nice machine

[Stereophoney]

aw so the system thinks there's a train there and there isn't

Precisely

so what about rain or wet leaves?

Then you have the opposite problem, a train is not detected when it's actually there which is potentially very dangerous, the absence of a train frees the interlocking so another train could be signalled into section or points moved or whatever

That's why snow and leaves on the line causes so much of a problem

The leaves get ground into a kind of black paste which covers the head of the rail and is an absolute pig to get off, we use citrus juice on it

 

[madkayaker]

you would have thought that the planners of the system would take into account the UK weather

 

[Stereophoney]

to be honest the system we have now has been working pretty well for more than 60 years, some of it still original !!

 

[markjabber]

why is there a need to clean the ballast ? dose it it not do the same job wether its clean or dirty ?

Andy

Ballast deteriorates with time and moisture, it gets clogged up and its draining properties anre reduced making it turn to a sludge which voids the track when it dries out in summer, ballast has a life of 20-30 years