#RailNatter

#RailNatter Episode 166: Two half-forgotten but important railway crashes from the 1980s

This week we are looking at two rail crashes, one at Pitlochry in Scotland and another at Pershore in Worcestershire, that took place in the 1980s.
Thankfully, neither involved serious injuries, but both incidents can teach us a few things, despite having been mostly forgotten... Including the unforeseen side-effects of introducing new bits into dynamic engineering systems like railways.
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#RailNatter Episode 165: What really happened when the Tesco tunnel collapsed?

This week's #RailNatter is a return to Gerrards Cross and all the shenanigans that led a tunnel with a Tesco on it to collapse onto a live railway...
Why did the HSE not publish their original report? Well, thanks to an intrepid fan of the show, we've finally got hold of it! We'll be lawyering up as we flick through the pages of the draft report and stare in horror and the engineering negligence that nearly led to a multi-fatality rail disaster.
Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at https://patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via https://paypal.me/garethdennis. Merch at https://garethdennis.co.uk/merch. Join in the discussion at https://garethdennis.co.uk/discord.

#RailNatter Episode 164: Should you go fast or slow over a collapsed rail bridge?

It's an age-old question... A rail bridge is out, only the rails are left, so do you take the train fast or slow over the bridge?
There's a lot to think about: gravity, dynamics, waves, stiffness, materials, energy, vibrations... All combine to give us the answer. But what is it? It's slow - you obviously drive slowly over the dang bridge! Anyway, hopefully this will explain why!
Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at https://patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via https://paypal.me/garethdennis. Merch at https://garethdennis.co.uk/merch. Join in the discussion at https://garethdennis.co.uk/discord.

#RailNatter Episode 163: Just how much more public transport does the UK need?

Last week, the TUC published their report "Public transport fit for the climate emergency" and, in classic #RailNatter style, we are going to sift through it page by page!
Having only really flicked through it up to this point, this report appears to dig deeper into my "rail capacity needs to double by 2050" figure and comes out showing this looks to actually be an underestimate. Union researchers are pretty rigorous, and so I'm keen to see what they've found...
Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at https://patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via https://paypal.me/garethdennis. Merch at https://garethdennis.co.uk/merch. Join in the discussion at https://garethdennis.co.uk/discord.

#RailNatter Episode 162: Using weird transport systems to break the #NotAMetro sorter

It's another #NotAMetro episode! This time, though, we are diving into the strangest transport systems to see if we can break the #NotAMetro sorter...
Intensive bus services, monorails, airport doodads, all welcome! Throw your most bonkers urban transit solution at me, LIVE!
Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at https://patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via https://paypal.me/garethdennis. Merch at https://garethdennis.co.uk/merch. Join in the discussion at https://garethdennis.co.uk/discord.

#RailNatter Episode 161: The Five Ways That High Speed 2 Should Have Been Better

As one of the UK's most prominent pro-HS2 voices, you might be under the impression that I think the proposals (the pre-Integrated Rail Plan ones, anyway) are flawless and couldn't be improved upon... Well, that couldn't be further from the truth.
But what are the five most significant design shortcomings of High Speed 2, as I see it? You'll have to join LIVE to find out!
Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at https://patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via https://paypal.me/garethdennis. Merch at https://garethdennis.co.uk/merch. Join in the discussion at https://garethdennis.co.uk/discord.

#RailNatter Episode 160: Reshaping At 60, and Beeching’s Real Legacy

Last week was the sixtieth anniversary of the release of The Reshaping of British Railways, and everyone was talking about it... I had to dig deeper into the legacy of this document, and of its author, for a piece in RAIL, and in doing so I had a chance to further re-evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of Dr Beeching's proposals...
Yes, it's our third Beeching episode! Join LIVE to get involved in the fun.
Read my full piece here: https://garethdennis.medium.com/the-r...
Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at https://patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via https://paypal.me/garethdennis. Merch at https://garethdennis.co.uk/merch. Join in the discussion at https://garethdennis.co.uk/discord.

#RailNatter Episode 159: Why Britain’s railway headquarters WON’T be in Derby

It's a news episode! We're headlining with talking about the Great British Railways HQ announcement - apparently, they will be basing 100 roles (?) in Derby, probably (and rightly) in the old Railway Technical Centre.
They can plonk a flag in Derby, but while the industry is in the shape it currently is, the headquarters will never actually be in Derby... Join LIVE to hash this one out!
Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at https://patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via https://paypal.me/garethdennis. Join in the discussion at https://garethdennis.co.uk/discord.