Promise of 24 Thameslink trains running through central London each
hour will not be fulfilled until another £900m of work is carried out
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...-december-2019

In message , at 09:41:29 on
Thu, 23 Nov 2017, David Walters remarked:
Promise of 24 Thameslink trains running through central London each
hour will not be fulfilled until another £900m of work is carried out
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...ameslink-rail-
completion-delayed-london-december-2019

"Network Rail, whose engineering budget for the project overran
by 10% to £5.5bn, now says another £900m of work must be carried
out on the wider network around the core Thameslink route to
ensure a reliable service."

Is there no limit to the number of "surprises" lurking out there for
Network Rail to trip over?

They've only been planning this project for, what, the whole of their
corporate life.
--
Roland Perry

On Thursday, 23 November 2017 09:42:08 UTC, David Walters wrote:
Promise of 24 Thameslink trains running through central London each
hour will not be fulfilled until another £900m of work is carried out
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...-december-2019

I live near Mitcham Eastfields, which is on Thameslink. There is a level crossing associated with the station. Sometimes three trains are scheduled to go through the station, let's say, NB, SB and a fast. This can mean that the barriers stay down for 7-10 minutes. By that time pedestrians and drivers are starting to get cranky.

If the barriers stayed down for much longer I think people would start edging forward.

In article ,
(Offramp) wrote:

On Thursday, 23 November 2017 09:42:08 UTC, David Walters wrote:
Promise of 24 Thameslink trains running through central London each
hour will not be fulfilled until another £900m of work is carried
out


https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...-completion-de
layed-london-december-2019

I live near Mitcham Eastfields, which is on Thameslink. There is a
level crossing associated with the station. Sometimes three trains
are scheduled to go through the station, let's say, NB, SB and a
fast. This can mean that the barriers stay down for 7-10 minutes. By
that time pedestrians and drivers are starting to get cranky.

If the barriers stayed down for much longer I think people would
start edging forward.

I'm amazed people don't realise how long level crossings can stay down. When
I was a kid in the 1960s we knew that. My parents always turned the car
engine off to wait at one as most motorists did. People can be so impatient
these days.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In London, 7 minutes is a long time.

I know the road lay-out at Mitcham Eastfields, and it's one of
those locations where there is not room to take the road either
over or under the railway. As with Highams Park Station, it's a
classic, don't-raise-the-bridge, lower-the-water situation.

As politicians and Network Rail have such a casual attitude to
spending tax-payers' money, and regard 100 million pounds as
loose change, they might usefully consider the very expensive
option of lowering the railway into a cutting in this type of situation.

Yes, I do know that would involve closing a very busy commuter
route for a long time.

On 24/11/2017 08:44, wrote:
In article ,
(Offramp) wrote:

On Thursday, 23 November 2017 09:42:08 UTC, David Walters wrote:
Promise of 24 Thameslink trains running through central London each
hour will not be fulfilled until another £900m of work is carried
out


https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...-completion-de
layed-london-december-2019

I live near Mitcham Eastfields, which is on Thameslink. There is a
level crossing associated with the station. Sometimes three trains
are scheduled to go through the station, let's say, NB, SB and a
fast. This can mean that the barriers stay down for 7-10 minutes. By
that time pedestrians and drivers are starting to get cranky.

If the barriers stayed down for much longer I think people would
start edging forward.

I'm amazed people don't realise how long level crossings can stay down. When
I was a kid in the 1960s we knew that. My parents always turned the car
engine off to wait at one as most motorists did. People can be so impatient
these days.

with 5 times as many cars, travelling 5 times as many miles, I find it
neither surprising nor wholly reprehensible that people are no longer
content to wait for the signalman to change the signals, then come down
from the box to open the gates. And those figures are national. In
London and the SE the changes have been greater.

--
Robin
reply-to address is (intended to be) valid

In article ,
(Robin) wrote:

On 24/11/2017 08:44, wrote:
In article ,
(Offramp) wrote:

On Thursday, 23 November 2017 09:42:08 UTC, David Walters wrote:
Promise of 24 Thameslink trains running through central London each
hour will not be fulfilled until another £900m of work is carried
out


https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...-completion-de
layed-london-december-2019

I live near Mitcham Eastfields, which is on Thameslink. There is a
level crossing associated with the station. Sometimes three trains
are scheduled to go through the station, let's say, NB, SB and a
fast. This can mean that the barriers stay down for 7-10 minutes. By
that time pedestrians and drivers are starting to get cranky.

If the barriers stayed down for much longer I think people would
start edging forward.

I'm amazed people don't realise how long level crossings can stay down.
When I was a kid in the 1960s we knew that. My parents always turned the
car engine off to wait at one as most motorists did. People can be so
impatient these days.

with 5 times as many cars, travelling 5 times as many miles, I find
it neither surprising nor wholly reprehensible that people are no
longer content to wait for the signalman to change the signals, then
come down from the box to open the gates. And those figures are
national. In London and the SE the changes have been greater.

That level crossing model, while normal in the 1960s, largely went out long
ago. So signalling is as likely as not automatic or controlled by route
setting. 5 crossings are supervised from Cambridge PSB by CCTV. Almost no
crossing gates require a signalman to come down from his box to open the
gates now. Indeed gates opened by wheel from within the box existed before
the war!

--
Colin Rosenstiel

On Fri, 24 Nov 2017 10:59:06 +0000, Robin9
wrote:


In London, 7 minutes is a long time.

I know the road lay-out at Mitcham Eastfields, and it's one of
those locations where there is not room to take the road either
over or under the railway. As with Highams Park Station, it's a
classic, don't-raise-the-bridge, lower-the-water situation.

As politicians and Network Rail have such a casual attitude to
spending tax-payers' money, and regard 100 million pounds as
loose change, they might usefully consider the very expensive
option of lowering the railway into a cutting in this type of
situation.

Yes, I do know that would involve closing a very busy commuter
route for a long time.

I grew up in Walthamstow & had family in Highams Park, imagine the
traffic problems there when the peak service on the Chingford Branch
was 9 TPH......

Off peak was 6 TPH, at least until the Victoria Line was completed.

DC

In message , at 09:47:06
on Fri, 24 Nov 2017, remarked:

with 5 times as many cars, travelling 5 times as many miles, I find
it neither surprising nor wholly reprehensible that people are no
longer content to wait for the signalman to change the signals, then
come down from the box to open the gates. And those figures are
national. In London and the SE the changes have been greater.

That level crossing model, while normal in the 1960s, largely went out long
ago. So signalling is as likely as not automatic or controlled by route
setting. 5 crossings are supervised from Cambridge PSB by CCTV. Almost no
crossing gates require a signalman to come down from his box to open the
gates now.

Littleport station crossing!

And until only a couple of years ago, Shippea Hill station crossing.

--
Roland Perry

In article , (Roland Perry)
wrote:

In message , at
09:47:06 on Fri, 24 Nov 2017, remarked:

with 5 times as many cars, travelling 5 times as many miles, I find
it neither surprising nor wholly reprehensible that people are no
longer content to wait for the signalman to change the signals, then
come down from the box to open the gates. And those figures are
national. In London and the SE the changes have been greater.

That level crossing model, while normal in the 1960s, largely went out
long ago. So signalling is as likely as not automatic or controlled by
route setting. 5 crossings are supervised from Cambridge PSB by CCTV.
Almost no crossing gates require a signalman to come down from his box to
open the gates now.

Littleport station crossing!

With an underpass like at Ely! How much traffic does that crossing get?
Again, the signalling to King's Lynn is long overdue for modernising. It
should have been done with the electrification. Why that crossing missed out
on replacement of gates by lifting barriers GOK. Part of the decades of
under-investment because of cutting taxes on motorists.

OK, I was a bit too strong with "almost no" but I'm not aware of any others
in East Anglia.

And until only a couple of years ago, Shippea Hill station crossing.

Yes, Ely-Norwich signalling was modernised.

--
Colin Rosenstiel