In message , at 10:17:46 on Sun, 3
Aug 2008, Brian Watson remarked:
Why cannot more mainline trains be a little longer (by a carriage or two)
and overhang platforms at the back?

It happens on various rural routes and seems to present no problem.

The Elfin Safety people won't allow it. And surprisingly a lot of modern
trains simply aren't equipped with sufficiently sophisticated selective
door opening.

As you say, it can happen on some "grandfather rights" rural routes. I
was on a 5-car train a week ago that stopped at two stations with only
room for 3-cars. The way they organised it was for the guard to make
several announcements and walk through the train, and then *only* open
the door at the very front of the train by the driver's cab.

And many London commuter trains are driver-only-operated so similar
logisitics would be difficult.
--
Roland Perry

"Roland Perry" wrote

As you say, it can happen on some "grandfather rights" rural routes. I
was on a 5-car train a week ago that stopped at two stations with only
room for 3-cars. The way they organised it was for the guard to make
several announcements and walk through the train, and then *only* open
the door at the very front of the train by the driver's cab.

In slam door days there were three options:
1 - Guard goes through train and moves passengers who wish to alight at a
short platform, so that they are in a coach which will be adjacent to the
platform.
2 - Front of train stops at platform, then train draws up to get next
portion by the platform. I've been on a train which drew up twice to let one
passenger alight at Duncraig.
3 - Passengers climb down to track level. I've done this at Culrain, and at
Corrour, when the Saturday evening train used to have a 6 coach seats and
sleeper portion for London, plus a 6 coach portion for Glasgow. I alighted
somewhere in the vicinity of the loop points.

Peter

"Peter Masson" wrote in message
...

In slam door days there were three options:

4 - everybody just got onto the right carriage in the first place, as per
the notices and announcements at the point of embarkation - "front two
coaches for x" etc.

--
Tim Ward - posting as an individual unless otherwise clear
Brett Ward Limited - www.brettward.co.uk
Cambridge Accommodation Notice Board - www.brettward.co.uk/canb
Cambridge City Councillor

In message , at 12:12:36 on Sun, 3
Aug 2008, Tim Ward remarked:
In slam door days there were three options:

4 - everybody just got onto the right carriage in the first place, as per
the notices and announcements at the point of embarkation - "front two
coaches for x" etc.

That's usually because the trains split, rather than a short platform.
For some reason this is regarded as less passenger-unfriendly than only
opening half the doors, presumably because at the station where the
train splits there's the ability to change units if it turns out you are
the wrong one.

Perhaps one of the options for the Cambridge trains is to run fast to
Letchworth then split into 8 & 4 car units. One running fast to
Cambridge and the other becoming an all station stopper.

--
Roland Perry

On Sun, 3 Aug 2008 14:17:47 +0100, Roland Perry
wrote this gibberish:

In message , at 12:12:36 on Sun, 3
Aug 2008, Tim Ward remarked:
In slam door days there were three options:

4 - everybody just got onto the right carriage in the first place, as per
the notices and announcements at the point of embarkation - "front two
coaches for x" etc.

That's usually because the trains split, rather than a short platform.
For some reason this is regarded as less passenger-unfriendly than only
opening half the doors, presumably because at the station where the
train splits there's the ability to change units if it turns out you are
the wrong one.

Perhaps one of the options for the Cambridge trains is to run fast to
Letchworth then split into 8 & 4 car units. One running fast to
Cambridge and the other becoming an all station stopper.

One of the trains I take fairly often splits and even with many many
announcements there are always people swapping at the station where
the train splits (haywards heath).
--
Mark Varley
www.MarkVarleyPhoto.co.uk
www.TwistedPhotography.co.uk
London, England.

In article , (Tim
Ward) wrote:

"Peter Masson" wrote in message
...

In slam door days there were three options:

4 - everybody just got onto the right carriage in the first place,
as per the notices and announcements at the point of embarkation -
"front two coaches for x" etc.

As was invariably the arrangement for short platforms between Ely and
Lynn before electrification.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

"Tim Ward" wrote in message
...
"Peter Masson" wrote in message
...

In slam door days there were three options:

4 - everybody just got onto the right carriage in the first place, as per
the notices and announcements at the point of embarkation - "front two
coaches for x" etc.

That was my thought.

It seems that for the price of a bit of selective switchgear the problem of
overcrowding and under-capacity could be significantly reduced.

--
Brian
"Fight like the Devil, die like a gentleman."

On 3 Aug, 12:00, "Peter Masson" wrote:

3 - Passengers climb down to track level. I've done this at Culrain, and at
Corrour, when the Saturday evening train used to have a 6 coach seats and
sleeper portion for London, plus a 6 coach portion for Glasgow. I alighted
somewhere in the vicinity of the loop points.

On a recent trip on the IoMR the one passenger for Ronaldsway climbed
down to track level and walked back to the "platform".

Ian

"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 10:17:46 on Sun, 3 Aug
2008, Brian Watson remarked:
Why cannot more mainline trains be a little longer (by a carriage or two)
and overhang platforms at the back?

It happens on various rural routes and seems to present no problem.

The Elfin Safety people won't allow it. And surprisingly a lot of modern
trains simply aren't equipped with sufficiently sophisticated selective
door opening.


As I've mentioned before, TOCs such as SWT use SDO by whole unit, sometimes
only releasing the doors in 4 coaches of 12; or using single door only in
444s at 4 platform stations such as Beaulieu Rd, or Shawford.

Happens routinely on the mainline platforms at Clapham Junction too, so the
rural bit isn't a requirement either.

Thes trains do not have 'grandfather rights' - so the H&S issues presumably
can be overcome if required - you can nearly always find an example of
something happening on the railway that they say 'isn't possible' somewhere
else...

Paul

Thes trains do not have 'grandfather rights' - so the H&S issues presumably
can be overcome if required - you can nearly always find an example of
something happening on the railway that they say 'isn't possible' somewhere
else...

The Whistling Fellsman tour - 13 Mk2's (plus a generator coach) - set
down at Denton last night with no problems.

But then there were plenty of stewards to make sure passengers were
moved forward to the first 3 coaches in order to alight safely.