Chesham to Watford service

[soupdragon]

Why is there a direct service at 05:17 from Chesham to Watford?
It is the only one of the day. Has there ever been more than one service on this sector?

[railtechnician]

soupdragon said:

Why is there a direct service at 05:17 from Chesham to Watford?
It is the only one of the day. Has there ever been more than one service on this sector?

I expect that is simply the rusty rail move ensuring the route is okay.
I'm sure the last Watford at the end of traffic hours used to run empty back to Rickmansworth to check the return route although I don't know about Chesham. It's 20 years since I worked north of Preston Road so my info is stale to say the least!

Brian

[c5]

The last train (or near to last train) does indeed run from Chesham back empty to Rickmansworth sidings.

These trains that run to and fro Chesham are to provide a service until the "shuttle" gets up from Neasden. It is also handy to run an 8 car up there first in case there are any traction diffiulties, especially this time of year.

[metman]

Strangely, on a Sunday evening the Chesham Shuttle T407 runs from Chesham to Wembley Park all stations. This provides the last Southbound service. This of course runs as a 4 car train and looks very strange in a long station platform! I saw it last sunday at Northwood on my way home.

My question: is there an established stopping mark for short trains on the Met or do they simply go to the end of the platform? Did this happen in the old days (pre 1980) when 4 cars ran outside the peaks? Did trains pull up short if exits where at the end of the platform?

[happybunny]

I guess in the old days they could stop wherever with guards opening and closing doors it didn't really matter.. Now they would have to pull to the monitor unless there was a second monitor they could stop at, which as far as I know there isn't anywhere

[c5]

They do stop at the normal 8 car diamond. Every now and then the 4 car trips to and from Neasden to run in passenger (when booked empty) if the service is disrupted

[metman]

I guess a train could stop anywhere on a CAT B platform but not on a CAT A platform. In practice as you say they just run up to the OPO monitors! There are also little diamonds on the yellow line on the platform face-what are they for?

[c5]

metman said:

I guess a train could stop anywhere on a CAT B platform but not on a CAT A platform. In practice as you say they just run up to the OPO monitors! There are also little diamonds on the yellow line on the platform face-what are they for?

You could stop anywhere on the platform, but you would need to overide the CSDE (Correct Side Door Enable) and not have the benefit of the OPO Mirrors and Monitors. I would hope that the Train Op would be interviewed if they did this.

The diamonds along the platform edge ensure that the OPO Mirrors and Monitors are aligned correctly. In each Mirror or Monitor there should be two diamonds. Some set-ups have two lines drawn on the monitor itself.

[swedishblue]

railtechnician said:

soupdragon said:

Why is there a direct service at 05:17 from Chesham to Watford?
It is the only one of the day. Has there ever been more than one service on this sector?

I expect that is simply the rusty rail move ensuring the route is okay.
I'm sure the last Watford at the end of traffic hours used to run empty back to Rickmansworth to check the return route although I don't know about Chesham. It's 20 years since I worked north of Preston Road so my info is stale to say the least!

Brian

t's not so much a rusty rail move, as the 05.14 ex Ricky North siding goes around to Watford to form the first Southbound from there, this one just fills a gap. Most of the trains from Ricky go either North to Amersham or Chesham (as 407 shuttle hasn't yet got there from Neasden), or South to Moor Park (either fast or local), leaving a gap on the Watford road before the first train from Neasden depot gets up there. we used to have one a few years ago that went RKY South Sdgs - Amersham - Watford - Amersham - Aldgate.

[Deleted]

c5 said:

Every now and then the 4 car trips to and from Neasden to run in passenger (when booked empty) if the service is disrupted

if, for example, there was a single, double end unit of A stock left in the depot without another unit to couple to, would they ever have a four car train or just cancel it?

[c5]

rob said:

c5 said:

Every now and then the 4 car trips to and from Neasden to run in passenger (when booked empty) if the service is disrupted

if, for example, there was a single, double end unit of A stock left in the depot without another unit to couple to, would they ever have a four car train or just cancel it?

It would be cancelled. I doubt Metronet would have the balls to offer it for service! ;D ;D

[Oracle]

My page gave details and I think it's pretty much indate:

www.gmhistorian.btinternet.co.uk/psul.htm

[railtechnician]

happybunny said:

I guess in the old days they could stop wherever with guards opening and closing doors it didn't really matter.. Now they would have to pull to the monitor unless there was a second monitor they could stop at, which as far as I know there isn't anywhere

Where a train can pull up is largely determined by the position of the stop mark because the CSDE only works in a short length of track, the maximum length of a CSDE loop being 5.6 metres when fitted as per specification. However, where 6 and 8 car trains operate there are sometimes two stop marks and each will have a CSDE loop aerial, in which case it is usual for the 8 car mark to have a 5.6 metre loop and the 6 car mark to have a 3 metre loop. Loop aerial are only available as 5.6 metres (standard) or 3 metres (short) and the two loops are totally independent electrical circuits although they operate at exactly the same frequency. There are just three frequencies, nearside enable, offside enable and both sides enable, the frequency being indicated on the transmitter unit by a coloured disc green, red or yellow. At reversing platforms there are often three loops, two at one end of the platform and one at the other so the positioning of the 6 and 8 car stop marks must ensure that the back of the train is positioned such that that cab's aerial is in the correct position toreceive the signal from that loop for the reverse move. At some reversing platforms the stop mark for 6 and 8 car trains is the same and there are two loops at the back end of the platform.

Obviously monitors and mirrors are important too but unless things have changed CSDE is the overriding priority.

Brian

[Deleted]

i guess the reason why there is a chesham service through to watford would be due to the need to populate the service on the watford branch, there are 3 other trains that are ex-rkw stablers so i would think 1 train from chm will be used to run to run to wfd, espceially as london bound customers have a semi-fast running 4 minutes behind it