An Automated Shuttle Train On The Brentford Branch Line
The Brentford Branch Line
There are various proposals to add a passenger service to the Brentford Branch Line.
The Brentford Branch Line has the following features.
- It is 4 miles long.
- It is a mixture of single and double-track.
- It is not electrified.
- There is a bay platform at Southall station, that could be used, as a Northern terminal.
- Freight trains also use the line.
If the Greenford Branch can mix an automated shuttle and freight trains, then it would be very likely, that a similar approach would work on this branch.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be battery-powered.
- It would be highly automated.
- Charging would be carried-out in the bay platform at Southall station.
A service of at least two tph would be provided, that would link Brentford to Crossrail.
An Automated Shuttle Train Between Romford And Upminster
The Romford-Upminster Line has the following features.
- It is 3.5 miles long.
- It is single-track.
- It is electrified with 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- The maximum speed is only 30 mph.
- There is a single platform station at either end with one intermediate station.
- The service frequency is two tph.
- Trains take nine minutes to go between the two terminals.
- No other trains use the line.
To run the ideal four tph, trains would need to do the round trip between Romford and Upminster in fifteen minutes.
If we assume that the two end stops take one minutes and the two intermediate ones take thirty seconds, then that leaves just twelve minutes to cover the seven miles of the round trip.
This is an average speed of 35 mph.
As with the Greenford Branch, I think that an appropriate train would be able to run an automated shuttle, with a frequency of four tph.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be able to use the 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- It would have an operating speed of perhaps sixty mph.
- It would have fast acceleration and deceleration.
The only infrastructure works that would also be needed, would be to improve the line to allow higher speeds.
An Automated Shuttle Train On The Greenford Branch Line
The Greenford Branch Line has the following features.
- It is 2.5 miles long.
- It is double-track.
- It is not electrified.
- There is a single platform station at both ends with three intermediate stations.
- The service frequency is two trains per hour (tph).
- Trains take 11-12 minutes to go between the two terminals.
- Freight trains also use the line.
To run the ideal four tph, trains would need to do a round trip between West Ealing and Greenford in fifteen minutes.
If we assume that the two end stops take two minutes and the six intermediate ones take thirty seconds, then that leaves just eight minutes to cover the five miles of the round trip.
This is an average speed of 37.5 mph.
I don’t have the calculation experience or knowledge of train performance to prove it, but I think that an appropriate train would be able to run an automated shuttle, with a frequency of four tph.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be battery-powered.
- It would be highly automated.
- It would have an operating speed of perhaps sixty mph.
- It would have fast acceleration and deceleration.
The following infrastructure works would also be needed.
- The track would be improved to allow higher speeds.
- The points would be automated.
- Level access between platform and train would be provided.
- A fast charging system would be added to the bay platforms at Greenford and/or West Ealing stations.
If four tph could be achieved on the Greenford Branch with just one automated shuttle and no electrification, this would be exactly what the operator, the passengers and the Government ordered.
Automated Shuttle Trains With A Train Captain
There are various short routes on the UK rail network, where shuttle trains work a frequency of perhaps two or three trains per hour (tph), that is generally felt by passengers and train operators to be inadequate.
Examples include the following.
Could the frequency on these lines be increased using automation?
The Automated Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway is not a simple railway, but it is fully automated.
- Trains are driverless
- A Train Captain is responsible for patrolling the train, checking tickets, making announcements and controlling the doors.
- The Train Captain can take control of the train if required.
It is a system that seems to have worked well for many years.
An Automated Shuttle With A Train Captain
Could a similar principle be applied to a shuttle train?
As an example, I’ll use the Bromley North Line.
Consider.
- The line is two miles long and trains take five minutes each way.
- The current frequency is three tph.
- There are problems at Grove Park station with connections in the Peak.
- The route is double-track.
- The current service is operated by a single train, manned only by a driver.
It would appear if the Bromley North Line could be run at four tph, this would be a welcome improvement.
One of the problems of driver-operated shuttle services like this, is that at each end of the route, the driver must change ends, which takes a couple of valuable minutes.
To operate a frequency of four tph, the round-trip must be performed in fifteen minutes.
- Each leg takes five minutes.
- There are four stops in a round trip; one at Grove Park, one at Bromley North and two at Sundridge Park.
I believe that a single automated train, with a Train Captain on board to look after safety, open and close the doors and start the train after each stop, should be able to handle the much-needed four tph on the Bromley North Line.
How Would The Automation Work?
Many years ago, a Central Line driver explained to me how the original automation of the Victoria Line worked.
- A train would arrive in the station and stop in the correct place automatically with high precision.
- The doors would be opened.
- After passengers had unloaded and loaded, the doors would be closed.
When the doors were closed and everything was safe, the driver would push a button to ask the automation to take the train to the next station.
Automation has moved on since the 1960s, and I believe that some form of on-train automation would be able to handle a simple shuttle.
- Only one track would probably be need to used to remove the complication of points.
- Only one train would be used for the shuttle, as this increases safety.
- Sensors would determine the exact position of the train.
- CCTV cameras, including ones looking forwards and backwards, would be relayed to the Train Captain and their Control Station in the middle of the train.
- The Train Captain would have an Emergency Stop Button.
If something goes wrong or the train is being taken to and from the depot, the Train Captain would go to the forward cab, switch off the automation and drive the train in the normal manner.
I am sure, that it would not only be a very safe system, but if it made full use of the capabilities of modern trains, it would speed up services sufficiently, so that frequencies could be increased.
What Trains Would Be Suitable?
I think that the choice of trains would be wide, but I think they must have the following characteristics.
- An ability to perform a station stop and restart quickly.
- Fast acceleration and deceleration.
- Level access between platform and train.
- Walk-through interior, to help the Train Captain perform their duties.
- Lots of wide double doors and large lobbies.
All these characteristics would enable the train to save time on the route.
Power would be anything that could be used on the route. For the Bromley North Line, that would be either third-rail electrification or battery power.
Battery power, though on this route, would have a problem.
If the train is running an intense shuttle service, with stops taking a minute or even less, the train never stops long enough to charge the batteries. As the route is electrified with 750 VDC using third-rail, this would need to be used on the Bromley North Line.
Although, I have used the word train in this section, I suspect trams, tram-trains or light rail vehicles could be used.
All vehicles would retain their driving cabs for the following reasons.
- If there is a problem, the Train Captain can drive the train, as happens on the Docklands Light Railway.
- If the train needs to be positioned to and from a depot, the train could be driven manually.
I also feel that for these reasons, the Train Captain would be a fully qualified driver.
Examples of vehicles that could be used, if appropriate automation were to be fitted include.
Class 399 Tram-Train
Class399 tram-trains are working successfully in Sheffield and they have been ordered for the South Wales Metro, where they will run under both overhead and battery power.
As an Electrical Engineer, I believe that it would not be the most difficult piece of engineering to fit these tram-trains with the ability to run under third-rail power.
The tram-trains would have similar capacities, cross-section and performance to the current Class 466 trains.
The only modifications that would be needed to the route, would be to adjust the platforms used by the tram-train to give level access between tram-train and platform.
A Three-Car Aventra Or Similar
Three-car Class 730 Aventra trains, have been ordered by West Midlands Railway and Aventras have also been ordered to run using third-rail power.
As with the Class 399 tram-train, these trains could probably work the route successfully, subject to suitable platform modification.
How Fast Could Stops Be Performed?
I have timed stops on the London Overground and the London Tramlink rarely do you find a time from brakes on to brakes off in excess of a minute, without a red signal being involved.
I have measured some London Overground stops are at thirty seconds some London Tramlink stops at twenty seconds.
If a shuttle had the track to itself and the train was a modern design, I could see maximum timings on the Bromley North Line as follows.
- Bromley North – One minute
- Sundridge Park – Thirty seconds
- Grove Park – One minute
Surely, with station stop times like these and perhaps faster running than the current 30 mph, the goal of four tph could be comfortably achieved.
What Happens With Delays?
Suppose, an incident occurs, and the train is delayed.
After the incident is successfully sorted, the train could just carry on or wait until it was on schedule for the next train.
Within a few minutes, the train would be running to time.
Some Other Selected Routes
Over the next few days, I will be adding calculations for other routes.
Slough And Windsor & Eton Central
Extra routes will be added here.
Conclusion
On the Bromley North Line, selective automation should be able to enable a four tph service using one train or tramtrain.
Would Batteries Help Voltage Change-over In A Dual Voltage Train Or Tram-Train?
Battery Power And Tram-Trains
Consider.
- The Class 399 tram-trains in Sheffield can work on both 25 KVAC and 750 VDC overhead electrification.
- Their German cousins in Karlsruhe can work on both 15 KVAC and 750 VDC overhead electrification.
In Karlsruhe, there is a ceramic rod between the two overhead cables with different voltages and the pantograph rides across. I suspect that clever power electronics on the tram-train measures the voltage and converts it automatically to that needed to power the tram-train.
I haven’t been able to see how Sheffield connects the two different voltages, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a similar system with a ceramic rod is used.
Look at this picture, I took of a Class 399 tram-train in Sheffield.
Note the BATTERY CHARGE socket to the left of the car number.
Why would an electrically-powered vehicle need a battery?
I suppose it could be to start up the tram-train in the morning and raise the pantograph.
But could it also be for emergency power, to move the tram-train short distances, such as in depots or to assist the vehicle through the dead sections, where the power supply changes from one voltage to another?
The Class 399 tram-trains ordered for the South Wales Metro will also have to cope with discontinuous electrification. So is the technology needed for this already installed in the tram-trains in Sheffield?
Battery Power And Dual Voltage Trains
Suppose you have a train like a Class 378 or Class 700 train, that can run on both 25 KVAC overhead and 750 VDC third-rail electrification.
Third-rail trains with contact shoes deal with discontinuous electrification all the time.
If a dual-voltage train had a battery that could take it say two hundred metres, then I believe that voltage changeover could be simplified and speeded up.
I have watched Class 717 trains change voltage at Drayton Park station and what changes would a limited battery capability make.
The third-rail electrification would stop several metres short of the station and would be removed in the station itself.
Going towards Moorgate, this would be the procedure.
- The train would stop in the station as it does now.
- The driver would drop the pantograph, whilst passengers unloaded and loaded.
- The driver would close the doors.
- The train would accelerate away on battery power.
- After a few metres the train would contact the third-rail and the train’s computer would change from battery to third-rail power.
Going away from Moorgate, this would be the procedure.
- The train would automatically disconnect from third-rail power, where that stopped to the South of the station.
- The train would automatically switch to battery power.
- The train would stop in the station as it does now.
- The driver would raise the pantograph, whilst passengers unloaded and loaded.
- The driver would close the doors.
- The train would accelerate away on overhead power.
The stops should be no longer, than a normal station stop without power changeover.
Conclusion
Batteries may well reduce the time taken to change voltage
Is County Lines Just Another Gig Economy?
County Lines is to me just an efficient way to satisfy a need., like Uber or Deliveroo!
It is just another branch of the gig economy!
Who knows, what will be delivered in this way after the inevitable no-deal Brexit?
London’s Second Quietest Train Station Is Set To Close In May
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on IanVisits.
This is the first paragraph.
Angel Road, London’s second quietest train station is set to close in May, the Department for Transport has announced. With just over 33,000 passengers in 2017/18, it’s beaten to the bottom spot only by South Greenford station’s 26,500 passengers.
It will be replaced on May 19th 2019, by the new Meridian Water station, which will be 580 metres to the South.
The Old Order Changeth Yielding Place To New
Two dinosaurs; the Labour Party and the motor industry, got big shocks yesterday.
But both are trying to live in the past with CEOs, who still think that we’re in the 1960s.
This morning, my message read out on Wake Up To Money was this.
I don’t drive any more, but the future is electric and the UK is blessed with a position and a climate to become one of the first countries to power most vehicles with renewables. Vehicle manufacturers must change or die!
Our renewable electricity generation infrastructure is growing apace and in the last few days, the world’s largest offshore wind farm opened, as reported in this article on the BBC, which is entitled First Power From World’s Biggest Offshore Wind Farm.
The Hornsea Wind Farm will have a generating capacity of 6 GW. This is nearly twice as large a capacity as the troubled Hinckley Point C nuclear power station.
But whereas Hinckley Point C will produce continuous power, Hornsea will only produce power when the wind blows.
The National Grid are tasked with keeping the lights on and I agree with them, that energy storage is the solution.
- There are 25,000,000 homes in the UK. If every house in the UK was fitted with a 10 kWh storage battery, that would be a capacity of 250 GWH.
- There are 30,000,000 cars in the UK. If every car in the UK was electric and had a 30 kWh battery, that would be a capacity of 900 GWH.
These are very large numbers and just as the Internet passes data all around the UK and the world, the UK’s National Grid will access all these batteries to store energy, when perhaps the wind is blowing at night and retrieve it when there is a high demand.
On a domestic level, you may have an electric car and a battery in your house, with perhaps solar panels on the roof.
- At night and on sunny days, your batteries will be charged.
- At times of high demand, your stored energy may be sold back to the grid.
- Controlling it all would be an intelligent computer system, which would make sure that your car always had enough charge and you had enough energy for the house.
The problem is that nearly all of our houses and cars don’t fit this model.
The proposed closure of the Honda plant is Swindon, is the first of the many casualties in car manufacturing, that will surely happen.
More by luck, than judgement, when I moved to London after my stroke, I bought a house with the following features.
- Low energy consumption.
- A flat roof, that is now covered in solar panels.
- A garage, that would be suitable for an electric car. Although, I don’t drive, the next owner of this house, probably will.
Millions of houses in this country should be demolished and the land used for new houses that fit the modern age.
The Labour Party is living in the 1960s and Corbyn and McDonell still believe that the Robin Hood approach of stealing from the rich and giving it to the poor, is still the way to go.
But these days, most people want to be responsible for themselves. This is why there has been such a growth in people in the gig economy like Uber, Deliveroo and County Lines.
Everybody wants to take control of their lives and their own micro-economy. That is why I left a safe job at ICI in 1969, at the age of just twenty-two.
Like me, those who start their own successful business don’t want government to come along and use it on pet projects that always seem to fail.
Most politicians and especially Labour ones have never done a real job in their lives and Labour’s defections will hopefully be the first of many from all political parties.
I hope that February 18th 2019, will be remembered as the day when two dinosaurs realised they needed to change their spots.
But they won’t change willingly!
However!
- Companies and individuals will soon be buying electric vehicles in large numbers and only buying diesel and petrol ones, where there is no alternative.
- Voters will not vote for policies that stink of the past, that don’t fit their micro-economy.
There will also be a lot of unsaleable houses and second-hand cars!
Will The Gospel Oak To Barking Line Have Long Term Capacity Problems?
There are certainly, short term capacity problems on the Gospel Oak to Barking Line, (GOBlin) due to the non-delivery of the new Class 710 trains.
Comparison With The North London Line
There are a lot of similarities between the Gospel Oak to Barking Line and the North London Line (NLL).
- Both run roughly East-West across North London.
- Both have interchanges with the Underground, Crossrail and National Rail.
- Both run electric trains.
- Both have several freight trains per day.
In addition, the Eastern end of the NLL and the GOBlin, run through areas of East London, where a lot of regeneration and housing development is ongoing.
This picture was taken at Blackhorse Road station. The station is being surrounded, by a large amount of housing.
Capacity On The North London Line
When I moved to Dalston in 2010, the frequency of trains between Stratford and Willesden Junction stations was around six trains per hour (tph). The trains were three-car Class 378 trains, giving a capacity of 18 carriages per hour (cph).
Now in early 2019, the frequency on the same section of the NLL is eight tph and the trains are five-cars, giving a capacity of 40 cph.
This large increase of 120 percent, has not been enough to prevent trains on the NLL from being very full at times. But then there have been large housing and commercial developments at Stratford, Hackney Wick, Hackney Central, Dalston Junction and West Hampstead stations.
Future Capacity On The Gospel Oak to Barking Line
Until a few months ago, the GOBlin had a frequency of four tph. The trains were two-car Class 172 trains, giving a capacity of 8 cph.
The service from today is two four-car Class 378 and two two-car Class 172 trains per hour, giving a capacity of 12 cph.
Hopefully, when the Class 710 trains are working, we’ll be seeing four four-car Class 710 trains per hour, giving a capacity of 16 cph.
It is not the 120 percent increase that the NLL has already seen, but surely a 100 percent increase is better than nothing.
My Observations On The Gospel Oak To Goblin Line
For the last three of four years, Highbury & Islington station has been a station to avoid.
- There have been continuous roadworks in the area of the station.
- There have also been several water-main bursts.
- The bus service between the station and my house has been halved in frequency.
Consequently, if I’m coming East to my home, I find it a lot easier, but slightly slower to change to the GOBlin at Gospel Oak station and then get a bus home from Harringay Green Lanes station.
So if a GOBlin train is waiting at Gospel Oak station, I take that route.
Helpfully, Transport for London have improved the cross-platform interchange.
They’ve also added more stairs to the right of these.
I actually, think, that passengers wanting to go to areas between the two lines are starting to use the GOBlin, as often by Harringay Green Lanes station, a lot of passengers have left the train.
Londoners are just practising their ducking and diving!
I’ve also left Barking a couple of times in a very full train in the Off Peak.
- Passengers for whatever reason, seem to be using the GOBlin more!
- Do clean electric trains attract passengers more than less friendly diesels?
- Does the occasional four-car journey impress passengers with more space?
- Is it since the Class 378 trains took over some duties, that the service is more reliable?
Or perversely could it be, that all the bad publicity about the GOBlin has reminded people that it is still there and might be worth a second chance?
Will The Proposed Gospel Oak To Barking Line Be Enough In The Long Term?
I am rapidly coming to the conclusion, that although capacity on the GOBlin is going to be doubled, when the new Class 710 trains arrive, this may not be a large enough increase for the long-term.
What Measures Can Be Taken To Increase Capacity?
There are some simple measures that can be taken.
Higher Frequencies
Transport for London are planning to run five tph in the Peak this year.
If it happens, this will increase capacity by a small amount, where it is needed.
But it probably can’t be a general increase, as that would probably restrict the number of freight trains.
Trains With A Higher Performance
The electric Class 710 trains probably have a higher performance than the diesel Class 172 trains.
This will help with running higher frequencies and faster services, but on its own, it won’t increase capacity.
Longer Trains
The Class 710 trains are Aventras, and these trains have been ordered up to ten cars by other operators.
So five- or six-car trains would certainly be possible.
But the problem is that some platforms would need to be lengthened.
- Barking already handles longer trains.
- Upper Holloway, Crouch Hill, Harrigay Green Lanes, Walthamstow Queens Road, Leyton Midland Road, Leytonstone High Road, Wanstead Park and Woodgrange Park used to have longer platforms, which might be possible to reinstate.
- Blackhorse Road, South Tottenham and Gospel Oak would be major undertakings.
Five-car trains might be possible, if selective door opening was used at the last three stations.
Five-car trains would increase the capacity to 50 cph or an increase of twenty-five percent on the capacity after the Class 710 trains are successfully introduced.
Conclusion
I am very sure, that the only way to increase the capacity of the Gospel Oak to Barking Line, would be to run longer trains.
But they would need to use selective door opening at Blackhorse Road, South Tottenham and Gospel Oak stations.
After the problems of platform lengthening on the East and North London Lines, why weren’t platforms at least prepared for five- or even six-car trains, when the GOBlin was rebuilt and electrified?
TfL Mulls DLR And Overground Extensions To Thamesmead
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on IanVisits.
Overground
TfL’s plan for the Overground would appear to be an extension under or over the River Thames to a single station at Thamesmead and a possible connection to the North Kent Line at Plumstead, Abbey Wood or Belvedere stations.
DLR
The plan for the DLR involves more stations, including a possible one on the North Bank of the Thames. It also serves a proposed massive Peabody housing development, which will provide up to 11,500 new homes.
What Goes East Must Go West
Nothing is said in Ian’s report about train services to Thamesmead.
Overground
On the Overground, there will be four trains per hour (tph) between Gospel Oak and Barking Riverside stations.
There are problems with increasing frequency and capacity, which could be necessary.
- The terminus at Gospel Oak station is only a single platform.
- The Gospel Oak to Barking Line is used by an increasing amount of electrically-haled freight trains.
- There is little space on the line for an additional bay platform to turn trains.
- Trains can’t continue along the North London Line at Gospel Oak, as that line is busy as well.
The only alternative Western terminals are.
- Barking – A bay platform could possibly be squeezed in.
- Enfield Town – Sounds crazy, but there is a chord between Seven Sisters and South Tottenham stations.
- Fenchurch Street – Busy and possibly could be made larger with redevelopment.
- Liverpool Street – Busy and only a slight possibility.
There would also need to be platform lengthening to incorporate trains that are longer than four cars.
Although, it might be possible to run five-car trains using selective door opening on the last car.
DLR
Currently, the DLR has a Peak service of 7.5 tph between Tower Gateway and Becton calling at Shadwell, Limehouse, Westferry, Poplar, Blackwall, East India, Canning Town, Royal Victoria, Custom House, Prince Regent, Royal Albert, Beckton Park, Cyprus, Gallions Reach.
The extension to Thamesmead would branch off around Gallions Reach and the current service has the following connections.
- Shadwell – London Overground
- Canning Town – Jubilee Line
- Royal Victoria – Emirates Air-Line
- Custom House – Crossrail
Will there be enough capacity on this section of the DLR?
- Tower Gateway is a single-platform station and would need to be upgraded to handle more than 7.5 tph.
- Thirty tph run through Shadwell, Limeshouse and Westferry station in the Peak.
- Can stations be lengthened to use longer trains?
It does look to me that the only way to increase capacity would be to extend the DLR to the West, as I outlined in The Bank Station Upgrade And The Western Extension Of The DLR.
This map from TfL shows the possible extension.
What would be the cost of this extension?
Conclusion
The logic and economics of extending either the Overground or the DLR to Thamesmead are sound for that area of South-East London, but does The Mayor have the budget to complete the other end of the transport links?
The Anonymous Widower 