Stabling of H.S.T.'s in Hereford sidings for F.G.W.

      During the Christmas 2010/New Year 2011 period, F.G.W. have been making use of the "Hereford Sidings" in Worcester yard in order to provide overnight berthing accommodation for a number of H.S.T. sets the company operates on it's principle long-distance services. The main reason for this policy is in order to overcome difficulties caused by the major infrastructure work connected with the re-modelling of Reading station which is being undertaken on behalf of Network Rail during this period.
      The Hereford sidings consists of two groups of lines on the south side of the yard, the shorter group of four having buffer stops. The longer group consists of three sidings usually accessed from the "through goods" lines and are normally used to temporarily recess traffic, but may also be accessed to/from the main lines directly via a facility known as the "North Sidings Ground Frame", a small signal box that operates in conjunction with the main 'box at Shrub Hill. It is only manned when required for use.
      This latter facility has seen very little use in recent years and although maintained in working order, it had to be overhauled in order to make it fit for purpose, together with it's associated trackwork. This work was undertaken by F.G.W.'s contractor Ganymede Ltd., who have also installed a "shore supply" power facility, together with local Network Rail signal engineers.

      At present, sidings nos. 1 and 3 have returned to use, with number 2 siding awaiting refurbishment in anticipation of a more permanent arrangement coming into force at the start of the May 2011 timetable. F.G.W.'s operations will then become constrained due to the commencement of works in the London area in connection with the Crossrail project, the main consideration for the implementing these arrangements at Worcester.
      An initial test train was run on Thursday 23rd December in order to confirm that all was well and the facilities were officially brought into use later the same day. The first "in service" working to become stabled (on number.3 siding) was on Christmas eve with the empty stock which had worked into Worcester as the 17.50 from London Paddington. It was reported that some difficulties arose with the stabled sets over the Christmas weekend period, caused by diesel fuel freezing in the sub-zero temperatures.

Saturday 4th December - S.V.R. "Santa Specials"

          Saturday 4th December saw the beginning of the seasonal "Santa Special" services, running from Kidderminster Town to Arley for Santa's grotto, on the Severn Valley Railway. These trains are run at a frequency of every half-an-hour throughout the day at weekends up until and including Christmas Eve.

Thursday 2nd December 2010 - Single Line Working

      For almost a week an emergency speed restriction had been in force over both the up and down lines between Worcester Shrub Hill and Norton Junction as a result of outstanding track defects becoming overdue for rectification. Rob Matthews engineering possession the previous Saturday night had been extended to cover these lines so that the work could take place, but a lack of resources (and the weather conditions) meant that the work could not be completed. Ron Davies's midweek blockages also made an attempt to finish the job off but was also thwarted by the same difficulties. Early on the Thursday morning it became clear that there would be an over-run with the original hand-back time deadline being missed by at least a couple of hours.
      Luckily Ron was able to hand back the down line at about 5 o'clock and so a start was made in arranging "single-line-working" between Shrub Hill and Norton Jcn. The local Ashchurch mobile operations manager Paul Gardner acted as Pilotman with the 05.02 to Paddington travelling wrong line at about 05.20. Next train in the right direction was 6M11 the Margam to Round Oak steel which was routed into the yard. A considerable amount of disruption also occurred with the platforming of London Midland services. At about five-to-six my colleague Steve Lewis came to relieve me of duty and so I left the situation in his capable hands and returned home for a well-earned break. (I was absolutely gutted at having to leave !) When I returned to work the following week, I discovered that S.L.W. had continued until 09.20, with the up line not handed back until turned 10 o'clock.
    

Wednesday 1st December 2010 - Compass Tour to Edinburgh.

       Wednesday 1st December 2010 saw the running of an excursion organised by CompassTours from Worcester Shrub Hill to Edinburgh. With the weather as it was, especially worse the further north you went, this looked like a decidedly risky undertaking but, as it turned out, all went very well indeed.

        The empty stock arrived from Crewe at about 03.00 in the morning and had to be routed onto the up through goods line, as the thirteen coach train, top-and-tailed by class 67 locomotives, required the leading engine to run-round in order to double-head the excursion away. These movements were an impossibility to undertake in the station itself with such a lengthy consist. Part of these manoeuvres meant propelling the train out of the yard and onto the down main line so it could draw forward into platform one. Departure was on-time at 05.00 which necessitated the re-platforming of the 05.02 F.G.W. service to Paddington onto platform two.
        Although the excursion was heavily delayed en-route, arrival time at Edinburgh was only fifteen minutes late, and a more-or-less right time departure on return saw an arrival back at Worcester nearly twenty minutes EARLY. This caused a few problems at Shrub Hill as the excursion arrived before the late-running last train from Snow Hill. Luckily the train was top-and-tailed on arrival and after some deliberation it was decided to return the coaching stock to Crewe in this formation. The train ground to a halt on the Lickey incline and had to be assisted by a following freight service but eventually made it into Birmingham some time later.
      Steve Widdowson's photograph shows a snow-encrusted 67030 being prepared to leave Worcester at one'o clock on the 2nd with the empty stock bound for Crewe.
      

Week commencing Sunday 28th November 2010. Night shifts at Worcester Shrub Hill Signal Box.

A week of night turns commenced at 18.00 on the Sunday and a very interesting time it would prove to be. This day marked the beginning of a nasty cold snap of weather with widespread snow, ice, frost and sub-zero temperatures. The usual week-nights of engineering possessions between Shrub Hill and Hereford took place commencing on the Monday night and early on the Tuesday morning the stoneblower came in and stabled over in the tamper sidings in the yard. That was the one and only time it worked during this particular week, due to the weather. On the Tuesday night the possession was extended to include the lines from Shrub Hill to Norton Junction in order to deal with outstanding track defects, but this work was eventually cancelled due to resourcing difficulties; a further attempt was made the following night but not without further problems.