Penzance-Aberdeen 1S45 - Diversion (1/07/23) Other possible diversions to extend the longest Journey?

[Requeststop]

I notice that the 06:33 1S45 Penzance-Aberdeen Cross Country service is being diverted today and reversing twice both at Bristol Parkway and at Newport and being sent up to Gloucester, via Chepstow and Lydney. What is the added distance to todays longest Journey? Are their other possible diversions that could add to the total of miles covered by this service?

Congratulations by the way to anyone wanting to cover the longest possible journey by doing the Penzance-Aberdeen run. You can claim a few extra miles on other claimants.

PS if you're wanting to do the journey with the extra milage via the diversion, you'd better get to Penzance station pretty pronto as at the time of writing you have just less that 30 minutes to buy the ticket and catch the train.

 

[185143]

I notice that the 06:33 1S45 Penzance-Aberdeen Cross Country service is being diverted today and reversing twice both at Bristol Parkway and at Newport and being sent up to Gloucester, via Chepstow and Lydney. What is the added distance to todays longest Journey? Are their other possible diversions that could add to the total of miles covered by this service?

Congratulations by the way to anyone wanting to cover the longest possible journey by doing the Penzance-Aberdeen run. You can claim a few extra miles on other claimants.

PS if you're wanting to do the journey with the extra milage via the diversion, you'd better get to Penzance station pretty pronto as at the time of writing you have just less that 30 minutes to buy the ticket and catch the train.

It could theoretically go via the Erewash. Not sure what the effect on mileage of a Cross City diversion would be either.

 

[clagmonster]

Off the top of my head, and limited to what Cross Country crews sign:
Taunton - Bristol via Westbury (not sure if XC currently sign this)
Cheltenham - Birmingham via Worcester / Old Hill
Kings Norton - New Street via Camp Hill
Birmingham - Burton via Lichfield
Derby - Chesterfield via Toton
Chesterfield - Sheffield via Beighton
Sheffield - Leeds via Barnsley, not sure what of this and the various permutations of routes around Wakefield XC sign these days
Leeds - York via Castleford
Edinburgh Suburban
Fife Circle

I have omitted Leeds to York via the Swinton and Knottingley as they would make the journey shorter.

Also ommitted things like Yeovil, Avonmouth, Durham Coast and Tyne Valley as whilst reasonable diversions, I don't think they are signed by the appropriate traincrew and would be unlikely to be used.

 

[Peterthegreat]

Off the top of my head, and limited to what Cross Country crews sign:
Taunton - Bristol via Westbury (not sure if XC currently sign this)
Cheltenham - Birmingham via Worcester / Old Hill
Kings Norton - New Street via Camp Hill
Birmingham - Burton via Lichfield
Derby - Chesterfield via Toton
Chesterfield - Sheffield via Beighton
Sheffield - Leeds via Barnsley, not sure what of this and the various permutations of routes around Wakefield XC sign these days
Leeds - York via Castleford
Edinburgh Suburban
Fife Circle

I have omitted Leeds to York via the Swinton and Knottingley as they would make the journey shorter.

Also ommitted things like Yeovil, Avonmouth, Durham Coast and Tyne Valley as whilst reasonable diversions, I don't think they are signed by the appropriate traincrew and would be unlikely to be used.

You can add Sheffield to Leeds via Doncaster to the list.

 

[Snow1964]

Off the top of my head, and limited to what Cross Country crews sign:
Taunton - Bristol via Westbury (not sure if XC currently sign this)

Yes it is a valid XC route, the 0607 Bristol-Penzance (Saturdays) is routed this way (although todays service arrived at Taunton 35 minutes early, so presumably went direct)

 

[The exile]

Do XC still have route knowledge to divert Bristol -Birmingham via Oxford?
Different route - but my parents still regale me occasionally with the journey they once made from Bristol to Edinburgh which was diverted via Oxford, Manchester, Appleby and Cumbernauld. My mother was not amused - I would have been!

 

[jagardner1984]

Do XC still have route knowledge to divert Bristol -Birmingham via Oxford?
Different route - but my parents still regale me occasionally with the journey they once made from Bristol to Edinburgh which was diverted via Oxford, Manchester, Appleby and Cumbernauld. My mother was not amused - I would have been!

Cumbernauld would be wearing the joke thin from multiple perspectives

 

[The exile]

Cumbernauld would be wearing the joke thin from multiple perspectives

Well, Carstairs - Motherwell - Falkirk - Edinburgh it certainly was.... It would only have taken Cannock and the GSWR to have meant its coverage of the "normal" route would have added up to a sum total of less than 20 miles.

 

[D1537]

Also ommitted things like Yeovil, Avonmouth, Durham Coast and Tyne Valley as whilst reasonable diversions, I don't think they are signed by the appropriate traincrew and would be unlikely to be used.

I did Durham Coast on LNER during engineering work in January, so I presume the XC trains went the same way.

 

[The Planner]

XC dont accept multiple diversions within a certain journey time, so its unlikely you would ever get more than one.

 

[JamesT]

Do XC still have route knowledge to divert Bristol -Birmingham via Oxford?

Looking in RTT for the next week I’m not seeing any XC trains going via Foxhall Junction, which I believe was what they used to do for route retention of the diversion. I have a friend who sat on a train that reversed there in the past.

 

[rg177]

I did Durham Coast on LNER during engineering work in January, so I presume the XC trains went the same way.

They don't divert. Everything starts/finishes at Newcastle or York.

 

[The Planner]

Looking in RTT for the next week I’m not seeing any XC trains going via Foxhall Junction, which I believe was what they used to do for route retention of the diversion. I have a friend who sat on a train that reversed there in the past.

They will still reverse there if needed. They will be terminating at Didcot and Leamington and Banbury for the Oxford block.

 

[185143]

They will still reverse there if needed. They will be terminating at Didcot and Leamington and Banbury for the Oxford block.

I did that reversal on both XC and GWR on a Sunday last year.

Also done a reversal out of Bristol which involved heading towards Bath, stopping and reversing via Dr. Days Junction while Temple Meads was being remodeled a couple of years back.

 

[The exile]

Also ommitted things like Yeovil, Avonmouth, Durham Coast and Tyne Valley as whilst reasonable diversions,

When was the last time anything diverted via Avonmouth?

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

I did Durham Coast on LNER during engineering work in January, so I presume the XC trains went the same way.

XC don’t sign the Durham Coast.

One I haven’t seen mentioned that they do sign is the Shotts Line, this was booked to be used constantly while the Carstairs upgrade was taking place but outside of that it’s quite rare. This obviously wouldn’t affect a Penzance to Aberdeen or vice versa train.

 

[The Planner]

When was the last time anything diverted via Avonmouth?

Probably during Filton 4 tracking?

 

[virgintrain1]

Probably during Filton 4 tracking?

Avonmouth was lost about a decade ago. Filton 4 tracking was 3 weeks via Bath, Swindon and Stroud.

 

[Class 170101]

The only other route I can think of would be via Leicester between Birmingham and Derby.

 

[Grumpy]

Leeds - York via Castleford


.

Leeds to York via Wakefield Westgate and Crofton (Reverse) then Normanton and Castleford? I believe some ECS uses these lines

 

[Spursglory]

Off the top of my head, and limited to what Cross Country crews sign:
Taunton - Bristol via Westbury (not sure if XC currently sign this)
Cheltenham - Birmingham via Worcester / Old Hill
Kings Norton - New Street via Camp Hill
Birmingham - Burton via Lichfield
Derby - Chesterfield via Toton
Chesterfield - Sheffield via Beighton
Sheffield - Leeds via Barnsley, not sure what of this and the various permutations of routes around Wakefield XC sign these days
Leeds - York via Castleford
Edinburgh Suburban
Fife Circle

I have omitted Leeds to York via the Swinton and Knottingley as they would make the journey shorter.

Also ommitted things like Yeovil, Avonmouth, Durham Coast and Tyne Valley as whilst reasonable diversions, I don't think they are signed by the appropriate traincrew and would be unlikely to be used.

What was the full route taken via Edinburgh Suburban, Fife Circle and Avonmouth?

 

[route101]

What was the full route taken via Edinburgh Suburban, Fife Circle and Avonmouth?

I have been on XC around the Hamilton Circle and via Mt Florida.

 

[Wynd]

Penzance to Peterhead has a certain ring to it

730 miles, thats near the length of the whole island.