Not certain this is the right thread for this (mods feel free to move or create a new one), but can anyone explain how the scheduling of RHTTs works? Are these planned in advance or to some extent adapted to conditions and weather? Is there a controlling mind somewhere making these decisions? Are paths in the timetable allocated and then services run when required, or should they be running whenever a path is shown in the timetable? I know on some of the local lines near here that runs are frequently cancelled, but I don’t know if this is by design or due to current issues with staff shortages etc.
With regards to the Salisbury crash I can foresee the press picking up that the previously scheduled RHTT didn’t run, but this might be quite normal with paths only taken if someone decides there is a need (clearly there was here).
Leaf fall isn’t something that happens with any degree of regularity, depends on species, seasonal weather and wind. I have to do leaf clearance as part of my day job, this week there was a huge amount of leaves and debris from the stormy weather at the weekend, but then barely any leaves fell across the site until this morning, three days later. I guess all the loosest ones had been blown down and it took a few days for some of the remaining leaves to ‘ripen’ and fall. It must be hard to plan around such inconsistencies.