THE NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY NOTICE
BOARD
Rheilffordd Arfordir Gogledd Cymru Bwrdd
hysbyseb
Sunset study at Llandudno, by Ian Bowland
This site is dedicated to all our regular contributors and
supporters, and especially the rail staff of North Wales.
Edition of 15 November 2004
Pendolino
Problems
Readers will have seen various items in the press regarding braking
problems with Virgin's Pendolino trains. What follows has been put
together from various sources, both public and private - any
corrections
or comments will of course be welcome. Our picture above shows
Manchester Piccadilly on 16 November: 390 022 Virgin
Hope has been stopped well short of the buffers, alongside an
orange marker which has recenntly appeared, no doubt as an additional
safety precaution. Sensible perhaps, but not guaranteed to fill
passengers with confidence
The class 390 units are equipped with air-operated disc brakes on the
axles, and also with electrical methods of slowing down the train. The
traction motors can be arranged by appropriate switching to as
generators driven by the inertia of the train; the electric power
generated can be fed to resistances and dissipated as heat to the
surrounding air, or even better, it can be fed back into the overhead
line for use by other trains, although sometimes this is not possible
as there are no other trains around to accept it. If the overhead line
is not receptive the train will automatically
switch to rheostatic braking within a second, reverting to regenerative
braking after seven seconds. Either way, the train slows down as
the axles meet resistance to their rotation. The Class 390 is capable
of feeding back up to 5 Megawatts of power back into the overhead
line while braking, leading to great savings in energy costs as well as
reducing wear on the disc brake pads and its associated dust emissions.
The regenerative part of the braking scheme was not used on the main
line in the early test days of the Pendolinos; it was implemented in
the Spring of 2004, so this is its first real autumn test. There
have been extensive runs up and down the Old Dalby Test Track, but
maybe there are not a lot of trees there and the tests were more
concerned with running than stopping?
The braking of a Pendolino is apportioned by computer software
which takes the input from the driver's brake handle and decides what
proportion of which braking system should be used: the design is such
that the electric braking does all the work down to a very low speed,
then the friction disc braking is 'blended' in by the system as the
electric systems are not effective at low speed as they cannot
generate power. The disc brakes alone bring the train to a final
stop. (The driver does also have an emergency brake plunger which
overrides all the computer controls.)
The Pendolino fleet entered full passenger service from the Autumn 2004
timetable, a period of the year notorious for bad railhead conditions
due to leaves and rain, and it has become clear that they have some
considerable braking problems in these conditions, related to the last
phase of a stop in which the electric braking is blended into the disc
brakes. There have been several incidents of trains over-running
platforms, at through stations such as Warrington, Tamworth and
Preston, and possibly also some SPAD 'signal passed at danger'
incidents. None of these attracted much public attention, but it was a
different matter when a train from London hit the buffers at Liverpool
Lime Street terminus on 28 October. Although it was travelling at just
walking
pace, and the buffers are designed to absort the energy of such an
event, people were standing up waiting to alight and some fell over: '
Paramedics treated nine people at the scene and two others
went to hospital for check-ups' said the BBC
report. The train got the fibreglass panel covering its coupler
bashed in, along with the smiley bits each side, and possibly some
damage to the coupling gear itself, Certainly not something any railway
company wants to see, and Virgin certainly did not want to see the same
thing happen again on 2 November (BBC
report) although this seems to have been at a lower speed as no
injuries were reported. You might ask how leaves got under the
overall roof of Lime Street station, but because the disc brakes do not
bear on the treads of the wheels, it is likely that the leaf slime was
collected on the wheel treads during the journey.
The sequel to all this has been that Virgin trains received a warning
notice from the Health and Safety Executive, and have responded
by isolating the electric braking systems of the class and relying on
the disc brakes alone (note the smell of hot brake pads when stopping
at a station) coupled with a blanket speed restriction to 110 mph
maximum instead of the usual 125 now in force on several sections of
the West Coast Main Line. Virgin and Alstom believe that the fix
to the problem (as so often these days) lies in a software change, and
it has been intended to withdraw the fleet over the weekend of
13-14 November to apply this. Arrangements were made to provide
alternative stock, including the hire of Class 321 suburban units from
Silverlink for Manchester - Birmingham trains, but in the end this plan
was not carried through and most trains were 390-worked through the
weekend. We understand that there have been problems in carrying out
the modification, and that possibly test of the first version were not
successful, so presumably some trains will lose time until further
notice, although it has been reported that some trains are running at
125 again.
Here's Liverpool Lime Street pictured by James Palmer on 13
November, with EWS loco 90 031 The Railway Childern
Partnership arrived at the head of a Virgin train from
London, substituting for a Pendolino. Orange markers again, and James
notes that scars could be seen on the buffers at the platform end.
None of these upheavals should greatly affect the North Wales Pendolino
service as we believe it runs in 110 mph timings anyway. It
would seem that despite all these problems, the plan to introduce a
second Pendolino turn to Holyhead and back is going ahead fairly soon,
the jobs have been advertised by Virgin at Liverpool. -
16 November
Dave Sallery's archive
spot
47 236 is about to enter the up goods loop at Croes Newydd on
5 January 1993. The train is the Arpley - Dee Marsh logs.
The loco will run round the train in the loop and then take the Bidston
line to Shotton Paper's plant. This works no longer takes cut
timber but is still served by a daily trip from Arpley conveying
finished paper from Irvine in Ayrshire. The large modern building
in the background was the Wrexham Lager Brewery and has recently been
demolished. - 16 November
Brake coach 35515
James Steward writes: At the Mid-Norfolk
Railway we
recently took
delivery of Mk2A BFK 35515. One of the main reasons I got it
was that
since I'm young I don't remember travelling in many proper
coaches, but I've got proof I was in 35515 on the North Wales
coast
several times. Does anyone have any pictures of the coach, especially
interior-wise? I've only got a poor couple myself and I'd really like
to get
some better ones. Whilst I'd love to keep it in Regional Railways
livery, railway policy dictates it's got to go into blue/grey.
I notice that some of the ex-NWC Mk1s and Mk2s are now for sale too
...' - 15 November
With Stanley into the
Heart of Darkness (Colwyn Bay) - by Gwyn Williams
When the 10:35 Voyager for Crewe pulled into Llandudno Junction on
13 November and a huddle of passengers shuffled in through every door,
I thought that my first Voyager journey would be made standing up.
However, once everyone had settled in - not easy given the narrow
aisles - 221 117 Sir Henry Morton Stanley proved to be
only about two-thirds full. (Note to editor - insert Dr Livingstone
joke of your choice here.) Less satisfactory was the luggage situation,
with much of it, of necessity, dumped in any old place. The coach
interiors were adequate but a bit tacky, the view through the large
windows was good, the PA system was faulty, with the one announcement
made while I was on board having a break in the middle.
Moving between coaches was a bit tricky until I got the hang of
it, as it involved opening two doors with separate buttons. I can
imagine elderly people in particular getting into trouble here and
becoming trapped between the two doors. Given that the shop, which I
wasn't able to see because of a long queue, is situated at the end of
the train, this discouragement of movement seemed slightly curious. And
there appeared to be lots of buttons and things on the walls everywhere
- it was all very gadgety and complicated - how robust is it all?
The acceleration on departure was very good, with the train easily
keeping to time - indeed, it actually had to stand at Colwyn Bay for a
couple of minutes prior to departure because it was running
early. Which leaves just one feature to comment on - and
many people have preceded me on this one - the vibrations from the
under-floor engines. Yes, I found them unpleasant, and much the worst
feature of the train - it certainly seemed worse than on the 175s,
although it's a few months since I was on one of those things. Overall,
the Voyager did not have the feel of a London-bound train to it. Fine
for a day trip to Chester or the like, but I wouldn't care to travel to
London on one on a hot day when the train is full and luggage is
overflowing everywhere.
After all that, it was a relief to be get back to real trains and make
the return journey behind 47 839 working the 11:17 from Colwyn
Bay to Holyhead. (47 853 had worked the early turn from Holyhead to
Crewe with a different 6-coach set. 47 839 was right on time, so
presumably this had been a planned swap at Crewe.) But to be honest the
coaches on this train were a bit basic, and if the heating was working
it wasn't very effective on the coldest day of the season so far. While
it was great fun to be able stand at an open window and watch 47 839
clagging away happily, I sadly suspect that most passengers would
prefer the greater comfort of the Voyagers, vibrations and all.
One more point - The early Pendolino from Holyhead ran about an hour
late on 13 November. And there wasn't the usual stand-by loco at the
Junction this morning. Could it be that the stand-by was actually used,
for perhaps the first time? - 16
November
More
about Stanley
Here's a picture by Ian Bowland of 221 117 leaving
Llandudno with the 15:23 on 10 November for London. There must
have been all of 10 people on board, reports Ian.
This same unit, Sir Henry Morton
Stanley, was used on the very first day of the Llandudno
service, 27 September. We haven't really covered the events of that
day, but celebrations of the new service did take place, both at Flint
(also gaining a London service for the first time in a while) and
Llandudno. Out on the Web there is a particularly interesting picture
report on the Llandudno day by Adam
Walley which we recommend you to visit. The choice of this
particular Super Voyager was deliberate, as Henry Morton Stanley,
although normally presumed (sorry, we mean assumed!) to be American, was a
North Wales man by birth, as Adam explains in his report. He ran away
to sea when he was 17, and found himself in the USA. His most
famous expedition, of course, was to Africa to find David Livingstone
(221 116.) He returned to Britain in his later years, and became a
Member of Parliament for North Lambeth, receiving a knighthood in 1899;
this year is the centenary of his death in May 1904. - 16
November
Friday 'Rugg-ex' at Chester - by Laurence
Wheeler
67 002 Special Delivery (front) and 67012 (rear) top-and-tail at
Chester, Friday 12 November. Train is the 14:00 'Ruggex' extra to
Cardiff Central, 13:33 from Crewe.
Meanwhile 66 021 passes
through on the up and down goods line with the empty log wagons from
Chirk. - 16 November
XP64 to the fore - by Dave Sallery
47 853 Rail Express is seen near Mostyn on
the 12:51 Holyhead - Crewe on Armistice Day 2004, 11 November.
With three Holyhead - Crewe return trips a day, the loco and stock
cover over 630 miles, an impressive feat for old equipment. - 16 November
Water Cannon news - by Dave Bramley
The steady flow of 'water cannons' (Railhead Treatment Trains)
keeps the interest level up at the moment, here are 10 November's
selection of 37 682 ...
... and 37 689 on the
Buxton to Wigan train (4Z04) seen reversing in the bay at Chester ...
... and 37 706 ...
... and 37 893 on the North Wales Coast version (4Z07).
Here's a detail of 37 682
showing its romantic Hartlepool Pipe
Mill nameplate (how many different engines have carried this
name?) and the disused Sandite filler socket. - 16 November