Petone Crossover

Petone - Reversing EMUs

On Saturday 11th of February 2006 there was a Block of Line between Wellington and Petone. From 5am to 10pm buses replaced trains between these stations. The Petone signal box was switched in for the day. Passengers for the north boarded their train at the Petone down platform. The EMU then reversed on the crossover and proceeded to Upper Hutt, without stopping at the up platform.

The Block of Line allowed sleeper laying at Wellington and the installation of LED heads on signals on the Up Main. It is unusual for this work to be done on a Saturday rather than a Sunday.

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Reversing EMUs Comments Photographs

Rerversing EMUs at Petone

Petone signal box was switched in for the day. EMUs from Upper Hutt stopped at the down platform and passengers for Wellington transferred to buses. When the buses from Wellington arrived passengers boarded the EMU at the down platform. The EMU passed signal 67 at stop (on verbal authority from the signalman) and stopped just south of 38 points, which were then reversed. Signal 8 was cleared and the EMU crossed over to the Up Main and proceeded north, stopping briefly at the up platform if any passengers were waiting.

I do not know why trains were verballed past 67 signal - down platform to up platform is a signalled move. The procedure observed on another occasion was to clear 67 signal as soon as the down train arrived; the train moved forward; 38 points were reversed and signal 8 cleared. The train waited for departure time at the up platform. Passengers were not carried on the shunt move.

Signals 6 & 10 and 74 & 67 must be at Stop and the sections between these pairs of signals must be unoccupied to get the "Free" light on 38 points.

Comments

Petone - Upper Hutt Trains Three required trains in theory, but this leaves no slack, so four used in practice.

Consider also Waterloo - Upper Hutt when Waterloo - Wellington is blocked. In theory just two trains are required. In practice three are used. If only two are used, then the set arriving at Waterloo at xx.25 is also suposed to leave there at the same time. To allow time for the relay move to Woburn an extra will be in the loop. It will have a 30 minute layover, but by the time the passengers are transhipped and the relay made, that gets swallowed up.

Petone - Wellington Buses Three sets of buses are used. During the day each "set" will be two buses, but early on and after dark only one bus for each service.

Delays are almost unavavoidable when buses have replaced trains. It takes time to tranship the passengers and there is time lost calling at other stations along the route. It is not quite as bad from Petone to Wellington, where the only stations are Ngauranga and Kaiwharawhara. Experience has taught that some slack must be provided otherwise one delay will compound all the day.

1981 NZR Procedures The 1981 New Zealand Railways document Duties of Guards, Assistants and Special Temporary Assistants On Trains includes instructions for bus replacements.

Photographs

Some of these photographs were taken through two panes of dirty glass.

Click on an thumbnail for a full size image.....

A down EMU passes under the Korokoro overbridge on arrival at Petone. Signal 14 is in the foreground.	Down EMU arrives at the Down platform. Note the Memorial flagpole. The suburban siding and Petone yard are now a car park.	Plaque at base of memorial flagpole. (Photo taken in 2004).	Passengers transfer to buses for the remainder of their journey to Wellington.
Rail Replacement buses park in front of the re-built station building. The Jackson St - Hutt Rd intersection is in the background.	The front of the station building, looking down the Hutt Road toward Wellington. The buses have departed.	Two foundation stones are mounted inside the new station building. One was mounted on the original 1904 building; the other records the opening of the new building in 2004.	EMU waits at the Down platform for the buses from Wellington to arrive. Note the person in the hi-viz jacket installing mounts for conditional stop boards.
The buses have arrived, passengers have boarded, and the EMU is about to pass Stop & Stay signal 67 at Stop (the A-light is not illuminated).	EMU passes the Petone Signal Box, which is switched in for the day.	Part of the diagram in the Petone Signal Box. Note that Petone once had a much larger interlocking. (Photo taken in 2004).	View from rear of train as we round the curve south of the station. Signal 67 Down Platform Starting from Down Main has been passed at stop.
38 cross-over. Signal 8 is in the foreground.	38 points on the Down Main have been reversed and signal 8 cleared.	Photograph taken from what is now the front of the train, as we cross over to the Up Main.	Approaching Petone Signal Box, with the site of the old Petone yard on the left.
EMU returns on the Up Main.	No passengers are waiting on the Up platform and signal 14 Up Starting from Up Main is cleared, so we proceed without stopping.	EMU departs for Upper Hutt.	Typical signage. Photographed at Taita on 15th January 2006, when there was a Block of Line between Taita and Upper Hutt.

Last Updated: Sun Nov 25 09:38:11 NZDT 2007