London Tramways - London Tramways - Permanent Way Incidents

Permanent Way Incidents

Reports - 1 - 50, 51 - 99, 100 - 150, 151 - 199, 200 - 249, 250 - 284,

200. On the 4th September 1950 at 3.27pm a delay of 10 minutes at the crossover Grove Park Terminus when the front bogie of Tramcar No. 1089 was derailed. On examination of the point mechanism it was found that the switch spring was weak and did not allow switches to go completely over to cover the straight road. A new spring was fitted by The Point Adjusters shortly after the occurrence.

201. On the 11th September 1950 at 7.6am a delay of 19 minutes occurred at the junction of London Road and Westminster Bridge Road when the plough Carrier of Tramcar No. 591 was broken. On examination of The Special Work Castings it was found that movement was taking place and allowing the casting to be out of alignment when Tramcars passed over. Permanent Way men were sent for and removed the paving and tightened castings during the morning of the 11th September.

202. On the 13th September 1950 at 8.40am a delay of 30 minutes occurred at the Dun Cow crossover Old Kent Road when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 332 was broken. On examination of the crossover it was found that three short tie-rods had broken and caused slot to be tight to gauge. Permanent Way Mobile Gang was transferred from other work and carried out repairs the same day.

203. On the 20th September 1950 at 10.35pm a delay of 40 minutes occurred to one Tramcar only at the junction of Effra Road and Brixton Road down track when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1353 was broken. On examination of the conduit it was found that the side bolts holding the centre slot point had slackened and one was protruding into the slot. Temporary repairs were carried out by the Breakdown Gang at the time and the bolts were renewed by a Permanent Way Gang the same night.

204. On the 30th September 1950 at 8.12am a delay of 12 minutes occurred at the turnout opposite Drummond Road Lower Road Bermondsey when the magnets were twisted and rear bogie of Tramcar No. 1624 was derailed. On examination of The Special work Castings it was found that the insert keys of the track over slot insert had slackened and allowed inserts to lift when Tramcar passed over. A temporary repair was carried out by Breakdown Gang at the time of the occurrence and the insert was re-set and new keys fitted by Permanent Way men during the morning of the 30th September.

205. On the 5th October 1950 at 11.30am a delay of 15 minutes to the up Tramway Service occurred in Brixton Road near Vassell Road due to Permanent Way operations. The Gang were cutting in a rail closure at the time of occurrence, the rail in the track was over cut and Tramcars were delayed until old rail replaced.

206. on the 15th October 1950 at 3.50pm a delay of 40 minutes to the down track recurred at Streatham Hill opposite Wavertree court when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 2156 was broken due to plough striking a slot rail joint which was slightly out of alignment. The Breakdown Gang made a temporary repair at the time of the occurrence and the Permanent Way Mobile Gang was transferred from other work and on removing the paving found that the tie-rod had broken allowing the slot rail joint to be out of alignment. A new tie-rod was fitted during the evening of the 15th October.

207. On the 18th October 1950 at 7.50am a delay of 15 minutes occurred on the curve from Nelson Street to Greenwich High Road due to Tramcar No. 90 being derailed. On examination of the track it was found that the rail had fractured at the juint and the broken piece lifted as the Tramcar passed over. A temporary repair by means of plating and welding was carried out shortly after the incident and a new curved rail was installed on the night of the 21st/22nd October.

208. On the 19th October 1950 at 12.30am a delay of 10 minutes occurred to one Tramcar only at Walworth Road opposite Manor Place when the plough carriers of Tramcars No. 1244 and 1662 were broken. Single line working was in operation at the time of the occurrence and on examination of the track it was found that the conduit slot rail joint was out of alignment for reverse running. The Permanent Way Mobile Gang were transferred from other work and removed paving and re-gauged slot rail during the early morning of the 20th October.

209. On the 22nd October 1950 at 11.20am a delay of 28 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at Greenwich High Road opposite No.176 when the rear magnets of Tramcar No. 1588 were torn off. On examination of the track it was found that a track rail had fractured at the joint and the broken piece lifted as Tramcar passed over and caught tinder rear magnet. A temporary repair by means of welding was carried out shortly after the incident and a rail closure installed on the 23rd of October.

210. On the 24th October 1950 at 11.11pm a delay of 18 minutes occurred at the turnout Jamaica Road by Drummond Road when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 575 was broken. On examination of the track it was found that the track over slot insert had fractured and the broken piece moved forward into the conduit slot and obstructed the free passage of the plough. A temporary repair was carried out by the Breakdown Gang at the time of the occurrence and the insert was built up by means of welding during the night of 24th/25th October.

211. On the 26th October 1950 a delay of 8 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at 12.32pm when the plough of Tramcar No. 1936 left the carrier when turning from up track to down at Kennington Road crossover opposite Christchurch. On examination of the point mechanism it was found that the short connecting rod had broken and did not allow conduit slot slides to operate correctly when the points were set for the curved road. A new connecting rod was installed by The Point adjusters during the afternoon of the 26th October.

212. At 5.28am on the 27th October 1950 Tramcar No. 185 was derailed at the crossover south of Aldwych Station in the Kingsway Subway.

213. At 12.35pm on the 27th October 1950 Tramcar No. 119 of Camberwell Depot became derailed at the crossover south of Aldwych Station in The Kingsway Subway. This was the second derailment at this place on the 27th October.

214. On the 27 October 1950 a delay of 32 .minutes occurred in the Kingsway Subway at the crossover south of Aldwych Station when Tramcar No. 185 was derailed. On examination of the crossover it was found that the check rail on the curved road was partly worn, but had the been taken at the speed laid down the derailment would not have occurred. In order to prevent a further incident the check rail was renewed on the night of the 28th October.

215. On the 31st October 1950 at 10.23am a delay of 16 minutes occurred at the crossover Brixton Road near Brixton Station when the rear magnets of Tramcar No. 207 were twisted. On examination of the track it was found that the joint at the toe of joints had fractured and the broken piece lifted when the Tramcar passed over. A temporary repair by means of welding was carried out shortly after the occurrence and a rail closure installed on the night of the 31st/lst November.

216. On the 11th November 1950 a delay of 60 minutes occurred opposite Trolley Standard No.229 in Well Hall Road when the magnets of Tramcar No. 978 were twisted and the rear bogie derailed. On examination of the track it was found that the running rail had fractured at the joint and the broken piece lifted as the Tramcar passed over A temporary repair by means of plating and welding was carried out shortly after the occurrence and a rail closure was installed on the 13th November.

217. On the 16th November1950 at 5.l6pm a delay of 27 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at Jamaica Road Bermondsey when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 565 was broken. On examination of the track it was found that the joint of the conduit slot rail was slightly out of gauge. The Breakdown Gang made a temporary repair at the time of occurrence and the Permanent Way Mobile Gang were transferred from other work and removed the paving, renewed the tie-rod and re-gauged the slot, rail during the evening of the 16th November.

218. On the 30th November 1950 at 6.10am a delay of 6 minutes occurred at the run out road at New Cross Depot when the rear bogie of Tramcar No. 573 was derailed. On examination of the sharp curve it was found that the check rail was slightly low at a rail joint. The paving was removed and check rail lifted on the night of the 30th November.

219. On the 30th November 1950 at 11.25pm a delay of 15 minutes occurred at the junction of London Road, Blackfriars Road and Westminster Bridge Road when the plough carrier leg of Tramcar No. 1163 was broken. On exanimation of the track it was found that the Centre Slot joint was loose on the gusset post and moved when the points were pulled over for the curved road. The Mobile Gang were transferred from other work removed the paving and renewed the holding down bolts and side bolts on the night of the 30th November.

220. On the 4th December 1950 at 11.28pm a delay of 32 minutes to one Tramcar only occurred at Woolwich Church Street opposite Cawoods Goal Office when the magnets of Tramcar No. 1563 were torn off. On examination of the track it was found that the running rail had fractured through the fish plate holes and the broken piece lifted as the Tramcar passed over* The Night Gang working in Plumstead High Street were transferred to the site of the occurrence and cut off broken rail and installed rail closure on the night of the 4th/5th December.

The following 8 delays occurred owing to conduit slot rails becoming tight to gauge following the snow and heavy frosts. This slot rail trouble is due to the existence of much defective slot rail and is unavoidable unless extensive slot rail renewals are put in hand.

221 / 222 / 223. (1) On the 6th December 1950 at 3.55am a delay of 30 minutes occurred at the junction of London Road and Blackfriars Road when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1877 was broken.

(2) On the 6th December 1950 at 7.38am a delay of 62 minutes occurred at the centre of Vauxhall Bridge up track when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1827 was broken.

(3) 0n the 16th December 1950 at 9.12am a delay of 30 minutes occurred at Newington Causeway opposite The Alfreds Head Public House when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1844, was broken.

(4) On the 16th December 1950 at 8.30am a delay of 10 minutes at Tooting Broadway when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 184-6 was broken.

(5) On the 16th December 1950 at 5.30am a delay of 10minutes to the Tramway Services at Lewisham High Street opposite The Salisbury Public House when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1896 was broken and plough jammed in slot.

(6) On the 16th December 1950 at Catford Road opposite Lewisham Town Hall the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1530 was broken.

(7) On the 16th December 1950 at 9.26pm a delay of 25 minutes at South Street Greenwich near Blackheath Road when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 134 was broken.

(8) On the 16th December 1950 at 8.5am a delay of 34 minutes at Lee High Road by Glenton Road up track occurred when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1961 was broken.

In each of the above 8 occurrences Permanent Way men were sent and removed the paving and re-gauged the slot rails. On inspection of the tracks during and following the snow falls and heavy frosts many other locations mainly on wood paved tracks were observed where the slot rails had closed in tight to gauge and were attended to by Permanent Way Staff.

224. On the 8th December 1950 at 7.50am a delay of 15 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at the junction of Brixton Road and Effra Road when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1369 was broken. On examination of the Special Work Castings forming the Diamond Crossing it was found that the intersection of the conduit slot was out of alignment. The Mobile Gang were transferred from other work and removed the paving renewed the holding down bolts and re-gauged castings during the morning of the 8th December.

225. On the 18th December 1950 at 1.2pm a delay occurred at the crossover opposite Tysoe Street Roseberry Avenue when the plough carrier of Tramcar No.2009? (2000?) was broken. On inspection of the track it was found that a plough hatch cover was loose in the frame and had moved forward into the conduit slot. A temporary repair was carried out by the Breakdown Gang at the time of the incident and Section Point Adjusters repacked the cover during the 18th December.

226. On the 18th December 1950 a delay of 80 minutes to one Tramcar only and no delay to the Services occurred at London Bridge Terminus when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 589 was broken due to striking a conduit slot rail joint which was out of alignment. The Mobile Gang were transferred from other work and removed the paving, renewed the tie-rod and re-gauged slot rail joint during the morning of the 18th December.

227. On the 20th December 1950 at 9.15am a delay of 10 minutes occurred at Upper Street Islington opposite Trolley Standard No.25 when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1947 was broken. On examination of the track it was found that a slot rail joint was out of alignment. Permanent Way men were sent for and removed paving renewed the tie-rod and re-gauged the slot rail during the morning of the 20th December.

228. 0n the 21st December 1950 at 8.17pm a delay of 15 minutes occurred at the crossover Church Street Camberwell opposite Wren Road owing to the pony wheels of Tramcar being derailed whilst Tramcar was turning from down to up tracks. On inspection of the crossover it was found that the Track over Slot insert was worn and allowed pony wheels to leave the track. The insert was built up by means of welding on the night of the 21st/22nd December.

229. On the 28th December 1950 at 2.14pm a delay of 36 minutes occurred to one Tramcar only at the Lay-by Stamford Street Blackfriars Road when the rear magnets of Tramcar No. 1037?(1087?) were twisted. On examination of the track it was found that owing to the Lay-by being seldom used the point was worn more on the straight than the curve and the rear magnet caught on the point tongue when entering the Lay-by. Repairs by means of grinding were carried out on the night of 29th/30th December.

230. On the 18th January 1951 a delay of 26 minutes occurred at the junction of Catford Road and Bromley Road when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1019 was broken due to striking an obstruction in the conduit slot. On examination of the conduit it was found that owing to the movement of Special Work Castings a yoke packing had moved forward into the conduit. The Breakdown Gang burned the packing away at the time of the occurrence and Permanent Way men were sent for and removed the paving renewed packing and tightened castings during the 13th January. The incident happened at 7.46am.

231. On the 20th January 1951 at 1.00pm a delay of 17 minutes occurred to the down Tramway Services at Nelson Street Greenwich when the rear magnets of Tramcar No. 1953 were twisted and rear bogie derailed due to 25ft of check rail splitting and lifting as the Tramcar passed over. The Breakdown Gang removed the check by oxyacetylene cutting and Permanent Way men were sent and removed the paving and installed false check plate during the afternoon of 20th January. The rails at this location are worn and scheduled for renewal during 1951.

232. On the 23rd January 1951 at 10.15am a delay of 60 minutes to one Tramcar only occurred at Catford Road near Canadian Avenue when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1624 was broken due to striking an obstruction in the conduit slot. On examination of the conduit it was found that the paving retaining plate and hanger were protruding into the conduit owing to the hanger bolt having broken. The obstruction was removed by the Breakdown Gang at the time of the occurrence and Permanent Way men were sent for and renewed the paving plate and hanger during the afternoon of 23rd January.

233. On the 1st February 1951 a delay of 8 minutes occurred at 11.15am at the crossover Harleyford Road near the Coach Station when the rear pony wheels of Tramcar No. 1601 were derailed when the Tramcar was turning from up to down track. On examination of the track it was found that the track over track crossing was worn more on the straight road than the curved road owing to the crossover being seldom used. A repair by Means of welding and grinding was carried on the night of 1st/2nd February.

234. On the 30th January 1951 at 12.37am a delay of 37 minutes occurred to the Night Tramcar at Queens Road Peckham opposite Montpelier Road up track when the rear magnets of Tramcar No. 157 were twisted and carrier broken. On examination of the track it was found that 9ins of running rail had fractured at the joint and the broken piece lifted when the Tramcar passed over. A temporary repair by means of plating and welding was carried out shortly after the occurrence and a rail closure installed during the morning of the 31st January.

235. On the 6th February 1951 at 11.5am a delay of 20 minutes occurrence at the crossover in Holloway Road near Trolley Standard No. 212 when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1944 was broken due to striking an obstruction in the conduit. On examination of the conduit it was found that the conduit slot slide had fractured and when the points were set for the curved road the broken piece remained under the cover leaving a blunt end for the plough to strike. A new point slide was fitted by Section Point Adjusters during the afternoon of 6th February.

236. On the 8th February 1951 at 9.47am a delay of 28 minutes occurred at St. Georges Circus opposite the Royal Eye Hospital when the plough of Tramcar No. 332 left the carrier. The plough taking the straight road and the Tramcar the curved Road. The point Adjusters were overhauling the points at the time of the occurrence and allowed the Tramcar to proceed with the conduit slot slide out of position.

237. On the 16th February 1951 at 10.46am a delay of 8 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services on the down track at Hermitage Bridge London Road Norbury owing to the Sand Van being derailed On examination of the track it was found that the track rail had fractured at the joint and the broken piece lifted as the Van passed over. A temporary by means of plating and welding was carried out shortly after the incident and a rail closure installed on the 17th February.

238. On the 16th February 1951 at 11.10pm a delay of 20 minutes to one Tramcar only occurred at the junction of St. Georges Road and Lambeth Road when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 146 was broken. On examination of the points it was found that the centre slot point was loose on the gusset post and in consequence held the conduit slot slides when the points were set for the curved road. The paving was removed and new holding down bolts installed on the night of the 16th/17th February.

239. On the 19th February 1951 at 2.15pm a delay of 8 minutes occurred at Somerset House crossover Victoria Embankment due to the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 577 being broken when the Tramcar was turning from up to down track. On examination of the points it was found that the tip of the conduit slot slide had broken and the plough struck the blunt end in 3 taking the curved road. A new conduit slot slide was installed by the Section Point Adjusters during the evening of the 19th February.

240. On the 4th March 1951 at 1.10am whilst Tramcar No. 2126 was shunting in the reverse direction at Brixton Hill the rear magnets were twisted. On inspection of the track it was found that the running rail had fractured at a tie-rod hole and the broken piece lifted as the car passed over. The night welder was transferred from other work and made a temporary repair by means of plating and welding and a rail closure was installed on the 5th March. There was no delay to Tramway Services owing to this incident.

241. On the 9th March 1951 at 9.20am a delay of 20 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at Theobalds Road when the rear magnets of Tramcar No. 1943 were twisted owing to the check rail breaking away and lifting as the car passed over. A repair by means of replacing the broken check rail with false check plate was carried out during the afternoon of the 9th March.

242. On the 16th March 1951 at 8.3am a delay of 18 minutes occurred to one Tramcar only at London Bridge Terminus when the rear bogie of Tramcar No. 840 was derailed. On examination of the Special Work Castings it was found that the track over track crossing was worn on the curved road. A repair by means of welding and grinding was carried out on the night of 16/17th March.

243. On the 21st March 1951 at 8.30am a delay of 37 minutes occurred to the down Tramway Services in Kennington Road by Fitzalan Street when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1986 was broken. On examination of the track it was found that the running rail had fractured through at a tie-bar hole and the broken piece lifted as the Tramcar passed over. A temporary repair by means of plating and welding was carried out shortly after the occurrence and a rail closure installed on the 22nd March.

244. On the 27th March 1951 at 2.36 pm a delay of 8 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at Well Hall Circle when the rear bogies of Tramcars No* 1493 and 2049 were derailed. Permanent Way Gang were renewing closures at the toe of points at the time of the occurrence and owing to the groove of the points being worn the gauge line of new rail was lined up the straight road and left the check of the new rail slightly out of alignment for the cars taking the* curved road; the pony wheels mounted the check and became derailed. The rails were re-gauged at the time of the occurrence by Permanent Way Gang.

245. On the 30th March 1951 at 12.29pm a delay of 23 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at the single to double turnout at Parkers Row Bermondsey owing to the rear bogie being derailed and the plough carrier broken of Tramcar No. 600. On inspection of the Special Work Castings it was found that the leg end of the curved wing had fractured and the broken piece lifted as the Tramcar passed over A temporary repair was carried out shortly after the occurrence by means of plating and welding. The castings forming this turnout are scheduled for renewal during 1951 and will be installed when delivered from the manufacturers.

246. On the 31st March 1951 at 11.21am a delay of 14 minutes occurred to the down track at Streatham Hill opposite Wavertree Court when one leg of the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 2120 was broken due to the head of the slot rail breaking away and lifting. On inspection of the slot rail it was found that it had fractured under the head and about 5ft was removed by the Breakdown Gang at the time of the occurrence. A temporary repair by means of fixing a board to the paving was carried out at the time of the incident and a slot rail closure was installed during the afternoon of the 31st March.

247. On the 4th April 1951 at 7.21 am a delay of 45 minutes occurred at The Elephant and Castle Headway when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 1919 was broken. On inspection of the Castings forming the Diamond Crossing it was found that the intersection of conduit slot was out of alignment. The Permanent Way Mobile Gang were transferred from other work and re-gauged and tightened The Special Work Castings during the morning of the 4th April.

243. On the 5th April 1951 at 7.55am a delay of 40 minutes occurred to the up Tramway Services at the junction of Shardeloes Road and Lewisham Way when the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 173 was broken due to plough striking a slot rail joint which was out of alignment. On removal of the paving it was found that the thread on the slot to yoke tie-rod had stripped and allowed slot rails to become out of alignment. A temporary repair was carried out by the Breakdown Gang at the time of the occurrence and a new tie-rod was installed and slot rails re-gauged by Permanent Way staff during the morning of the 5th April.

249. On the 11th April 1951 at 11.25am a delay of 18 minutes occurred to the Tramway Services at the single to double turnout at Jamaica Road Bermondsey owing to the plough carrier of Tramcar No. 572 being broken. On inspection of the track it was found that the joint in the conduit slot rail was out of alignment. When the paving was removed it revealed the yoke bolt had dropped into the conduit and the tie-rod nut had stripped the thread. A new tie-rod and yoke bolt was installed during the 11th April.

Reports - 1 - 50, 51 - 99, 100 - 150, 151 - 199, 200 - 249, 250 - 284,

London Tramway Notes
Search for Photographs