Training - Holt Signal Box

Another day, another signal box experience this time at Holt. This is a sleepy little place with a bit of a bustle every hour when a noisy steam engine arrives to shatter the peace. 

On the day I was here, signalman Brian was on duty and Weybourne box was open. In fact, the boxes open according to the method of working the line - Holt will never be open without Weybourne since the line would be working using Electric Token Block. 

Holt box is the most simple of the three boxes on the railway, with only one track circuit, scarcely-used sidings and trains approaching from only one end. Here's the diagram:

I arrived just after 13:00, cleaned up after an early turn so that I could witness the whole process which starts with a bell code from the Weybourne signalman to say there is a train in section. The next thing you hear is a bell which sounds when a train passes over an annunciator treadle between Bridge Road Carriage Sidings and the Up Outer Home signal.

I had set the road for the train to arrive at platform 1, and when the annunciator bell sounded I cleared the Up Outer Home and the Up Inner Home for platform 1, to be greeted minutes later by curious faces from the footplate wondering why I was in the signal box!

The crew dropped the token on the catcher and signalman Brian went down to retrieve it. We put it in the token machine to indicate the train was out of section.

Next, we waited for the train to come to a halt and set the home signals back to danger; we then prepared the crossover for run around. We operated the lever to allow the crew to use the run-around ground frame and pass the south end stop board and waited until they were clear of the manual points at the far end before returning the lever to the normal position.

Driver Josh was giving the loco some beans along the up loop, and I hurried to clear the up platform starter  to let him pass the crossover - we then set that back to danger and switched the crossover. 

When the indicators were showing 'normal', we cleared the ground signal '8' to let him come onto the train.

When he was past the box and out of the track circuit, we set the platform down starter to clear and operated the machine to remove the token. This allowed me to clear the down section starter (20), and that done I strapped the token back in it's pouch and took it down to the driver.

With the green flag and the 'right away', the train moved off and we watched for open doors, loose couplings and the presence of the tail lamp. All good, we saw the train past the section starter and gave the bell signal to the Weybourne signalman to indicate 'train in section'

One last thing - I learned that the King lever, #12, was used to transfer control to Weybourne and lock out the signal box.