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| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays 25/07/2024 at 18:46 #157918 | |
jc92
3639 posts |
This timetable has now been uploaded pending approval. Feel free to use this thread to report any issues. OVERVIEW Welcome to Doncaster in the Summer of 1981 Doncaster PSB is now fully commissioned, although it hasn't yet had its official opening ceremony. The ECML has almost completed its modernisation towards full power signalling and high speed Operation. Express passenger services are now in the hands of HST/class 254 sets working to Scotland, Newcastle, Middlesborough, Leeds, Bradford, Harrogate & Hull. Deltics are living out their final days on secondary work. They predominantly cover Semi fast services between York and Kings Cross, the loco hauled services from Kings Cross to Cleethorpes and Transpennine services to Liverpool. There is also a healthy procession of overnight Sleeper, Motorail and parcels traffic worked by 31s, 55s, 40s 46s and 47s. There is some shunting overnight but most of this was done at Peterborough & York during this period. A Transpennine service is offered from Manchester Piccadilly to Hull & Cleethorpes utilising class 123 and 124 DMUs. These were used interchangably including being mixed within sets but have been shown as class 124s in the timetable for simplicity. Local Services are offered between Doncaster and Sheffield, York, Leeds, Cleethorpes, Hull & Lincoln using various first generation DMUs. The days of consistent clockface timetables are some way off and users will find these services less frequent and consistent than we would expect now. DMUs are predominantly recessed in West Yard or the Carriage sidings as required. There also a healthy amount of additional charters, excursions and Footex trains to handle in addition to the normal booked traffic. these utilise STN coaching stock sets which were reserved for these extra workings, and whatever loco the power desk has available to run them. Several are operated by DMUs Coal traffic has a major role to play in the area. This timetable is set prior to the 1984 miners strike, and also prior to the construction of Selby new mine. Virtually all the pits in the area were still open and producing rail borne coal traffic for industry, domestic usage and power station supply. NCB was also exporting coal via Immingham NCB terminal and Goole Docks. Supply for power stations comes entirely from British mines including those closed during or after the strike and replaced by Selby New mine. Thorpe Marsh power station is open and receives regular MGR traffic. Keadby Power station is open as a reserve station and continues to receive coal in "conventional loads" being unloaded by a Tippler. Coal was supplied via MGR to Scunthorpe Coal handling plant (CHP) to be coked for steel production. Scunthorpe also receives trainload Coke direct from Orgreave & Brookhouse in ex LMS pattern HCO hoppers. MGR Traffic is mostly operated using 47/3s fitted with slow speed control, although other locos like Class 20s and 37s also made appearances. While the class 56s had started to be brought online, they were mostly centralised in Cardiff, Toton & Tinsley and weren't yet fully commissioned. MGR traffic in this period operates as Class 6 (fully fitted company train) regardless of its actual booked speed. MGR utilises HAA wagons only, as other variants had yet to be introduced. Conventional domestic & industrial coal traffic uses a mix of 16 ton mineral tipplers (MCV/MCO) and 20 ton Hoppers (HTO/HTV) depending on the traffic conveyed. By this time most traffic used HTVs and unloaded via drops at Coal Concentration depots and industrial sites. MCVs were mainly used where Tippler equipment was required or wagons were to be unloaded manually or with diggers. HEA hoppers are in the process of being introduced to replace older wagons (tops code HBA in 1981) and these were mixed in with older wagons until they had gradually replaced them. As built, a large number were vacuum piped to facilitate this. There are frequent flows of oil traffic from Immingham to various Oil Terminals across the country, and a flow from Stanlow to Torksey near Lincoln. Other flows include Bitumen traffic from Kilnhurst to Ripple Lane, and a flow from Teesport to Royston Oil Terminal. Wagonload traffic still prevails and is moved mostly in class 8 partially fitted trains with a mixture of unfitted and vacuum fitted wagons, which are remarshalled in Belmont and Down Decoy for onward travel. Speedlink operates a comprehensive air braked network of wagonload traffic utilising newer wagons which are slowly replacing the older vacuum braked variants. Most steel traffic was handled in wagonload and speedlink workings, although some dedicated block company trains also run. Of note is the volume of freight running via the joint line between Gainsborough and Doncaster. This was a preferred route for freight to and from Anglia as the line between Spalding & March was still open and provided a useful way for slow freight to avoid the ECML completely. "We don't stop camborne wednesdays" Log in to reply The following users said thank you: sunocske, bugsy, flabberdacks, welshdave257, moonraker, Soton_Speed, Banners88, mldaureol |
| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays 25/07/2024 at 19:41 #157920 | |
bugsy
1713 posts |
I'm really looking forward to playing this when it's available, but have to complete my current game of Doncaster North first though. This may be wishful thinking, but I'm wondering if a Doncaster North 1981 tt is now going to happen 🤞 Everything that you make will be useful - providing it's made of chocolate. Log in to reply |
| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays Yesterday at 08:10 #157921 | |
Andy174
93 posts |
Thanks for all the work you've put into this TT, really looking forward to it once I've purchased the sim😁
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| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays Yesterday at 08:44 #157922 | |
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kbarber
1720 posts |
Just a side-note on freight train classes/speeds at the date of this timetable. Classes 7 & 8 were partly-fitted and class 9 was entirely unfitted at this time. I don't think they actually had official speed bands; drivers were expected to drive according to the brake force they had available (though the later speed bands probably work pretty well). Class 6 was wagons rated for up to 60mph; likewise cl4 was up to 75mph. This had the interesting effect that the TOPS train list for a train of ferry vans (100kmph = 62mph) would appear as a class 4. Signalmen beware if the yard supervisor wasn't sufficiently on the ball to down-class it on his own initiative! I think it was sometime in 1983 (certainly by 1984) that the Rule Book and appendices had an amendment that included reclassifying freight trains; thenceforth the only trains permitted to run with unfitted portions were class 9, the familiar speed bands were implemented for classes 7 and 8 and class 6 & 4 were amended to be 60mph and 75mph respectively. Log in to reply The following user said thank you: flabberdacks |
| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays Yesterday at 09:09 #157923 | |
moonraker
354 posts |
Fairly sure that the Class 123 and 124 sets were all merged by this date. The sets were all 4 car and a power car of each class per set. Certainly remember going to Donny Works for the final line up of withdrawn Deltics in 1982 and this was the case having caught one from Sheffield.
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| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays Yesterday at 11:04 #157925 | |
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bill_gensheet
1347 posts |
kbarber in post 157922 said:Just a side-note on freight train classes/speeds at the date of this timetable.That explains a couple of odd class 4's I have got in my WOLV & WAL 1975 TT's, thanks. My 1975 WTT's also have speed 'options' within the class 6's. '6+' was for 60 mph, while '6♣' (club symbol) was for 55 mph. In both cases no 4 wheelers with wheelbaes of 10ft or less permitted. There were also symbols ♠ (spade) for 'no vehicles under 18ft wheelbase' and ♠♠ (double spade) for'no 4 or 6 wheeled vehicles', mostly shown against parcels / ECS trains. Log in to reply The following user said thank you: kbarber |
| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays Yesterday at 13:02 #157927 | |
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swiftaw
268 posts |
Played the first 2:30 so far. One minor note 6T65 is missing the Number 1 indicator for the Down Decoy Reception Sidings (OT65 has it).
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| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays Yesterday at 17:51 #157929 | |
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jc92
3639 posts |
kbarber in post 157922 said:Just a side-note on freight train classes/speeds at the date of this timetable.Interestingly enough, the Brookhouse/Orgreaves to Scunthorpe Coke trains were supposedly the fastest unfitted trains on the network at the time. The WTT shows them class 9 as far as Tinsley East Jcn and they then change to class 8 and were authorised to run up to 35mph despite only having the brakeforce of two locos and a brake van on a fully loaded train. Echoes of the GCR runners living on Albeit further north. "We don't stop camborne wednesdays" Log in to reply |
| Doncaster 1981 Summer Weekdays Today at 18:29 #157947 | |
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officer dibble
395 posts 
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Up to 0700 (Tuesday) with delays on, having a whale of a time! Couple of bits to note/seek clarification on if possible please; 6T04/236T04C07 0005 Down Decoy - Yorkshire Main - backs in all the way from SC Loops - is this correct? 0T10/230T10C01 - attaches to DDS6 and forms 6T10/236T10C01 towards Adwick with the loco propelling all the way. 6D48/226D48C01 0603 Scunthorpe - Yorkshire Main - as per 6T04 above. Log in to reply |