Preparing For Take-Off: Aviation Embraces Clean Hydrogen
The title of this post, is the same as that, of this article on Ryse Hydrogen.
These three paragraphs introduce the article.
Aviation’s clean hydrogen revolution is coming from all directions.
Taking a bottom-up approach, start-ups such as ZeroAvia are developing technology to convert small aircraft to hydrogen fuel, while at the other end of the spectrum, industry giants such as Airbus and Rolls-Royce are exploring how they can carry hundreds of passengers 1,000s of miles across the world.
The timescales for these projects are very different but progress is visible for both approaches.
The last two paragraphs are optimistic.
Hydrogen fuel could make up 32% of the market by 2050 if it becomes commercially available by 2035, according to a study from climate think-tank Energy Transition Commission.
It would seem that it’s only a matter of time before truly clean air travel is cleared for take-off and hydrogen-powered aircraft are carrying passengers and cargo across the skies.
The article is a good summary of the state of zero-carbon hydrogen-powered aircraft. Read it!
Racing Towards A Green Future
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Ricardo.
This is the first paragraph.
While Formula E and its sibling electric race series, Extreme E and RX2e, are burnishing battery-powered vehicles credentials, motorsport from Formula 1 down is actively pursuing how traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) race and rally cars can be made more environmentally acceptable.
The article, which is a must-read, then describes the various routes and options, that motorsport is taking towards zero-carbon.
The article finishes with this paragraph.
While motorsport technology can, and does, transfer to production cars, especially in the higher echelons, whether the path it is beating on AS fuels will convince legislators that battery electric vehicles are only an answer rather than the answer remains to be seen.
I believe that when an affordable small hatchback powered by hydrogen hits the road as it inevitably will, it will have Ricardo’s fingerprints all over it.
Silvertown Tunnel Works – 21st February 2023
I took these pictures of the Silvertown Tunnel works on the North Bank of the Thames today.
The first set of pictures were taken travelling to West Silvertown station, where I returned.
Another Door Opens At Bank Station
I took these pictures at Bank station this morning in the Southernmost tunnel between the Northern Line platforms.
You can just about see the lift doors through the windows in the steel fire doors.
It can’t be long now before the Cannon Street Entrance to Bank station opens.
Elizabeth Line: More Than 100 Million Journeys On Elizabeth Line, Says YouGov
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
These three paragraphs introduce the article.
More than 100 million journeys have been made on London Underground’s new Elizabeth Line since it opened last May, according to a survey.
The YouGov poll suggested 45% of the capital’s residents had also used the line from Reading, Berkshire, to Abbey Wood and Shenfield in Essex.
Transport for London (TfL) said on 1 February it had completed about 600,000 daily journeys.
That is all well and good, but to me, this is the most significant paragraph.
TfL said the railway was “on track to break even” based on operating costs by the end of the 2023/24 financial year.
So it looks like that the planners got the modelling of the operation of the railway correct.
From my experience of project management, I believe that the Elizabeth Line project could have been considered as five main projects.
- The boring of the Central Tunnel
- The updating of the existing branches to Abbey Wood, Heathrow, Reading and Shenfield
- The building of the Class 345 trains
- The signalling
- The fitting out of the stations in the Central Tunnel
Delivery though was a bit patchy!
These are my thoughts on each sub-project.
The Boring Of The Central Tunnel
I was told, that early on, it was realised by the contractors that they didn’t have enough workers, who were certified to work underground.
So the Tunneling and Underground Construction Academy or TUCA in Ilford, was built to train more workers.
This helped the Central Tunnel to be completed on time.
Since then, two more tunnels; the Thames Tideway and the London Power Tunnel have been successfully completed on time and on budget, thus vindicating the building of TUCA.
The Updating Of The Existing Branches To Abbey Wood, Heathrow, Reading and Shenfield
There were a few hiccups, but generally the branches were updated and were operating into Paddington and Shenfield before the line opened.
The Building Of The Class 345 Trains
This wasn’t perfect and Bombardier’s financial state didn’t help, but the trains had good tests running out of Liverpool Street and Paddington.
The Signalling
A lot of commentators have said the signalling was too complicated. But eventually, it all seems to be working.
Was enough testing done away from the Elizabeth Line?
My feeling is that a new UK test track should have been built in the early 2010s, so that some testing could have been done professionally away from London.
The Fitting Out Of The Stations In The Central Tunnel
This was certainly a cause of late handover of stations like Bond Street, Farringdon, Whitechapel and others.
I heard tales, where other projects in London, were offering more money, so consequently workers were moving with the money, thus delaying the completion of stations.
I certainly heard a tale, where all the electricians on one station project moved en masse to complete the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium.
Some of the projects were office projects, paid for by sovereign wealth funds with bottomless projects, so they could make sure their project finished on time.
There were also the problems caused by Brexit, the pandemic and major projects running late in Germany and Europe.
It is my view that Elizabeth Line should have been given more priority, by delaying commercial projects, so that the pool of available labour wasn’t exhausted.
Some of the forest of projects around Elizabeth Line stations, should have been given planning permission, that meant they couldn’t start until Elizabeth Line was finished.
In the 1960s, there was certainly a similar labour problem in Aberdeen. I was told, that the oil majors, who nearly all used the project management system; Artemis, that I had written, talked to each other to make sure the situation didn’t get any worse.
I wonder, if someone was watching the labour shortage problems in City Hall?
Conclusion
I believe that if Elizabeth Line had been given the priority it should have been, that it would have been opened earlier and just as it is now, it would be showing a sensible cash flow.
Now it is a question of catching up financially.
Is Old Street Roundabout A ‘Too Many Cooks’ Project?
The remodelling of Old Street station and the roundabout on top was the lead item on BBC London news this morning.
The project is certainly not going well and seems to be proceeding at a snail’s pace.
Progress On The 24th February 2023
I took these pictures a few days after I wrote the original post.
Compare these pictures with those in Old Street Station – 9th September 2022, which were the last ones I took.
Conclusion
I do wonder, if this project is suffering from too many politicians trying to manage the project at the top.
I suspect Hackney and Islington Councils, the City of London, the Greater London Authority, Transport for London and the Mayor of London are all having a say.
And I suspect other interested parties like Moorfields Hospital, the various bus companies, and many disgruntled passengers are all adding their four pennyworth.
What is needed is for someone with authority to take charge!
Unfortunately for the project, the guy with the authority; Sadiq Khan won’t be interested, as it’s a North London project.
But please someone, get a grip on this important project!
Birmingham Plays The Green Card
This article in The Times today is entitled Birmingham Airport Set For Hydrogen Take-Off.
These two paragraphs introduce the article.
Birmingham Airport aims to become the first in Britain to operate commercial zero-emission hydrogen-fuelled flights — and by as early as 2025.
The ambitious goal follows the signing of a partnership with the British start-up ZeroAvia whose first trial flight of a 19-seater passenger aircraft powered by hydrogen fuel cells took place last month.
Other points from the article include.
- ZeroAvia is also working with Rotterdam Airport.
- Initially, it is likely that the hydrogen-powered aircraft will be used for cargo.
- The government wants all UK domestic flights to be zero-carbon by 2040.
- Birmingham wants to be zero-carbon by 2033.
- ZeroAvia has received upwards of £20 million of matched-taxpayer funding.
- It has some big backers and well-known airlines, who have placed orders.
These are my thoughts.
ZeroAvia’s Airliners
This paragraph from The Times article describes their first two aircraft.
ZeroAvia is retrofitting turboprops, 19-seater Dornier and in future 80-seater De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400s, with tanks of hydrogen which is converted by fuel cell stacks to energy taken to electric motors that power the propellers. The only emission is water. It is talking to potential new-entrant airframe makers to build all-new hydrogen aircraft of the future.
Note.
- The Dornier 228 is a 19-seater airliner of which over three hundred have been built.
- The de Havilland Canada Dash 8-400 is an 80-seater airliner of which over six hundred have been ordered and over 1200 of all marques of Dash 8s have been built.
Both are workhorses of the smaller airlines all over the world.
As the paragraph from The Times indicates the power system is not conventional, but then most of this new breed of small electric/hydrogen/hybrid airliners have electric propulsion. I suspect that there’s been a marked improvement in the design and efficiency of electric motors.
Electric propulsion should have a substantial noise advantage over turboprops.
ZeroAvia are also retrofitting their two chosen airliners.
This offers advantages in the certifying of the airliners. Providing the changes made to the airframe are not significant, the various certifying authorities in the UK, US and EU will allow previous certification to be carried over.
This means that ZeroAvia only have to thoroughly test and certify the powerplant and its integration into the aircraft.
One of their competitors, the Eviation Alice is a completely new airframe with battery-electric power, so I suspect this aircraft will take longer to certify.
I think ZeroAvia have used this shorter certification time to aim to get their airliners in service first.
Those that don’t win, don’t get the same fame.
Hydrogen At Birmingham Airport
Hydrogen will be needed at Birmingham Airport to refuel ZeroAvia’s airliners.
But will hydrogen also be used on the airside to power some of the heavy vehicles you see on airports.
Look at this page on the Hawaii Technology Development Corporation, which shows a Hydrogen Fuel Cell U-30 Aircraft Tow Tractor. The specification indicates, that it can tow a C-17 or a Boeing 747.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Birmingham Airport build their own electrolyser nearby both to supply hydrogen-powered aircraft and decarbonise the airside.
To And From Birmingham Airport
Consider.
- Birmingham Airport is connected to Birmingham International station by a free AirRail Link.
- Birmingham International station has an impressive number of services, many of which are electric.
- There will be a people mover to connect to Birmingham Interchange for High Speed Two.
- Birmingham Interchange will have five trains per hour (tph) to and from London, taking under forty minutes.
- There are plans to extend the West Midlands Metro to the airport, with journeys taking thirty minutes from the City Centre.
- Birmingham Airport is at the centre of the UK’s motorway network.
Most public transport to Birmingham Airport will be zero-carbon and the percentage that is will increase.
A Green Air Bridge To Ireland
Currently the fastest services between London and Birmingham International station take a few minutes over the hour.
But after High Speed Two opens, the service will improve.
- High Speed Two will take under forty minutes.
- There will be five tph.
- High Speed Two will connect to the Elizabeth Line and the London Overground at Old Oak Common station.
- Euston station will have better connectivity to the Underground.
This diagram shows High Speed Two services.
Consider.
- Birmingham Interchange has good connections in the North.
- I can see that Birmingham Airport could start to attract lots of passengers going between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland.
- And don’t forget Cardiff, Swansea, Exeter, Isle of Man and New Quay.
- Could Birmingham-Dublin and Birmingham-Belfast be run as frequent shuttles?
- Will there be AirRail tickets between Euston and Belfast and Dublin?
I also wonder if zero-carbon travel will attract passengers?
Zero-Carbon Air Cargo At Birmingham Airport
This article on Railway Gazette is entitled Varamis Rail Launches Regular Express Light Freight Service.
These three paragraphs outline the service from Varamis Rail.
Varamis Rail has launched a 160 km/h express freight service between Glasgow and Birmingham International using a converted electric multiple-unit.
The service is targeted at express parcels and third-party delivery companies seeking next day delivery of consumer goods.
Consignments arriving at the Glasgow hub by 17.30 from Monday to Friday can reach Birmingham at 23.00, with northbound freight arriving at the Birmingham site by 23.00 reaching Glasgow at 05.30 the next morning.
I think this service would interface well with cargo planes operating overnight from Birmingham Airport.
It seems to me, that Spokes at Speke could be reborn at Birmingham.
Conclusion
Birmingham Airport seems to be positioning itself to take advantage of aviation’s new breed of planes.
East London Is A Duckers And Divers Paradise
This is the East End Tube Map, which I clipped off the full tube map.
I live just South of the East London Line between Canonbury and Dalston Junction stations.
Today started just after nine, as many others do by braving the nightmare on the buses to take a 141 bus to Moorgate.
- At Moorgate, I had breakfast as I do regularly in the Leon, by Moorgate station.
- After breakfast, it was one stop South on the Northern Line to Bank, to see if the new entrance had opened.
- It was then a trip on the new moving walkway to the Central Line.
- I took the Central Line to Stratford to do my main shopping at the start of the week, in the large Marks and Spencer in Eastfield, by the station entrance.
- It was then on to the North London Line to go back home.
- I didn’t go all the way home on the Overground, but got off the train at Hackney Central and using the new Graham Road entrance, I crossed to get a 38 bus, which would take me home.
- But two 38s passed as I tried to cross the road and in the end I took a 277 bus to Dalston Junction station.
- From the Junction, I got a 56 bus home.
I got home about eleven.
At least now, I’ve got food until Thursday!
Very Busy Lizzie
Yesterday, I took the Elizabeth Line, back from Reading to Moorgate.
- When, I got on at Reading, there were perhaps fifty empty seats and I was able to have three seats to myself.
- But by Slough, It was standing room only!
- It cleared a bit at Paddington, but by Moorgate there were only a few seats left.
Currently, there are two trains per hour (tph) between Abbey Wood and Reading stations.
As other passengers said it’s always busy, I suspect that Transport for London need to tweak the signalling, so that four tph run to Reading.
This section called Planned Service in the Wikipedia entry for the Elizabeth Line says this.
In May 2023, it is planned to allow trains to run from both eastern branches to west of Paddington. This will allow both more flexible, and higher frequency, services: 24 tph peak, 20 tph off-peak, and direct services between Shenfield and Heathrow. In the longer term, when Old Oak Common opens, all trains will serve Old Oak Common, with those not serving the Reading or Heathrow branches reversing there.
The service changes for May 2023 were confirmed in February 2023. The peak timetable will increase to 24 trains per hour. Off-peak service level will remain at 16 trains per hour, with two Shenfield–Paddington trains extended to Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 and two Abbey Wood–Terminal 5 trains switching to Terminal 4.
This will give an Off Peak schedule as follows.
- Reading and Abbey Wood – 2 tph
- Maidenhead and Abbey Wood – 2 tph
- Heathrow Terminal 4 and Abbey Wood – 4 tph
- Heathrow Terminal 5 and Abbey Wood – 0 tph
- Heathrow Terminal 5 and Shenfield – 2 tph
- Paddington and Shenfield – 6 tph
I don’t believe it is good enough.
- There is no direct Heathrow Terminal 5 and Abbey Wood service.
- Reading needs four tph to Central London.
- See Elizabeth Line: Commuters Say Service ‘Not What Was Promised’
- See So Many Cases On A Train!
I suspect passenger congestion and reaction will force a rethink by the Mayor and Transport for London.
The Hook Landslip
This page on the South Western Railway web site is called Landslip Near Hook.
This is the operator’s explanation about what happened and their solution.
Over the weekend of Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 January, heavy rain caused part of a railway embankment to collapse between Hook and Winchfield stations on the South West Main Line, which connects London Waterloo with Basingstoke.
The landslip took place on a very busy part of our route. On a normal weekday morning, around 13 trains per hour run through this section, with services between London Waterloo and Basingstoke, Exeter St Davids, Portsmouth Harbour (via Eastleigh), Salisbury, Southampton Central, Winchester and Weymouth.
The landslip left a 44-metre stretch of track suspended in mid-air and only one of the four tracks available for trains to run on. This severely restricted the number of services we could run between Basingstoke and Woking.
Initial repairs by Network Rail on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 increased the number of trains that we could run to six per hour, however they were still unable to call at Hook from the direction of London.
Network Rail intend to fully complete their repairs by Friday 24 February, and restore services to Hook in the direction of Basingstoke from Monday 13 February.
To do this, engineers will require more access to the railway between Farnborough and Basingstoke overnight. Normally the last service to run between these stations is at around 0100, but to give engineers the time they need, services will now have to end by 2220.
I passes the site today and took these pictures.
Note.
- Network Rail had to build quite a long roadway to access the site.
- Judging by the site full of portacabins, there were a lot of people working on the site.
- There was even someone working on a Sunday.
- The information board was in the subway at Basingstoke station.
- The pictures would have better, if the sun had been in a different direction.
Network Rail have to manage a lot of embankments like this.
The Anonymous Widower 