R A I L  T R A F F I C  C O N T R O L L E R   P A D D I N G T O N
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1.  INTRODUCTION

Paddington is the main London terminus of the Western Region of British Rail,
and in this simulation set in the modern HST dominated era of the mid 1980's
you are the duty traffic controller on a busy Saturday charged with the
responsibility of directing all movements in the station area.  Not an easy
task with holiday traffic to the West of England and specials to Newbury races
to contend with, over and above normal inter-city and suburban workings,
particularly as your every instruction is being monitored by Regional Control
at Swindon as part of an efficiency study.


2.  STATION LAYOUT AND OPERATION.

There are nine mainline platforms (P1 - P9), treated flexibly although the
normal practice is for West of England trains to use low numbered platforms,
Oxford line loco-hauled trains to use high numbered platforms, and HST's
shuttling to and from Swansea, Weston-super-Mare and Bristol to use the
platform in between.  To the north of P9 is a suburban platform complex (coded
SN) used exclusively by the regular interval diesel multiple unit service to
Slough and Reading.  There is a parcels platform to the south of the station
approaches (effectively an extension of P1) which on a Saturday morning is
occupied by unloading stock worked up from the South West overnight.  There are
two locomotive hold positions: Hold East (HE), a single locomotive headshunt
with access to and from P5-P9, and Hold West (HW), a set of storage lines
beyond Ranelagh Bridge with capacity for three locomotives.

The approach trackwork consists of three arrival lines.

UM   (Up main)     Used by all mainline service arrivals.  Once you receive
                   notification that the next arrival is passing Old Oak
                   Common, the working should be directed to a convenient empty
                   mainline platform.

UR   (Up relief)   Suburban DMU's are due at 13, 19, 43 and 49 minutes past the
                   hour, and on notification of approach should be directed to
                   the SN platform.

UC   (Up carriage) Empty coaching stock (ECS), light engine (LE) and empty
                   HST's from Old Oak arrive on the Up Carriage line.  Details
                   are given when a working has arrived at Westbourne Park and
                   is awaiting your instructions (Note that unlike main and
                   relief line arrivals there is no penalty for delaying this
                   traffic).  ECS and HST's can only be directed to an empty
                   platform.  LE's normally go direct to a waiting train, but
                   can use an empty platform as part of a shunt movement to HE
                   or HW.

Arrivals are set up on pre-determined routes through the layout, with a
northern arrivals ladder running diagonally from HW and UC across to P9, and
various southern ladders giving access to P1-P5.  There is a special suburban
ladder linking the relief lines and the SN platforms.  On arrival in a platform
there will be a delay before stock becomes available for further use, and in
the case of loco-hauled trains a departure engine cannot be attached until the
arriving locomotive is de-coupled.

There are also three departure lines, routes to which generally involve
designated departure ladders close to the platform ends.

DM   (Down Main)   To be used for as many mainline departures as possible,
                   although if you are pushed trains may also be despatched on
                   the down Relief line.

DR   (Down Relief) Used by all suburban DMU departures (scheduled at 01, 05, 31
                   and 35 minutes past each hour, but obviously dependent on
                   the corresponding incoming working having arrived).  The
                   line may also be used for ECS/LE movements from the
                   platforms to Old Oak Common particularly to remove stock
                   from P1-P5.

D2 (Down Relief 2) The preferred route for ECS/LE movements to Old Oak Common
                   from P6-P9.

3.  THE TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM

An overview of the traffic situation is given on two display screens of your
control console (with the Z key used to switch from one to the other).  On the
first you are informed of pending arrivals and all movements over the approach
trackwork, whilst on the second there is a scrolling list of mainline
departures and details are given of the occupancy of the platforms and
locomotive hold positions.  Information about suburban traffic is given at the
bottom of the first display, with arrival data given priority (next suburban
departure information being available in the SN platform detail on the second
screen).
Movements are initiated on the first screen by pressing the SPACE BAR, and in
response to prompts setting a route by entering the appropriate abbreviations
of the input and exit points on the simplified mimic trackplan.  The three
general rules are:-
1) Once a route is set it will remain set until the movement occurs, and if a
   locomotive is put on a train it must depart with that train.
2) Routes for arrivals from the UM or UR lines can only be set once you have
   been informed that the train concerned is passing Old Oak Common.  Failure
   to set a route within about three minutes will result in the arrival being
   held at Westbourne Park signals.
3) Routes for public departures can be set up to five minutes beforehand, but
   the movement will not occur until the advertised time.
Routes set up are indicated in red on the mimic trackplan, with segments
reverting to yellow as the movement progresses.  Invalid routes, or routes
which conflict with those already set are denoted by a buzzer and appropriate
warning caption.

To aid the setting of routes the first screen contains coded information from
the second about both the occupancy of the platforms and the status of
departure workings.  The former is indicated by a coloured square after the
platform label (red denoting that no further traffic can be added, yellow that
a departure locomotive is required and a blank that the platform is empty and
available for use), whilst the latter is given by the platform designation
after the departure time (a straight platform number indicating that a train
needs no further attention before despatch at the appropriate time, a platform
number in brackets indicating that a train is in but not yet ready, and no
platform number indicating that the stock for the working is not yet in).

4.  MOTIVE POWER FOR LOCO-HAULED TRAINS

Complementing the Inner-City Class 253 HST's there are three types of diesel
locomotive:- 1470hp Class 31's used on ECS duties, and 2580hp Class 47's and
2700hp Class 50's used on mainline services.

Only Class 31's are allowed to take ECS out to Old Oak, but mainline
locomotives (Class 47 or 50) are often utilized to work ECS into Paddington,
and it is only after release that these locos proceed to their departure
workings via the hold positions.

Mainline locomotives on public arrivals should be assumed to be available for
return departure workings unless you are notified to the contrary in a special
message on the platform display (in which case the locomotive concerned should
be despatched LE to Old Oak depot for fuel/attention on either the DR or D2
line).  The more powerful Class 50's should if possible be allocated
preferentially to West of England loco-hauled trains.  Class 31 locomotives are
restricted to ECS duties, and cannot be allocated to public departure workings.

5.  STARTING POSITION

The simulation begins at 0720 hrs with a Class 31 ready to remove the Night
Riviera sleepers from P8, the Fishguard boat train is in P1, and an HST waits
to depart with the 0725 to Weston-super-Mare.  Subsequent mainline departures
are detailed in the Appendix through to the scheduled end of your shift at
1300hrs (although it is possible to quit earlier by pressing the ESCAPE key on
the BBC or the Q key on other machines).  At the end of your turn of duty you
will be given a rating of your performance on a scale of outstanding to
disastrous.  GOOD LUCK!

GETTING STARTED

SPECTRUM  The program is loaded by typing LOAD""
BBC       The program is loaded by typing CHAIN""
AMSTRAD   The program is loaded by typing CHAIN "RTCPAD


                    APPENDIX: PADDINGTON MAINLINE DEPARTURES
                         SUMMER SATURDAY  0720-1300HRS


       0725  (H)  Weston S. Mare                  1018     Paignton
       0745  (H)  Penzance                        1035 (H) Weston S. Mare
       0800  (H)  Swansea                         1045 (H) Penzance
       0835  (H)  Weston S. Mare                  1050     Oxford
       0845  (H)  Penzance                        1100 (H) Swansea
       0850       Oxford                          1105 (H) Weston S Mare
       0900  (H)  Swansea                         1110     Paignton
       0905  (H)  Bristol                         1130     Newbury Race Special
       0910       Paignton                        1135 (H) Bristol
       0920       Fishguard                       1140     Newbury Race Special
       0935  (H)  Weston S Mare                   1145 (H) Penzance
       0940       Penzance                        1150     Oxford
       0945       Newquay                         1200 (H) Swansea
       0950       Oxford                          1205 (H) Weston S Mare
       1000  (H)  Swansea                         1240     Penzance
       1005  (H)  Bristol                         1255     Oxford
       1010       Pembroke                        1300 (H) Swansea

                           (H)  Denotes HST Working

       PADDINGTON LOCOMOTIVES

         HST's      253001  253002  253003  253004  253005  253006  253007
                    253008  253009  253010  253011  253012  253013  253014
                    253015  253016  253017  253018
                    253028  253029  253030  253031  253032  253033  253034
                    253035  253036  253037  253038  253039  253040

         47's       47477  47484  47500  47501  47508  47509  47512  47513
                    47556  47557  47558  47559  47560
                    47564  47565  47566  47567
                    47592
                    47600  47601  47602  47603
                    47606  47607  47608  47609
                    47611  47612  47613  47614  47615  47616
                    47618  47619  47620  47621  47622  47623  47624  47625
                    47626  47627  47628

         50's       50001  50002  50003  50004  50005  50006  50007  50008
                    50009  50010  50011  50012  50013  50014  50015  50016
                    50017  50018  50019  50020  50021  50022  50023  50024
                    50025  50026  50027  50028  50029  50030  50031  50032
                    50033  50034  50035  50036  50037  50038  50039  50040
                    50041  50042  50043  50044  50045  50046  50047  50048
                    50049  50050

         31's       31401  31402  31403  31404  31405  31406  31407  31408
                    31409  31410
