Re: Cumberland line

["Dave Proctor" <daproc@sd5.mailbank.com>]

Hunslet wrote in message <384C44BF.89F7797@cia.com.au>...

>Cumberland services were extended to operate basically to and from St.
Marys
>because of insufficient turn-back facilities at Blacktown or Parramatta.
That
>is to say, where the crew could change ends of their train without blocking
>other services.

And that is a lot of rot (not from you - from CityRail). What was wrong with
the sidings adjacent to the Richmond line? Why couldn't the train go up
there and the crews change ends whilst up there. It would have saved a set
or two.

    Nominally, four minutes for an 8-car set is allowed, but if
>one includes the time occupying the section to arrive, stop and departure,
plus
>signal section clearing times, then setting the road up for the next train,
you
>are probably looking at closer to ten minutes for each terminating train.
At
>St. Marys, terminating trains could proceed immediately on to the former
Ropes
>Creek line for the crew to change ends, reducing main line occupancy times
to
>less then half.

And they could have done the same thing at Blacktown.

Dave