European Railroad Discussion > London commuter trains delayed by sunny weather...huh?

Good weather delaying trains??

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/road-and-rail-transport/12094681/Rail-commuters-suffer-major-delays-as-weather-too-sunny-for-Southeastern-train-drivers.html



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/16 05:47 by JPB.

I am afraid this is a typical Daily Telegraph knocking story in which almost every "fact" is highly selected if not downright wrong. It is interesting that in spite of privatisation almost twenty years ago the UK Government has not succeded in removing the railways from top of the list of services that get criticised by the right-wing press.

Note the details of  the story seem to be based on an apology made regarding a single incident, and that the screens inquestion were all introduced as labour-saving device to facilitate one-man operation of trains. There was also a famous serious accident over ten years ago outside Paddington when a departing commuter dmu hit an incoming high speed train head on because the driver couldn't see the signal on account of low sun.

Finally the Telegraph digging up the wrong kind of snow story from 25 years ago is outrageous - the issue related only to the then new class 319 electric units whose traction motors were badly affected by unusually fine dry powder snow which passed through filters. I don't thinl we've had any of that since!

The moral is just don't believe what you read in newspapers, especialy when it's about the railways!

PS I speak from experience. After 10 years in the public transport business, and 35 years as a doctor, I have yet to see any journalistic coverage of a subject with which I am familiar that doesn't have at least one basic and important fact wrong. Opinions are one thing- we all have those, and no one has a monopoly in correctness, but facts are another matter. My concern is that they are adjusted to justify the opinion, rather than the other way round.

However, I suppose we're all human!
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/16 15:52 by spflow.

I think that the mistake here was the way it was described...They probably should have described it as 'signal issues' or something like that and not mentioned the sunlight. We do have regular occurrences of sunlight obscuring signals, although the signaling engineers try to avoid it. I seem to remember that when the Shard was built the reflection caused problems going into London Bridge.

marku51 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think that the mistake here was the way it was
> described...They probably should have described it
> as 'signal issues' or something like that and not
> mentioned the sunlight.

I agree, however does this mean that rail operators have to double guess the media in misrepresenting facts? At least the original Southeastern Trains comment was an honest attempt to explain a problem, which then got twisted and magnified by a powerful newspaper.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/14/16 15:12 by spflow.

As usual when it comes to the Telegraph the reporting is rubbish. A few trains were delayed because a mirror placed opposite the cab on one of the platforms at Lewisham, which drivers use to check the train before closing the doors, was unusable because of the reflection of the low winter sun. The driver just had to get out of the cab, check, get back in and close the doors. An added delay of half a minute. In other words a non-story.

86235 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> As usual when it comes to the Telegraph the
> reporting is rubbish. A few trains were delayed
> because a mirror placed opposite the cab on one of
> the platforms at Lewisham, which drivers use to
> check the train before closing the doors, was
> unusable because of the reflection of the low
> winter sun. The driver just had to get out of the
> cab, check, get back in and close the doors. An
> added delay of half a minute. In other words a
> non-story.

Harsh commentary! As an American, I find that Telegraph has the best "Top Gear" front page coverage of any newspaper:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/12105483/New-Top-Gear-presenter-Chris-Evans-suffers-from-car-sickness.html

This is need to know stuff!   ;-)

 

JPB Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> Harsh commentary! As an American, I find that
> Telegraph has the best "Top Gear" front page
> coverage of any newspaper:
>
> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/1210
> 5483/New-Top-Gear-presenter-Chris-Evans-suffers-fr
> om-car-sickness.html
>
> This is need to know stuff!   ;-)
>
>  
It certainly is, and with stories of this importance one needs to be really sure all the facts are absolutely bang-on true!

Is this the passenger board? Sounds like the non story crap that goes on there.

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