Got no sympathy for West Coast Railways. This is not new and anyone wishing to run on network rail needs to comply with the same rules. North York Moors railway running into Whitby have had to comply with the same requirements and have been able to comply with the requirements. The swanage railway has made the decision to not run into Wareham this season as not bringing in the revenue that the extra cost. There is not a requirement to actually have the CDL fitted but you do have a requirement to have a plan with a clear outline and timeframe for when CDL fitted. By arguing that Secondary Door Locking is adequate then clearly shows that WCR have no such plan so is clear that they basically have no intention of fitting it if they can. Jacobite has been running long enough and the notice of the requirement has been given well in advance in which case there really is absolutely NO Excuse for this. Literally all West Coast needed to do was present a plan for CDL alongside making a separate case that SDL is enough. Certainly the other operators of heritage stock on Network Rail have made the plans and started to fit CDL so no excuse for West Coast to have no plans. Heritage railways that do not operate on Network Rail have own rules and regulations, indeed Didcot Railway Centre has made the decision to not fit the steam locomotives for network rail but just heritage railways due to the cost. I have travelled on Jacobite a number of times and last time was a shambles. Late turning up, and broke down on the way so literally had time to jump off at mallaig, goto co-op to get a sandwich and a drink and jump back on the train to head back to fort William.

I’m to told that the Jacobite door dispute came to ahead last summer when an ORR inspector, on a family holiday, noticed that there were no attendants and doors were not always locked. At Mallaig he asked the TM what were the safety arrangements? By all accounts he was told “What the ***k has it got to do with you?” To which he replied, showing his ID, “everything”.

Did anyone mention WCR was caught out twice over its version of door safety by ORR last summer, with Jacobite services suspended?

You're a great pair of presenters with a brilliant dynamic between you both. Your channel is informative and knowledgeable, so PLEASE do keep up the good work!

And the point was well made that many other heritage operators have already complied.

Thanks very much gentlemen for the much improved sound quality on this podcast.

WCR have known for years that central locking was reqd, but did nothing about it. I am a railway enthusiast but cannot see why they should be given an exception when all the other operators have to abide by the ruling?

Richard makes a good point about how long any new project takes. Near me we have a freight only line that for years has been proposed it should open for passenger use. Costs would be relatively small, yet they talk about it, a feasibility study get done then shelved for years.. and nothing every happens. We need to stop taking forever to do anything in this country, because unfortunately with the long term projects you talk about, we’re most likely all going to be dead before they ever finish.

Got a just as good trip via Scot rail and it’s so much cheaper. The guard gave us a great experience just before going over the viaduct and did the same on the return journey.

Great video. The best railways news and very informative

As always, a great view. I put this down to two things; the chemistry between the pair of you along with the variety of thought provoking comment.

Another cracking episode; most informative and which had me smiling to myself a few times!

Perhaps another operator that has fitted locking doors should be given the opportunity to operate the Jackobite instead. No loss of revenue to the Scottish economy.

Hi Nigel & Richard. Newly subscribed, very informative program, thank you

West coast has run this down to the wire it has had plenty of time to fit CDL and sat on its hands, tell the ORR to stop their whole operation until they fit the required locks to the required coaches.

the last steam engine I saw active was in early 1969 pulling a very long line of coal trucks heading towards Neasden and Brent on a goods line that fed LT Power Station Neasden , Cherrington's Coal depot and Taylors Lane Power Station N W 10. also there was a steam shunting engine at Neasden siding that worked for Taylors Lane Power Station up until it's closure in the early 1070's.

another great episode as always. would love a cup to show off in the mess room did get a question right before the arrival. keep informing about railways and also cover TFL aswell

The Mayors' Handsacre to Crewe rail link proposal is silly. HS2 phase 2A has parliamentary approval and the land purchased - just build that instead of starting all over again!

A couple of questions I don’t think have been adequately answered in any sense - firstly, how practical is fitting CDL to vacuum-braked trains, which do not generally have the high-pressure air supply (which the CDL system uses?) and therefore surely the cost of fitment compared to other operators is not comparable? IIRC West Coast and Vintage Trains are the only two operators still providing railtour operating services to owners of vacuum-braked locomotives, who generally own the medium-sized locos (such as the Black Fives, K1, B1 etc) that operate the Jacobite. I recall years back when DB bought EWS they ceased to operate vacuum-braked railtours which essentially is why WCRC are now the principal national operator. If CDL-fitment requires air-only trains then that will kill off quite a chunk of the market. Secondly - why does fitting CDL control the risk of passengers sticking their heads out of the window? On the tragic incident at Oldfield Park in which the young woman lost her life, the HST was fully fitted with CDL and it was operating normally. If ORR are concerned about this aspect then they should mandate window bars, as CDL does not control the risk in any way. To clarify my own position on this, I think WCRC are behaving shamefully and it is doing great harm to the reputation and future of main line steam railtour operations. But it’s important that the technical elements of the discussion are properly discussed.

It's not just the 15-25 year time scale for large rail projects: if you have "gobsmackingly expensive" infrastructure projects its much harder to justify the cost-benefit of them compared to smaller, more immediate schemes.

First time watcher. Gentlemen, excellent debate! On the issue of West Coast vs ORR. You point out several issues on both sides. I believe, in these situations of which there are many including: war in Ukraine, global warming, coal production etc, most of us tend to side with the underdog, or non government group. You also point out the “media” point of view which is always designed to create chaos and anger. Showing logical points to both sides allow us to get a much clearer picture and can remove previously formed bias. We can be open to looking at the other sides point of view as opposed to shutting it down with anger or, buzz word “hate”. I know this issue will be resolved. ORR has been extremely lenient with their position and, I believe, will continue to be if West Coast complies. Excellent, Thank you again

Smaller capacity and other issues are ones I think about as well. I have long thought that an EMU (GMPTE) type of service which is half hourly from Stalybridge - Vic - Ordsall Chord - Picc - Man Airport calling all stations would be really useful and performs different tasks. Equally (but I know TRU threw it out) was to use the Viaduct Line again for mainly TPE services from P15/16 and then fly up and over and come out the other side of Whitehall Jn and continue across the Pennines. Give much capacity in the Leeds West end throat and segregate flows better to boot. Equally add the link back to Gelderd Road Jn for XC and LNER services for XC trains headed York - Leeds - Wakefield and also occasional weekday plus weekend engineering and maintenance blocks for services. This country is far too good at finding 99 reasons why something should not be done as opposed to the one reason why something can be done. The little schemes make so much difference to operations and the cost of these small schemes should be carefully investigated as the prices are stupidly inflated.

There was a perceived problem with door locks on slam door stock. My late friend, John Wall was an engineer at Pivkersgill Ksyes in Leeds, who made carriage and Locomotive locks. He set up and monitored a test rig that repeatedly opened and slammed a train door 24/7 for some months. If I remember correctly a potential failure poi t was fou d and modifications were introduced. As an aside the residents of house near to Pepper Road works were not very happy with the noise that the test rig produced.

I'll assume a virtual mug arrived. Only problem is the tea keeps going all over the floor!

Haven't read all the comments yet - but regarding the Jacobite/WCRC and CDL issue, ideology aside, and focusing purely on the technical application of CDL, one of the challenges here is vacuum brake vs air brake operation. LSL (and most other operators) have chosen to go down the route of using recovered 1990s Intercity-era elecro-pneumatic CDL gear on their fleet - this relies on a compressed air supply (taken off the main res on the coach) to engage the bolt and power from the carriage batteries to operate the solenoids and control gear. WCRC's Mk2 aircons came with that CDL system, and I believe this is what's been retrofitted to the Belle rake. So, WCRC already operate and have procedures for this system. A number of the LSL Mk1s have CDL gear that still bears the number of the "donor vehicle" - usually either XC or Scotrail HST trailers which got fitted with sliding powered doors. I think the only exception for LSL is the bubble car which has the alternative that is an elecro-magnetic locking system, on account of it being a Vac braked device. The DMU which WCRC were operating for Swanage Railway Wareham shuttles was also provided with this system, which was, I think, pioneered by Hastings Diesels on their DEMU fleet. The re-use of recovered gear from those scrapped/re-doored Mk2/Mk3 vehicles will no doubt reduce costs versus net-new elecro-magnetic gear which will be necessary if WCRC wish to continue supporting wide-scale Vac Brake operation. This could be the reason behind the discrepancy being stated in costs. It's possibly a case of whether ideology within WCRC will even allow them to have the strategic discussion about the extent to which they support Vac Brake operation for the future that would then unlock a way forward. There's no underlying need for the Jacobite to operate Vac Braked as far as I can tell - the Riley Black 5's which have been the mainstay of the operation are dual-braked locomotives.

Birmingham Moor Street was the example of locomotives moving sideways in regular service.

A question: the presenters discuss injuries and fatalities from hinged doors, some of which were from people sticking their head out of the window on a moving train and the head hitting fixed trackside equipment. Does the central locking also prevent pulling the windows down? Otherwise it wouldn’t make any difference. Full disclosure: in my teens I would often stick my head out of the window for the full journey to and from school, being Saltburn-Redcar. However, even at that tender age, I had worked out that I needed to be looking *forward* when I did it so I could see oncoming obstacles.

If public trust in the railways is failing due to strikes, etc but the number of rail passenger journeys has still increased by 20%, and if you're a not very rail-focused transport minister, you might think the ongoing strikes & service delivery problems can be ignored.

Another brilliant episode, keep up the good work! 😃 Seen as you brought up Jeremy Hosking in the CDL debate, have either Nigel or Richard seen his MK1s in the flesh? There's MK1s and them there's Hosking's MK1s.

The “locomotive going sideways” must surely include Dduallt on the Ffestiniog Railway as your train goes round the spiral, if you’re in the observation car at the rear, your loco does appear to be sideways!

I know nothing about railways but from what I can see, anyone who does thinks that the ORR position is quite valid, West Coast have had more than long enough to resolve the situation, have had more than enough warnings and frankly deserve what's come. Problem is that the majority of the public know less than I do and they're the ones being quite blatantly manipulated by West Coast into starting petitions who seem to have absolutely no intention of changing or fixing their rolling stock, think the court of public opinion is what counts and think it's just a matter of time before the exemption is restored - and if it is, they'll continue to do nothing! Absolutely bizarre!

Great watch as usual....

These branch lines coming back in service will really change the ridership numbers. And 2024 will see a number of these stations and lines opening.

Smith has repeatedly delayed doing anything about the Jacobite stock. He's had repeated warnings but as usual, just ignores them. WCRC are an accident wajting to happen, Smith was lucky with the Tangmere incident, but theres been others. He thinks the raolway is just for him to indulge in his train set. WCRC have created alsorts of problems at Fort William with Scotrail staff refusing to work with them and the sooner they are gone the better. Let LSL run it.

Re CDL, could it be that fitment of an approved design is dependent on air brake operation - I suspect the Jacobite stock and locos are vacuum brake only

Another very interesting episode. I suspect today's quiz is one you'll either know immediately or go 'Eh what?". I'm in the latter camp. Leslie Gilpin btw regularly posts videos around Carlisle station.

Dagnabbit ! The Jacobite had been on my bucket list. I knew I should have done it years ago.

Thanks

West Coast Railway will have made a substantial profit from the Jacobite over the years and chose not to reinvest some of this into introducing a Regulation and Safety Feature. They have paid lip service to the ORR and have acted in an arrogant manner. I have no sympathy for them whatsoever and perhaps Locomotive Services can pick up the pieces for future years operations. Regards, John

Don't the mark 1 secondary locks need a special key?

Corris station on the preserved Corris railway as the loco has to use a traverser to run round the stock.

Looks like WCR expect to restart 8th April with another extension according to their website! Bet that does not happen and agree with you that they have no plans for CDL or want somebody else to pay - sounds like blackmail. Good figures too as I recall people falling from intercity trains in the past. I'm sure there is a high speed train icon to use in tweets! Crewe has to be minimum for the new line, and of course even further north to be any benefit to Scotland. We also need to avoid terminus stations thus allowing more direct services between cities, eg. Edinburgh to London via Manchester. Is the sideways the traverser at port of Felixstowe?

I suspect that WCR, knowing that they are significant in bringing value to the economy in that region, are holding out for an entity like the Scottish government to pay for the central locking (or part of it).

From the start of the debacle about CDL, every coach in the Jacobite fleet has had overhaul/maintenance work carried out to keep it rail-worthy. West Coast Railways have known since 1999 that this legislation has been in place, and that an end-date was approaching. As each coach went through works, they should have fitted CDL. In relatively short time, CDL would have been fitted on all their coaches with no issues of exemption required. West Coast Railways are to blame for this, and are trying to put profit over safety.

WCR are clearly in the wrong here and have had pleanty of time to deal with this issue. It is entirely on them that it has come to this.

It’s interesting to add that LSL are setting up a charter train base at Carlisle, they seem to think there’s money to be made in Scotland without taking safety shortcuts

What exactly is the locking doors issue? Is it jusf locking or is it also central unlocking? I'm assuming it is also electronic verificarion of both locked and unlocked states along with, potientially interlocking: you can not release the brakes without all locks engaged.

Has the central door locking issue affected all West Coast Railways tours? I haven’t seen any others mentioned, but given the amount of stock they own and has been on the network then I imagine many of their carriages don’t have this either

Weren't West Coast the operators of Tangmere at the time of the Wooton Bassett SPAD back in 2015? From what I remember of that incident their safety culture was appalling and the driver got a suspended jail sentence. If I'm right about that it's hardly surprising the ORR have run out of patience with them. It's difficult to see why the ORR should be any more "reasonable" than they have already been with a bunch of chancers who are simply trying to blackmail them. I'm Scottish with connections to the West Highlands. There was life before The Jacobite and there will be life after it has gone.

The issue with the figures of train deaths is that they are back from 1980 to 2000 when there were a lot more trains without CDL, operating everyday on normal services so the risk was much higher back then. It would be far more useful to use figures post 2005 when nearly all trains no longer were slam door. It's even said that the ORR only told operators in 2019 about needing CDL, so saying this has been going on for nearly 25 years by itself is inaccurate. 2 incidents of doors opening on WCRC trains doesn't really mean their trains are unsafe given they run hundreds of services per year, probably a lack of training at York with the platform staff led to the train being dispatched with the door open, and with the guy who overpowered a steward is an exceptional circumstance. LSL are a massive operator of charter trains yes, but nearly all their stock already had CDL fitted when it was purchased. They only have one rake of Mk1 carriages which were not fitted until 2022.

I wonder how many carriages West Coast could have fitted CDL to for the amount of money they've spent on legal costs? And now income loss.

Is the 'locomotive going sideways' at Didcot Railway Centre?

Please do look into the figures regarding ASLEF/Avanti and the OT issue. The media did not accurately quote the detail and just latched on to the two figures you quoted as their narrative. It is not a simple 125 to 600 as quoted by all the media outlets.

If you go rock climbing you knowingly take more of a risk than if you take a bus journey. The Jacobite Express is not public transport nobody has to take the Jacobite Express to commute to work. If you go sky diving you take more of a risk than taking a flight to a Greek Island. One solution might be to get every passenger on the Jacobite express to sign a disclaimer explaining the risk of slam doors. Likewise the operator should be liable for the full cost of an accident caused by slam doors. But I am not convinced that the safety standards for a optional leisure journey needs to be the same as for a commuter train. There is no requirement for central locking on preserved railways.

The Coriss Railway uses a translator to run around their engines, however i do not know if you consider their operations to bee regular.

Another enjoyable episode. Thank you both. Absolutely no sympathy for WCRC...but it's awful news for Mallaig and Fort William tourism wise ! I'm not really up to date...but could a 5 car HST run in its paths ? Get drivers trained quickly and offer something for the summer ?

Andy Street is the Mayor of the West Midlands, not Birmingham! (Says grumpy Coventry resident...😂)

If the Mayors really are planning on spending so many billions by putting the Manchester Piccadilly NPR / HS station underground, maybe a bit of radical thinking is required... If they do build the station underground.... shift it a bit; plonk it half way between Piccadilly and Victoria and link it to both sets of routes. If they build it 400m long, to allow for a double HS set, they'd only need a 400m long travolator link ( and there's longer ones in Paris ) at each end to link to both Piccadilly and Victoria, which immediately opens up a lot more connectional opportunities for both HS and NPR. Having said that, any underground station for Piccadilly - or nearby - would need to be quite deep because it's not just a question of getting low enough to pass under the tramway, there's also the Rochdale Canal in the middle of the area and the River Irwell is pretty close as well. Not to mention building foundations... Isn't that what made the original Pic-Vic link idea morph into part of the tramway? If, as a result, we're back to putting the platforms at Piccadilly itself with reversals to get anywhere north of there, then they might as well just build them on the surface as originally planned. Saves quite a lot of billions and that then makes the whole scheme more likely...

And Jacobite is so far only suspended for first 12 days of its season from today. What are they up to?

Welcome from New Zealand great Webb site

if the ORR want this safety feature they should pay for it, all the examples you gave were the windows being the problem , Richard gave a health and safety blurb ,if you was to use that logic you actually stand more chance being injured or killed on the roads getting to your journey

West coast have mk 2s with central locking why dont they use them instead of being stubborn

Corris station use of a traverser on the Rhreiffordd Corris railway opened for use in 2022

Health and Safety strike again. There ought to be a simpler and relatively inexpensive way of fitting central door locking on mark 1 stock. The mark 1 doors are inherently safe as the frame-door assembly is rigid and stable, and the catches have double bolts. Hinged doors are safer and easier to negotiate than sliding doors and plug doors on more recent trains. Getting on and off the Hitachi trains is perilous due to the lack of suitably placed handrails. Funny that the safety police ignore these new hazards.

Why don't they hire some compliant carriages while they adapt their current stock?

The Jacobite is unique.and the old Mark 1s are a constituent part of the experience. A hint as to how important C.D.L. is to safe operation in service, would be the accident figures surrounding the use of hinged door operators. …. … Well… I’m waiting….

Is there not now an opportunity for Scotrail to provide additional services on the line using their already approved stock? We’ve travelled the line many times using the better appointed service trains at a fraction of the cost.

"When I was a lad..."...I found your coverage of the jacobite issue very interesting. On balance (and given the long history of this issue with the operators) I come down in favour of the ORR. I do have a vested experience in this. When I was a lad I was returning hone from a concert in London (the original Queen lineup which dates it) and a passenger made an impromptu exit from the train. I will spare you the gory details and I accept this train was going way faster than the jacobite ever would but my point is this resulted in an incident that was "extremely unpleasant" for the rail staff and emergency services to deal with. I wouldn't want anyone to have to deal with a smiling issue like that again as a result of being able to open the doors whilst the train was in motion.

The way the Tory press work, if Labour show their strategy for rail, it will undoubtedly be interpreted as their being “anti road”, which could be counter productive - the most important thing is that they have a powder dry strategy, consulted with the industry, unlike what happened in 2010 and for the subsequent 14 years

Wasn't there a move to challenge the the government over the cancellation of Phase 2a as there is an act of parliament for it and it cannot be cancelled without repealing the act?

Can they use more modern coaches? Still steam hailed

Would this be an opportunity for ScotRail to make a bob or two and support the local economy by running it themselves with hired in stock and loco?

Rules is rules except, safety paramount? Many is the film of passengers opening doors and running down platforms on arrival at London Stations. This was allowed as the cost of replacing trains was prohibitive. Slam doors only became an issue once the main railways had replaced their stock, Stock which should have been scrapped on safety grounds rather than sold on to heritage companies. Double standards?

And who can forget Vivien from 'The Young Ones'........

They need to fit central Door locking on west coast railways or mk 2 coaches main charter trains including the blue Pulman HST and pathfinder tours do not have wheelchair accessible carriages in 2024

As regards WCR, David Smith has always gone his own sweet way (the lack of info on overhauls etcetera!, and the sudden, unannounced closure of Steamtown), and is clearly showing no interest in changing his ways, calling the bluff of the authorities, and not giving an inch. The sad thing is if the Jacobite fails to run this season, as seems likely, it is the local businesses around Fort Bill and Mallaig that will suffer….but that won’t bother him at all! It would be nice if another operator stepped in to provide the service……I guess that’s not gonna happen! I will follow developments with interest. Incidentally Nigel, we’ve all come a long way from Haverthwaite days, you driving a Fairburn, and me driving a blue double decker!

Just look at the difference in the cost per mile of of East West Rail compared to HS2 and it's obvious. They are correct. East West Rail costing around £11 Million per mile and HS2 costing £396 Million Per Mile.

Great as always guys 👍🏻 Antwerp was a once a terminus station but they’ve dug a big hole in the centre of it making it through station and it’s impressive 👍🏻 aren’t WCR using MK2 coaches with door locks on the Cambrian coast charters as they pass the back of my house just north of Preston at Barton 🤔 So simply just fit the door locks or use MK2s 👍🏻

Why do I get the feeling that WCR are trying to pitch this as some sort of culture wars "plucky entrepeneur" wealth creator v the civil service "blob" ORR + high court senario. There is also the matter of the very well funded by billionair hedge fund manager Jeremy Hoskins, LSL , moving in on WCR's turf and undercutting it, despite have made the investment in converting their Mk1 stock.

Very informative chap,s. West Coast has had 25 yrs to impliment locking door,s, sad loss to their profit,s and Scotland,s economy. Andy Burnam is from Leigh, one of the largest town,s in England with no rail service. Avanti have just agreed a pay rise for driver,s taking their pay to 100k a year! Skilled job yes, but on par with doctor,s?

The parliamentary interest in falling from train deaths( defective doors) was a lot to do with the length of Mk11 coaches with big doors at the ends of coaches but using mk1 door locks. Body twist could render the lock ineffective and the door could open especially if someone was leaning out of the window or leaning against the door on an overcrowded train. We lost a Brighton guard, chris wheeler, at dolphin junction on a Manchester Brighton inter regional about1989. He had probably gone back because it may have been on the catch leaving Reading. RIP Chris. That’s around the time it was in the public eye a bit and in Private Eye a lot. BR was hardly transparent about a properly serious problem. And Farmer Smith of WCR doesn’t seem to think the rules apply to him. WCR have a very shabby reputation , a WCR 47 had a spad, and the loco needed blocking, there was no paperwork for it running on the mainline , no one seemed to own it, and the driver didn’t know the road and was using a load of route maps.

It is amazing how people in England who enjoy something being a certain way have to live with a system that goes out of it's way to take that enjoyment away. England has over 100 preserved railways running trains that people want to ride on and the reason they are there is because thousands of un paid volunteers have given up chunks of their lives the reverse what the system did back in the day. What is really sad is it doesn't get any easier. The system isn't interested in what people want but what it wants. Slam door stock was ok when platform staff were employed to check door safety and if someone wanted to get off to early they would have probably got hurt but it was their choice. I don't know how much longer steam trains will be able to continue as us older people pop off but it would be nice if they could keep running until people decided they were no longer interested instead of the system decides for us.

CIE (Irish Rail) fitted their new Mk3 coaches with electric plug doors back in 1984, long before BR followed suit.

Let's not forget that this is a 'heritage' train running on the national network, at national network speeds. There is no excuse. The line is making a lot of money, and WCR is not using that money to implement a relatively simple safety system that they should have known they would need to implement, and should do to protect their customers. It's a purely arrogant position to take. The Harry Potter train the The Jacobite, by the way, are not the same. Yes, they both cross the Glenfinnan Viaduct, but just as an example the Jacobite doesn't go anywhere near Kings Cross. Also, the stock on one is red, the other is brown. Finally, both of you appear to be addressing someone below and to your left of the camera - presumably a monitor with the other presenter on it, but it gives the viewer the impression you're having a conversation with someone else to the exclusion of the viewer. You appear to have invested in some other equipment for making your recordings, but not a camera system that can be fitted in your comfortable eye-line.

Perhaps at some time, you could qualify the position of MK1 coaches (and older) being used on heritage (private) railways. Surely putting you head out and hitting a bridge on the Severn Valley is just as painful as on the Malaig line.

Locking the door from the outside is safe until there is an accident and they people can't get out. This is purely profit before safety.

WCRC clearly being pig headed here. They should just get on with installing CDL. However health and Safety risk assessments : where does it stop ? Are we going to stop people climbing Ben Nevis because statistically there is more chance of an accident climbing Ben Nevis than riding the Jacobite . People die on Ben Nevis every year !

Honestly, I cant wait till we get automated cars.

Wait now the Jacobite train isn’t running this season or are they getting off with it. Common sense comes into play, protecting people is always a good measure but it can only go so far, people are idiots at times especially trying to get that perfect picture.

Huge shame about the Harry Potter train, but I guess rules is rules. Feel most sorry for those in the Scottish economy who will lose out as a result of its demise. That'll be a lot of cafes, guest houses and other smaller enterprises that probably can't easily take the hit. There's a certain irony that improving things through regulation has ended the last and only un-subsidised train north of the border and thus made things worse at the macro level. Regulatory consequences made flesh. Perhaps another operator can take on the Harry Potter train (with compliant rolling stock) to make up the shortfall? Glad to see that at least all monies are being refunded by WCR - that is at least one scandal avoided. More strikes. Crikey. The railways certainly don't garner any positive PR from the management or worker sides of their cratered battlefield. And they wonder why Joe Public thinks rail is a complete mess when looking at cancellations and HS2 budget overruns... 🤔 Well done on vlog subscriber numbers: keep up the quality and they will come 👍

West Coast Railway have the money to fit safely door locking or run mark 2 coaches we need a safe railway in Scotland England Wales Uk government and Scottish government support orr

I have no doubt that there are issues with the old Mk I stock, but as you point out, the safety culture is a continuously developing science. As it moves forward, the reality is that the nature of services like the Jacobite changes. In ten years time perhaps the only safe efficient way to conduct this service in a continuously evolving safety culture is with a Turbostar multiple unit. There is no right or wrong time to say it, and although it is sad, perhaps now is time to say goodbye. After all, *any* kind of unnecessary transport is inherently dangerous, bad for the environment and against the globalist political agenda. They may be dogmatic, but they have my sympathy because I think there is a thread of truth and integrity in their system of belief. If they choose to stop, I wouldn't blame them. I would remember the regulators that made them stop, whatever the regulators say.

smethwick galton bridge

First Group plc MTR South Western Railway company are scraping trains for spares on the island line , 5 trains ex underground stock have become 4 now and one unit of the 4 requires new wheelset from the scrap yard units ,Department for Transport want First group plc to save money on the islands line and the line closes again this winter for work by Network Rail on Ryde pier head again, A light railway Network would have been better

National express coaches limited Megabus Scottish City link coaches Flixbus coaches network some have RMT coach drivers are fully booked during the Aslef strike week, RMT amajor shareholder in National Express coaches limited

We also have 3000 plus job losses at Derby work unless UK government sign orders for new trains , Chiltern railway arriva group main line needs .New trains as does Exeter St David Exeter Central Salisbury to London Waterloo route First group plc MTR South Western Railway company metro west railway Network around Bristol and the west country need new trains for First Group plc Great Western Railway company, Scotlands Railways inter city Express trains Can you do programme on Derby works

People enjoy heritage railways because the trains are old-fashioned and nostalgic. Would a sensible compromise be adding a disclaimer to the terms and conditions a passenger accepts when purchasing a ticket for a heritage line? Not to absolve the company’s responsibility completely, but to give reasonable expectations for both operator and passenger.

Yes they don't get out of bed, unless the CEO's are getting bid bickies....The Largesse is horrendous......

This is what happens when the bed wetter's are listened to. Instead of adults we now have toddlers dictating policies and acceptable behaviors.

Thanks for the considered commentary on the CDL thing, in particular dismissing "why don't people just use common sense" Regardless of if we have lost some of that (or is that just us middle-aged men lamenting like we have already done)... But many people have grown up in environment where they've never seen anything other than CDL... and so the environment has really changed that it is a requirement.