Poole Park Railway

Unfortunately the locomotive has come off the track at Whitecliff Curve early this afternoon: 24/10/23. Ballast has been packed between the running rail and check rail by person(s) unknown. No one was injured and the loco was re-railed later. Normal service was running later in the afternoon.

 

Pictures here: https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/23876242.poole-park-railway-suspended-derailing/

 

Poole Park Railway took delivery of a new covered carriage this morning, designed and produced by Alan Keef Ltd. This will give us a capacity of 44 seats.

 

Took these on Wednesday 6/12 in better weather and in better health! We will eventually have the train in the same colour.....

 

Oh dear. Not good. I assume it was caused by ballast on the rails, vandalism?

https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/24009773.poole-park-railway-derails-carrying-passengers/

 

I'm sure I saw a post somewhere from Nick (which I can't now find) which said that the carriage went first, and that derailed the loco (which isn't how that article describes it). I note that it's the new carriage from Keefs that has tipped over...

...not unknown for new rolling stock to have teething troubles, but PPR are not having much luck of late

 

Blimey, according to the report the "engine" can carry 32 passengers and is also wheelchair and pushchair friendly, so does that mean they can do away with the coach altogether!

A Merry Christmas and a Happy new year to everybody.

 

Maybe lots of weight on the right side (i.e. away from the 'doorways') with passengers admiring the lake, on a right hand bend, with maybe (just maybe) softish springs on the new coach bogies? Did anyone from the council H&S department require/observe fully laden test runs? Were any tests done to check the stability of the new coach or find out what weight could cause tipping? Is there a maximum gross weight limit specified by the builders? Lots of questions I'm sure should (have?) be (been) asked of the designers/manufacturers/council H&S and PPR informed of any limitations. I've a feeling this is not any fault of the PPR. It looks like they are just the ones finding out by experience that which should have been fully assessed before handover to the railway.

 

It should also be remembered that pulling on bends will be at a small sideways angle, and the longer the coach the more significant that will be. Whether it would be significant enough to be a factor in this incident I have no idea (I'll leave the number crunchers to work that out).

 

Hello, I was supreme idiot that day and was acting guard. It was a shocking moment to see the carriage, passengers in all compartments tip over. It happened on what is local know as The 'Ark' bend. No one was injured...a few were hurt. All passengers were given refunds after being check for injuries. One passenger was in shock. Within 90 minutes the locomotive and carriage were back on the track. A check was carried out on the track: gauge and cant. All was ok. There were some marks on one set of rails, this will require some detailed analysis. The wheel sets of the first carriage, the one that went over, were checked for gauge. Several runs were complete to see if any issues arose. All was OK. A decision was made that the carriage be replaced and services run the following day. There will be an inspection of the derailed carriage by the manufacturers in early January. It would appear that the weather in Poole for the next few days will see the railway closed. The railway is intending to close on 2 January 2024 and track maintenance will take place over the next few weeks by Alan Keef and PPR staff. PPR would like to know what happened. There are a few ideas that require some investigation that will take place over the winter shut down. Will keep you informed. thanks

 

PS. Seems wrong to have 'liked' what you wrote, but it is the openness that I (and no doubt others) appreciate.

 

I can't see any criticism of PPR regarding this accident and, like others, I really appreciate the openness and detail posted. There's several of the bigger railways that could learn a lot just from seeing this statement. I know the time may have passed but do you think there is any chance you and/or other staff involved at the station etc could recall how the coach load was distributed? Just wondering if uneven load distribution might also be a contributing factor.

 

pm sent. thanks

 

Poole Park Railway will reopen on Saturday 10 Feb at 10.00am. Open every day during half term, weather permitting!!!
The track has had a fettling by Alan Keefs.
thanks
nick b

 

Back in the news again. Not for a good reason
. news.https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/24113798.poole-popular-park-train-derails/

 

If there was nothing on the track to cause the derailment then there must be a design fault with the carriages or the cross level of the track must be bad.

Sent from my SM-A105FN using Tapatalk

 

I would have expected the cross level to have been checked during the 'fettling by Alan Keefs' so it's more likely to be some issue with the rolling stock. What length were the original carriages? Are the new ones longer (and therefore subject to more of a sideways pull on tight curves)?

 

Hello, I was Chief Idiot when the carriage fell over on Monday 12/02/24. I was chief Idiot when it fell over before Christmas!! No one was injured in this latest incident. The carriage issue was corrected in January 2024. All concerned hoped that the issue was fixed. However it looks like yet again Poole Park Railway is a' difficult' miniature railway to operate. The days where every one has a phone with a camera and a liking for social media is a challenge. Some of the comments I have read are bizarre to say the least. There is a faction who on social media are out to clobber BCP Council over any kind of issue. The carriage concerned has been taken out of service and will be inspected. A collective decision will be made as to the best way forward.

 

Thanks for sharing this. I hope that you (collectively) can identify the problem and that it is easily rectifiable. All the best

Steve B

 

Thanks for the info Nick. I hope the investigation is fruitful. The older style SMR coaches had no roof so possibly with lower C of G.
I have just looked back on our family film on YouTube from the 1960's and realised the young girl in the first coach with my brother is 74 next week!