Loco hauled around Havant

[Sun Chariot]

Seeing double.

Today's Chichester and Crawley aggregate services meet, in glorious spring weather mirroring that two weeks ago (post #240).
The Crawley-bound working really romps through Chichester station, at its near-max line speed; no doubt startling unwary platform patrons and creating a confetti of litter.

 

[75A]

Honestly, my final wrap-up for this thread.

Seeing double.

My last nod to Freightliner's presence in this locality. Today's Chichester and Crawley aggregate services meet, in glorious spring weather. A return to rain from tomorrow...
The Crawley-bound working really romps through Chichester station, at its near-max line speed; no doubt startling unwary platform patrons and creating a confetti of litter...

Very impressive, we could never do that on 'up' trains Fawley/Salfords tanks & stone to Ardingly because we'd always do a crew change @ Chi. The down empty stones we took to Havant but never had a good run.

 

[Sun Chariot]

Very impressive, we could never do that on 'up' trains Fawley/Salfords tanks & stone to Ardingly because we'd always do a crew change @ Chi. The down empty stones we took to Havant but never had a good run.

The West Coastway's permanent way, these days, allows for spirited running. The gated crossings have gone, a few AHBs in use but most have double barriers. The Crawley turn I think I've seen running at line speed on all bar three occasions - it's really thundered through.

 

[Class15]

@Sun Chariot - May I just say that this thread has been excellent and has often given me inspiration for my own adventures. Many thanks for running it.

 

[Sun Chariot]

@Sun Chariot - May I just say that this thread has been excellent and has often given me inspiration for my own adventures. Many thanks for running it.

Thanks @Class15 This started as just a whimsical record of local railway spots.
My interest had waned around 1996. It was rekindled in mid March 2023, due to impending demise of the class 313s. A photo "mini-project" opened up my eyes to local photogenic locations.
I never expected it to run this long, as my track-bashing and photography were back during BR sectorisation years; and I have a natural disdain of Sheds!

This year's focus is three-fold:
1) obedience-train our hyperactive and chewing obsessed, fostered German Shepherd; so that I can...
2) build the 4mm wagon kits for my 1950s fish train; and...
3) get my 1980s + early 1990s 35mm photos digitised and onto a thread of their own.

All the best and happy adventures!

 

[Sun Chariot]

One for @sqwizz

Yesterday's fine DEMU tour, from Hastings to Milton Keynes, included two runs over the relaid route between Bicester and Bletchley.
Here, the sparkling two Hastings sets have descended from Swanbourne summit (post #211) and are coasting onto their approach to Bletchley.
I also, purely by coincidence, saw this again - departing Milton Keynes, on my way to seeing my elderly father at MK Hospital; and again at Wokingham, on my circuitous journey back to the south coast, due to closure of both A3 and M3 trunk roads.
The two blue-grey cars are of the shorter, 6S, variant; and the 9' 3" profiled vehicles are from former 4CEP and 4BIG units.

By comparison, more modern machinery restarts one of the regular HS2 construction turns for Quainton Railhead. Class 60s in Cappagh, Colas and DC Rail colours did the honours on this day

 

[sqwizz]

Ahh nice pic, she looks amazing. (Hope your father is doing as best he can be, unfortunately I've got to know that place all too well lately too!)

 

[Sun Chariot]

Ahh nice pic, she looks amazing. (Hope your father is doing as best he can be, unfortunately I've got to know that place all too well lately too!)

Thanks @sqwizz it was the best weather I have seen on that line (and I am including when I used to visit it before its 1993 mothballing!).

The last time I saw Hastings units on the main line, was April 1986's The Long Thin Drag railtour. 14-car monster, I saw it on the WCML chattering through Leighton Buzzard.

Six Bells Junction

 

[Sun Chariot]

Never Gonna Give You Up.

Rick Astley's hit song might well describe my thread here. But today saw some sunlight and some loco haulage too.

The Westbury to Crawley aggregates turn has settled into a routine, whereby the Tuesday path brings stone for Crawley's Number 2 Terminal. That enables use of hoppers, rather than bogie box wagons. Here, behind the doyen of the class 59.

The sunlight improved mid afternoon, just minutes before an Exeter to Guildford inspection working passes with Caroline, one of two surviving former class 203 "Hastings" buffet cars.
@PurplesTrains did you get to see it?
Compare the 37's Loram livery, with its BR large logo blue (see posts #35 and #220) when this pair last visited.

Network Rail's Track Inspection train paid a visit too; the same pair of 73s and the same consist as per post #187 and during a period of thick cloud cover; so no photo.

 

[75A]

A 37 on Coastway West that doesn't happen very often!

 

[Sun Chariot]

A 37 on Coastway West that doesn't happen very often!

There have been  very occasional passes of Network Rail's 973xx cl 37s; but that hasn't happened in daylight hours for as long as I have lived down here.

 

[Islineclear3_1]

I hadn't realised HDL had painted two of its Hastings cars into blue/grey... Great pic btw

 

[Class15]

Never Gonna Give You Up.

Cannot believe I’ve been rick-rolled on Rail Forums.

 

[Sun Chariot]

I hadn't realised HDL had painted two of its Hastings cars into blue/grey... Great pic btw

Thanks @Islineclear3_1 yes, the recent expansion of the set to a rake of nine (6-car + 3-car) includes the outshopping of 1001's TS as well as DMBS in BR corporate livery.
They looked far cleaner than the ones I saw in 1986!

Cannot believe I’ve been rick-rolled on Rail Forums.

 

[Sun Chariot]

The weekly (Tuesday) aggregates working from Westbury to Crawley Stone Terminal 2, isn't affected by Easter's two bank holidays. Since mid-March, 59/0 haulage has been the norm.

Today's rather ragged looking locomotive seems befitting of the unkempt motley mix of hoppers. The train was restarted after waiting for two Portsmouth services across Farlington Junction (foreground); and the rasping roar of the GM - very audible as it appeared in view - was louder than I recall their "pulling away" sound when they were new...

The external condition of hopper wagons seems to be a theme on this working. During summer 2024, O&K (ex-Yeoman) bogie hoppers were used twice. Here's a flashback.

 

[Sun Chariot]

Ard' rock.

The week rounds off with today's trial run of aggregates from Whatley to Ardingly (Haywards Heath) Stone Terminal.
The return path's timing coincided with the welcome clearing cloud cover; for a chance to shoot a westbound freight other than the Chichester to Merehead empties.

Today's Westbury - Crawley aggregates service was, unusually, also hoppers, bound for Crawley Stone Terminal 2.
Although both trains use the West Coastway, Crawley's service diverged north off Copyhold Junction a mere 7 minutes prior to Ardingly's empties passing that spot.