RTC 2021

I think West Coast did say coal was the issue

 

Just received from RTC:

Like so many within the leisure and hospitality industry the government's decision to delay the lifting of restrictions until 19th July has impacted us once again.


We had hoped that from 21st June all of our UK day trips would be able to run at full capacity once again but sadly we are now in the very difficult position of needing to reduce capacity and this will mean some bookings being cancelled during this period. After a challenging sixteen months this is not something any business wants to do, most worryingly for us as a team it's letting our customers down that concerns us most but we have to adhere to the guidelines in place.


Rest assured that we are doing all that we can to limit the impact however if you are due to travel, on a UK Day Trip, between 21st June and 19th July please know that we will be in touch with you should your booking be affected. We know that this will cause disappointment and frustration but we ask for your patience and understanding as we navigate the delayed lifting.

This is rather disappointing. Was hoping that RTC was being sensible and only filling trains up to their 'social distancing' capacity until restrictions were confirmed as being lifted.

Just waiting to hear if my Royal Duchy booking is going to be cancelled.

 

It's a tricky situation and I certainly wouldn't want to be a railtour promoter at the moment. Do you fill the train just to social distancing capacity and run the risk that social distancing will be removed and you'll have lost thousands of pounds in potential ticket sales, or do you take a gamble on dates and fill the train to full capacity to bring in the most revenue? When you consider loco and coaching stock hire, as well as WCR operating costs, RTC can't be making much of a profit on any socially-distanced train. Saphos will be quite happy to keep filling trains just to socially distanced levels as they have millions of pounds behind them and can tolerate the loss of revenue. The others are not in the same boat.

 

I just hope they don't take too long about it as I know people from up north would have accommodation, travel tickets etc. to cancel.

 

Means nothing in effect, A1's were designed to burn coal of inferior quality ! AFAIA, A3 boilers were not, just quality steam coal.

 

I would think that there are many travel and hospitality businesses who had to plan on something, and at one time June looked good. Night clubs for example recruited staff and committed to food and drink supply on this basis according to various media interviews. Monies for the tour will obviously be refunded and I would be surprised if after the last 16 months too many people are still risking booking accommodation that they can not cancel.
As has been said by others tour companies must be suffering and at least some have taken the risk to operate, others have chosen (or have been unable) to do the same.

 

Is that really true? Is there a such a significant difference in the boiler design as to make one capable of burning anything and the other being an epicure able only to palate the very finest of victuals?

I haven't particularly followed this saga, but if FS and Tornado set out with similar coal but had very different outcomes, one thing I'd be looking at is to what degree the itinerary was different. Did for example FS have a very stop-start journey and Tornado a more continuous effort? If you have got slightly poor coal (particularly if there is a lot of dust, or it produces lots of ash), one thing that can cause the fire to go to pot is lots of variation (i.e. high demand / no demand / high demand cycles), which are custom-made to cause a fire to clinker up. I don't know if that is the cause, but I'd certainly be considering that rather than just "Tornado is designed for poor coal".

Tom

 

Announced on Railway Herald at 12.09 today that subject to a Fitness to Run test today, 60103 is back on for York-Edinburgh tomorrow.

 

Good news for Steam Dreams.

 

I too would not want to be a railtour promoter, but that is the business that they have chosen. They could have limited bookings to social distancing capacity with the intention of offering the remaining seats at a discount for late bookings if the relaxation happened. But we can all be wise after the event. They certainly can't complain at the delay in relaxation, because the Government had warned that that might be necessary, depending on the Covid situation, and (for once!) they had done as they said.

 

I wonder how many passengers booked with the knowledge that they were booking 'full capacity' trains? Bit different with the Socially Distanced Seating to the possibility of spending 12 hours sitting less than 1 metre across a table from total strangers who may or may not have been vaccinated.

 

Good news for me and my wife. We've got tickets on one of the Fife Circulars on Friday as joint birthday presents from one of our sons.

 

I'd double check your tickets, isn't it Friday?

 

When I booked this, the 'road map' hadn't even been set out, so I expected the train to operate with whatever the prevailing restrictions were at the time. As it is, of our party of 6, I'm the only one who won't have been double-vaccinated (my second shot is the week after) but I was willing to take the risk as I can make sure I only sit at a table with my group.

As an enthusiast, I can kind of empathise with RTC's position, but I'm not sure the 'non-enthusiasts' in my party would be quite so forgiving, or willing to rebook, if we do get cancelled but the train still runs, especially as it was intended as a birthday celebration for one of them.

I do wonder if, from a PR point of view at least, it would be better to cancel/reschedule trains outright if they can't be run at a profit (as Pathfinder have done), rather than having to choose which passengers can and can't travel.
If restrictions had suddenly been unexpectedly tightened, that would be one thing, but it was always going to be a bit optimistic assuming that all restrictions would be relaxed on the 21st June.
With the mood music about relaxation clearly starting to change at the beginning of June, at the very least I'd have stopped accepting new bookings at that point (don't know if RTC did or not).

I think Vintage Trains seem to have got this right, offering 'bubble' seating on all their tours this year, with a waiting list for single travellers who are interested, and can be contacted if restrictions at the time allow them to fill the trains to capacity.

Just waiting to see if I get the call from RTC.

 

Peppercorn designed the A1 firebox with a 50sq ft. grate area and combustion chamber to specifically enable them to burn lower quality fuel. As regards duties of the loco's that day, FS was on a KX-York, A1 'Tornado' was on a York-ED, very similar work I think you would agree.

 

Oops. Corrected

 

I think the clue is in your first sentence - they sold tickets before they even knew the plan. I've been impressed by the way that the Branch Line Society have managed their tours - being really open on social media and to their members about what they're doing, and how they're managing capacity.

 

Whilst I would agree with you from what I have read, I was not when I read on another forum that they went with the LSL Groups no mask policy on the Three Peaks tour the other weekend. But I guess they just went with what the TOC advised.