Hackney Downs Station To Aldgate By Volvo Electric Bus
I’d ridden one on route 242 earlier in the week, so on this trip I investigated them more.
Route 242 doesn’t normally serve Hackney Downs station, so I only got the change because of road works in Central Hackney,
These were the pictures I took.
Note.
- It was a generally well-designed and well-riding bus, with some nice touches.
- But is the great lump at the front on the left the battery?
- I particularly liked the stop indicator above the door.
- The bus was built on a Volvo chassis by MCV in Egypt.
- I must add some exterior views of the buses.
It was a lot better than the earlier Egyptian buses on route 30.
Has Aldgate Bus Station Been Fitted With Opportunity Charging?
In Hackney Downs Station To Aldgate By Volvo Electric Bus, I described my second ride in a Volvo BZL electric bus.
When I arrived at Aldgate bus station, I asked the driver, if he would be charging the bus. He answered in the affirmative.
I then took these pictures.
Note.
- Some of the buses were backed into parking spaces, with their back wheels up against one of two raised strips.
- The 242 bus I’d arrived on parked that way.
- A couple of New Routemasters were also parked each side of it.
- The 242 bus, I’d arrived on appeared to shut off all power for a few minutes. Was it charging at that time?
This Google Map shows the layout of the bus station.
Note.
- Ignore the yellow line, as it just the route of the Circle Line, which runs underneath.
- The strips are clearly visible.
- It looks there are about ten of them.
- Click on the map to show it to a larger scale.
I suspect some form of contactless charging could be used, as some people do with their mobile phone.
Power for the charging could even be taken from the Circle Line.
Completing Northern Powerhouse Rail
The Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two Connection To Manchester Airport Station
This OpenRailwayMap shows the rail connections that terminate at Manchester Airport station.
Note.
- The two runways are clearly shown.
- Manchester Airport station is indicated by the blue arrow near the top of the map.
- The orange tracks are rail lines.
- The green lines are Manchester Metrolink tracks.
- Rail and tram services approach the airport station from the East.
- The red dotted line is the current proposed path of Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two
- The black dotted line appears to be an extension of the tram line to the airport.
This second OpenRailwayMap shows the lines around the airport station to a larger scale.
Note.
- Manchester Airport station is indicated by the blue arrow at the bottom of the map.
- The orange tracks are rail lines.
- The green lines are Manchester Metrolink tracks.
- The red dotted line is the current proposed path of Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two.
- The Manchester Metrolink now makes a loop around the Airport.
I think the following will happen.
- A large proportion of passengers and staff travelling between Manchester Airport and Manchester City Centre will use Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two.
- Passengers and staff, who live locally will use the Manchester Metro loop.
- Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two will replace some of the current train services.
- Some services on the Castlefield Corridor will migrate to Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two.
There could be as many as twelve trains per hour (tph) between Manchester Airport and Manchester City Centre on Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two. But a new urban line like that, which was mostly in a tunnel could probably handle 20 tph.
Manchester Airport And Crewe
This OpenRailwayMap shows the railways between Manchester Airport and Crewe stations.
Note.
- Manchester Airport station is indicated by the blue arrow at the top of the map.
- The orange tracks are rail lines.
- The red track going down the left hand side of the map is the West Coast Main Line.
- The green lines are Manchester Metrolink tracks.
- The red dotted line is the current proposed path of Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two.
- Crewe station is at the bottom of the map in the middle.
There could be as many as 12 tph between Manchester Airport and Crewe.
Manchester Airport And Manchester Piccadilly
This OpenRailwayMap shows the railways between Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly stations.
Note.
- Manchester Airport station is in the South-West corner of the map.
- The orange tracks are existing rail lines.
- The green lines are Manchester Metrolink tracks.
- The red dotted line going up the middle of the map is the current proposed path of Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two.
- Manchester Piccadilly station is at the Northern end of Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the City Centre between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria stations.
Note.
- Manchester Piccadilly station is in the South-East corner of the map.
- The red dotted lines creeping into the map is the current proposed path of Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two.
- All the platforms in Manchester Piccadilly station can be picked out, with the Castlefield Corridor breaking away to the West.
- The current plans will need demolition of buildings to the North of Manchester Piccadilly station.
- Manchester Victoria station is in the North-West corner of the map.
- The green line of the Manchester Metrolink route picks out the walking route between Manchester’s two main stations.
- About halfway between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria stations is the open space of Piccadilly Gardens.
This Google Map shows Piccadilly Gardens.
Note.
- The Manchester Metrolink running through.
- There are two Metrolink stops ; Market Street and Piccadilly Gardens, in the area.
- It appears any stop on the Manchester Metrolink can be reached with no more than a single change from one of these two stops.
Looking at the map showing Victoria and Piccadilly stations, I wonder, if a Lizzie Line of the North could be built under Manchester City Centre.
- There would be underground platforms at Piccadilly station, with two through platforms and two to terminate trains from the South.
- Local services from Piccadilly station could continue as now, although services to Manchester Airport could be simplified.
- There would be an underground station at Piccadilly Gardens with two through platforms , to connect with an expanded Manchester Metrolink, buses and walking routes.
- There would be underground platforms at Victoria station, with two through platforms and two to terminate trains from the East.
- Local services from Victoria could continue as now.
- There could be as many as 12 tph between Manchester Victoria, Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport.
Just as the Lizzie Line was slotted into London, with the minimum of disruption, I am fairly certain, a similar but smaller construction process could be carried out in Manchester City Centre.
- Manchester doesn’t have an Underground to avoid.
- The stations could be very similar to each other and like Custom House station on the Lizzie Line, they could be built with giant concrete Lego.
- There would only be four stations to create.
- The tunnel would be about fifteen miles at most.
- The tunnel would not need to be electrified as the trains could run on batteries.
As a Manchester Rail Tunnel has been talked about for decades, I suspect there is a big knowledge base of ground conditions, which would help with the design and construction.
Between Manchester Victoria And Leeds
Consider.
- The electrification between Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge stations has recently been switched on.
- Part of the electrification between Leeds and York stations has been switched on.
- Full electrification is being installed between Leeds and Manchester Victoria stations.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the Huddersfield Line between Manchester Victoria station and a few miles short of Huddersfield station.
Note.
- Manchester Victoria station is indicated by the blue arrow in the South-West corner of the map.
- Huddersfield station is just off the map in the North-East corner.
- Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge stations is fully electrified and shown in red.
- Stalybridge and Huddersfield stations is being electrified and is shown as black and red dotted.
- Electrification between Huddersfield and Leeds is underway under the TransPennine Upgrade.
This section will be completed, when the Manchester City Centre Rail Tunnel is connected to the Huddersfield Line.
Connecting The Manchester City Centre Rail Tunnel To The Huddersfield Line
This Google Map shows where the Huddersfield Line crosses the M60 Motorway to the West of Ashton-under-Lyme.
Note.
- The newly-electrified Huddersfield Line runs across the map.
- The M60 Motorway is on the left.
- There are facilities for athletics, cricket and football.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Eastern portal of the Manchester City Centre Rail Tunnel was in this area.
But looking at Google Maps between this site and Manchester Victoria, there are other sites.
Conclusion
I now feel that it is possible to create a Northern Powerhouse Rail/High Speed Two route using a tunnel under Manchester.
Obviously, there is more work to be done.
German court Rejects Deutsche Bahn’s Appeal To Share Stuttgart 21 Cost Overruns With Partners
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
These three paragraphs add more details.
A court has rejected Deutsche Bahn’s argument that the financial responsibility for cost overruns on the Stuttgart 21 project should be shared with its partners, which include the Land of Baden-Württemberg, the Stuttgart regional authority, Stuttgart city council and Stuttgart airport.
When launched in 2010, the project to remodel the local rail network, which includes 57 km of new line and a rebuilt Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof with underground platforms, was expected to cost €4·1bn.
It has since undergone steady cost increases, and is now projected to cost more than €11bn. It was originally expected to be completed in 2019, but has been continually delayed and partial opening is now to take place in December 2026 with full completion in 2027.
With a prospective increase in costs of nearly three times and being eight years late, it does seem that we’re not alone in getting large projects spectacularly wrong.
US Floating Wind Platform Developer Issues RFI To Fabricators Worldwide
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Aikido Technologies, which recently secured a spot at a Norwegian offshore demo site, has released an RFI for its 15 MW ‘AO60’ floating wind platform to offshore wind fabricators.
These are the first four paragraphs which add more details.
The California-based floating wind foundation developer said on social media that it had issued the RFI to more than ten “top-tier offshore wind fabricators from around the world”.
The RFI has been released in three separate packages, each tailored to a specific type of facility: one for standard offshore steel shops, one for tubular/jacket yards, and one for monopile/tower facilities.
“This is how we can build 1, 50 or 100 of these units with existing fabrication capabilities, with components that can be easily transported around the world for final assembly at a local port. No need for custom yards, custom vessels or custom ports”, Aikido Technologies said.
In May 2025, the company was allocated a slot for its AO60 platform at the Marine Energy Test Centre (METCentre) in Norway, where Aikido will deploy what it says is a first-of-its-kind 15 MW demonstration project.
As someone, who wrote project management computer systems for thirty years, I like Aikido’s plans and feel they would be well suited to the UK, where we have quite a few local ports, that would appear suitable for final assembly of the A060 platforms.
In Yarmouth Harbour To Be ‘Completed’ In £60m Project, I describe the expansion of the Port of Great Yarmouth.
These two paragraphs describe the work to be done.
Peel Ports said it would invest between £50m and £60m in Great Yarmouth’s Outer Harbour by developing the southern terminal, creating a roll-on roll-off (RORO) lift ramp and a large storage area.
Port director Richard Goffin said the construction work, which is set to begin in 2026, would “complete” the port as laid out in a business case in the early 2000s.
This image from Peel Ports Group shows how the Port of Great Yarmouth will look after the the proposed development.
As the Port of Great Yarmouth has a depth of ten metres it could be an ideal base for the assembly and maintenance of floating wind turbines.
Hull Trains Allows Delay Compensation To Be Donated To Charity
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on Rail Advent.
These four paragraphs fill in the details.
Customers of Hull Trains who claim compensation for train delays can now choose to donate their Delay Repay funds to charity.
Hull Trains’ new official charity partner for 2025 is P.A.U.L For Brain Recovery, which supports people across the Humber region affected by acquired brain injury. P.A.U.L For Brain Recovery is based in Hull, and has recently expanded its support to cover communities in north and northeast Lincolnshire, and has ambitions to support people further afield.
The new scheme will allow customers to opt for the delay compensation to be sent directly to the charity. Hull Trains operates trains between Hull and London King’s Cross, stopping at Grantham in Lincolnshire, and serving other stations on the East Coast route, including Doncaster and Beverley.
The founder and CEO of P.A.U.L For Brain Recovery is Paul Spence. In 2012, Paul suffered a brain haemorrhage when he was the victim of an unprovoked attack. After he was discharged from a high dependency unit, he and his family faced a long and challenging road to recovery, and quickly realised that support available in the community was sadly lacking.
I think it’s rather a good idea.
An Interesting Comment From Lord Peter Hendy
This article on Modern Railways is entitled Chiltern FINALLY Signs Mk 5 Deal.
This extract from the article describes the deal.
An agreement for Chiltern Railways to lease the Mk 5A coaches previously operated by TransPennine Express and owned by Beacon Rail Leasing has been signed – and the trains are due to replace the current Mk 3 stock in phases from 2026. A 10-year lease has been agreed for the vehicles.
Chiltern will take on all 13 five-car sets as well as the spare Driving Trailer and the dedicated pool of 14 Class 68 locomotives.
The article also, has this excellent quote from Lord Peter Hendy, who is the Rail Minister at the end.
This government is putting passengers back at the heart of the 21st century railway by investing to make journeys easier, greener, and more comfortable.
“We are continuing to support Chiltern as they develop a plan to introduce additional services into their timetable, giving people more opportunities to work, live, and socialise.
I agree with much of what Lord Peter Hendy says, but could we see some actions to back up the words.
I have a few thoughts.
Lumo To Glasgow
I wrote about this new service in Lumo Will Extend Its King’s Cross And Edinburgh Service To Glasgow.
Given the opposition of the Transport Minister to open access services, I didn’t think this innovative service would be approved.
- But it does add an affordable passenger-friendly service to London and Glasgow routes.
- It will certainly be an easier route to London for some in Scotland.
- It also adds some much-needed direct services between Newcastle and Glasgow.
Did Lord Peter Hendy have words to help Lumo get its approval?
As I wrote in Could London And Central Scotland Air Passengers Be Persuaded To Use The Trains?, I also believe that this new Lumo service could persuade more air passengers to take the train to Scotland.
Lumo To Stirling
I wrote about this service in ORR: Open Access Services Given Green Light Between London And Stirling.
- First Group has taken over Grand Union Trains and the service will now be run by Lumo, who will use diesel Class 222 trains.
- But Lumo will have the option of running their electric Class 803 trains on the route, as it is fully electrified, when their fleet receives more trains.
This was another service, that I didn’t think would be approved, as no other services on the West Coast Main Line were approved, as Network Rail objected.
But it certainly meets the words in Lord Peter Hendy’s statement.
Like Lumo’s service to Glasgow, when the Stirling service gets electric trains, it will surely cut carbon emissions of travellers to Central Scotland.
Chiltern’s Replacement Trains
Chiltern Railways are replacing this fleet of locomotive hauled trains.
- 8 Class 68 locomotives
- 25 Mark 3 coaches
- 6 Driving Van Trailers
As services between London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street stations consist of one locomotive, five coaches and one driving van trailer, that means there are two spare locomotives, one spare coach and one spare driving van trailer, if there are five rakes of coaches in service.
The new fleet will be.
- 14 Class 68 locomotives
- 52 Mark 5A coaches
- 14 Driving Van Trailers
If services between London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street stations consist of one locomotive, four coaches and one driving van trailer, that means there are one spare locomotive and one spare driving van trailer, which gives a possible thirteen rakes of coaches in service.
There are certainly enough to expand Chiltern’s services. The obvious destination would surely be Oxford. These pictures show the two North-pacing platforms at Oxford station.
The platforms would be shared with East-West Rail, but they are around 160 metres in length.
The Modern Railways article quote Arriva Group Managing Director UK Trains Amanda Furlong as saying this.
Upgrading our fleet is a vital next step in Chiltern’s modernisation plans and an important part of Arriva’s wider ambition to support the transition to more sustainable rail travel across the UK and Europe.
We are proud to support this important milestone for Chiltern Railways, which is a great example of what can be achieved through strong collaboration with Government to deliver practical improvements for passengers. We look forward to seeing these upgraded trains improve journeys and lower emissions across the network.
She certainly would agree on some issues with Lord Peter Hendy.
So will Chiltern Railways do something to reduce the carbon footprint of their fourteen Class 68 locomotives?
- The Class 68 locomotives don’t have too many miles on the clock.
- Chiltern have already run some their Class 68 locomotives on HVO, so this must be a possibility.
- In total there are thirty-four Class 68 locomotives in service all of which have Caterpillar engines, so a conversion to zero-carbon power could be worthwhile.
I asked Google for an AI Overview on How many diesel locomotives have caterpillar engines worldwide? I got this answer.
While a precise worldwide count of diesel locomotives powered by Caterpillar (CAT) engines is difficult to pinpoint, it’s estimated that hundreds, if not thousands, of locomotives are equipped with CAT engines. Caterpillar has a long history of supplying engines to the rail industry, with engines like the 3500 series powering both mainline and switcher locomotives. Additionally, CAT engines are also used in generator sets for Head End Power (HEP) in passenger locomotives.
Note.
- It appears that, Caterpillar might have given up making truck engines because of emission issues.
- London Marylebone and Oxford is 66.8 miles
- London Marylebone and Birmingham Snow Hill is 112.3 miles.
Perhaps one of the consultants like Ricardo could convert these locomotives to run on hydrogen.
Do Hitachi Battery Electric InterCity Trains Have Problems?
I asked Google the question in the title of this post and got this answer.
While Hitachi’s battery-powered intercity trains have shown promising results in trials, particularly regarding fuel savings and emissions reduction, there are some potential challenges and considerations. These include safety concerns related to lithium battery fires, especially in the event of a crash or derailment, as well as range limitations for longer journeys. However, the technology is continuously evolving, and Hitachi is actively working to address these issues.
That seems fairly positive.
There is also this article on the BBC, which everybody should read, which is entitled Will New Battery-Powered Trains Replace Diesel, And Are They Safe?.
In The Data Sheet For Hitachi Battery Electric Trains, I look at the data sheet, that Hitachi published in late 2023.
These were my conclusions about the data sheet.
These are my conclusions about Hitachi’s battery packs for Class 80x trains, which were written in November 2023.
- The battery pack has a capacity of 750 kWh.
- A five-car train needs three battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- A nine-car train needs five battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- The maximum range of a five-car train with three batteries is 117 miles.
- The maximum range of a nine-car train with five batteries is 121 miles.
As battery technology gets better, these distances will increase.
Hitachi have seen my figures.
They also told me, that they were in line with their figures, but new and better batteries would increase range.
125 mph trains with a 120 mile range on batteries, would revolutionise UK train travel.
LNER’s Class 897 Trains
In the Wikipedia entry for LNER, this is said about LNER’s new ten CAF tri-mode trains.
In November 2023, LNER placed an order for 10 ten-car tri-mode (electric, diesel and battery power) Civity trains from CAF. In August 2024, it was announced that the units will be designated Class 897 under TOPS.
According to their Wikipedia entry, it appears the Class 897 trains will be delivered from 2027.
Can I Build A Schedule For The Introduction Of New Trains, Services and Batteries?
I think that I can from the information that is out there.
- East Coast Main Line – December 2025 – Introduction of Lumo between London King’s Cross and Glasgow
- West Coast Main Line – Spring 2026 – Introduction of Lumo between London Euston and Stirling
- Midland Main Line – 2026-2027 – Introduction of EMR Class 810 trains between London St. Pancras and Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield.
- East Coast Main Line – From 2027 – Introduction of LNER Class 897 trains between London King’s Cross and Yorkshire.
Note.
- The two Lumo services use trains already in service.
- The Class 810 trains for EMR are being debugged and introduced at the present time.
- The only new trains are the Class 897 trains for LNER.
- The introduction of the Class 897 trains will allow LNER to withdraw some trains for refurbishment and fitting of batteries.
This would mean that before the next general election, almost the full timetable between London and the North of England and Scotland would have been implemented using diesel-electric technology.
Is it a low-risk start to the full electrification of services to the North?
The second-phase would see battery-electric trains introduced.
I believe that Grand Central’s new trains would be brought into service first.
- The new trains are scheduled to be introduced in 2028.
- Grand Central will still have the diesel trains for backup.
- Their new trains would be similar to the other Hitachi trains.
- It looks like they could be doing some splitting and joining.
After the Grand Central trains had been introduced successfully, the trains for the other Hitachi operators would have batteries fitted.
I suspect short routes like Lincoln would be electrified with battery-electric trains first.
There would also need to be short lengths of electrification erected, so that trains could be charged to send them on their way.
Other routes could also be electrified in the same way.
- Basingstoke and Exeter
- Birmingham and Aberystwyth
- Bristol and Penzance
- Cardiff and Swansea
- Crewe and Holyhead
- Edinburgh and Aberdeen
- Edinburgh and Inverness
- Reading and Taunton
- Swindon and Gloucester
If this technique could work for main lines, surely a scaled down version with smaller trains would work for branch lines.
Conclusion
Consider.
- It looks to me, that someone has planned this thoroughly.
- It all fits together extremely well.
It could be the first phase of a cunning plan to use battery-electric trains to electrify the UK’s railways.
Passengers will also see benefits, from when Lumo runs its first train into Glasgow Queen Street station.
I don’t think Hitachi’s trains have any problems, but there is enough float in this plan to make sure, it can be implemented on time and on budget.
Major Milestone Marked As Half A Million Journeys Are Made On The Northumberland Line
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item on the Northumberland County Council web site.
These are the first four paragraphs.
500,000 passengers have now travelled on the Northumberland Line since it opened, train operator Northern has announced.
The operator has been running trains since the line opened in December 2024, with the milestone of half a million customer journeys achieved just eight months later.
Services call at Newcastle, Manors and at new stations in Seaton Delaval, Newsham and Ashington, with a journey along the entire route taking around 35 minutes and a single fare costing no more than £3.
Trains are proving to be particularly popular during school holidays and weekends.
This news release shows how successful and popular reopening disused railways can be and paints a similar picture to what happened in Deven on the Dartmoor Line to Okehampton, that I wrote about in Dartmoor Line Passes 250,000 Journeys On Its First Anniversary, As Rail Minister Visits To Mark Official Opening Of The Station Building.
We should be looking for more similar lines like the Dartmoor and Northumberland Lines to reopen.
These must be candidates.
- The Ivanhoe Line in Leicestershire.
- The Fleetwood Line in Lancashire.
- The Wisbech Line in Cambridgeshire.
At least the government is reopening the Portishead Line in Somerset.
The Anonymous Widower 