Mark Townend

Some experience & expertise in rail signal engineering. Deep interest in transport, economy, environment & human behaviour. Belief in love, compassion & respect

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@AndyRoden1 @Captain_Deltic Still a bit experimental. The TL implementation was a custom 'packet 44' system. Europe has now produced a standard ATO spec within ETCS. Probably best for HS2 to wait for the tech to mature further before retrofitting, rather than being a pilot scheme with early adopter risks.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@AndyRoden1 @Captain_Deltic A standard ATO implementation in ETCS isn't mainstream yet for non-urban rail, but is well defined now, & there have been tests in Finland by Siemens, for example: https://t.co/1G9PpkCzVf

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@shinkhantmaungs These are 1970s diesel units that were acquired second-hand from Japan. They're to be equipped with batteries, pantographs & motors in place of their engines & fuel tanks. Likely more successful than trying to bolt diesels under old EMUs.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@Mtodo @max358japan Water is from West Lyn river, collected ~2km upstream & piped to tanks at the top station. The river drains a large part of Exmoor National Park, which is mostly high open moorland. Lynmouth famous for a 1952 flood, when river destroyed the town & killed 34 after extreme rainfall

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@GarethDennis @NoelDolphin Switched diamonds, especially.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@paultrowntree @sciencegirl Or the Ship of Theseus, if you prefer a more classical version.
Demands of modern mainline operation preserve steam era regimes of periodic major overhauls, where many components may be swapped out as necessary. A1 SLT specified a common boiler design for A1 & P2 for this reason.

[The Sting @TheStingisBack]

Oliver Postgate was born 101 years ago today
Ivor the Engine – “The Dragon” (1976) There’s something truly magical about Ivor, especially Jones the Steam’s adventures with Idris the Dragon. Ivor's more than a locomotive, he's a childhood transportation system. Thank you, Oliver

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@RobR44133618 @maxtmcc More like 'Stadtbahn' LRT, often segregated in city centre tunnels, while having street running further out. No street running in T&W, but original Metrocars were closely based on the common German 'Stadtbahn B' vehicles, with wider bodies & lacking street legal cabs & lights.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@CPTrains_YT @SteveWhiteRail @greateranglia @hines_stephen Perhaps the rule, seemingly based today on latest time to be able to depart OT back from Sudbury with rushed turnround, might be varied to latest time to be back on diagram by next cycle at MKT. Could prioritise for OT from Sudbury in morning peak if desired.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@CPTrains_YT @SteveWhiteRail @greateranglia @hines_stephen Up connection tight at 4m, with footbridge walk, impossible if you must use the accessible route via North Lane road bridge. Branch unit regularly makes it back to MKT 30s-60s early, & another London within 30m. Evening peak priority should be the greater pax numbers from London.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@nowtonew The connection was retained after 1947 tube conversion for stock transfers to the Ongar branch, which remained steam until 1957, with occasional DMU substitutions after that in very bad weather, & also to serve goods facilities surviving on the Hainault loop until 1965.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@RemkoZuidema @yohaniddawela NL has wider stop spacing, greater than e.g. US bus/streetcars which often have stops only a few 100 feet apart. This analysis may be more relevent for trad. 'middle of the road' streetcar networks like Toronto, but subways do the heavy lifting there, & they have some faster LRTs

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@probablyonabus @EngFocus Not unreasonable to tap in & out at gatelines walking between different parts of a big interchange via bridges & passageways. Bidston is a single island however. Pax must seek out a reader on the platform & won't be forced to walk past one. There'll be many mistakes guaranteed.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@matthewhodg @Zaphod2042 @dave987a HS2 made a decision early on, well before major cuts, that the Phase 1 initial fleet order would be all classic-compatible, as only Birmingham would be able to handle UIC-gauge stock, & that route would only need a handful of trains. Later phases would introduce the captives.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@chrisgolds Existing Picc trains have areas for luggage by door lobbies. Don't know why EL trains don't have these. Perhaps TfL found people don't use them on the Picc, preferring to keep even large luggage near their seats for security. Not all air travellers have large or multiple items.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@ChimeWhistle @christiancalgie The Cheltenham end would be difficult too now with established use for active travel & road levels at reconstructed bridges etc, tho there are no buildings on the formation. GWR once proposed a new mainline connection to the north to avoid the difficult section through the centre

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@pacer142 @bhaumikgowande Buses can work well, have high-quality vehicles & be electrified (trolley wires/batteries), but capacity is an issue, and the cost of so many drivers is a barrier in expensive western cities. Another issue is energy use. Rolling resistance is significantly higher for rubber tyres

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@rhydy @colinwalker79 @Telegraph Readers' assumptions from headlines will no doubt reinforce the barrage of similar misinfo they receive on socials, where no standards of truth apply & algorithms tune in to people's prejudices. People should look wider, but they're being heavily misled in most common channels.

[Mark Townend @mark_townend]

@RichardBratby I'm so tired of this modernism is marxism trope. Yes socialist countries adopted simple unadorned forms widely for swift reconstruction, but so did firmly capitalist corporations & banks. Were they also closet communists at this time, or was it simply a popular style of the era?