. |
Mail Rail exploration
On 19 Apr, 23:47, "John Salmon" wrote:
"Basil Jet" *wrote John Salmon wrote: I personally travelled (with an organised group) from Mount Pleasant to Whitechapel and back on the 10th March 1994 in the 14-seat 'VIP' coach.. I seem to recall we had to detrain whilst the train ran round the turning circle at Whitechapel. Was this part of Open House? How did you find out about it? I don't recall it being mentioned here. Four trips in 1994 were organised through the Branch Line Society. *I think it entailed us all joining a 'Friends of the Post Office' (or some such) group. *If your question related to the 2008 trip, I only know about it because a friend went - I don't know how that trip was organised. Yes, I've travelled on it as well, but my memory fades as to how long ago it was. It was certainly earlier than 2008, and still working. We got a trip on a Saturday, I think, before Sunday colldections started & it was quiet. THe VIP coach experience mentioned above rings a bell too, but we did the full length of the line. It was combined with a trip down Aldwych tube station.... |
Mail Rail exploration
On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 00:59:11 -0700 (PDT)
Chris wrote: Yes, I've travelled on it as well, but my memory fades as to how long ago it was. It was certainly earlier than 2008, and still working. We got a trip on a Saturday, I think, before Sunday colldections started & it was quiet. THe VIP coach experience mentioned above rings a bell too, but we did the full length of the line. What state is mailrail in at the moment - has it been mothballed or have they dismantled it and sold off the stock? B2003 |
Mail Rail exploration
wrote: What state is mailrail in at the moment - has it been mothballed or have they dismantled it and sold off the stock? It's been entirely stripped and filled with concrete. The photos on the page linked to by the OP are all fake. |
Mail Rail exploration
"John Salmon" wrote in
: "Arthur Figgis" wrote wrote: What are the chances of getting a ride on it, as I know that they have passenger yorks. We tried asking on an official visit, and it was made very clear that there was not any chance at all, even when it was still operational. I know for sure that there was an enthusiasts' trip in September 2008 which traversed the line from Paddington to Whitechapel. I personally travelled (with an organised group) from Mount Pleasant to Whitechapel and back on the 10th March 1994 in the 14-seat 'VIP' coach. I seem to recall we had to detrain whilst the train ran round the turning circle at Whitechapel. Is it not the case that Crossrail is going to sever MailRail? I imagine that will be somewhere around where the Tottenham Court Road station is being built, so perhaps it will happen quite soon. Peter -- || Peter CS | Epsom | UK || |
Mail Rail exploration
On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 10:53:10 +0100
"Mizter T" wrote: wrote: What state is mailrail in at the moment - has it been mothballed or have they dismantled it and sold off the stock? It's been entirely stripped and filled with concrete. The photos on the page linked to by the OP are all fake. [canned laughter] I didn't see the original post numbnuts, I only just spotted this thread. B2003 |
Mail Rail exploration
On Tue, 19 Apr 2011 14:57:27 -0700 (PDT), Mizter T
wrote: A harder glance would lead you to spot the references to Sub-Brit, whose "countless years of sitting in chairs has resulted in quite the in depth collection of historical fact and technical nerdery regarding the place" - at least that's the take of the urbexers. (The urbex contingent and those of the Sub-Brit persuasion don't quite see eye to eye, you see - though I doubt the urbex verdict on utl would be all that glowing either!) I'm from neither urban exploration camp but one relatively small building sub-brit covered had blatantly incorrect information regarding its function, the reason being I was extremely familiar with the site having worked on engineering a complete revamp of all equipment there in the mid 1980's Within an organisation of many thousands, the number of people who were aware of this building only ever numbered a dozen or so, most are now well into retirement, the number 'online' can't be many, and the number who would ever know about sub-brit is just above zero :) I provided them with detailed info about the building, what its true purpose was, and where the function they claimed was carried out in this building was really performed, a few years back I could have even provided them with all the technical drawings and photos of the inside of the building, especially as it ceased as an operational building in the late 1990's. Hell I could have even given them a guided tour! They plainly couldn't give a stuff as they didn't even acknowledge receipt and the glaring errors are still there. -- |
Mail Rail exploration
On 2011\04\21 00:01, The Other Mike wrote:
They plainly couldn't give a stuff as they didn't even acknowledge receipt and the glaring errors are still there. Maybe they just didn't get your email. |
Mail Rail exploration
On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 09:35:28 +0100
Paul Corfield wrote: condition but if Royal Mail had an ounce of sense they'd arrange a series of visits - maybe at just one location - and then charge a decent If the royal mail had any sense they wouldn't have closed it in the first place. B2003 |
Mail Rail exploration
On Apr 20, 10:53*am, "Mizter T" wrote:
wrote: What state is mailrail in at the moment - has it been mothballed or have they dismantled it and sold off the stock? It's been entirely stripped and filled with concrete. The photos on the page linked to by the OP are all fake. LOROL! |
Mail Rail exploration
On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 10:48:55 +0100
Paul Corfield wrote: I am sure we could debate the rights and wrongs of how the Royal Mail are managed for a very long time. I don't know enough about the reasons for closure of Mail Rail to understand whether it was a good or bad decision. Well it couldn't have been staff costs so no doubt they'd claim it was maintenance costs. Trucks however arn't exactly cheap to maintain, insure, tax, fuel, not forgetting the congestion charge and the pollution they cause too. All in all , a bloody daft decision no doubt made by some short sighted bean counter 100 miles away. B2003 |
Mail Rail exploration
|
Mail Rail exploration
On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:55:08 +0100
Paul Terry wrote: By the time it closed, MailRail was losing 1.2 million pounds a day and costing five times the amount of moving the same amount of mail by road. Presumably their figures used to justify it. I very much doubt it cost that much a day to run never mind lose. 500 million quid a year? Yeah , suuuuure. B2003 |
Mail Rail exploration
On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 10:48:55 +0100, Paul Corfield
wrote: On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 08:59:19 +0000 (UTC), d wrote: On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 09:35:28 +0100 Paul Corfield wrote: condition but if Royal Mail had an ounce of sense they'd arrange a series of visits - maybe at just one location - and then charge a decent If the royal mail had any sense they wouldn't have closed it in the first place. I am sure we could debate the rights and wrongs of how the Royal Mail are managed for a very long time. I don't know enough about the reasons for closure of Mail Rail to understand whether it was a good or bad decision. It had ceased to serve any useful (or sufficiently useful) purpose since the TPOs were diverted to Willesden - there was no longer any requirement to pass mail between the main line terminals. Connecting it to Willesden would probably be worhwhile, a scheme was sketched out, except that the investment woould not be recouped within 20 years so it failed Royal Mail's criteria for investment. |
Mail Rail exploration
On Tue, 19 Apr 2011 23:10:56 +0100, Arthur Figgis
wrote: We tried asking on an official visit, and it was made very clear that there was not any chance at all, even when it was still operational. In my experience it was quite easy to visit when it was operational. The first time I went I rang in the morning and went to Mount Pleasant in the afternoon. I went to Paddington when it was opened for an anniversary event, MP was opened on the same occasion. I once went to an event at the King Edward building, the old GPO HQ, when the guests had the chance to visit the railway as well. Whilst I was pleased to visit stations other than Mount Pleasant they all looked the same. |
Mail Rail exploration
On 22/04/2011 16:53, Peter Johnson wrote:
On Tue, 19 Apr 2011 23:10:56 +0100, Arthur Figgis wrote: We tried asking on an official visit, and it was made very clear that there was not any chance at all, even when it was still operational. In my experience it was quite easy to visit when it was operational. The first time I went I rang in the morning and went to Mount Pleasant in the afternoon. I went to Paddington when it was opened for an anniversary event, MP was opened on the same occasion. I once went to an event at the King Edward building, the old GPO HQ, when the guests had the chance to visit the railway as well. Whilst I was pleased to visit stations other than Mount Pleasant they all looked the same. But did you get a ride? -- Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK |
Mail Rail exploration
On 21/04/2011 10:48, Paul Corfield wrote:
On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 08:59:19 +0000 (UTC), d wrote: On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 09:35:28 +0100 Paul wrote: condition but if Royal Mail had an ounce of sense they'd arrange a series of visits - maybe at just one location - and then charge a decent If the royal mail had any sense they wouldn't have closed it in the first place. I am sure we could debate the rights and wrongs of how the Royal Mail are managed for a very long time. I don't know enough about the reasons for closure of Mail Rail to understand whether it was a good or bad decision. From what I remember of what was said at the time, changes to mail handling meant it went to the wrong places, not where the mail needed to go. Extending to where it was needed was going to cost an awful lot of money. -- Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK |
Mail Rail exploration
On Fri, 22 Apr 2011 22:51:15 +0100, Arthur Figgis
wrote: In my experience it was quite easy to visit when it was operational. The first time I went I rang in the morning and went to Mount Pleasant in the afternoon. I went to Paddington when it was opened for an anniversary event, MP was opened on the same occasion. I once went to an event at the King Edward building, the old GPO HQ, when the guests had the chance to visit the railway as well. Whilst I was pleased to visit stations other than Mount Pleasant they all looked the same. But did you get a ride? No. So far as I know 'ordinary folks' only got the chance of a ride on a few occasions since it was closed. |
Mail Rail exploration
On 21/04/2011 10:46, Offramp wrote:
On Apr 20, 10:53 am, "Mizter wrote: wrote: What state is mailrail in at the moment - has it been mothballed or have they dismantled it and sold off the stock? It's been entirely stripped and filled with concrete. The photos on the page linked to by the OP are all fake. LOROL! I just saw this on Yahoo.com http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/London..._wl/1303511465 |
Mail Rail exploration
In message , at 10:32:29 on Sun, 24
Apr 2011, " remarked: I just saw this on Yahoo.com http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/London...422/photos_net _web_wl/1303511465 The url of the site whose pictures they are using has been posted several times. -- Roland Perry |
Mail Rail exploration
Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 10:32:29 on Sun, 24 Apr 2011, " remarked: I just saw this on Yahoo.com http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/London...422/photos_net _web_wl/1303511465 The url of the site whose pictures they are using has been posted several times. The point being they're on Yahoo's photo front page. http://news.yahoo.com/photos They're coming in at #2 for 'Most viewed photos' and #1 for 'Most emailed photos' at the moment. Theo |
Mail Rail exploration
On Apr 21, 12:01*am, The Other Mike
wrote: On Tue, 19 Apr 2011 14:57:27 -0700 (PDT), Mizter T wrote: A harder glance would lead you to spot the references to Sub-Brit, whose "countless years of sitting in chairs has resulted in quite the in depth collection of historical fact and technical nerdery regarding the place" - at least that's the take of the urbexers. (The urbex contingent and those of the Sub-Brit persuasion don't quite see eye to eye, you see - though I doubt the urbex verdict on utl would be all that glowing either!) I'm from neither urban exploration camp but one relatively small building sub-brit covered had blatantly incorrect information regarding its function, the reason being I was extremely familiar with the site having worked on engineering a complete revamp of all equipment there in the mid 1980's Within an organisation of many thousands, *the number of people who were aware of this building only ever numbered a dozen or so, most are now well into retirement, the number 'online' can't be many, and the number who would ever know about sub-brit is just above zero :) I provided them with detailed info about the building, what its true purpose was, and where the function they claimed was carried out in this building was really performed, a few years back I could have even provided them with all the technical drawings and photos of the inside of the building, especially as it ceased as an operational building in the late 1990's. * Hell I could have even given them a guided tour! They plainly couldn't give a stuff as they didn't even acknowledge receipt and the glaring errors are still there. -- You say that you contacted Subbrit about a location where they had it wrong, care to enlighten us as to where and what? |
| All times are GMT. The time now is 11:56 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2006 LondonBanter.co.uk