McK&H.Aust wrote:
That's a shame, I think it will look very out of place to have brand new gates with e-bells on a heritage railway. It would be nice if they could get some old gate mechs from the LXRA (either WRRS or McK&H) and use them, and they could re-use the teardrops from the old crossings. That way they would be preserving some of the old equipment from crossings that were being removed, I think it would fit in nicely with the heritage status of the railway.
I had the same idea in mind too! The good news is that some of the already removed crossings had vintage gate mechs (I'm referring to the ones' at McKinnon [McK&H], Bentleigh [McK&H], and Blackburn [WRRS]). So the three crossings slated for upgrade could 'potentially' re-use them.
While I doubt the LXRA still have the signal masts from the McKinnon crossing, a similar looking setup at Pinnocks Road would work.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.910 ... 6656?hl=en
Put the signal with the sepearte gate mech mast one the side closest to the main road, and use the same gate mechs from McKinnon Road & the Teardrop bell off the old crossing, and you should be all set.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.931 ... 6656?hl=en
Heading back to McKinnon Road, this crossing still had a Teardrop bell in 2010.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.911 ... 6656?hl=en
The Bentleigh crossing had an interesting upgrade to the pedestrian crossings in 2006, following several incidents and fatalities with pedestrians and trains.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.918 ... 312!8i6656
The upgrade saw additional warning devices fitted. (According to Wikipedia's article on Bentleigh Train Station), Along with the common red pedestrian sign, an LED light box saying "Another Train Coming", which is lit when either an express train is bound on the southbound line, or when a train is expected after another train on the northbound line.
freebrickproductions wrote:I can also see them installing the gates on a separate mast,
a la L&N, though the L&N did that as a standard new install rather than adding gates to pre-existing gateless signals. However, I have seen crossings where CSX kept at least one of the pre-existing gateless cantilever signals when they upgraded the crossing(s) to have gates. For example, at this crossing in Tullahoma, TN it appears that when CSX decided to install gates here, they kept the old gateless MI cantilevers that were here before the gates were installed, and just installed the gate mechanisms on short masts in front of them:
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.3610527 ... authuser=0
Actually, there's already a few examples of this in Victoria. The Beaconsfield crossing being an example. Flashing light signals were installed 1976, with the crossing upgraded with gates in 1986. One of the existing signals had a separate gate mech mast installed behind it.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-38.052 ... 312!8i6656
