Riding Rare Tracks at Woodford Station

[spsmiler]

Watching trains and riding them on the little used 'rare tracks' at London Underground Central line Woodford station




A topic discussed in this message districtdavesforum.co.uk/post/496583/thread is that in September 2020 an electric power supply issue forced the reduction in train numbers using the Central line Hainault branch, and one of the destinations served by the displaced trains was the bay platform at Woodford station, which required the trains to also travel (in passenger service) through a siding known as No. 21 Road.

As an aside, it also includes some very old footage of a 4 car 1960ts train. What it does not include is the substation building - I am pretty sure that I know where this is but from the outside there is next to nothing to see.

Enjoy!

Simon

[hobbayne]

Around the 3 minute mark we can see an A car cab making up the second unit. Nothing annoys a driver as much as coming across one of these when changing ends in a siding!

[castlebar]

As per the video, is Grange Hill via Woodford a rare display now?

Around 1970, Grange Hill via Woodford was a daily Mon-Fri service through central London at around 9 a.m. I don't know where it started, but West Ruislip I think

[hobbayne]

Dec 31, 2020 11:54:17 GMT castlebar said:

As per the video, is Grange Hill via Woodford a rare display now?

Around 1970, Grange Hill via Woodford was a daily Mon-Fri service through central London at around 9 a.m. I don't know where it started, but West Ruislip I think

Th ereis a booked service to Grange Hill that starts from Ruislip on weekday afternoons.
Also there is no reversing point at GH so these trains stable in Hain depot.
There are also some cases of a defective train running to depot via Wfd from Lyst, which are not in service.

[spsmiler]

I think that Grange Hill via Woodford is (or at least used to be) fairly common at times when LU wanted trains to return to the depot, such as towards the end of the rush hour and other times when service frequency is winding down.

However its not an 'all-day' intermediate destination in the same way that places such as Newbury Park are.

If track layouts had been more kindly it could be that Woodford would be a more regular destination - on this topic someone who watched my film made this comment...

One of many known of incidents of track rationalisation coming back to haunt us.

Below is another comment which I think will be of interest - and somewhat intriguing - I wonder what went on here, could it have been an empty train being given a clear run? Or maybe just trains from Roding Valley and Buckhurst Hill which were running 'out of sequence'?

Aha this is very rare! I remember a few years ago a train was on went into a siding at Woodford and waited for a train to pass! I must have caught myself lucky.

[castlebar]

@ spsmiler

You mention "track rationalisation"
I think "track rationalisation", or in many cases "track rationalisation errors" or misjudgements would make a good heading for a separate thread.

My own experience suggests that many "track rationalisations" or 'simplifications', are not ordered by people who actually "do the day to day job" of actually running the trains,
Often they are eventually proven to be a false economy, penny pinching exercise.
I suggest this Woodford case is one of many examples

[stapler]

Woodford is and always has been a supremely awful station at which to curtail/turn back trains.In these cases. so as not to overload the footbridge, passengers were commonly tipped out at South Woodford, as I remember one example in a blizzard.
Another rare move which happened just once or twice in 28 years was an Epping or Loughton being run via the loop, and reversed at Woodford over the crossover to Loughton.

[superteacher]

Jan 1, 2021 22:07:48 GMT stapler said:

Woodford is and always has been a supremely awful station at which to curtail/turn back trains.In these cases. so as not to overload the footbridge, passengers were commonly tipped out at South Woodford, as I remember one example in a blizzard.
Another rare move which happened just once or twice in 28 years was an Epping or Loughton being run via the loop, and reversed at Woodford over the crossover to Loughton.

If anything, reversing at Woodford via the bay was made more difficult after the 1990's track alterations, because to reach the bay, trains have to run through number 21 road. Due to this, they have to reverse trains from Hainault on the main line in order to reverse a train at Woodford or enter Woodford sidings.

I have been on a train which went to Epping via Hainault when there was a problem on the line between Leytonstone and Woodford. Was quite strange pulling into platform 2 at Woodford, then staying on the train while the driver changed ends.