Wonderful historical film - so much of that isn't there, though happily of course, EWR has improved the Claydon => Oxford bit massively. Funny to see Didcot power station again - how quickly I'd forgotten that old monstrosity! Thanks for posting this film - really enjoyed it 👍

Interesting trip. How long ago was it filmed? Bicester Town station from other images I've seen appears to have been rebuilt.

Great video, a lot has changed since then. Can you tell me which 121 unit it was please? Thanks.

Lovely little journey down a single track line that was once a main line and is now a main line again. Tried to date it. Bicester Village outlet was new so I guess 1995

I watched the video Aylesbury to the beginning of this video, fascinating to see what was unless it still exists

good vid ,i worked on the p way late 70,s i walked the track from launton back to oxford once a week checking the track etc, now they use trains!

Such a long line with no passing places. Imagine being stuck at oxford waiting for your train to bicester and being told you have to wait for 30 mins due to a freight train. Looks like the bridges etc were designed for double tracks but i guess this line like so many others was a victim of british rails stupidity in the early 80s. Now its costing a small fortune to redouble all those lines.

Does this line still survive ore has it been ripped out to make way for HS2 as well? ,

@gerrynewnham9932

4 ай бұрын

It not only survives but is being upgraded as part of East/West rail to create a new cross-country service between Oxford and Milton Keynes. HS2 has created a new trackbed where the line crosses HS2. Win/win!

@joginns778

4 ай бұрын

@@gerrynewnham9932 that's brilliant to hear, it's just a shame that the Aylesbury section isn't going back in as the government won't finance that line even though HS 2 has widened the track bed at Verney junction by twenty metres soes the track will one day go to Aylesbury,

Good video; but driver operator level crossings are the most stupid unsafe practices on the railway. Supposing a driver misses pulling the cord and goes over crossing open for traffic? It doesn’t bear thinking about!

@chrsrwlns

4 ай бұрын

I have disagree with you on that. the more simple the operation, the less that can go wrong. With the modern all singing all dancing crossing controls, lots of things can go wrong. There could be a power cut, a broken wire, bad communications, but with this driver operated system, hardly anything can go wrong. The driver will know the track backwards, literally, and every crossing. There is a huge sign saying "STOP" before the crossing, and the driver can watch the barriers come down before he sets off again. Also, they must be 100% safer than those totally open crossings with only lights to warn car drivers.

@nigelkthomas9501

4 ай бұрын

@@chrsrwlns So… Level crossings on the ECML should be driver operated should they? Drivers of Class 91s and Azumas should stop pull a cord and then accelerate back to 125mph? Pfff! I don’t think so! The stop and pull a cord system is absolute lunacy! It’s also highly inconvenient, time consuming and completely unnecessary. There’s one like that on the Tarka line at Eggesford. It’s like you have to stop twice at the same station within a couple of hundred yards. 😖

@chrsrwlns

4 ай бұрын

@@nigelkthomas9501 Don't talk daft. I was referring, as anybody should be able to work out, to this single track line in particular, but also others like it around the country. Of course I'm not thinking about mainline trains, and I'm sure nobody else thought I was, but these little railways have far more time for their journeys, and travel far slower along the track, so can stop quicker and have the time to make sure all is well before continuing on their journey.

@nigelkthomas9501

4 ай бұрын

@@chrsrwlns If you say so.

@LUAu101

3 ай бұрын

So if you watch at 10:40 we pass over an AWS magnet which draws our attention to the level crossing warning board passed at 10:58. This is our warning to be ready to stop at the stop board we do indeed stop at and it tells us exactly what to do "STOP - OPERATE BARRIERS AND OBTAIN WHITE LIGHT BEFORE PROCEEDING". The stop board means the same as a red signal and passing it without complying with the instructions is a Signal Passed At Danger (SPAD). So what would happen if a train SPADed the stop board? Well exactly what would happen if the train passed the signal protecting dozens, hundreds of other level crossings. SPADs are bad, but a TMO crossing doesn't really make them any worse. There are loads of examples of level crossings where the protecting signals are close to the crossing and there is no requirement whatsoever to lower the barriers before the train approaches the signal if that signal is protecting the crossing. You can absolutely have trains approaching signals close to the crossing with the barriers in the air in many places. And if a train SPADs what will often happen is occupation of a track circuit will cause the red road lights to illuminate automatically, and that protection might have been provided at the TMO crossings in this video as there were track circuits over the crossings, but you know as always you probably wouldn't have had that kind of protection at low risk locations in the past and it may or may not have been added in the meantime. But that goes for other types of crossings everywhere. The only real difference at level crossings controlled by the signaller is somebody may have time to go and start the lowering sequence but if the signal is close to the crossing it's not very likely. Still, you're right, it is better if the lowering sequence can be initiated in the event of a SPAD and if the protecting signal is a good distance away and fitted with TPWS that is all SAFER. But the most stupid unsafe practices on the railway? Keep your hair on mate. They're only ever used on low-speed, low-density lines anyway. The main problem is they're not very efficient.