Swanage

[Regional Boy]

Appologies in advance for the first of what may be many questions relating to the Swanage railway.

Is there anyone out there who could tell me what the largest/ longest loco is that can run round at Swanage Station.

I’ve seen Eddystone do it and Tornado and I’ve be scouring the internet for photos, but be grateful for any 1st hand knowledge or eyewitness accounts of locos, steam or diesel that they’ve seen there.

I’m contemplating using Swanage as a location for part of a layout and within my limited talents would like to try and keep it reasonably accurate to the real thing.

I’m generally a modern image modeller and this will be part of a modern image layout, but this will give me the excuse to display my small collection of Steam locos several of which live at Swanage in the Heritage Railway scenario.

Many thanks in advance.

[PaulRhB]

Tornado, Port Line (Merchant Navy) and class 66's have all run into Swanage in Preservation.

[Regional Boy]

Hi Paul thanks for quick reply,

I’ve seen both Tornado and various Merchant Navy, West Country locos run round their trains in Swanage station,

I have to say I’ve seen class 66s take trains into Swanage but never seen them run round, usually at the galas another loco takes the train out releasing the inbound loco.

Is there room in front of the cross over (appologies if terminology not correct) for a 66 to pull forward and then run round?

I’m trying to gauge how much track there is in front of the points as a starting point to the track layout.

Cheers

John

[PaulRhB]

Not sure what the length of the headshunt is but a BoB is 67 5in long, Merchant Navy 69ft 8 in which both fit and the 66 is 70ft 3in so as the wheels are further in from the end on a 66 I'd say it's going to fit too.

 

This photo of Port line in the siding next to the headshunt doesn't include the dummy for the point so that would also support there being enough room for a 66 as you can see the full length of the loco.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/stuart166axe/3876393964

 

Zoom in on google maps and use the mk1 coaches as a scale

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.6100249,-1.9607853,212m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en-GB

Edited August 3, 2018 by PaulRhB

[Regional Boy]

That’s brilliant, I’d never of thought to use google maps like that, answers the question of how many carriages the platforms accommodate too.

Great.

Thanks

John

[guzzler17]

The Swanage Railway carriages are vacuum braked whereas 66s are air brake only and so a translator loco, usually a 33 or 73, is required.  66 hauled trains onto the Swanage Railway will be formed of air braked stock so no translator required.

 

On train lengths at the diesel galas it was 5 coaches for platform 1 trains and 4 for platform 2.  From 2017 platform 2 trains were increased to load 5 with at least the last coach off the end of the platform as well as the new loco.  Don't know how they managed this unless the signalling and/or pointwork had been altered.

 

A final tale now about a southbound 66 hauled train, with a 73, at the 2017 gala.  The train was stopped at the inner home signal, the 66 was detached and it ran into the yard near the goods shed.  The 73 then took the 5 coach train into platform 2 as scheduled.  If they'd left the 66 on I guess the total train length would have exceeded the available space once a new engine was added at the north end.

[Regional Boy]

Thanks guzzler17,

more top info. All helps.

I’ve seen the trains in platform 2 extend beyond the platform end, but agreeing with your 66/73 observation I don’t think I’ve ever seen a train beyond the signal on platform 1.

Not sure what happens with main line charters though, I guess there’s special regulations for those.

Lots of scope for interesting movements on a model.

Cheers

[Ian J.]

When I saw two class 50s on a railtour at Swanage back in either 2015 or 2016 (I forget which) they were on a very long train, such that when waiting to get going back up the line they were level with the viewing area for the turntable.

[Regional Boy]

Again an interesting one to model, how do they get the locos to the London end, where can they stable a train of that length so it doesn’t interfere with their normal operations?

Charters to Swanage aren’t uncommon so I guess there must be procedures in place.

[guzzler17]

Again an interesting one to model, how do they get the locos to the London end, where can they stable a train of that length so it doesn’t interfere with their normal operations?

Charters to Swanage aren’t uncommon so I guess there must be procedures in place.

 

Logic suggests that a spare engine is sitting in the sidings at Harmans Cross awaiting the passage of the incoming tour.  It then follows the tour down to Swanage and after waiting for passengers to detrain it departs to Corfe Castle with the whole stock and berths it there.  When convenient all locos run around and eventually the empty train is hauled back to Swanage by the local engine.

 

Looking at Saturday timetables two Swanage trains are usually run and they pass at Harmans Cross so that would rule out berthing any railtour stock there.  Trains passing at Corfe Castle only seem to take place on gala weekends.

 

Perhaps a letter to the Swanage Railway Operations Manager, Station House, Swanage, DH19 1HB might be worthwhile because as you say they must have something written down somewhere.

[PaulRhB]

There's usually a loco on the back of the train if it's too long. It then pulls the train back to Norden out of the way of normal services. Then either the loco on the rear takes over for the return or just heads the train back to Southampton where it reverses and returns to London via Laverstock Loop. Other options are for the loco to go via Dorchester Jn to Yeovil to turn if they want steam haulage out of Swanage.

The Wareham shuttles will make berthing a charter at Norden impossible so I'm not sure what the operation will be then. In theory the sidings at Wareham can be used but were out of use recently.

[Ian J.]

IIRC, with the two class 50s I mentioned above, the line's 08 hauled the coaches out to release the locos. I think the stock was stabled just up alongside the running line until needed. I have video and stills of it, I will have to dig them out and confirm as my memory of the event isn't strong.

[Jim]

Hi,

What is the run round procedure at Swanage?

In terms of shunt signals and who operates the points...box or Shunter/guard and ground frame?

Is there a shunt signal to control movements from the stops of the run-round road conflicting with the crossover from the platform stops end?

 

Sorry to slightly hijack the thread..!

 

Cheers,Jim

[PaulRhB]

There's full signalling with a Signalbox opposite the water tower, in steam days it was just beyond the water tower but the realigned bay line prevented the old location being viable.

[Ian J.]

OK, it went something like this:

 

Date: 11th June, 2016.

 

I missed the actual arrival, but from 13:23 this was the approximate sequence of events:

• Two class 50s, 50 050 and D400, were trapped at the Swanage end by approximately twelve coaches; 33 D6515 was in the bay; 33 201 was in the siding alongside the main waiting.
• 33 201 was brought from the siding, zig-zagged to the main and attached to the London end, and used to haul the coaches out onto the main line to release the 50s which then paused in platform one.
• D6515 shunted a zig-zag out of the bay to reach the main line and attach to the Swanage end of the coaches.
• The two 50s then went into the siding alongside the mainline some way up out of Swanage itself.
• 33 201 comes back into the bay platform.
• D6515 hauls the coaches back into the station and 'blocking' platform one, itself being trapped at the Swanage end.
• The next Swanage train then approaches, but instead of the loco, 34070, taking the train all the way in to the bay, it's detached and shunts to the siding alongside the main line.
• 33 201 then comes out and hauls the service train into the bay, trapping itself.
• 34070 backs in from the siding onto the service train in the bay, waits awhile, then departs from the bay with the service train.
• Then a two car green DMU comes in to the bay, waits awhile, then departs.
• Then 34070 comes back and the switch over with 33 201 happens again.
• Then the DMU comes back in, I don't have pics of it leaving but I think it did.
• Then finally the two 50s are shunted in a zig-zag back to the main and back onto the London end of the railtour train.
• They leave at approximately 16:19.

Hope this helps.

Edited August 5, 2018 by Ian J.

[EddieK]

Regional Boy - your proposed layout sounds interesting. Out of curiosity, what interpretation of "modern image" will you be modelling?

[Wickham Green]

Hi Paul thanks for quick reply,

I’ve seen both Tornado and various Merchant Navy, West Country locos run round their trains in Swanage station,

 

John

I'm not sure if 60103 might be a tad longer than Tornado but I've certainly seen it at Swanage - double heading with half-cab 41708 which looked very odd ......... I very much doubt the headshunt accommodated both !

[Regional Boy]

Wow, amazing the information a simple question can generate. Ian J that whole process seems so complicated and convoluted, surely as was previously suggested simply attaching a loco at the other end and hauling the train out the way would be simpler, even as far as Corfe or Norden, perhaps there simply isn’t a double track stretch long enough to stable a train that length and still conduct normal operations.

I believe there’s a charter train running to Swanage in the not to distant future, will have to see if can get down and observe.

 

EddieK, I grew up in North Wales and indeed spent several happy summers as a steward on the trains based out of Chester dragging my trolley through anything and everything that ran from Crewe and Manchester up to Holyhead 142s to 37 hauled club trains, even occasionally hitching a lift on the Virgin hauled 47s or or steam specials that ran. That coupled with attending college in Wrexham adjacent to the station there has my prime interest firmly in the Regional Railways era and the freight that ran through Wrexham late 80s mid 90s

However the last 15 yrs or so I’ve lived down on the south coast so a semi regular visitor to Swanage and equally enjoy the sight of a stream engine in action.

I’m hoping that I’m finally approaching a point where I’ll have the space time and funds to start the layout I’ve always wanted. It will be predominantly based on the time frame above but I want the excuse to run steam too and Swanage with its terminus and sheds and mainline connection gives all sort of scope. So it will be the heritage line on what hopefully be a larger layout. There is obviously a disconnect between 1990s diesels and Swanage as it is now but I’m a firm believer in Rule 1

The grand plan is still some time off but I’m aiming to start on my version of Swanage as Im hoping I can build it as a stand alone layout but on a base that can be accommodated in to a larger layout later on.

I’ve never tried to recreate any particular location/prototype before, my skills aren’t great but I’m going to try to get it as realistic as I can.

I’m not striving for perfection, Enjoyment of construction and operation is what it’s all about.

 

So thanks for the info already posted, will gratefully appreciate any further nuggets regarding anything Swanage. (Or indeed Wrexham 88-93ish)

Cheers

John