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The Railways

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toilets on UK trains


In UK trains built before 1980, ‘direct discharge technology’ was used for the toilets – basically they emptied straight onto the track, with the aid of water flushed from a tank. That changed in 1981 when the first train carriages with retention tanks were supplied. Yet it wasn’t until 1996 that all new rolling stock was fitted with tanks for effluent retention. And in 2018 10% of Britain’s train carriages were still disposing toilet waste straight onto the railway tracks.:oops::eek:
 
mw0njm. said:
View attachment 190222
toilets on UK trains


In UK trains built before 1980, ‘direct discharge technology’ was used for the toilets – basically they emptied straight onto the track, with the aid of water flushed from a tank. That changed in 1981 when the first train carriages with retention tanks were supplied. Yet it wasn’t until 1996 that all new rolling stock was fitted with tanks for effluent retention. And in 2018 10% of Britain’s train carriages were still disposing toilet waste straight onto the railway tracks.:oops::eek:
Click to expand...
I remember those signs........It's hard to believe that retention tanks were not made mandatory much earlier! :-(
 
Cross City Line passengers in Birmingham are travelling on a new fleet of trains from today (Monday 15 April).The Class 730s will run in pairs, with every train having six carriages and being capable of carrying more than a thousand passengers.

WMR Class 730 at Aston station 2024
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West Midlands Railway Class 730 train. // Credit: West Midlands Railway
 
I think it was the signal box that controlled the (then extensive) carriage sidings in and around Vauxhall and Duddeston Station - but not 100% sure! Use for shunting purposes only - not for actual trains.
Note - most of the track for these either side of the station is still extant under the trees and undergrowth.
 
Mark Tooze said:
I think it was the signal box that controlled the (then extensive) carriage sidings in and around Vauxhall and Duddeston Station - but not 100% sure! Use for shunting purposes only - not for actual trains.
Note - most of the track for these either side of the station is still extant under the trees and undergrowth.
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Thanks Mark. I know the route fairly well and do look at all the old track etc. There was a big goods yard in Erdington too.
 
There was a fatality in 1935 at Duddeston and Vauxhall LMS Station, when the Supervisor was knocked down by a light shunting engine.
 
Aston Signalling Centre/Vauxhall Shunt Frame opened in 1957 as Vauxhall (prefix VL) with a 100 lever mechanical frame. The box is a British Rail London Midland Region design, 'Type 15' (size number 12). Type 15 signal boxes were designed to be modular so that structures of various sizes could be built. Similar Type 15 signal boxes also opened in 1957 at Chapel-en-le-Frith, Deansgate Junction & Wigton.

(The Branch Line Society)
www.branchline.uk/fixture-report.php?id=379
 
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