Cab ride - Finsbury Park to Willesden Low Level Via Primrose Hill

[@leighglendinning6263]

A brilliant ride over largely unseen tracks

[@oadLux]

I Love the way the track snakes through north London like that, and all the elevation changes, tunnels! Great video

[@Sean-D78]

I absolutely love the rail infrastructure in London, all the historic connections and mainlines that are still around even if they're no longer in public use is so fascinating

[@railwaychristina3192]

Should be brought back as an alternative north South route without having to use tube or horrible Euston...Hertford to the south coast via Willesden Junction to Clapham Junction, or Willesden to South Acton, Richmond and Clapham Junction...I understand Primrose Hill is to reopen.

[@ormondsworld3947]

@@railwaychristina3192 umm when was it said that Primrose Hill was going to be reopened? I’ll believe it when I see it.

[@iankemp73]

Brilliant. Brings back lots of memories. Lived in Lithos rd, Finchley Rd . Bottom of our garden was Finchley Rd and Frognal Station. Remember the Trains coming through with the Nuclear Waste Flasks . The whole house would shake. Fast forward moved to Kentish Town, Grafton Rd. From our kitchen window we could see the bridge the North London line took into Camden.. Seen all sorts. From Euro Star to steam specials go through. Good times.

[@slimchris113]

Shows why the Nightstar and HS1 - HS2 link failed to materialize

[@ffrancrogowski6263]

An amazing winding route. I wouldn't have known about these lines until this remarkable video. Many thanks, indeed!

[@johnboughton7451]

I’ve ridden this route before but your quality has no comparison whatsoever the best I’ve ever watched thank you for sharing I trust & hope there’s more to come

[@Wallsrail]

Yes more of the same to come, interspersed with mainly modelling videos. Check out the others in the Cab Ride playlist. Next one will be a Christmas Special 😜

[@bazza945]

That was the best lit railway video I've ever seen. Thank you for the perfect video. That sudden 'dive' down into the mouth of the Copenhagen tunnel was brilliant. You have an excellent cam and great presentation, thank you from NZ.

[@benshelton5230]

Loved the bit from Copenhagen Junction to Primrose Hill. Echoes of the old Broad Street to Watford Junction route.

[@wirksworthsrailway]

An excellent video, thank you! It’s fascinating seeing how the lines are threaded between Copenhagen Junction and Camden Road!

[@Mounhas]

Really fascinating, those tracks you see and wonder where they go…. Like all the foliage also.

[@thisisus.504]

Just amazing. It's great to be able to see things that only the drivers and that get to see! Love cab views.

[@alanmolyneux5957]

Excellent video. What an amazing maze of railways there are in the London area.

[@kevinwilliams1602]

Great run, long ago memories I used to make most of the journey way back around '69-'72

[@andrewduffin9216]

Glad you got a photo op at Primrose Hill. Was hoping for that when i saw you got the red.

[@opensesame525]

Fascinating to see tracks forward from WM801 at Primrose Hill OOU. Only ever seen videos that physically end there, so nice to see. That is one hell of a climb from the Ally Pally area to Copenhagen tunnels!!

[@Phil-oj5nr]

Oh! The vegetation! Very interesting route.

[@TheDaf95xf]

Good morning Mr train man 😀 That was a really good train ride showing the back lines that we don’t really see 👍🏻 I can remember standing on Finsbury Park station and trying my luck for a sneaky look round the depot without getting seen 🤣 Cheers Stevie 😎

[@HSTPaul]

This is a great video. And an unusual route for a cabride.

[@tantive4]

Thanks for uploading. Fascinating bit of line

[@iantaf5559]

Enjoyed that. Thanks for bringing some rarely seen track to us 👍

[@paulmark63]

Just seen your channel Brilliant a shame about Primrose Hill station I remember showing my age from the old Broad street station the B2 running to Watford junction via the Camden road curve well done Paul in Kent

[@pallelli3133]

It's like some archaeological dig through London ... by train. Great stuff.

[@TransportGeekery]

Excellent rare track bash! I read the description to see what equipment was being operated, but I need not have bothered: the buzzer was an instant giveaway. You can teach and old dog box new tricks!

[@nicholasglanfield9221]

Nice to see the roundhouse at primrose hill . Interesting route. Thanks.

[@Mounhas]

Yeah, saw that and wondered if it was THE roundhouse. 🙂

[@southumberland4126]

@@Mounhas It is

[@steveoneill3217]

Fantastic video, hope there is more to come..... Well done and thanks for posting.

[@Wallsrail]

There will be 👍 Interspersed between the more predominant modelling videos

[@dgattenb]

i love the garden effect on the railways :(:( mind you saying that , its an awsome video ....

[@Manorm2003]

Thanks for sharing, I was struggling with some of those single yellow aspects on the screen, was convinced you had SPADed a few !

[@ArthurRuminant-pn6mx]

You’d better go to Specsavers! (Other opticians are available)

[@earljohnson7102]

Love this video. It would be nice if Primrose Hill station could come back into use again. I used to travel on the line when the old Broad Street station was in use. You had the B2 Broad Street to Watford (via Primrose Hill), B3 Watford to Broad Street via Willesden Junction low level which was also a semi fast service and the B4 which was Broad Street to Richmond. I went to school in Stoke Newington and lived in Kensal Green for a short while. Grear video to watch. I always wanted to be a train driver.

[@Wallsrail]

There used to be some quite outrageous passenger workings to Broad Street! Wish I’d had the chance to do some as opposed to drooling over pictures in books. Maybe when I build my Time Machine 🤔😂

[@petersmith4058]

@@Wallsrail I used to travel to Broad Street from Potters Bar when trainspotting in London as an alternative to Kings X. Also to Moorgate which was another peak time destination. Broad Street to Richmond was also an interesting journey. What a shame Broad Street closed.

[@Wallsrail]

I would love to have been able to experience some of those services. In picture form they look down right outrageous. Class 20 and a rake of quad-arts 😮

[@rainbownines]

Love the sound of that engine, makes me nostalgic for days of yore on the Stour Town branch! Cracking vid, ta.

[@44662dc]

Absolutely briliant really enjoyed that .

[@bertspeggly4428]

A great ride, thanks. Pity half of it is in the dark! And it's nice to know what we are riding in. (14:40 Primrose Hill).

[@bradmason5064]

8:50 nice fart driver haha

[@dwdw90]

Please tell me I’m not the only one who scrolled back to 8.50

[@mrbluesky2050]

nice one, had to get my rail atlas out for some bits. loved it. many thanks.

[@mikechaplin2935]

We used to walk the South Hampstead DC tunnels when I was a tech at Euston. Never had to walk down the one from Primrose Hill though! As far as I was aware, at the time, it was OOU! Very old Bullhead Rail down there it seems! Very interesting! :) Walking them tunnels at night is spoooooky. Anyone seen the film Creep?!

[@bobmacdonald6183]

Loved this vid. So very back street feel about it. Love the headlights. My brother drove 37’s and 47’s always complained about the lights, another mate drove passenger units in the Welsh Valleys. Same complaint. Looking forward to more.

[@Geeves8612]

Can't be too many times a 153 has been on that magical mystery tour of N London 😂

[@Wallsrail]

Becoming a common feature to my work content

[@tilerman]

So many blocks of flats!

[@jasonl4411.]

I used to be a relief booking clerk in the Camden road area. I always wondered where the track went to at Caledonian road pway depot. Thanks for the video showing it

[@2010ditta]

Very enjoyable video. All those lines coming from everywhere. Because the train was going at walking pace, youhad more time to take everything in. All the best.

[@Albatross-365]

Done a few things like this in Train Sim. Great to see it done IRL

[@kevinrayner5812]

This reminds me of a journey I made from Watford Junction to Euston many years ago. After exiting Hampstead tunnel instead of veering right we headed left. What the !!!! where are we going. Then descended very slowly into another tunnel and what seemed like ages we emerged over on the right hand side of the approach to Euston after going under the canal. I believe it is called the rat hole. I don't suppose any of the regular commuters even noticed the unusual route.

[@Wallsrail]

Yes the rat hole! Only went down there once

[@izzieb]

I went via Primrose Hill once, however it was dark so there wasn't much to see 😅. Thank you for the video.

[@twyfordlion]

Fascinating video, thank you for uploading.

[@PeterHHodge]

I did a lot of that on a railtour with Clun Castle a while back, very interesting bit of line.

[@timparkin9805]

Great video over a very interesting route.

[@ace-paidinfull5240]

I actually thought you was gona go via upper holloway on that lil branch off curve near haringay, but then when i saw you get to FPK i realised you was going in the opposite direction lol Nice to the route go via the old primrose hill section because its so rare if when the LO diverts this way, i was on it once going to willesden junction, the good thing is either lines end up willesden👍🏽

[@jessicamorgan3073]

Thanks for posting this fab video.

[@fionakierton1231]

How you remember where to go and which tracks to follow 🤯 So many twists and turns. Wonderful

[@UKHeritageRailways]

The driver has no control over which tracks or route the train follows. The route is set up and controlled by the signaling staff at the signaling centre.

[@garyhardwick8489]

Looks like some very seldom used track given the condition of some of the rails. Interesting video.

[@highpath4776]

and the retaining wall etc brickwork

[@Bigbro28]

👍👍 from me. Full marks for a well produced video. 🇦🇺

[@ThamesShips]

Great video over some rarely seen tracks.

[@rsmith2312]

So much vegetation! So many weeds!

[@mrowl-the-dsm1304]

This is excellent, so interesting, top job 👌👍

[@sts8997]

Willesden Junction station has changed a lot since I last used it.

[@jappychap2003]

What a fascinating journey. Better done at a slow stagger. More chance to take in everything on view. Many bits that are never normally seen.

[@johnnybeverage]

Loads of positive comments here for a movement rarely seen by those not on the trains. I’d like to add my voice to them.

[@Wallsrail]

Thank you 🤩

[@1BCamden]

Not much left of Primrose Hill, sad, great footage though, thanks

[@Shelfandtabletoplayouts00gauge]

Bet you saw a few foxes at those hours Nigel? Super video, a bit eerie at certain points 👍

[@Wallsrail]

I've got another "London" video (not public, yet!). And there are 6 dead foxes in a stretch of about 5 miles! They seem pretty dumb in some area 😂.They are quite common in London. See dozens of them

[@Shelfandtabletoplayouts00gauge]

@ fascinating for us non drivers👍

[@apc108]

Interesting. From Queens Park you were actually on the Bakerloo line! I didn't realise it was shared track. I guess it goes up to Harrow and Wealdstone.

[@markcf83]

The Bakerloo line ran to Watford until the early 80s and they had a small depot near Croxley. Today it's northern terminal is at Harrow.

[@davidportch8837]

excellent

[@martynjohnson6274]

Brilliant

[@andrewsartorius7350]

Wow never been along them lines

[@BaltimoreAndOhioRR]

Good vid 🚋

[@115steve]

Is your inspection train for Network Rail to work out which weeds need to be cut first?

[@jgrussell1987]

great video, bet they dont see many 153s in London haha

[@jonhoward3899]

I thought exactly the same!

[@craigthomson3621]

Sometimes the Stratford to Richmond / Clapham Junction Overground trains are diverted after Camden Road onto the Primrose Hill tracks during engineering works. I have, therefore, rode the Camden Road to South Hampstead via Primrose Hill tracks a couple of times. Much confusion among passengers consulting the in-car line diagrams who were expecting to be at Kentish Town West but instead were at South Hampstead.

[@ormondsworld3947]

Same here, although it’s worth noting that they terminate at WJ low level as there’s no route towards Richmond or Clapham from the DC lines.

[@vinniesuperstar8923]

how long were you waiting at Primrose Hill for it to go dark like that?

[@Wallsrail]

About 50 minutes

[@fredphipps9452]

Great ride, some of these lines are very familiar but not from a cab

[@jackking5567]

I hadn't realised there were so many inclines in the capital.

[@keithsyers5833]

I did a few rosco moves from Ilford to Eastleigh there's so many duck and dives around London. How many have you done. And how long did it take just to do one job

[@kevinellis8869]

Really unusual to see something go into the bay at Willesden LL, did you go back out up to the North London line?

[@Wallsrail]

@@kevinellis8869 went back the same way as came in. By that time was quite dark so elected not to film the return.

[@anthonylloyd6094]

@@Wallsrail Lovely footage. Is this route available to the general public to travel along?

[@Wallsrail]

@@anthonylloyd6094 Mostly but not on a single trip. No service from ECML to Camden Road on the Kings Cross incline. And no services run Camden Road to South Hampstead via Primrose Hill, used to, but not anymore!

[@anthonylloyd6094]

@@Wallsrail I remember now, travelling from Willesden Junction to Camden Road due to engineering work.

[@nigel2093]

I've always wondered with runs like this, and diversions, about the drivers knowledge. Driver's who've got the route card for this route won't necessarily have signed the traction type i.e a 153, and vice versa. So do you have a driver signed off on the traction with a driver whose signed off the route in the cab to advise him?? Cracking video BTW

[@Wallsrail]

Just a small section of my sizeable route card. Quite rare to need more than one of on these jobs ATM. The programs aren’t fixed yet so most of the 153 VIU jobs are tailored to individual drivers route cards.

[@mikkie444]

In the film THE LADY KILLERS was MRS LOPSIDEDS house above COPENHAGEN TUNNEL?

[@Wallsrail]

Yes 👍 According to others that know about these things

[@ericthelan2188]

@@Wallsrail Certain shots put this above the tunnels as you mentioned, but other shots place it at the bend in Argyle St, you can see the spire of St Pancras station at the end of the road.

[@bobtudbury8505]

Excellent but such a slow line....it looks abandoned it parts lol but a great insight

[@darylslinn5704]

Superb video... how long was the actually stop at Primrose Hill ?

[@Wallsrail]

About 40 minutes

[@adrianbaron4994]

Seems to pass two separate red signals from about 3.20 onwards or am I missing something there?

[@Wallsrail]

Definitely changes to yellow

[@beeble2003]

Changes to yellow at 3:21, at the point where there's a cut in the video. You might not have noticed it because there's a change in the exposure and the yellow light is in the same place as the red one. If you can't see that the light is red at 3:20 and orange at 3:22, you might be slightly colourblind, or your display might have poor colour resolution.

[@andrewmurray5542]

03:27 I assumed that trains could only proceed when a signal was green. Can anyone explain the rules for me?

[@beeble2003]

Trains can proceed whenever the signal is not red. Yellow means "Go, but the next signal is red." On high-speed lines, double yellow means "Go, but the signal after the next one is red."

[@openbabel]

will all the Manchester new trains be built here ? Will the refurbished old trains now run in Birmingham or Liverpool? The increase in Labour costs for train driver make driverless trains cost-effective. Which lines will now be driverless, as with many European cities ? Queen Elizabeth line ?

[@Wallsrail]

I have no idea!

[@everythingmymixyt]

I want to ask a question are passengers allowed in the drivers cab to record

[@Wallsrail]

Not without asking for permission from the Company

[@Nxtz-h9f]

14:50 damn the whole sky changed, how long was you waiting at that signal for?😂

[@SirReginaldBlomfield1234]

Was thinking the exact same thing at the time.

[@Wallsrail]

About 50 minutes

[@steamixion]

I used to train spot from on the right at 15.28. in the fifties near a bomb shelter, You could say it has changed a bit.

[@davidpanton3192]

7:10 *The Ladykillers* territory.

[@gs425]

Was it really? Or are you guessing by the brick?

[@davidpanton3192]

@@gs425 Oh yes, filmed at north end of Copenhagen tunnel.

[@gs425]

@davidpanton3192 wow thanks for that. A great film

[@markcf83]

This'll be a lot of fun then......

[@SN06BNF]

14:07 What Station Was That And Why Was It Closed?

[@Wallsrail]

Primrose Hill Demise of the services started in 1986? When Broad Street closed. Closed in 1992 when the service from Watford Junction to somewhere along the north London Line ( Stratford? Liverpool St?) was withdrawn.

[@derekriley3945]

Who Controls the signalling for Finsbury Park, last time it was Kings Cross but i belive all is at York or Romford ROC

[@Wallsrail]

York ROC

[@bester36]

I'm curious, why did you wait for green signal. Can't you proceed on orange signal with reduced speed can you?

[@Wallsrail]

At what point? If where I stopped at a red then video edited to cut out the wait. Then often what happens is signal goes straight to green. Oh and they’re referred to as “yellow” unlike road traffic lights 👍

[@beeble2003]

@@Wallsrail I'm guessing at 10:32 where the signal turns yellow but you don't set off until 10:49. The signal turns green before you pass it.

[@Wallsrail]

@@beeble2003 Sometimes the signal that the train is stopped at clears and then momentarily later the next signal is also cleared meaning the first one goes green quite quick before I've had chance to move. It's not uncommon and happens frequently when being held in a loop for an express on the ECML. That train will be 3 signals infract before my wheels start turning.. If for some reason you haven't moved for say, after a couple of minutes. The signallers will notice and contact the train to find out why.

[@seyley2901]

Just an observation. But we all see loads of metal and concrete related materials strewn alongside the track. Can this material not be reused or given away to other industries?

[@Wallsrail]

Most of is known about and occasionally gets picked up and removed. Some of it is strategically placed for emergency repairs. A lot of it is over ordered off relaying jobs and is considered scrap and just left to rot. Too expensive to recover.

[@seyley2901]

@Wallsrail Thanks...

[@beeble2003]

@@Wallsrail A couple of years ago, I met a guy who runs a company that does AI processing of satellite photos. He'd done a quick guestimate of the scrap value of all the sections of spare rail around the network, and put a proposal to Network Rail to recover it all based on location information that he could generate. As you say, too expensive to recover: specifically the cost of closing the lines for long enough to pick the stuff up.

[@alanjpoole7274]

Why on earth don't they re-open Primrose Hill/Chalk Farm Station, espcialy as it goes right through, and even has to stop for signals.

[@minimaxi802]

This is the way from the Kings Cross line to the Euston line.

[@FILNAT2011]

How long before train sim will look this real

[@ryszardlorenc7047]

15.50 to 19.10 MUST be the most depressing lineside 'scenery' in the whole country ! Unless anyone knows differently ?

[@icespittingfire]

well, it's just a tunnel?

[@dazt5831]

wow that really is a very slow line, nice video though

[@kevinrayner5812]

I was wondering how the driver managed to stay awake. I did skip a few bits to speed it up. Why did the sign at Primrose Hill say AC trains Pans Down? If going down the DC line I suppose but why would an AC train go down the DC Line or is that to warn the driver of a dual voltage train.

[@JimConneely-mh3wp]

Worked on both lines

[@xoneqraft]

8:51 bruh

[@Wallsrail]

💨💩😂

[@aerialexplorer772]

4:29 half-built points.

[@leonperry123]

2x speed, that's better😂

[@kevinrayner5812]

How times have changed. Right at the start, 2 class 66s? On 5 tank wagons and another wagon. 860 hp per wagon. Two type ones would have been over kill. And if i used a Range Rover to pop down to Tesco to do the weekly shop it would be called excessive. I suppose that is all that is available these days.

[@ormondsworld3947]

They have to be top-and-tailed however I agree it makes no sense to use 2 heavy freight locos.

[@kevinrayner5812]

@@ormondsworld3947 Obviously no shortage of motive power on today's railways. Can you imagine in the days of steam top and tailing a 6 wagon train with two 9Fs. Do In assume that each of the diesel locos also has a driver so 2 drivers are needed or is the trailing loco dead.

[@beeble2003]

The train has to be top-and-tailed because there are often no run-arounds at termini any more. It's not economically viable to keep a fleet of special, low-powered locomotives for RHTT use, so they use what they have. And, yes, it's more polluting than running modern, lower-powered locos would be. The issue isn't you using a Range Rover to go to the shops: it's you and hundreds of thousands of other people doing it once a week for the whole year. That has much more impact than a few trains a day for a couple of months a year. And, also, note that those few trains per day facilitate the massive environmental benefit of millions of people using trains rather than cars.

[@beeble2003]

@@ormondsworld3947 "it makes no sense to use 2 heavy freight locos" What do you propose they use instead? "Heavy freight" is the only kind of freight there is on the railway, today. Are you proposing that they specially build a small number of low-powered locomotives that will run the RHTT trains in autumn and sit on their proverbial asses for the other ten months of each year? Or that they would retain old, unreliable locomotives that are probably more polluting than the pair of 66s they actually use? Or do you have something else in mind?

[@beeble2003]

@@kevinrayner5812 "Do In assume that each of the diesel locos also has a driver so 2 drivers are needed or is the trailing loco dead." The latter.

[@KITEFLYER50]

Great ride …was the slow speed just for the video or is the line speed slow ?

[@Wallsrail]

Line speed and following other trains! Could’ve done it in about 15 minutes if I had greens all the way 😜

[@tobyytlai]

6:53 That's steep

[@Wallsrail]

Yep, got stuck on it twice!! In two days 😂 Watch out for that tale to be told in the life on the rails series 😜

[@BillyNoMates1974]

12:42 - why does this train sound like it's possessed by demonic voices ?

[@Wallsrail]

On the phone to the signaller and edited the sound out