A Trip To Bromley
I like to explore and when I saw the Bromley North Branch on the Tube and Rail Map, I just had to visit.
One sub-theme that percolates through this post is that everything I wanted to buy seemed to be unavailable.
It started at the Co-op outside Dalston Junction station, where all copies of The Times had been sold.
I took a train to New Cross station, where the charming newsagent sold me my paper and I had a chat and a moan with a web designer called Ben about the lack of seats on platform C/D on the station to sit in the sun.
At least if it had started to rain, I wouldn’t have got wet!
From New Cross I took a train to Grove Park station.
This Google Map also shows Grove Park station
Grove Park Station
Note that Platform 1 is to the south side of the station and the Bromley North Branch Line goes out of the South East corner of the map
From Platform 1, I got a train to Bromley North station.
This Google Map shows the station.
Bromley North Station
It would appear that there isn’t much space to extend the line from Bromley North station.
I then walked down to Bromley South station.
It was a fairly easy walk as it was generally downhill.
My ability to buy a drink was restricted though, as all tables in the sun were busy.
At Bromley South station, i took a train to Victoria.
In the Wikipedia entry for Bromley North station, there is a section called Future Proposals, where this is said.
Proposals have been put forward by Transport for London and the London Borough of Bromley for the Bromley North Line to be extended and connected to either the Docklands Light Railway via a link south of Lewisham, to the Tramlink system from Beckenham Junction, or to an extension of the Bakerloo line from Elephant and Castle. These schemes have not been taken beyond the proposal stage and recommendations are expected to be published around 2017.
Additionally, it has been suggested that the Bromley North Line could be connected to London Overground via an extended service from New Cross, although the problems of line capacity make this seem an unlikely solution.
This map from carto.metro.free.fr shows the lines in the area.
Lines Around Bromley
Grove Park station is beyond Sunbridge Park station.
This Google Map shows the two Bromley stations.
Bromley Stations
Note.
- Bromley North station is in the North and Bromley South station is in the South, as would be expected.
- The only surface routes between the two stations would be through the Town Centre along the High Street or along the A21.
- Building along both would probably be highly controversial and extremely difficult.
- Creating any connection between a tram or train to the lines through Bromley South station would need a lot of land and possibly some demolition.
So I think that it is unlikely that there will be any connection between the two stations, unless it is in a tunnel.
The Germans, who have had this sort of problem in cities like Kassel would probably do something like this.
- Use tram-trains starting in Platform 1 at Grove Park station, running as trains to Bromley North station.
- At Bromley North station, they would switch to tram operation, cross under the main road at the station and run towards the Town Centre.
- Alternatively, they could cross the main road under control of traffic lights, as is done in Nottingham.
- The trams would run to Bromley South station down the middle of the High Street.
As I believe there isn’t enough space for trams or tram-trains to join the railway to go to Beckenham Junction station, they would probably just go round a loop with a couple of stops to return to Bromley North station.
There is also the problem of building tram-trains that work on railways with third-rail electrification. I believe it is technically possible, but it could be complicated and have safety issues.
Quite frankly, I think it is unlikely any surface transport solution will be added to Bromley North station.
A much better and safer solution could be to use several small electric buses, that shuttled between the two stations through the Town Centre.
Sense About Steel
This article in the South Wales Evening Post is entitled Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon one solution to Tata Steel crisis, insists council chief Steve Phillips.
He is right and I said so in The Death Of Traditional Steel-Making.
I also said that in addition to the tidal lagoon, a comprehensive metro should be developed all over South Wales.
Aventras And The Romford To Upminster Line
The Romford to Upminster Line is probably a line that Transport for London sometimes wishes had been chopped with the Beeching Axe.
I suspect though, that given the railway mania in London and the South East, the arrival of Crossrail at Romford in the next few years and the ambitious expansionist tendencies of both TfL and c2c, that this line won’t remain a simple shuttle in perpetuity.
At present the line is worked by a single four-car Class 317 train, which I found in A Clean Train From Romford To Upminster.
But from May 2018, Aventras in the shape new Class 710 trains, will start to arrive on the London Overground.
I just wonder, if one of the first trains will get allocated to this isolated line in East London.
- It surely would be an ideal test track to get to know the trains and familiarise drivers with their new charges.
- The novelty of new trains in this backwater, but linked to Crossrail, might encourage more passengers to use the line.
- Train-spotters and other anoraks will certainly visit.
The line is also only five kilometres long, but fully electrified, so I do wonder, if TfL will investigate the IPEMU capabilities of the Class 710 trains, if they decide to fit on-board energy storage.
- I suspect, there would be no modifications to track, electrification or signalling needed to run the linewith a train running as an IPEMU.
- Five kilometres or ten if both ways, is well within the capabilities of an IPEMU.
- During testing, if the energy storage should fail, the driver would just swear, put the pantograph up and continue.
- Charging of the energy storage, would happen in one or both of the terminal platforms.
According to Wikipedia, the line is not signalled, so the possibility must exist of running this short line on stored energy to reduce track maintenance costs.
The Anonymous Widower 