Goodbye?

I have a little bit more work to do on a post about Moorgate and the Widened Lines so please bare with me. Unfortunately, once again, my posts are going to appear a little out of order. Anyway: today - Wednesday (although as it's already past midnight I guess even this post will go up on the wrong day!)

I'm still not all that well. When my alarm went off at 08:00 this morning, I left it to automatically switch to snooze. At 08:09 when it went off again, I turned it off and prepared to get out of bed. At about 08:40 I rolled over, checked the time and was startled to discover that I must have fallen asleep. So I went back to bed for another 20 minutes, knowing that I wouldn't make it to class. In the end, I got to university in time to meet my friend at 11:00, although we are now going to be meeting at 14:00, after my tutorial which I will, at least, make :P

To achieve even this, though, I had to really shift myself, but I made it to ROV as the WOO was pulling in. I still had to cross the bridge and had to make sure I didn't dawdle, because I still wasn't sure if I'd make it. In the end it didn't really matter because we had quite a wait for a train to cross over Woodford junction ahead of us. At WOO, I noticed there was a train in the sidings, for whatever reason. There I changed for a WER service and was duly taken off to LIS. We even had Sonia. At LIS I changed onto a Circle line train and the only thing there really was to take note of on the way to Euston Sq was that work is continuing at Moorgate (see forthcoming post - sorry).

I left university moderately late - around 20:00. My friend was further delayed and we didn't end up meeting until around 15:15 and then we sort of carried on talking for quite a while. Anyway, as such, I took a comparatively quiet tube home.  Not that quiet, of course - even at 20:00 there were plenty of full carriages on the S stock I boarded at Euston Sq (although I managed to get on one with free seats :P) - but comparatively quiet. So yes, the S stock was a Circle line train which arrived after 3 minutes or so - which wasn't bad. Smooth, dark, uneventful journey into LIS really, where I changed for a Central line train to EPP.

Again, it was all pretty quiet on the eastbound Central line. Only at LEY did I notice that the train behind mine was a WOO via HAI, so I changed at LES and took that to ROV. Our T/Op did make me smile at HAI, though. She had already informed us that we would have a slight delay for a driver change - although, in reality, the WOO usually holds at HAI for a few minutes - driver change or not. Just before she handed over the reigns, however, she once again let us know that someone else would take over, saying her "lovely colleague" would take us on to WOO, which I just thought was quite sweet :P

And with that, as far as I can see, I have now had my last ever university class. Other classes will be running for a while, although I don't have much intention of attending any since essentially all compulsory and substantial classes are wrapped up for me now. I will, of course, still have exams, but - essentially - my days of commuting daily, at least to university, are up. I haven't a clue what's going to happen next and how many more travels I will have as a tube user. I will probably try, at least for a little while, to keep this blog going, I've enjoyed it. I started out pretty tentatively and didn't expect to end up writing quite as much as I have done; although largely the experience has pretty much been what I'd intended it would be. I don't know how much life will drain my time, but I will hopefully continue writing about any tube journeys I have (at least the interesting ones) and tube-related stuff. At least from time to time. I'm probably gonna make a journey into the university to meet some friends tomorrow, anyway. We'll see. But, who knows, maybe this is not simply the end of my university career, but this blog too. But then again, who knows, maybe I'll end up living somewhere else in London and will have a new station as my local one and perhaps a new line and/or new route to really get to know.

As I say, I still have yesterday's post to finish, a post may be forthcoming tomorrow and possibly more after that. Still, if this really is one of my last and I shall soon be moving on then all I can say is thanks for reading. This is only a pokey little blog and it's obviously quite specialist. But I get a little bit of traffic, for which I'm very grateful, and I hope that if I have regulars, you've enjoyed it and certainly I hope that some of my larger posts might have interested someone who just happened to stumble upon them. Take care out there, mind the gap (and I don't mean that to sound cheesy, them trains are big and them rails are electrified (well, two of them)) and enjoy your tube travels.

Baywatch

To be honest I started feeling ill on Tuesday and by Thursday I was well and truly diseased. As a result, I wasn't in on Thursday and so there was no post. Even now I'm far from at my best, unfortunately :( Because of this, I didn't, in the end, try to get in for Hindi this morning and decided to skip both the lecture and the tutorial.

As I write these opening paragraphs, though, I am in the university's library, having made my way in for an appointment (which I was still late for, but did make :P). I have Sanskrit in an hour as well and we're getting our essays set so I thought I really ought to turn up to that.

So, to achieve that, I turned up at ROV at about 12:10 (slightly before) and didn't have too long to wait, on a lovely, sunny day, for the WOO. As per usual, I changed at WOO, but we seemed to have an unusually long wait for the next westbound and there was nothing on the east, either. Maybe it was just the time of day - I'm not usually at WOO at lunchtime - and I couldn't see how long we had to wait because one of the dot-matrix indicators was not working. While I waited, I noticed a very odd-looking - yet somehow rather sweet - pigeon sitting below the negative conductor rail. It seemed to have been there before the WOO pulled in and had simply sat there. Sure enough, when the WER finally did arrive there was no movement from the pigeon.

There was, however, finally movement for me and I headed on my way. No Sonia for most of the journey and a dodgy door that was closing very late. The 1992TS really do seem to be feeling the strain. Mind you (perhaps because of Sonia's silence? :P) it was a remarkably talkative carriage. I witnessed a number of people eagerly giving a man directions (I didn't join in because they were at the other end of the carriage and he seemed to have plenty of help) and an exchange between strangers about passing the time when traveling on the train. Well I never.

As I was running late, I continued on through LIS and changed at HOL for the Picc. A Cockfosters train took me to Russell Sq. and I didn't have to wait long for a fairly quiet lift.

On the way back I was extremely tired, but it was truly a very lovely evening. Having been able to leave a little bit early, I arrived at Euston Sq. ahead of schedule and was pleased to be able to walk - almost straight away - onto an Aldgate train that was not too busy at all. In fact, I even got a seat. The journey was mostly smooth, although we were held in the platform at Farringdon eastbound for a little while and I think that cost me dearly.

When I finally made it to the Central line platform at LIS I was disappointed to see that the next train was for HAI via NEP, with an EPP behind that and then the WOO via HAI. So I'd missed the GRH via WOO. No matter, I boarded the HAI - which was very warm and rather busy, but I actually had a rather enjoyable journey and it was certainly very nice when we came out of the tunnel into the last few tens of minutes of daylight. I got off into the lovely cool air at LES and decided to try my luck on the EPP. The EPP duly whisked me off to WOO, where I got a nice surprise - a train in the WOO bay, due to leave for WER immediately after the HAI left 21 road. Almost as nice was the fact that this was due to happen just 2 minutes after I arrived and I was able to change seamlessly onto the HAI, watch the back of the train in the bay platform depart and head onto ROV without any fuss. Lovely views between WOO and ROV, too. Not a bad journey home :) Didn't, in the end, ever get my essay set, so I have to look forward to do that probably over the first weekend of Easter.

RIP

I didn't post yesterday because I had a doctor's appointment and so wasn't in class. During my absence, of course, the big tube-related news has been the passing of Bob Crow, who certainly carved a place for himself in the history of Britain's public transport. I, for one, was quite saddened by this, I thought he was an excellent firebrand. During his tenure as Gen Sec of the RMT, Wikipedia informs us that RMT membership increased from ≈57,000 in 2002 to >80,000 in 2008 and not, I think, by accident.

As for today, I had another little class test (10% of the final mark) and so I had to be up on time and get in as fast as I could. I was, therefore, quite tired. My beloved tube network did not, however, let me down and all was well. I managed to turn up at ROV with but 2 minutes to go until the WOO train arrived. That took me to WOO, where I hopped onto a WER service which took me to LIS. Everything was as smooth as silk and - despite just missing an all stations Uxbridge - I was quickly on my way to King's X after boarding a Circle line train to Hammersmith. We made King's X without incident.

And it was pretty much the same story on the way back from Euston Sq. It was a very nice, sunny day and a rather pleasant journey to LIS on another Circle line train. At LIS I had no problem getting the EPP and by LES I was almost falling asleep. In something of a daze, I made it to WOO, where I had a 2 minute wait for the HAI. I did notice that the next westbound was actually held outside WOO station for a brief while, even though the HAI was still in 21 road at the time. I don't actually know why that was, but then I'll readily admit that the finer points of Central line ATO are largely a mystery to me. It did pull in after a short wait and so did my HAI train, which I took to ROV and I finally arrived home shortly afterwards.

The test, as if you care, was fine. There were a few odd points I know I got wrong, but I'm reasonably optimistic that I did enough to warrant an acceptable mark :P

Thou shalt be late

Oh back to the early starts for me today. It was genuinely bright and early when I got up this morning, though - it was a lovely morning. Still, I only got up so early. :P

Again I left the house at about 08:54, maybe later, and thought: 'y'know what? It's such a nice day, I might as well wander up to BUH again.' Now, it was a nice day, but surprisingly cold and it's a longer walk than you might imagine. I don't think I can've reached the platform until 09:10, if not later. It probably would've been better just to go from ROV but I didn't fancy the wait and I didn't really wanna be late all that much. I had a minute to wait for a WER train, during which I made sure to check on the progress of the renovation at BUH. To my surprise, all of the boarding was gone and the work seemed to be completed. It did look nice, too, and the work is 'in keeping' with the rest of the station - they seem to have built an additional wall in front of the pre-existing wall, though, for whatever reason.

Anyway, soon enough my train arrived and I was probably on the last train over Woodford junction before the 09:14 from ROV. Still, I suppose I was slightly earlier than I would've been :P When I arrived at BUH there were severe delays on the Central line west of WHC (faulty train) but all was apparently well on the rest of the line and I didn't have any problems. Well, there was a bit of a dwell at LES and we were slow out since we were following the train from platform 1, but that could easily have been timetabled anyway.

I also noticed, at LEY, that the member of staff doing SATS described the train as an EAB. I eventually managed to check at BEG, where I found that he was right - it had indeed become an EAB. Not, of course, of interest to most on the train though.

At LIS auto-pilot kicked in and I got off the train. It was a lovely day, as I say, and a trip on the old sub-surface lines would've been nice, but I wanted to be on time. As a result, I actually got back on (on the next carriage to save face :P) and continued on to HOL - taking the chance to have a peek at the crossover outside LIS and its shunt signal.

I reached the Piccadilly line platform and got on board an Oakwood train (bound for the depot, I assume) in just the right place for Russell Sq. And then, I discovered that my plans for timeliness had been scuppered - I was thwarted by a lift. The T/Op informed us that the train would be non-stopping Russell Square due to a defective lift. I could, of course, have got off and walked from HOL, but I decided to stay on to King's X - enjoying another crossover (just outside King's X) on the way :P There I changed for an S7+1 for all stations to Amersham and that took me to where I would've ended up had I not bothered with the detour - Euston Sq. Since I'd actually boarded the Amersham quite far down the train and wanted to be at the front, I actually spent most of the journey to Euston Sq making my way up the train, which I couldn't have done on any other stock. That was actually rather fun :P

I was pretty knackered after today's round of classes, but we finished Sanskrit a little early - which was very nice. This was an undoubtedly good start to my return journey home and, indeed, all was going well until King's X. At Euston Square I was able to walk straight onto an Aldgate train and that whisked me off to King's X, where we received a platforms and hold call due to a handle down at LIS. That kept us there for a couple of minutes or so, but that was the only major issue and I was able to make the eastbound Central line platform at LIS unusually early.

I noticed on the dot-matrix indicator that the train which was pulling in when I arrived on the platform was for NEP. Behind that was an EPP and behind that the coveted GRH via WOO. So I enjoyed what was actually quite a hot, tiring, long commute of taking the first train and changing where necessary. I took the NEP to LES, the EPP to WOO and the GRH to ROV. Simply no point hanging around at LIS, I might not have been able to make the GRH, or there could have been disruption or anything. It wasn't bad, though, and for the first time in ages I've completed a Monday return journey before daylight has really faded.

ECS

It was a really lovely afternoon today, really lovely. After an unusually long sleep :P I was able to get up at about 14:00 and enjoy a calm, relaxed start to the day which still saw me on the platform at ROV with plenty of time to spare (and no Oyster card problems :P)

Once the train from the EPP branch cleared WOO junction, we got on our way to WOO. I have a vague suspicion things were held up a bit by a tardy HAI train, which would have kept the westbound in platform 2 at WOO while it waited for the HAI to leave 21 road, which would have held up the next train due on the westbound from BUH, which would have held us up. It's quite common for trains to be slow leaving 21 road, though, and might very well be down to the signalling. I always did prefer the old timetable we had last year.

Well, anyway, I changed at WOO and soon enough the NOR train arrived and that took us in to LIS without any incident that leaps to mind. The doors on the right at STR were opened substantially after the doors on the left, again, though, but I haven't really seen that happening very often. Again passengers scurried hither and thither - disregarding completely the T/Op's announcement, but then what else do you expect? :P

At LIS I changed for the sub-surface lines. Had a bit of a wait on the platform, but soon enough a Met line train for all stations to Uxbridge arrived. The train was soon joined by a somewhat strange gentleman, who loudly and openly joined in with the announcements, before attempting to pre-empt them and getting it wrong every time. (I might add that my internal corrections were all spot on! :P) I actually often can't resist doing the same in my head, or sometimes under my breath, but this was unusual and mildly irritating behaviour :P

On the way back from Euston Sq. I didn't have long to wait for a remarkably empty Aldgate train which took me back to LIS. LIS was really rather busy, though, and when I arrived on the Central line platform there was an EPP train sat there with many people who had clearly not been able to make it on still standing on the platform. Naturally I couldn't get on it, either, which was a shame because I think it might have been the perfect train (apart from the GRH via WOO, obviously, which I'd missed.)

I was just about able to get on the next train through - HAI via NEP - but it was a very cramped, very warm journey at least as far as STR. I knew that behind that there was an EPP (which, experience tells me, would have given me a long wait at WOO) and behind that there was a WOO via HAI. As a result, I decided to stay on my train as far as HAI, where we pulled into platform 3. I walked across to the other half of the platform (platform 2) and didn't have too long (probably 2 minutes, max.) before the WOO via HAI arrived. It then left reasonably soon after (perhaps another two minutes) and took me past the Hainault depot to GRH. At GRH I again saw a train shunting in the depot, it was just pulling away from the roads behind GRH station as our train pulled in. I was sure this was the GRH via WOO and it certainly looked like that was the destination it was displaying (although it can be hard to tell as the text is not very large). Then, to my surprise, another train arrived on the opposite platform at GRH. I was sure it couldn't be the HAI from WOO as that had arrived at HAI while I was waiting to leave. The unexpected arrival at GRH was displaying GRH via WOO, but it very much looked like it was ECS (Empty Coaching Stock) - the lights appeared to be off and it was being driven on the handle. I don't know why it was displaying a destination and not 'not in service,' though, but the dot-matrix indicator on the platform was showing 'special.'

Nothing else to report after that, though, really and I made it home after what was quite a long and tiring journey for this time of the year. I'm looking forward to my long weekend :P

Oyster

I didn't post yesterday because there was a strike and so there was a picket line. I wouldn't cross a picket line anyway, but I certainly wasn't gonna pass up an excuse to have a day off. Unfortunately, I wasted it a bit because we had a builder doing work and I doubted I would be able to concentrate on anything very productive - so I mucked around with unproductive things instead (even long after he'd left :P)

 

Still, today I was up early again, but (again) just not early enough. I knew I wouldn't make the 08:54, so I threw the towel in pretty early on in the morning and aimed for the 09:14. This meant that I was actually running a little bit "early" (according to my revised timetable anyway :P) but I still managed to forget to grab a bottle of water. Still, I did make it to ROV with just a short wait for the WOO.

 

The Oyster reader was playing up though. It made the noise of a failed touch-in (two beeps), but I saw on the screen "Enter. £9.10." (There are no barriers at ROV, only little readers, so it's not immediately obvious whether it's worked or not.) I wasn't really sure what to do (makes you long for a ticket office don't it? :P) I knew that if you record a 'same station exit' and touch in and then touch out at the same station within 0-2 minutes, you get charged (£8.10 apparently). What I didn't realise was that you can then re-touch-in within 45 minutes and it resets itself and you get a refund. Still, because the mechanisms of Oyster are entirely opaque - even, apparently, to those who were involved in its implementation - I was ill-inclined to risk it. It once cost me 2 quid just to go for a walk around King's Cross St. Pancras when I got a bit lost looking for the Northern line (I used the wrong entrance (the one on Pentonville Road)). Happily, however, I had touched in successfully this morning and the gates opened for me at King's Cross. Still, not really what I was hoping for.

 

I changed at WOO, where I bought myself a drink, for the WER. After the doors closed at WOO it was some time - a good 10 or 15 seconds, if not more - before we had any movement. I wonder why. Apart from that, though, it was all really rather smooth into LIS, where I just missed an H&C line train to Hammersmith, but was soon able to board a Wembley Park. We passed a Met line train in Moorgate's platform 3 on the way in to King's X. It had only just arrived and was still showing 'Moorgate' as its destination, so I don't know where it was going.

 

On the way back, I had a 2 minute wait for an Aldgate train that took me to LIS, past another train (Hammersmith bound - I think it was a Circle line train?) in Moorgate's platform 3. When I arrived on the Central line eastbound platform at LIS, there was a train standing in the platform. I made my way onto that - while one or two of my fellow journeyers pushed and hurried and generally behaved like children - with time to spare. Again, the doors closed and there was a little bit of a wait until we got on our way. It was an EPP service, so I took it as far as WOO. On the way, our T/Op - who was very talkative - was having fun with the DVA (Digital Voice Announcer (I think)) and we got a couple of messages, one of which was:

 

"Customers are reminded that smoking is not permitted anywhere on London Underground."

 

Very useful.

 

Only a minute to wait for the HAI and it was a very nice day, so there were plenty of good views to enjoy between SOW and ROV to boot :). I happened to notice Sonia was very quiet in my carriage of the HAI train. She was just about working, though, I think.

Who's driving the train? :P

This morning I was dreaming that I'd woken up really early. Then my alarm went off and it took me ten minutes to get out of bed :P Get out of bed I did, however, but I wasn't quite quick enough and didn't make it out of the house until 08:54, which was the time I was expecting the WOO train to arrive at ROV. Since I'd got myself ready and had all my things together, I didn't really see the point of going back inside when I realised how late it was. I also didn't fancy a long wait in the cold at ROV. Additionally, I didn't wanna be late to class again, so I thought I might as well go to BUH for a change - it's a bit more of a walk and it probably took me ten minutes to get there, if not a little more. Predictably, as I arrived, a westbound train also pulled up and I doubted I was gonna get over the bridge and onto the train in time. As I was making my dejected way towards the platform, however, I heard the T/Op informing his train that there had been a platforms and hold call due to a handle down at LIS. All rather convenient, actually, and I even had time to make my way up the platform to the first carriage (it gives a better change at LIS. Well, if we're not going anywhere, I might as well :P) Because of all this, I didn't get a chance to see how the work on the eastbound platform is progressing, but it still looked pretty forlorn the last time I passed through BUH. The westbound platform is actually quite a nice place to be, though - although I still say it could do with a lick of paint. BUH actually has the same colour scheme as LEY - white poles with green and orange ornamentation. As I say, though, it's looking a bit worn out at BUH :P The station building, though, is really wonderful:

Buckhurst Hill's really lovely station building. (Image courtesy "Sunil060902" (via Wikipedia))

And, I must say, the bridge over the track, which connects the platforms, does give very nice views.

We were soon rolling and after that little excursion, and the chance to enjoy the views between BUH and WOO junction that I don't usually get to see, it was all rather smooth and uneventful. I reached LIS by 09:35 - nearly tripped on the escalator, mind, but did manage to stay on my feet :P - and was just about able to make another train I thought I'd miss (semi-fast Harrow-on-the-Hill.) We passed an out of service S stock near King's X, but that was really the only thing to mention. In the end, I wasn't late for class :)

There were fun and games aplenty on the way back. After a long day, I finally reached Euston Sq. station at around 17:10/17:15. After a small 2 minute wait, I boarded an Aldgate train and that got me as far as Farringdon very nicely and rather swiftly for the time of night. We were slow into Barbican, however, and had a short wait at Barbican, during which the S stock's doors closed automatically (to help regulate the temperature) and passenger door operation was automatically enabled as well. Very soon after this, the T/Op came over the PA and was halfway through telling us he was waiting for a green signal, when the stick cleared. He cut off his PA, closed up and set about trying to move off. The train, however, had other ideas and we rolled-back very slightly, before the brakes were applied and we got on our way. We made it to LIS without further incident.

When I arrived on the eastbound Central line platform at LIS, an EPP train was just pulling in, with a WOO via HAI due behind it. I chose to take the EPP and change at LES. As we were heading into MIE we braked hard and I mean hard. I thought the emergency brakes might have been applied and was wondering if we'd been brought to a halt short for some reason. As it happened, however, we had apparently reached the stopping mark and, after a very short wait, the doors opened.

Now I really am no expert and some might be frustrated even at the following speculation but auto has a fairly distinctive driving style - if you can call it that. Auto will drive a train at full speed, until the very last point it's safe to do so. It will then slow, or stop, fairly quickly. In other words, auto's quite aggressive. It is my understanding that the 1992 stock does have a coasting feature, which can be turned on by Wood Lane if the service isn't in tip top health, but it rarely is from what I've heard. Even so, you won't really see auto coasting up to a red signal (or a block marker board at the start of a section transmitting a stop code) hoping it'll clear before the train gets there. This is something human drivers generally do - it gives a smoother, easier stop, means less stop-starting and is safer, more defensive driving - as there's less chance of the train passing the signal at danger. However, it's obviously not making the fullest possible use of the capacity. Central line ATO likes to drive as fast as it can for as long as it can. So, you also won't tend to see auto gradually stepping the power up, for instance. In general, it doesn't offer such a smooth stop, either, but (as long as there are no low adhesion areas) will tend to stop fairly consistently and with a fairly constant level of braking, from what I've experienced in general. Obviously, if the track is wet or slippery in any way, it will make a complete hash of things; but, the rest of the time, you don't tend to get, say, a heavy brake application and then perhaps an easing off on the brakes and then a bit more hard braking - for example.

Now, anyway, the point of that is I began to suspect, quite quickly, that we may have been in Coded. I am but a mere commuter and certainly wasn't in the cab so in some ways it's a little naughty of me to speculate, but that's certainly how it felt after MIE. Before MIE, everything felt pretty normal, but perhaps the unusually hard stop at MIE could be put down to the T/Op being a little caught out, since trains aren't usually driven manually 'downstairs'. In fact, I understand that on Sundays you're meant/allowed to go coded east of LES (I do think that includes the tunnel between LES and NEP) and west of WHC. The rest of the time, you're allowed to go coded in those areas as long as you don't hold the service up (although that may not be allowed during the peaks?), but you really should be in auto in 'the pipe' unless you have a problem, or you're training. If there's a problem which requires it, then you can go through the pipe in coded.

Why, then, am I so sure (well, I'm not actually 'so sure', but I do have a strong suspicion) we were in coded? Well, certainly the journey after MIE felt a little different - just the driving style: the way power was being applied - as if in response to changes of target speed - the stopping - it felt different. I certainly don't want to come across as if I'm assuming that because we braked hard at MIE, it must have been a human on the handle. On the contrary, I prefer humans on the handle, but if you haven't been through the pipe in coded for a while, it's easy to see how you might be a little rusty. That extremely minor irregularity, though, could have been caused by anything. But it was of note in itself and it was the reason why I started paying a little more attention and noticed the driving style felt different.

The main reason, though, is the implementation of ATP (Automatic Train Protection - the system that looks after the train and makes sure the target speed isn't exceeded (or, in general, an automatic system for ensuring that trains do not pass signals at danger or exceed temporary or permanent speed restrictions)) on the Central line and its 1992 stock trains. When the train is being driven in Coded, three audible chimes - rising in pitch - will sound when the target speed increases and three chimes - falling in pitch - will sound when it decreases. I am under the impression that the chimes don't sound when the train's in auto (why would they? I bet that would be unbelievably irritating if they did :P but perhaps they do?) I'm fairly sure I heard these chimes over the PA at LEY and that sealed the deal for me.

Anyway, however we got there, we got to LES (and it was a very nice stop at LES, too, whether man or machine made it - smooth on the way in, too, I must say). I left the EPP train and did happen to notice that the doors began closing ever so slightly before the signal cleared, which is another reason for my suspicions (I assume the target speed could have changed before the signal visibly cleared, or maybe the countdown clock simply finished and the T/Op closed up immediately, I don't know). Well, whatever, I got aboard the WOO via HAI, which I think was being driven in Auto. We made it to HAI in good time, had a predictably long wait at both HAI and GRH, and eventually reached ROV.

It was such a nice journey, too - the sky as we came out of the tunnel on the eastbound heading towards LEY was just beautiful as the sun was setting :)