Early Small Petrol-Powered Rail Inspection Vehicles

Hello All,1 / as an aside, all Track Inspection Vehicles, Track Machines, Road-Rail / "HiRail" ( term is propriety trade name, and copyrighted ), were / are signalled under Absolute Block conditions as they are not guaranteed to reliably operate track circuits or axle counters.
2 / The exception to this was hand trolleys and Caseys ( 4w single cylinder, petrol powered inspection / works trolleys, ( BR Wickhams were similar ) which could go on track for a specified time*, at which point they needed to be off tracked. As these were usually accompanied by two or more people, off tracking was feasible. On lines where these Maintenance / VR Way & Works trolleys operated, there was usually a number of off track ramps, consisting of a pair of rails at right angles to the running line, with sleepers to allow for on and off tracking.
3 / *Specified Time, included train running information, with the allowed "on track window" including 10 minutes to clear the running line. To the best of my knowledge, this worked well, without major incident, for decades, and relied on the W&W staff being diligent in off tracking to allow for the passage of trains. These arrangement were usually made, face to face, with the SM or Signalman #, and only in the 1980s was this done remotely with Train Control.
4 / And therein lay the problem. When you are dealing with someone face to face, you can see what vehicle they are actually operating, and the ancillary discussion ensures that everyone is aware of what will happen. ( # the SM or Signalman will also advise Train Control of the request to on track, and Train Control will then advise if that is OK, and if it is, Permission and Time Allowance will be specified, and entered into the TR / Train Register Book, and by the Train Controller, on the Train Graph. )
In the mid to late 1980s, Road-Rail / HiRail vehicles replaced the various trolleys, and the replacements were, to my knowledge at least, either Suzuki 4wd, or Toyota HiLux size vehicles, about 1 tonne, which were intended to off track on either Public Roads, or Occupation Crossings ( crossings linking two fields of one farmer's property ), clearly they could not be lifted of by the operators. These arrangements were made by telephone, or Control Phone, and obviously, the person at the other end of the line could not observe the vehicle in question, and in at least some instances, was unaware that the "Inspection Trolley" was actually a HiRail vehicle. ( As stated above, HiRail vehicles required Absolute Block conditions, whereas Inspection Trolleys only required a time allowance, and train information. )
When I was a member of a Rules Revision Working Party, it became apparent that so called "Inspection Trolleys" were actually HiRail vehicles, and the Union Representatives were unimpressed with this deliberate subterfuge, seeing it as both unsafe, and undermining the whole point of Rules intended to safely control W&W access to the running lines. Obviously, the W&W need access to safely maintain the line, but, from an operational perspective, they also need to be able to do so in a safe manner.
Subsequent to this, a locomotive hauled train struck a 10 tonne maintenance HiRail truck, fortunately, no one was killed, though the truck was a write off, and the locomotive needed to be repaired. It turned out that the 10 tonne HiRail truck was called in as an off track maintenance vehicle, and the Train Controller did not realise that it was actually a 10 tonne HiRail truck. Needless to say, the Safe Working Office was also less than impressed, and subsequently, all on track vehicles are now treated under Absolute Block conditions.
5 / Some years prior to this, I also had an incident where a Back Hoe was given permission, under Absolute Occupation, to enter an Underground Loop, and it was so described in the Log Book. Subsequently, I received a phone call about a derailed HiRail that required the assistance of a recovery vehicle in the same Underground Loop. I asked how, and when, and where, did the HiRail vehicle enter the Underground Loop, as none had been given permission to enter the Loop, and I also wanted to know how many vehicles were currently in the Loop, as only one Back Hoe had permission to be there. I was then told that there was only one vehicle in the Loop, and the Back Hoe was a Hi Rail vehicle. My next question was why was a HiRail vehicle not described as such, bearing in mind the Instructions regarding HiRail vehicles in the Loop. The response was it was driven in on road wheels, and therefore not as a HiRail vehicle. I was not impressed, and made it quite clear to him that whether it was driven in on rail, or road wheels, it was still a HiRail, and therefore must comply with those Instructions. I also told him that the failure to comply with the Instructions was completely unacceptable, and will be reported. Arrangement were then made to send in a recovery vehicle, and the Signal Fitters were advised to ascertain if any damage to the signalling equipment had occurred. ( Fortunately, it had not. ) ( All safe working phone messages are recorded, and regularly reviewed. )
Regards to all, Echidna.