This blog is moth-balled!

For the time being I am going to post all entries on the main focalplane blog. A sort of KISS thing which will essentially destroy my "hub and spokes" concept.

Station

I'll be there on the 16th.

Good news for Amtrak

This article promises much for the future of US rail. Maybe. It's up to the politicians now.

Steam on the Main Line

This morning I took a high speed train to London. A newly outfitted one, with the updated First Great Western interior. While waiting at Taunton station I observed a number of "anoraks" waiting at the London end of the platforms. Clearly something was up. As our train drew out of Taunton I forgot all about it but then, as our train went under the flyover junction, there was Battle of Britain Class "Tangmere", no. 34067, thundering past with a special of crimson coaches. Very nice too! But no photograph!

Excursion Trains

I recently stumbled upon a main line excursion train operating along the West Somerset Railway.

An eleven coach excursion train from London Victoria arrived at Crowcombe Heathfield while we were waiting for our "local" to arrive from Minehead. The train was hauled as far as Bishops Lydeard by light pacific Battle of Britain Class "Tangmere", no. 34067. For the journey to Minehead the train was piloted by the magnificent Somerest and Dorest Joint Railway 2-8-0 no. 88, immaculate in its prussian blue livery.

I know these excursion trains must be well advertised but I never seem to know about them until its too late and, of course, I am usually in the wrong place to enjoy them anyway. So it is good see how well these ventures seem to be doing. Given the lousy weather this summer, a day on a train makes for an interesting and dry alternative to sitting on a sea front lashed by the rain!

First Great Western Upgrades its HSTs

The ageing fleet of ex-BR high speed Class 43 trains are getting a new lease of life on First Great Western and what a refreshing makeover it is. Leather seats in First Class that recline, grey, mauve and dark blue decor, improved lighting and UK (naturally) style power outlets. Add to this a glass of wine immediately after departure from Paddington (Friday evenings only!) from friendly staff and this might just be the new face of British Railways! A great start to the weekend.

The 2007 Bradshaw Timetable!

Network Rail has a released a mammoth UK railway timetable - the modern printed equivalent of the old Bradshaw. Now available as a huge pdf file. The principal reason for downloading this is so that you can refer to the timetable on-train and check how late the train is running! Enjoy!

Paddington Station - First Class Lounge

When you have been travelling all night and end up 7 time zones from where you were, the last thing you may want to do is stand on a cold concourse for an hour waiting for the next train up the Cotswold Line from Paddington.

Fortunately, if you have a first class (senior) ticket, there is an alternative - First Great Western's First Class Lounge. As good as most airport lounges, this sanctuary has two large rooms, one very conservatively furnished in green leather, the other in modern dark blues and reds. It was only later that I realized the symbolism here - green leather = Great Western Railway, dark blue/dark red = First Great Western!

The GWR room has a fine model of King Class 6000 "King George V" in its entrance. I should have taken a photograph but, well, jet lag is the excuse! next time.

Exeter - London

I recently travelled on a high speed Adelante train run by First Great Western from Exeter to London Paddington. This was a limited stop service (Taunton and Reading only) and made the journey in just over two hours. There were a couple of signal checks, both apparently due to work on the line, but the train arrived in London on time. The one let down with this service was the fact that FGW failed to put up the seat reservation tags. It didn't matter as the train was not full, but why offer seat reservations if most of the time they are not posted?

I was on my way to Heathrow and could have changed to a bus service at Reading but, due to previous experiences I decided to pay more and use the Heathrow Express. With a heavy suitcase in tow this was definitely a good plan. The Heathrow express was nearly empty at 10 a.m. on a Monday morning.

1000 Carriages by 2014

With severe overcrowding forcing many commuter passengers to stand, the government will today announce an additional 1,000 carriages by the year 2014. That's in seven years' time.

Strange that it took so long to come to this. In the early 1990s I used to commute on the "New Guildford Line" into Waterloo and standing room only during the rush hour was normal back then.

The idea of adding extra coaches to trains makes sense only if the platforms at all the stations will accommodate them. I wonder if that one has crossed their minds?