As any commuter knows, leaves or snow on the line can bring trains to a
grinding halt. On one occasion, the then British Rail even blamed delays on 鈥渢he
wrong kind of snow鈥�. Now Terence Watkins of Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire,
reckons he has the answer (GB 2 309 951).
Watkins鈥� design incorporates air and oil pistons at the front of the engine鈥檚
wheels. When the driver presses a button, air from the train鈥檚 braking system
pushes the piston down and forces a scraping block onto the line ahead of the
wheels. This shovels any debris up and off the track.