A New Era For Abellio ScotRail
How many train operating companies in the world would open a new rail service using forty-year-old refurbished trains with the slogan of A New Era?
According to the picture in this article on Global Rail News, which is entitled Aberdeen Launch For Scotland’s First HST, Abellio ScotRail have just done that!
I hope ScotRail are not tempting fate!
The service will be phased in from next Summer and I’m sure enthusiasts will book the first trains solid, such is the affection for these iconic trains.
GWR are also using the trains in a similar concept for local services between Cardiff and Penzance.
After these refurbishments, there will still be quite a few units left.
I can’t believe that none of them will find innovative uses with other train operators.
How about?
Norwich to Liverpool
East Midlands Trains run a service between Norwich and Liverpool, which does seem to suffer from fluctuations of use. It can be very busy, if say Norwich are playing Nottingham Forest and quiet at other times.
In some ways it the forgotten East-West route in England.
Derby and Nottingham to Liverpool and Manchester are journeys, where it is easier to drive.
Running the route with a refurbished and shortened HST might be a chance worth taking.
The Heart Of Wales Line
The Heart of Wales Line is an interesting possibility, to open up the centre of Wales.
The line is maintained as a diversion route for both much large passenger and freight trains, than the trains that usually work the route.
Along The North Wales And Cumbrian Coasts
If the concept works in Scotland, it will surely work on these two lines. Especially, in the summer!
Conclusion
Terry Miller’s iconic High Speed Train will outlive us all!
EcoPar
I’d never heard of EcoPar until I read this article in Rail Engineer, which is entitled Modified MEWPs go underground.
A MEWP is a mobile elevated work platform and they are being used in the sub-surface lines of the London Underground.
One of the problems is that many of them are diesel-powered, which I wouldn’t have thought to be a good idea in tunnels.
This is where EcoPar comes in. An English translation of the EcoPar’s Swedish entry in Wikipedia says this.
EcoPar is a Swedish environmental fuel , a so-called synthetic diesel fuel and used as an alternative to diesel oil . EcoPar is extracted from natural gas using the Fischer-Tropsch process . EcoPar is a trademark of EcoPar AB, formerly Oroboros AB, located in Gothenburg .
This is from the Rail Engineer article.
Compared to the use of conventional fuel, it is estimated that carbon monoxide emissions are reduced by up to 76 per cent, carbon dioxide by 30-50 per cent, nitrous oxide by up to 26 per cent and carcinogenic emissions by up to 90 per cent.
That sounds a lot safer.
I think we’ll be seeing a lot more of EcoPar and other synthetic diesel fuels.
Through The Bermondsey Dive-Under – 15th September 2017
On my trip to Rochester today, I went twice through the Bermondsey Dive-Under.
These pictures were taken on the way to Rochester.
And these were taken on the way back.
It looks like Network Rail are creating a lot more railway arches and other premises for small and medium-sized businesses.
But there seems to be little on the Internet about the future of the area between the lines.
I did find this article on the Network Rail web site, which is entitled Award-winning Network Rail infrastructure project brings biodiversity to Bermondsey. An industrial slum will at least be a green corridor.
The article finishes with this paragraph.
The first line through the Dive Under entered into service in December 2016 and two new lines, dedicated to Southeastern services, will come into passenger use in August 2017.
So as it’s September 2017, we were on the new lines dedicated to Southeastern services.
Filiming Trains At Rochester
I took these pictures at Rochester.
The station is new, as the last picture shows.
I filmed from the North side of the station from a probable development site, where people were working dogs and jogging.
The camera was a top of the range Nikon Coolpix
The Anonymous Widower 