Atomic Systems

Just put Daw Mill sidings in. Is it correct the empties and loads have to go all the way into Duggestion to run round? I.e. the loads to that power station near Chesterfield have to do this ? and empties from Nuneaton way have to run past the sidings into Duggeston then back....

Hi,
I suggest you check out Google Maps for the track layout. I beleive this is still correct. The loaded trains can come out and head back to Nuneaton having come from Duddeston and gone in to Daw Mill empty at the Duddeston end. There is no cross over to get from Nuneaton in to Daw Mill hence the need to run round at Duddeston.
Cheers Fadster

ta Faster, I use as you suggest Google earth, got carried away again as I always do and laid all the track and joined up at Nuneaton Trent Valley. when I should be finishing the Derby - Burton section, but there is only 1 mile of that bit to do now anyway...
Do you know if they use the tracks of the old Camp Hill goods lines outside Saltley Loco? Will have to get siding markers in so this movement can be achieved.

Hi Jet,
I believe the route via Camp Hill is still used for freight from the Derby direction to bypass Birmingham New Street yes... The Lickey Banker (DBS Class 66) is still positioned on the area that used to provide the entrance/exit to Saltley depot. So, with that being based there, would suggest that the Camp Hill line is still very much used...

Hi Again.
As suggested below the Camp Hill line is very much in use. Freight bypassing New Street and some of the Express Passenger trains. I know some of the "Cross Country" trains used to reverse at New St having come from Derby and go back south via the Camp Hill Line. The top end also sees a variety of trains with freight heading down the Camp Hill line for a short distance then turning south to Tyseley and various passenger trains heading to and from the train depot at Tyseley and then going up to New St Station. Rarther than using Google Earth try Google.co.uk then click maps. You can actually find a Cross Country Voyager half way down the Camp Hill line.
Cheers, Fadster.

According to the timetable that came with Saltly-area simulation in SimSig, there are few freights towards the incline, there's also few Cross Country services that uses the camp hill-line, mainly those that come from Crewe direction. There's one per hour XC service to Reading that departs toward Chiltern lines. And also, there are those empties that needs run-round at Saltly. Train stays on the goods line while the loco moves forward and then crosses the mainlines to up&down goods line and then back. Quite fun, especially when there's decent traffic along the mainlines. There's also some trains that comes either from Nuneaton or Derby lines, runs around in duddeston and then heads to Birch Coppice. Wonder what branch that use to be? And like Fadster said, departing trains from Daw Mill colliery reverses to the head shunt and of to main line.

Birch Coppice?

If I recall correctly, I am pretty sure that used to be a colliery many years ago. You can get wagons in 00 gauge from the private owner era labelled 'Birch Coppice.'

Cheers

take folks, I will put in the siding markers so we can run round the empties
outside the old loco sheds.
I used to be a loco fireman there back in the 1960's.
One of our jobs was the Kingsbury collieries shunt. We would take empties up the branch were the oil terminal is now, first was Kingsbury Colliery, then on a mile up to Birch Coppice and finally up to Baddesley, we could only take 25 empties up the grade to there with a class 8. while there would love to watch the little Garrett loco.

makeone... which goods line does it leave the train on? say looking from Saltley viaduct from the left goods that used to be up and down but now only 1 under viaduct but goes back to 2 lines by the loco. Down main, up main, then two more lines that used to be up and down into Bromford Bridge yards, also the Saltley carriage sdgs, now serves Landor st containers.

Birch Coppice Colliery closed in 1987, beaten by the geology. I did the initial part of my underground training there about five years before, finishing it at Whitwick Colliery, home to the biggest fry-up breakfasts I've ever seen!

Keith

Announced this lunchtime on BBC tv Midlands Today that Daw Mill will not reopen after closure due to serious fire underground that is likely to burn for some months. The fire started a couple of weeks ago, with no injuries to the workforce.

John

Standard procedure is to build air-tight seals at the end of the two gate-roadways to the face and let the fire take out all the oxygen but even when the fire itself has been extinguished you can't just knock the seals out because that can let it all start up again. The current face will be lost, with millions of pounds worth of equipment they'll struggle to recover. To get to the un-mined coal they'd have to drive new gate-roads and a new face-line beyond the current position and the company clearly doesn't see that expense as worthwhile.

Keith

Looking forward to seeing the line to Nuneaton done. Will be interesting to see where you go next. Great thing about the route is that it looks good, but it's not getting the feeling of being too big at all yet. Runs totally smooth on my system whilst many routes (L-B, WCML) are a bit slow in places.

Just one more thing, if you want to know exact speed limits, have a look here. http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20d ... 0route.pdf it shows all the speed limits in the area, including crossovers, and gives their locations. Also shows directionality of lines and platform numbers.

Hi Again,
Sorry for the late reply. I spoke to a DB driver and if you can referance the maps from the pdf downloaded from chriscooper's link then pages 163 & 164 are relevant pages you want to look at. The wagons are left on the down goods where pf2 is shown on map page 164. You chop off and run the loco into the through siding behind a signal, change ends and head back past your train bank road on the down main and across two crossovers that take you right across onto the down and up goods once more behind a signal. (Page 163). This signal is adjacent to the west end route into Washwood Heath yard opposite the road entrance to RMC. Change ends again and you get signalled back through three crossovers onto the down goods and the rear of your train. I'm told the layout has changed slightly now from the downloaded maps and the speed limits have been raised. Also the Lafarge stone trains that come from the Nuneaton direction having originated from the Mountsorrel railhead are running round at Whitacre Junction now and heading back to Nuneaton and then down the west coast mainline to Northampton.

Hope this helps. Fadster.