RTT and things you may not know or realise

Whilst looking for a working to Kidderminster I came across the following train. Please note its starting point.

http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/H31668/2014/06/23/advanced

Now having worked for CEGB I was aware that it efectivly ceased to exist on privatisation in 1990 or thereabouts, some 24 years ago. Are there many timing points in TRUST that still refer to long deceased entities?

 

Well as the line is still there and hasn't moved, and the flask / loading siding is still there, and is now being used to transport waste back to the site under the auspices of the atomic energy authority, then yes there was probably no need to change the name.

And yes there are many many historical names still in use. Micheldever oil sidings for example, and there are loads of junctions named after long gone signal boxes. Its a fascinating historical document in effect.

 

I did a railtour London Cannon St-Dungeness in 2006 , the departutes board stated destination as Dungeness CEBG.

 

Many preserved line stations are listed.. Swanage for example.

 

Weymouth Quay is still on as a valid location.

 

I'm not an expert on this but I believe it all works off the BR Stannox codes. I have no idea how old they are but they must reflect locations that were in existence when they were written. Each location has its own code which can be plotted on TOPS for pathing. Some places have probably never been changed - I don't know how often it gets updated.

 

I would guess it isn't worth the effort of deleting them.

 

Probably not. I guess new ones must get written for timing points at new parts of the network (for example, when a station opens/re-opens). But I'm guessing that TOPS is still pretty much BR vintage then a lot old stuff must still be in it!

 

Anyone know if Royal Trains are covered/excluded from the RTT database? Was a Kensington Olympia yesterday (Tue 24 June) just after 5pm, and the Royal Train went through north. Can't find it on RTT though, but not sure if I've searching correctly.

Richard

 

I have searched too , picking Keny up from Overground services to ensure I was searching correct station and found notthing. It sort of makes security sence

Dave

 

Yes - thought as much. Was interesting to see if cruise through with the blinds drawn. Was there an HRH on board, I wonder?

Richard

 

Took a different tack and looked up court circular. Charles was in Stoke during the day but dined at Whites. No confirmation of travel but knowing he likes trains it could have been the ECS folowing his Stoke trip

Purely guesswork of course

 

It was going north so could well have been Charlie. If the train doesn't appear on RTT, I'm just imagining the signalman getting their special traffic notice on monogrammed parchment.

Richard

 

Many location's still exist on TOPS even though track no longer connects into them, IE Rockware glass Sdgs at Worksop (well it did a while back). Updates occur on the sunday morning outage, they only change if a TOC or FOC request it, for example if someone now owns the location.

Steve

 

I really can't believe the complaints that have been written about RTT. I myself use it frequently when out lineside and in fact always make sure the relevant info page is up and running before I leave home. Its a really valuable resource and I for one applaud it. Many are the times I have had to rely on people on train etc to give info on whereabouts and this is a breath of fresh air, making planning and the day out lineside so much easier to operate. I don't know what people expect from this but I for one am SO glad its available. Still I suppose its much easier to criticise than to compliment!

 

Yes, I agree, I use RTT a great deal when out to video rail tours and it is invaluable. But maybe because I only use it on the day or the day before a tour that I find it a reliable source of information.

 

It looks like people are continuing to fall foul of RTT. Last week's (18 Oct 2014) Western Streak is a case in point.

Due to a rather complicated re-working of the times and LE moves all the train reporting numbers were changed at the last minute. This resulted in RTT showing the service was cancelled on the day. It wasn't. I am not going to name and shame the couple of passengers that didn't turn up because of this, but needless to say they are not going to receive a refund from us!

There were quite a few "tweets" to the VT account asking why it was cancelled. Unfortunately due to the workload of the staff on the day, the twitter account is not monitored in real-time, nor is Facebook or NatPres.

The other issue with passengers looking at RTT instead of the letter we send out with the tickets is the departure time from our own platform at Tyseley Warwick Road. The time listed in RTT is the time the train transitions from the "private railway" to the mainline. We typically depart from our own platform a few minutes before we are due onto Network Rail for the obvious reason. As a result, the passenger letter lists the Tyseley Warwick Road departure time as 10 minutes before we are due on the network. This has caught more than one person out in the past; they arrive at the locked gates in time to see the train disappearing up the bank.

RTT is a very useful tool, but it is NOT the infallible.

 

Is it a bit harsh to say that anyone who relies on a third party tool to determine whether their charter is running or not is stupid?

 

Ben is right.. RTT is buyer beware.
but real time communications is a bit more grainy... if Twitter said it was canceled...