A Walk Around New Bermondsey – 8th February 2022
I took these pictures as I walked around Millwall’s Football Ground to the site of New Bermondsey and then on to South Bermondsey station to get the train to London Bridge.
These are my thoughts.
New Bermondsey Development
In Housing Development Next To Planned Overground Station Gets Approved, I used this description of the development from this article on Ian Visits.
The development, New Bermondsey, will see a cluster of residential towers built around the Millwall football ground on former light industrial sites, and will provide some 3,500 homes, a new sports facility, auditorium with 800 seats, and it’s said some 1,250 jobs. The towers vary in height across the site from 13 – 44 storeys; most towers are around 29/30 storeys.
Ian’s article also shows a visualisation with nineteen towers and some shorter blocks.
The development has a web site, which has a video on the home page.
Car Parking
I have gone through the New Bermondsey web site and the only mentions of parking are in these two statements, which describe the basement.
- Allocation for move in and out bays for vans.
- Secure residents’ cycle parking.
Does this mean that no car parking spaces are provided?
This article on LondonReconnections is entitled Canal Knowledge: The Fall and Rise of Surrey Canal Road Station.
One of the comments says this about parking around the station.
The permission for this development includes zero car parking provision, and a restriction preventing the granting of street parking permits. Such a restriction has been common in the “skyscraper zone” of the Isle of Dogs for many years but I suspect is a fairly novel stipulation in other boroughs.
It does appear that those living in the New Bermondsey development will have to live car-free.
New Bermondsey Station
New Bermondsey station appears to be an empty concrete shell, that just needs fitting out with stairs and/or lifts, entrances/exits, ticketing and platforms alongside the line.
- The London Overground started running in December 2012 over the bridge.
- Wikipedia says it will be an accessible station.
- It probably needs to be an accessible station, if no car parking is provided in the development.
- The article on LondonReconnections confirms that lifts will be fitted from opening date.
- There are hints on the Internet, that the station will open before substantial development happens in the area.
I would hope that the station wouldn’t take too long to finish.
South Bermondsey Station
South Bermondsey Station is at the other end of the development and it is a station that needs improvement.
- I used it today and there are lots of stairs to the platforms.
- As with New Bermondsey station, it needs to be made step-free.
- It is also a cold, draughty station and needs a few shelters.
But it could be made into a much better station to serve Millwall Football Club.
Millwall Football Club
Millwall Football Club appear to have plans for the future and the New Bermondsey development will probably make access to the ground more difficult.
But it will have two stations close by, instead of one.
Traffic
There were roadworks in the area and that partly explains the crowded roads.
But will the road network be able to cope with construction traffic generated by the development?
At least the residents won’t have any cars of their own.
Conclusion
I hope this development works as it will create 3,500 much-needed homes, but will the absence of car parking in the development mean that many won’t want to move there?
Housing Development Next To Planned Overground Station Gets Approved
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on IanVisits.
This paragraph describes the development.
The development, New Bermondsey, will see a cluster of residential towers built around the Millwall football ground on former light industrial sites, and will provide some 3,500 homes, a new sports facility, auditorium with 800 seats, and it’s said some 1,250 jobs. The towers vary in height across the site from 13 – 44 storeys; most towers are around 29/30 storeys.
The Overground station is New Bermondsey station, which was originally to be called Surrey Canal Road station.
This Google Map shows the area.
Note.
- The railway going down the East side of the map in the South London Line of the London Overground.
- The railway going round the West side of the map is the National Rail line going through South Bermondsey station to London Bridge.
- The two lines meet at Queens Road Peckham station to the South.
- Surrey Canal Road runs East-West across the map to the South of The Den.
- New Bermondsey station will be where Surrey Canal Road crosses under the London Overground.
- Most of the new housing will be clustered along this road and around the football ground.
The development will be convenient for Millwall supporters.
Talgo To Begin Fuel Cell Loco Trials
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Trials are to begin shortly with the TPH2 fuel cell test locomotive developed by Talgo as part of its hydrogen traction programme. This forms part of a low-carbon research and development strategy which is being supported by a green hydrogen supply alliance and financing from the European Investment Bank.
The TPH2 loco has been produced by fitting fuel cells and traction batteries to the Travca L-9202 ‘Virgen del Buen Camino’ prototype multi-system and variable gauge locomotive which was built by Talgo in 2005.
This page on the Talgo web site describes the Travca locomotive like this.
Travca: Traction Without Borders
Travca is a locomotive that stops at nothing; not at different power supplies, track gauges nor signalling systems all of which makes Travca Talgo’s most advanced development in the field of traction.
This is the specification of the electric locomotive from the Talgo web site.
- Operating speed – Up to 250km/h (passenger version)
- Configuration – Bo-Bo
- Track gauge (mm) -1435-1668
- Length (m) – 19400
- Bodyshell width (mm) – 2950
- Unladen weight (tonnes) – 72 (passenger version)
- Number of axles – 4
- Power – 2,400 kW (25kV, 50Hz) / 2,000kW (3kV dc)
- Brakes – Regenerative, rheostatic and air brakes
Notes.
- It is a variable-gauge and variable-voltage locomotive.
- 1435 mm is standard gauge
- It is lighter and wider than a Class 90 locomotive.
It does seem to be the basis of a very useful locomotive.
This article on Railway News is entitled University Of Extremadura To Work With Talgo On Its Hydrogen Train, says this about the test train.
During the first stage of the hydrogen train project, Talgo is developing the necessary engineering for the assembly and commissioning of hydrogen traction in a test train. The train will comprise a Talgo Travca MS locomotive, which can change gauges and run under different electrification systems, and five Talgo hauled cars that will house the hydrogen fuel cell system. One of the cars will be a laboratory car.
This would appear to be an experimental train with the hydrogen power station in four of the coaches.
It also appears that Extremadura is developing a hydrogen infrastructure.
Applications In The UK
The obvious application in the UK, is as a Class 66 diesel locomotive replacement, for some of the light to medium duties.
The Class 66 locomotives have a power of 2400 kW, which could be within the range of the Talgo locomotive.
In LNER Seeks 10 More Bi-Modes, I speculated that Talgo, with all their experience of high speed trains might like to bid for the extra ten trains, that LNER requires.
They could be ideal to allow electric trains to run between London and Aberdeen and Inverness.
- The Travca locomotive running on electricity could certainly handle 140 mph between London and Edinburgh.
- The power requirements North of Edinburgh would be less, as speeds would be lower.
- Ranges on hydrogen would be under two hundred miles.
It would be a flagship service for both LNER and Talgo.
Glencore & Strategic Partner Britishvolt Strengthen Relationship And Agree To Build Battery Recycling Ecosystem In The UK
The title of this post is the same as that of this press release from Glencore.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Glencore is proud to have entered an industry-leading battery recycling joint venture with strategic partner and battery pioneer Britishvolt, the UK’s foremost investor in battery cell technologies and R&D.
The joint venture will develop a world-leading ecosystem for battery recycling in the UK. This ecosystem will be anchored at a new recycling plant located at the Britannia Refined Metals operation (BRM-located in Northfleet), a Glencore company. BRM will continue with its current production and trading operations.
These appear to be some of Glencore’s objectives for the project.
- They intend to recycle a minimum of 10,000 tonnes of lithium-ion batteries per year, including but not limited to valuable battery manufacturing scrap, portable electronics batteries and full EV packs.
- They intend to recycle Britishvolt’s scrap.
- They intend to be up and running by mid-2023.
- They intend to be 100 % powered by renewable energy in the longer term.
It all seems admirable.
These are my thoughts.
Britannia Refined Metals
This Google Map shows the Britannia Refined Metals site at Northfleet.
Note.
- Britannia Refined Metals is indicated by the red arrow.
- The Port of Tilbury is on the other side of the Thames.
This second Google Map shows the site in more detail.
Note.
- It is not a very large site.
- There doesn’t appear to be much space for expansion.
- They appear to have a wharf on the river.
I’ve found this company video from the 1980s on the Internet.
They do seem to have developed a sophisticated process for recycling lead-acid batteries.
Renewable Energy
There are these offshore wind farms in the Thames Estuary.
- Gunfleet Sands – 172 MW
- Kentish Flats – 140 MW
- London Array – 630 MW
- Thanet – 300 MW
Two of these could be extended.
I am sure that there could be more space in the Thames Estuary for more wind power.
Recycling Batteries
I have found this article on the BBC, which is entitled As The World looks To Electrify Vehicles And Store Renewable Power, One Giant Challenge Looms: What Will Happen To All The Old Lithium Batteries?.
This is the third paragraph.
While this may sound like the ideal path to sustainable power and road travel, there’s one big problem. Currently, lithium (Li) ion batteries are those typically used in EVs and the megabatteries used to store energy from renewables, and Li batteries are hard to recycle.
The article talks about possible solutions.
- Don’t treat the batteries as disposable.
- Increasing the number of batteries recycled from the measly five percent.
- Automate the recycling process, which currently is labour intensive.
- Give the cathode, anode and other parts a second life in new batteries, by refurbishment.
- Batteries that degrade on command.
But the idea, I like is described in this paragraph from the article.
The next step for scientists pushing direct recycling of Li batteries forward is working with battery manufacturers and recycling plants to streamline the process from build to breakdown.
In context with the tie-up between Glencore and Britishvolt, you can imagine engineers from both companies, getting together to improve the design of the battery, so that manufacturing and recycling of batteries are two mutually efficient and complimentary processes.
I can also see some very sophisticated logistics systems being developed to return batteries to an approved recycler, who may be in another country.
But then we are dealing with something that could have a substantial value.
Deals Between Battery Manufacturers And Recyclers
I can see more deals like this between battery manufacturers and recyclers.
- It could reduce the cost of batteries.
- It could impress governments seeking to reduce the about of batteries going into landfill.
- It would reduce the amount of new metals to be mined.
It may even help, in the protection of intellectual property rights, that are concerned with battery manufacture and recycling.
A Second Similar Glencore Deal
There is also a second deal about battery recycling mentioned in a press release on the Glencore web site, which is entitled Glencore & Managem Set Up Partnership For Moroccan Production Of Cobalt From Recycled Battery Materials.
- The press release was issued only a few days before the one announcing the deal with Britishvolt.
- It is for 12,000 tonnes of recycling.
- The press release mentions renewable power.
I do wonder, if Glencore or one of their companies has developed a new process.
A Cool Move To Keep Emissions On Track
The title of this post is the same as that of this press release from Tesco.
This is the body of the release.
- Tesco and DRS partner on a new refrigerated rail freight service that will take 40 lorries off the road for every journey it makes
- Helping Tesco to deliver Christmas, the service will run seven days a week and replace 7.3 million road miles with greener distribution
- New service supports Tesco’s commitment to reach net zero emissions in its operations by 2035
Tesco and Direct Rail Services (DRS) have partnered to introduce a cool new service to Britain’s railways.
The new service will be the first time Tesco has used refrigerated rail freight in the UK, distributing chilled goods from Tilbury to Coatbridge by low CO2 rail twice a day, seven days a week. This means that rail freight will play an even bigger role in helping Tesco to deliver Christmas this year and over the next couple of weeks this new service will transport hundreds of different products, including festive favourites such as sprouts, parsnips, carrots, onions, oranges and lemons just in time for that all important Christmas dinner.
Using rail has significant environmental benefits. The 415-mile route will use DRS’s Class 88 bi-mode electric locomotives which can run on electricity and produce zero exhaust and greenhouse gas emissions. This service alone will take at least 17,000 containers off the road each year, saving Tesco 7.3 million road miles and nearly 9,000 tonnes of CO2e.
Note.
- This is Tesco’s first use of refrigerated rail freight.
- It starts from the new Tilbury 2 freight terminal.
- All services seem to be run using bi-mode Class 88 locomotives, running for most of the route using electricity.
Tesco seem to be following the rule, that every little helps when it comes to decarbonisation and climate change.
This Google Map shows Tilbury.
Note.
- The Port of Tilbury is in the West.
- Tilbury Town station on the Tilbury Loop Line is on the North side of the Port.
- There is a cruise ship at the London Cruise Terminal on the river.
- Next to the terminal is the Gravesend Tilbury Ferry. I can remember the car ferries on this route.
- Then there is Tilbury Fort.
- The Tilbury 2 Terminal is in the East.
I took these pictures in 2017.
I suspect it’s a bit different now!
Electrified Regional Air Mobility Will Be Disruptive & Mature Rapidly In Coming Years
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Clean Technica.
It is very much a must-read article, where the author analyses technology and how it will affect regional aviation.
He comes to the conclusion, that electric aircraft will develop much quicker than autonomous systems and full digital air traffic control.
He feels that we’ll see rapid development of electric aircraft flying traditionally with a pilot in charge, who talks to air traffic controllers.
Effectively, this is the system that was in operation, when I used to fly my Cessna 340 all round the UK and Western Europe thirty years ago.
Adding in electric aircraft to this system, is very similar to adding a car with a certified alternative power source to the traffic of the UK.
I think this means, that electric aircraft need to have a pilot on board to be certified, as any certification involving passenger will have to be as risk-free as possible.
The article mentions Electron Aviation. The author describes their operational model like this.
Electron Aviation, for example, sees that a 4-seater, one-pilot plane can become the workhorse of a regional short-haul leisure and business travel on-demand flight service in the second half of this decade, with planes coming to a small airport near customers, who are delivered by electric Ubers at either end. The economics work out with electric airplanes where they don’t with current internal combustion planes.
As Electron’s UK address is in Mildenhall in Suffolk, which is close to the UK horseracing centre of Newmarket, I know from my past experience that their model of four-seat air-taxis certainly works in the racing industry.
The specification for their aircraft looks impressive.
- Very aerodynamic with a high aspect ratio wing.
- Tricycle retractable undercarriage.
- Twin-pusher propellers.
- 186 mph cruise at 10,000 feet.
- 466 mile range.
- Low noise.
- Zero emissions.
Looking at the visualisation on the home page of their web site, I suspect that the battery is at the centre of lift in the middle of the plane to give excellent flying characteristics.
I also think, that their concept is scalable and that a larger aircraft could be built to a similar layout.
Conclusion
I am happy to agree with the author’s conclusion, that electric aircraft will revolutionise regional aviation in a short space of time.
Aberdeen’s Hydrogen Buses Taken Off The Road Due To Technical Issue
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Aberdeen’s fleet of hydrogen buses has been taken off the road due to a “technical issue”.
The technical issue appears not to be hydrogen-related, but with a mounting bracket.
Strange coming after CAF had bracket trouble with their trams and Hitachi had a similar problem with their trains.
Wrightbus, CAF and Hitachi haven’t been using the save dodgy Chinese supplier called El Cheapo Brackets have they?
Greater Manchester Clean Air Zone Plans Put On Hold
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
These are the first four paragraphs.
The controversial rollout of Greater Manchester’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ) has been delayed.
The scheme, which would see some high-emission vehicles face daily charges, had been due to begin at the end of May. Private cars would be exempt.
The government said the pause would allow for consultation and a revised plan was due in July.
Regional mayor Andy Burnham had earlier asked the government to delay the scheme.
If Manchester don’t bring the pollution levels down, Client Earth are threatening legal action.
But to me, as a pedestrian, I do find Manchester City Centre a difficult place to walk, compared to say Birmingham or Liverpool, as the traffic seems to move about at a fast pace.
But then I blame Harold Wilson, who cancelled the Picc-Vic tunnel.
Liverpool and Newcastle received their beneficial cross-city tunnels, but Harold Wilson said that everyone would have their own cars, so we won’t need railways.
Work Begins On Bristol’s First Railway Station Since 1927
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Construction work has begun on Bristol’s first new railway station in 95 years.
Portway Park & Ride will open in the Summer, linking Shirehampton with the Severn Beach railway line.
It is planned to open this Summer.
I first wrote about Portway Parkway station in DfT Names Five Winners Of Fresh £16m Stations Fund in 2017, when the stations names were as follows.
- Horden Peterlee in County Durham
- Warrington West in Cheshire
- Reading Green Park
- Bow Street in Ceredigion, Wales
- Portway Parkway near Bristol
Note.
- Portway Parkway is the last station to start construction.
- Reading Green Park station is still under construction and should open this year.
- Bow Street station opened in February 2021.
- Horden station opened in June 2020. I wrote about station after a visit, in Horden Station – 28th October 2020.
- Warrington West station opened in December 2019. I wrote about the station after a visit in January 2020, in The New Warrington West Station.
Given the pandemic, the construction hasn’t gone too badly.
BP Snaps Up 30 Per Cent Stake In Green Biofuels Ltd
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Business Green.
So why would BP take a stake in Green Biofuels?
This paragraph in the Wikipedia entry for BP, outlines the company’s future philosophy.
From 1988 to 2015, BP was responsible for 1.53% of global industrial greenhouse gas emissions. BP has set a goal to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050. BP plans to increase its investments in renewables 10 times and reduce oil production by 40% from current levels by 2030.
BP is doing things like developing wind and solar farms to achieve these aims.
BP also seems to be investing in both blue and green hydrogen.
But possibly, the two hardest products to decarbonise are diesel for heavy transport and aviation fuel.
Looking at Green Biofuels web site, the Wikipedia entry for Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) and other sources, Green Biofuels product; GD+ seems to make a good fist of reducing carbon emissions and pollution, if it replaces diesel.
DB Cargo UK and HVO
DB Cargo UK have a fleet of nearly two hundred large diesel locomotives in the UK.
DB Cargo UK have been experimenting with HVO, as I wrote about in Powered By HVO.
The company has issued a press release on these trials of HVO, from which this is an extract.
DB Cargo UK’s Head of Asset Management and Maintenance Steve Wilkinson said the company was collaborating with one of the UK’s leading suppliers of HVO fuel which already worked with high-profile brands like Caterpillar, John Deere, Volvo and Mercedes-Benz.
“We are very pleased with the initial performance of the HVO fuel which we could use instead of or alongside traditional red diesel. The fact it is compatible with our existing diesel means investment in new storage and fuelling facilities would also be kept to a minimum,” he added.
“On top of that, it performs well at low temperatures, has a longer lifespan and is biodegradable,” he added.
DB Cargo UK currently operates 228 diesel and electric locomotives that transport in the region of 37 million tonnes of freight each year across the UK and into Europe.
It uses approximately 45 million litres of red diesel a year.
Was one of the UK’s leading suppliers of HVO fuel, a company called Green Biofuels?
Note that DB Cargo UK’s spokesman makes these points about the fuel.
- They are very pleased with initial performance.
- It is a straight swap for red diesel and it appears locomotives can run on either. He doesn’t say it but can it run on one fuel contaminated with the other? I suspect it’s a possibility.
- Current storage can be used for HVO.
- I get the impression that swapping from red diesel to HVO wouldn’t be the most challenging of operations.
- It performs well at low temperatures. One train-driver told me, that one of the worse parts of the job, is picking up a train from a depot high in the Pennines on a cold day in the winter. That must apply to locomotives.
- It has a longer lifespan.
- It is biodegradable. I haven’t walked through an engine shed, since I used to bunk them as a child to get engine numbers, but they were filthy places, with oil and diesel all over the floor.
That sounds to me, like DB Cargo UK have decided that HVO is an excellent fuel and for them to swap to HVO, would be no more difficult than to swap between red diesel from BP to red diesel from Shell.
This is an extract from the Business Green article.
Founded in 2013, Green Biofuels is the UK’s largest provider of HVO, having delivered over 55 million litres of HVO products to the UK market over the past two years.
If DB Cargo UK wanted to swap from red diesel to HVO, they would need nearly all of Green Biofuels current production.
So have Green Biofuels run to BP and said can you help us out?
Red Diesel Replacement
This document on the Government web site is entitled Reform Of Red Diesel And Other Rebated Fuels Entitlement.
There is a section, which is entitled Policy Objective, where this is said.
In June 2019, the UK became the first major economy in the world to pass laws guaranteeing an end to its contribution to global warming by 2050. The target will require the UK to bring all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050, compared with the previous target of at least an 80% reduction from 1990 levels. The government also launched in 2019 an ambitious new strategy to clean up the air and save lives, given air pollution is one of the biggest continuing threats to public health in the UK.
Red diesel is diesel used mainly for off-road purposes, such as to power bulldozers and cranes used in the construction industry, or to power drills for oil extraction. It accounts for around 15% of all the diesel used in the UK and is responsible for the production of nearly 14 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. Red diesel used in the construction and infrastructure building sectors was also estimated to have caused 7% of nitrogen oxide emissions and 8% of PM10 emissions (a type of particulate matter) in London in 2018.
At Budget 2020, the government therefore announced that it would remove the entitlement to use red diesel and rebated biodiesel from most sectors from April 2022 to help meet its climate change and air quality targets. The tax changes will ensure that most users of red diesel use fuel taxed at the standard rate for diesel from April 2022, like motorists, which more fairly reflects the harmful impact of the emissions they produce. Removing most red diesel entitlements will also help to ensure that the tax system incentivises users of polluting fuels like diesel to improve the energy efficiency of their vehicles and machinery, invest in cleaner alternatives, or just use less fuel.
It doesn’t say, but I have found references to the fact that HVO pays the same tax rate as diesel, despite the evidence, that it appears to be more environmentally friendly.
If I was the Chancellor, I would certainly adjust the tax system, so that red diesel users who changed to HVO and other fuels, paid tax in proportion to the emissions and pollution they caused.
So have BP decided that Green Biofuels is the best interim solution to reduce emissions from diesel fuel and taking a stake, is the best way to get the required access to the product?
Could BP be thinking about replacing red diesel with a better green diesel?
- Red diesel and GD+ could be acceptable to all diesel vehicles and equipment. So farmers for rxample, could run tractors and combines on the same fuel as their truck or Range Rover.
- Businesses, like farmers, who often have tanks for both red diesel and normal diesel, would only need one tank.
- Businesses with a green profile, would surely like it for their vehicles.
- Organic farmers would like it for their tractors.
- The availability of a green diesel would enable red diesel users to change to hydrogen or battery operation, at the optimal time.
I can see Prince Charles handing out green stars all round.
The Anonymous Widower 