Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway - Train Operations

Train Operations

The railway uses radio control train order. Outside Ravenglass station, the line is single track with passing loops at Miteside, Irton Road and Fisherground. Trains operate by radio communication between drivers and at Ravenglass signal box. At passing loops and the terminus station, drivers contact the controller, using reporting numbers (even numbers for up trains ex-Ravenglass, and odd for down) the train is within the loop and is clear of the preceding single track. To leave the loop, the driver contacts control to enter the next single section. No fixed signals are used outside Ravenglass station. Points at passing loops are weighted with direction indicators, meaning that no human intervention is required, and the points reset themselves automatically, after the passage of a train.

Elements of the operation were used by British Rail to cut costs on remote lines. What became known as Radio Electronic Token Block signalling shared features with the Ratty, such as centralised control, spring-loaded points at loops, and on-train equipment rather than fixed equipment at remote locations.