Saphos Trains 2026

Just through Dawlish with only one 47.
Edit 57003 now on its way from Southall to Norton Fitzwarren according to RTT

 

I must take my hat off to the signalmen who are responsible for the Brighton Man Line and East Sussex Coast lines. Today, a Statesman charter train was due to run from Derby to Eastbourne for the air show. By the time I checked Real Time Trains this morning, it was two hours into its journey, so the plan was very much to get to Eastbourne somehow, even if the line through Plumpton was closed . It was two minutes down when it joined the Brighton Main Line at Streatham Common, but the signalmen just let it run further and further ahead of schedule, cutting out all the pathing stops. It was no less than half an hour early by the time it got to Keymer Junction, where it had to diverge from the planned route, run down to Brighton, reverse and travel via Falmer to regain its planned route at Lewes. Such was the slick work of all involved that in spite of all this manoeuvring and the extra mileage, it actually arrived in Eastbourne 11 minutes early!

 

Doesn't look like the return journey is going so well unfortunately

 

No indeed. It left Eastbourne on time but was 10 late passing Berwick. Nothing in front of it at all. I wonder if there were problems with the leading loco, 47712. I went out to phot it at Selmeston Crossing, between Glynde and Berwick and it should have been belting along, but it wasn't going particularly fast at all. Not quite such slick work at Brighton this time either, but it seems to have lost a further 40 minutes in the East Croydon area for some reason. A very late evening for the passengers, in spite of all the efforts of the signalmen. I just hope they enjoyed sunny Eastbourne and the air show. You really do need a lot of stamina for some excursions these days, even without delays like this.