Former NEScot traffic flows

• General Coal traffic to the major towns (notionally for domestic/light industry use)


• General Van traffic to the major towns


• Trip freights serving all intermediate sidings


• Oil traffic to Tay Bridge


• MOD/oil traffic to Leuchars


• Milk trains from Aberdeen and Inverness


• A spirits train, notionally from the distilleries north of Aberdeen

There was an hourly DMU service Dundee to Arbroath all stops.

Seem to remember local trip workings in the early 90's between Aberdeen yard and Craiginches were operated by a Motherwell based Class 09 shunter and there was frequently a 56 in Montrose yard having arrived from Thrislington on an aggregate working.

Geoff

I'm assuming fish traffic used to appear, both down the HML from Inverness and from the large towns on the coastal route- Aberdeen, Montrose and Arbroath? What time of day did this tend to leave the quayside? I'm guessing around 20-22:00, so it could be at the markets the following morning? Were there any other major industries in the area that would generate enough traffic for their own train?

" said:

I'm assuming fish traffic used to appear, both down the HML from Inverness and from the large towns on the coastal route- Aberdeen, Montrose and Arbroath? What time of day did this tend to leave the quayside? I'm guessing around 20-22:00, so it could be at the markets the following morning? Were there any other major industries in the area that would generate enough traffic for their own train?

I'd have thought the fish was away a good deal before that.

British Transport Film Unit's Train Time (1952) includes a sequence of loading the fish at Aberdeen; the departure is pretty certainly mid-afternoon. Although maximum speeds rose steadily on a lot of main lines, I don't think there were huge increases on the lines north of Edinburgh and, in any case, maximum wagon speeds for such as fish vans increased scarcely at all.

I've defined 'major towns' here as Perth, Dundee and Aberdeen, with similar traffic up the HML to Inverness.

" said:

" said:

I'm assuming fish traffic used to appear, both down the HML from Inverness and from the large towns on the coastal route- Aberdeen, Montrose and Arbroath? What time of day did this tend to leave the quayside? I'm guessing around 20-22:00, so it could be at the markets the following morning? Were there any other major industries in the area that would generate enough traffic for their own train?

I'd have thought the fish was away a good deal before that.

British Transport Film Unit's Train Time (1952) includes a sequence of loading the fish at Aberdeen; the departure is pretty certainly mid-afternoon. Although maximum speeds rose steadily on a lot of main lines, I don't think there were huge increases on the lines north of Edinburgh and, in any case, maximum wagon speeds for such as fish vans increased scarcely at all.

What were fish vans permitted to do, in general? I'd assumed they were among the fastest, given the perishable nature of the traffic.

And another thought - Dundee had an allocation of a dozen or so Class 08 shunters, some of which worked at Perth. Now these had to rotate for maintenance which means that somehow (never found out how or when) they traversed the Carse of Gowrie at Gronk-pace which must take around 90 minutes or they were dragged but presumably not at line speed.

Peter

I think the vans were called as INSULFISH which were 2-axle vans.
This picture says it was taken in 1972.

My interest in railways must have started around 1974 when I first went to Secondary School and joined the railway club and my friends and I used to go train spotting at Broughty Ferry station which is close to my alma mater. As I remember seeing the UP fish train (during daylight hours so either at lunchtime or just after school) it must have been running at least till about then.

Peter

I just happened to find a copy of Loco Hauled Travel 1982 winter supplement (now that brings back memories!) which mentions the small loco-hauled set.

The diagram was for a class 26 but I seem to remember from my bashing days a Class 25 or anything else could turn up. It was certainly a train to watch.

0722 Perth - Abroath
0901 Arbroath - Dundee
1105 Perth - Edinburgh (presume ECS Dundee - Perth)
1251 Edinburgh - Perth
1712 Perth - Arbroath
1833 Arbroath - Dundee
2240 Dundee - Perth

If I remember rightly the set was 2 mark 1 coaches steaming away.

Calvin

" said:

And another thought - Dundee had an allocation of a dozen or so Class 08 shunters, some of which worked at Perth. Now these had to rotate for maintenance which means that somehow (never found out how or when) they traversed the Carse of Gowrie at Gronk-pace which must take around 90 minutes or they were dragged but presumably not at line speed.

Peter

It used to be that an 08 could be moved at 20mph dead in a train, once the gears had been demeshed. However, I can't see that being done at an outbase without facilities (the moves I knew were to/from main works for overhaul and de/remeshing was done at a depot), so I suspect it was indeed a light engine move at 15mph all the way.