On Sun, 16 Nov 2008 17:27:39 -0000, "Paul Scott"
wrote:

Can someone familiar with ops at Kentish Town explain the current platform
usage?

Are there two platforms normally used for stoppers and two for through
trains and diversions into St Pancras? AIUI there are junctions both north
and south of the station so trains to St Pancras LL can use either route?

All trains to/from StPLL normally use the Eastern platforms 1 and 2)
AFAIK. 3 and 4 are only used by empty stock moves to/from both StPs
and for FCC casualities. (Weekend diversions are another matter.)

I was wondering how they will deal with the trains that terminate at Kentish
Town, (vice Blackfriars under KO0). For instance would the signalling allow
all through trains to use the outer platforms, leaving the middle platforms
(2 and 3) for trains terminating and reversing?

I dunno about plans but the signalling allows this, and most other
variations.

Will the Kentish Town platforms remain limited to 8 car under the full
Thameslink improvements - I see there is a fair amount of lengthening now
happening at stations northwards to Elstree...

It is accepted that extending the platforms will not be possible, due
to overbridges at each end of the station.
--
Peter Lawrence

On Nov 16, 6:57 pm, "Peter Lawrence" wrote:


On Sun, 16 Nov 2008 17:27:39 -0000, "Paul Scott"

I was wondering how they will deal with the trains that terminate at Kentish
Town, (vice Blackfriars under KO0). For instance would the signalling allow
all through trains to use the outer platforms, leaving the middle platforms
(2 and 3) for trains terminating and reversing?


I dunno about plans but the signalling allows this, and most other
variations.


Platform 1 & 2 (''Up Moorgate'' and ''Down Moorgate;; lines) are
reversible but only from the north i.e. a southbound train can be
turned back northwards so that does not hrlp this answer.

Platform 4 (''Up & Down Slow'') is fully reversible throughout but
from the south is only accessable to/from SP high level so again is of
no help.

Platform 3 (''Up & Down Releif'') is fully reversible throughout and
can accommodate reversing trains to/from both directions. From the
south end it leads to what is known as Dock Junction North on the the
Moorgate lines.

The only possible question is using this creates conflicting moves as
SB trains will have to cross the Down Moorgate. Do we know yet of
Kentish Town terminators are turning back there or are running ECS and
turning back in Cricklewood sidings ? There are two routes from
Cricklewood into the sidings ... north and south of the platforms ...
keeping all options open would suggest why such moves would not call
at Cricklewood beyond Kentish Town.


The Kentish Town Up & Down Releif used to be used a lot more for ECS
when units from Selhurst used to run ECS to/from Moorgate peak trains
but since stabling has shifted to Cricklewood and increased at Bedford
is much less used ... there is only one SX move in the current
workings. Even that one does not appear to be wholly necessary and
might be simply a ''rusty rail'' move to keep the route activated.


The Up & Down Relief is sometimes used to overtake Up trains when the
''flyer'' is late getting to pass the ''metro''. As you know, all
''flyers'' have to overtake all ''metros'' somewhere between Radlett
Junctions and West Hampstead. Normally the the metro is USL all the
way with the flyer on USL until either Harpenden Junction or Radlett
Junction where it switches to the UFL and back to USL at WHD South Jn.
If the flyer is late enough but can still overtake the metro at or
around Kentish Town the normal procedure (from my observation) is that
the *metro* is re-routed through Kentish Town platform 3 and does its
station call there while the flyer takes its booked route across WHD
South Junction thus overtaking by using platform 1.

) from the track bashing point of view that is most irritating -
use of the Dock Junction North route is extremely rare - and since
you never know when this will occur, and I use the flyers from Luton,
I am on the normally routed train and see the diverted train, but can
do nothing about it (

--
Nick