Could A Platform Or Platforms Be Added To The High Meads Loop To Improve Connectivity At Stratford?
This Google Map shows Stratford International station..
The main station is obvious, but note the Stratford International DLR station to the North on the other side of Interbational Way.
- From the DLR station the tracks curve Southwards and cross the High Speed tracks towards St. Pancras.
- Alongside these tracks is the double-track High Meads Loop.
- On the Northern side of the DLR station, the loop enters a tunnel to connect the tracks to Lea Bridge and Tottenham Hale stations.
- At the Southern end, the loop connects to the tracks that go through platforms 11 and 12 of the domestic Stratford station, before joining with the other side of the High Meads Loop at Temple Meads East Junction to go North.
- Platform 11 would handle trains going clockwise round the loop and Platform 12 those going anti-clockwise.
This map from carto.metro.free.fr shows the track layout in detail.
The loop has been used in the past to turn Stansted Expresses that ran to Stratford, where they called in Platform 12. The signs are still there, as this picture, which was taken at the Eastern end of the Overground plstforms 1 and 2, shows.
The capacity of the loop must be quite large.
- A similar single-track loop under Liverpool handles as many as fourteen trains per hour (tph).
- The double-track loop could probably handle upwards of sixteen tph.
The following is also planned, is happening or could happen.
- Crossrail should open in 2019 giving a direct connection between Stratford and Heathrow via Paddington, the West End and Liverpool Street.
- Four tph will run between Stratford and Meridian Water stations.
- A Stansted Express service between Stansted and Stratford could be reintroduced.
- Liverpool Street is getting increasingly crowded.
- London Overground might run services between Stratford and the Lea Valley.
Utilising the capacity of the existing High Meads Loop would probably be an easier option, than expanding Liverpool Street.
I arrived at Stratford International DLR station today and after using the Western entrance, I took these pictures.
The High Meads Loop is not that far from the DLR station and there would appear to be scope to create at least one platform.
This Google Map shows the Western end of the DLR station and the High Meads Loop.
I think there is scope in the area to create a link between the three stations at the Western end of the DLR station, which is the building with the blue roof.
It could also be a better walking route to the Internation station, as you won’t have to fight your way through Eastfields.
Conclusion
I think it will be tricky, but a better interchange will be created.
Crossrail’s Pudding Mill Lane Portal – 29th October 2018
Crossrail’s Pudding Mill Lane portal now appears to be substantially complete.
These pictures were taken from the Stratford-bound platform of Pudding Mill Lane DLR station and a train that had just left the station for Stratford.
It is an impressive structure.
Station Dwell Times On The London Overground
This afternoon, I had to go to Walthamstow for lunch, so on the way out, I checked how long it was between brakes on at James Street station and the Class 315 train was moving again.
The dwell time was a very respectable thirty seconds, which is probably more down to the driver and the signalling, than the nearly-forty-year-old train.
Coming back, I took the Gospel Oak to Barking Line to Gospel Oak station..
The driver gave a display of precision driving a Class 172 train, with the intermediate stops, all taking thirty seconds or less.
From Gospel Oak, I switched to the North London Line and took a Class 378 train to Canonbury station, from where I walked home.
The dwell times on this line were more variable, with two times at thirty seconds or less, two at nearly two minutes and the rest in-between.
From these small number of observations, it would appear that the minimum dwell time on the London Overground is thirty seconds.
Various factors will determine the actual dwell time.
- Trains must not leave early, as passengers don’t like this.
- Trains must not leave, before the driver has ascertained it is safe to do so.
- If a train arrives early, then the dwell time might be lengthened, even if the train leaves on time.
- Large numbers of passengers or a passenger in a wheelchair, who needs a ramp will lengthen the dwell time.
I should say that today, the trains were not full and there were plenty of empty seats.
Conclusions
If trains and drivers can handle thirty second dwell times, then everything else associated with a station stop, must be capable of the same fast response.
This thirty-second dwell time may have repercussions for rapid charging of battery/electric trains, that I wrote about in Charging A Battery-Powered Class 230 Train.
I think there are three options for charging a train at a station stop.
Plug the Train Into A Power Socket
Can you plug you mobile phone into the mains, give it a reasonable charge and then disconnect it and store all leads in thirty seconds?
Use a Pantograph To Connect To 25 KVAC Overhead Electrification
Even if a driver or automation is very fast at raising and lowering the pantograph, I don’t believe that in a total time of thirty seconds, enough electricity can be passed to the train.
This method might work well in longer stop at a terminal station, but it is unlikely, it could be used successfully at an intermediate stop.
Use 750 VDC Third-Rail Electrification
750 VDC third-rail electrification has a very big advantage, in that, trains can connect and disconnect to the electrification automatically, without any driver intervention.
Look at this picture of a train going over a level-crossing.
The ends of the third-rails on either side or the crossing are sloped so that the contact shoes on the train can disconnect and connect smoothly.
As you have to design the system for a possible thirty-second stop and don’t have the time available for the first two options, I am fairly certain, that the only way a worthwhile amount of electricity can be transferred to the train’s battery, is to use some form of system based on tried-and-tested 750 VDC third rail electrification.
There may also be advantages in using a longer length of third-rail, so that the connection time is increased and more than one contact shoe can connect at the same time.
Automation would control the power to the third-rail, so that no live rail is exposed to passengers and staff.
After all a train on top, is a pretty comprehensive safety guard.
.
Could A Class 450 Battery/FLEX Train Be Used Between Waterloo And Exeter?
When I wrote Porterbrook Makes Case For Battery/Electric Bi-Mode Conversion, Issue 864 of Rail Magazine hadn’t been published. The magazine contained details of Vivarail’s proposed rapid charging facility, which I wrote about in Charging A Battery-Powered Class 230 Train.
Consequently, at the time, I came to the conclusion that a Class 450 train with a Battery/FLEX conversion, similar to Porterbrook’s one for a Class 350 train, couldn’t stretch between Waterloo and Exeter, as it was just too far.
But Vivarail’s proposed rapid charging facility could change everything!
The West of England Main Line is electrified as far as Basingstoke station, from where the route is worked excursively by diesel Class 159 trains.
Between Basingstoke and Exeter St. Davids stations, the trains make fourteen stops.
- Most station stops,take up to a minute, but could take longer if say the train is busy or there’s a passenger in a wheelchair.
- The train stops at Salisbury for four minutes, possibly to allow loading and unloading of catering trolleys.
- The distances between stations range between a few and eighteen miles.
- In Porterbrook Makes Case For Battery/Electric Bi-Mode Conversion, I said that if a 400 kWh battery were to be fitted to a Class 350/2 train, that this would give a range between twenty and fifty miles.
- The Class 350 and South Western Railway’s Class 450 trains are the same basic Siemens Desiro train, although the Class 350 train uses 25 KVAC overhead electrification and the Class 450 train uses 750 VDC third-rail electrification.
It would appear that if the train could be charged at each station, it should be able to hop all the way between Basingstoke and Exeter St. Davids stations.
Using a traditional charger, where the train would have to be physically plugged into the charger, wouldn’t be possible in the short station stops on the route.
Even raising a pantograph to connect to a 25 KVAC overhead line would be slow and could distract the driver, whilst they were doing more important things.
But Vivarail’s proposed rapid charging facility, which I am sure is automatic would give the battery a top-up without any driver intervention.
The charging system would have a third rail on the opposite side of the track to the platform, as in this picture of Kidbrooke station.
The third-rail would be.
- Short enough to be shielded by a train stopping on top.
- Long enough to connect to at least two contact shoes on the train.
- Automatically earthed, when no train is present and connected.
This would be the sequence, as a train stopped in a station.
- The driver would stop the train at the defined place in the platform, as thousands of train drivers do all over the world, millions of times every day.
- Once stopped, the contact shoes on the train would be in contact with the third rail, as they would be permanently down, as they are when running on third-rail electrification.
- The charging system would detect the stationary train and that the train was connected, and switch on the power supply. to the third-rail.
- Electricity would flow from the track to the batteries, just as if the train was on a standard third-rail electrified track.
- If the battery should become full, the train’s system could stop the charging.
- When passengers had finished leaving and joining the train and it was safe to do so, the driver would start the train and drive it to the next station.
- When the charging system determined that the train was moving or that the contact shoe was no longer connected to the third-rail, it would immediately cut the power to the rail and connect it to earth.
It is a brilliant system; simple, efficient and fail-safe.
- Regenerative braking will mean that stopping in the station will help to top-up the batteries.
- The battery on the train is being charged, as long as it is stationary in the station.
- Delays in the station have no effect on the charging, except to allow it for longer if the battery can accept more charge.
- The driver concentrates on driving the train and doesn’t have to do anything to start and stop the charging.
- The charging system never exposes a live rail to passengers and staff.
The charging system may also help recovery after an incident.
Suppose a fallen tree or a herd of cows has blocked the line and the electricity used to power the train’s systems has used a lot of battery power, so that when the train eventually gets to the next station, the battery needs a long charge before continuing.
The driver would just wait in the station, charging the battery, until there is enough energy to safely proceed.
A Look At The Mathematics
I shall now look at the mathematics of a leg between Basingstoke and Andover stations.
I will assume the following.
- The train will leave the electrification at Basingstoke with a full battery, containing 400 kWh of electricity, as it will have been charged on the way from Waterloo.
- The train is running at an operating speed of up to 90 mph between stations where possible, which means it has a kinetic energy of 47.1 kWh.
- For each mile, the train consumes 8 kWh of electricity, to power the trains services and maintain the required speed.
- Regenerative braking is eighty percent efficient.
As Basingstoke to Andover is eighteen miles, this means that energy consumption in the leg and the stop at Andover is as follows.
- 144 kWh is used to power the train and maintain speed.
- 9.42 kWh is lost in the braking and acceleration back to operating speed..
So the train will lose about 154 kWh on the eighteen mile leg.
I have built an Excel spreadsheet of the route and it looks that if a minimum of 100 kWh can be transferred to the train’s battery at each stop and the train uses no more than 8 kWh per mile, that it should be possible for the train to go from Basingstoke to Exeter on battery power.
Obviously, there are ways to make this journey more certain.
- Reduce the train’s energy consumption for items like lighting and air-conditioning..
- Improve the efficiency of regenerative braking.
- Improve the charging systems, so more electricity is transferred in the short stops.
- Improve the track, so that it is as smooth as possible with gentle curves.
- Fit a larger battery.
It requires different teams of engineers to optimise their own area, so all contribute to a more energy-efficient system.
Would Battery Power Work If The Line Speed Was Increased to 100 mph?
I have done this calculation assuming an operating speed of 100 mph, rather than the current 90 mph determined in part by the maximum speed of the Class 159 trains and it appears to be still possible.
Could 100 kWh Be Transferred To The Train In The Short Stops?
In Station Dwell Times On The London Overground, I showed that the London Overground regularly has station stops of under thirty seconds.
Even to me, as an trained Electrical Engineer, 100 kWh does seem a lot of power to transfer to the train in a stop that is that short.
In the related post, I postulated that a thirty-second dwell time, means that the only way to connect the train to the rapid charging system is to use third-rail electrification, as this connects and disconnects automatically.
This was said about Vivarail’s charging system in Issue 864 of Rail Magazine.
The rapid charging concept consists of a shipping container of batteries that are trickle charged from a mains supply. When a Class 230 sits over the short sections of third-rail, electricity can be quickly transferred to the train’s batteries. When the train is away, the power rails are earthed to ensure they pose no risk The concept provides for charging a Class 230 as it pauses at a terminus before making its return journey.
The key is the battery-to-battery transfer of electricity, as batteries have a low impedance and are designed to supply high electrical currents for a short time, as when starting a massive diesel engine in a truck.
This page shows a 12v 250Ah battery available for just over three hundred pounds.
- This battery alone has a capacity of 3 kWh.
- It is 518mm x 273mm x 240mm.
- It weighs 61 Kg.
You’d get a lot of these in a twenty-foot shipping container, which according to Wikipedia has a volume of 33.2 m³.
I estimate that a hundred of these batteries would fit easily into the container with all their control gear and electronics, which would mean a total capacity of 300 kWh.
Running my Excel spreadsheet with a 200 kWh transfer at each station, shows that the train can leave many stations with a full battery.
I have also run a more difficult scenario.
- For each mile, the train consumes 10 kWh of electricity instead of 8 kWh, to power the trains services and maintain the required speed.
- The rapid charging system can only transfer 80 kWh in thirty seconds.
The train still appears to get to its destination.
Obviously, Porterbrook, Siemens and Vivarail have better data than I have and will know what the actual performance of their trains and systems are.
How Much Power Can The Third-Rail Handle?
It should also be noted that a Class 450 train has eight x 250 kW traction motors, so the third-rail system of the train, must be capable of handling all of these at full power, when running on lines with third-rail electrification.
Would One Charging System Handle Both Tracks?
The route is double-track, with often platforms on either side of the tracs.
This Google Map shows Gillingham station, which appears to have a typical layout.
Note the three-car Class 159 train in the station.
If both tracks were to have a charging rail, I can’t see why one set of batteries shouldn’t be able to feed both tracks with separate control systems.
Although it does appear that several stations often use the same platforms for both directions.
Conclusion
This could be a very affordable way of electrifying a line with a lot of stations.
Flirt Akku Battery Multiple-Unit Unveiled
The title of this post is the same as that of this article in Railway Gazette International.
This is the first paragraph.
Stadler has officially unveiled the prototype Flirt Akku, a version of its Flirt family of electric multiple-units which is equipped with a battery to permit operation on non-electrified or partly-electrified routes.
So it looks like another train with batteries, that joins the following, that have been announced in recent months.
- Angel Trains’ Class 165 Hydrive, that I wrote about in Class 165 Trains To Go Hybrid.
- Bombardier Talent 3, that I wrote about in Bombardier Introduces Talent 3 Battery-Operated Train.
- Class 230 train, that I wrote about in Battery Class 230 Train Demonstration At Bo’ness And Kinneil Railway.
- Porterbrook Class 350/2 Battery/FLEX, that I wrote about in Porterbrook Makes Case For Battery/Electric Bi-Mode Conversion.
There are also several projects using MTU Hybrid Power Packs.
What new projects will emerge in the next couple of years?
ScotRail Finds A Use For The Unloved Class 153 Trains
Class 153 trains are the unloved members of British Rail’s Sprinter family. I occasionally use one on excursions to Felixstowe, but they are cramped, noisy and slow.
As the pictures show, some are not in bad condition and to be fair, some train operators have tried hard to provide a better level of service.
Greater Anglia still has five Class 153 trains in service and the fact that they will be replaced by three-car Class 755 trains by the end of 2020. You don’t increase capacity by that amount, unless the current one-car trains are overcrowded or you know that there is a lot of untapped demand on the route.
If on the Felixstowe Branch, a doubling of capacity would have been sufficient, then surely a refurbished two-car Class 150, 156 or 170 train, would have been a more than adequate replacement.
Currently, there are seventy of these trains in service and many of them, like those in East Anglia are being replaced with new or refurbished trains.
Greater Anglia’s five units are going to Wales, where they will join another eight on rural lines in West Wales. Nothing has ben said about how they will be used, but they could be used singly, in pairs or in multiple with Class 15x or Class 17x trains.
So they could be useful to the Welsh in providing extra capacity.
In the November 2018 Edition of Modern Railways, Alex Hynes of ScotRail talks about how a number of Class 153 trains will be used to add bicycle space to trains on some of Scotland’s scenic routes. Alex Hynes is quoted as saying.
The interior format is yet to be fixed, but is likely to include a large amount of space given over to bicycles. Bike tourism is a growing area and the aim would be to allay fears about whether or not you’d get your bike on a train by providing plenty of space. Part of the vehicle might be given over to a lounge car layout to make the most of the magnificent views on these routes.
Transport Scotland sees the scenic routes as a key part of the rural economy for the part they play in stimulating tourism.
Our inspiration is to get “158s” on the West Highland route.
So it looks like ScotRail could be running Class 158/Class 153 pairs to provide increased capacity on the West Highland Line.
Wikipedia says this about the use of the Class 153 trains on the West Highland Line.
These single car units are to be completely adapted to accommodate bikes, skis and other outdoor equipment.
They will be attached to the Class 156s either as centre cars, or as extra coaches at either end.
If ScotRail’s scheme is a success, I suspect more of the Class 153 trains could end up doing the same task, in Wales, the South West and North of England.
It should also be noted, with respect to bicycle tourism, that ScotRail’s shortened HSTs will hopefully retain their bicycle swallowing abilities in the back ends of the power cars, thus enabling bicycle tourists to do the longer Scottish journeys with ease.
My one worry about bicycle tourism in Scotland and Wales is not concerned with trains internally, but with getting there from other parts of the UK with a heavily-loaded bicycle.
With the replacement of the HSTs and InterCity 225 from the London to Edinburgh and London to Wales and the West routes, will the new Class 800 trains have enough bicycle capacity? The bicycle storage on these trains look to be a good design for a racing bicycle, but some of the heavily-loaded bicycle tourists I’ve seen in Suffolk, would find them inadequate.
This article in The Guardian is entitled New High-Speed Trains Go Slow On Provision For Cyclists.
The article is critical.
I wonder what provision has been made for bicycles on the new rolling stock for the Caledonian Sleeper?
Anniesland And Glasgow Queen Street Via Maryhill In A Class 230 Train
In Issue 864 of Rail Magazine there is an article about the Class 230 train demonstration in Scotland, that I wrote about in Battery Class 230 Train Demonstration At Bo’ness And Kinneil Railway.
This is the first paragraph.
Vivarail is targeting Scottish routes such as Glasgow Queen Street-Anniesland via Maryhill for its converted London Underground D-Stock, now known as Class 230s.
The Maryhill Line is a short line between Anniesland and Glasgow Queen Street stations.
- There is a shuttle service of two trains per hour, which appear to take about twenty minutes each way.
- There are six intermediate stations
- The line is not electrified and is run by a two-car diesel train.
- Various works have been performed on the line in recent years to make it more useful and easy to operate.
So why has this short line not been electrified?
On Rail Forums, various reasons are put forward including.
- The Maryhill Line might not have the traffic for a three-car electric train.
- It could be a rather tricky electrification.
- There are also issues with lower-powered diesel trains climbing the incline out of Queen Street station, which seem to make creating a diagram for trains on the Maryhill Line difficult.
I suspect that for air quality reasons, Transport Scotland would like to have less diesel trains in city centres.
So a self-contained independently-powered two-car train, shuttling between Queen Street and Anniesland may be a viable solution?
Would battery-powered Class 230 train be able to work the route?
- The trains would be the right size.
- They would be emission-free and quiet.
- The performance of the Class 230 train is probably enough to work the current service.
- Third-rail charging would be possible in the bay platform at Anniesland station.
- If required a charging rail could be added in Queen Street station.
- The platform at Anniesland station could be long enough to stable two trains overnight.
- Except for the charging systems, no new infrastructure would be required.
It could turn out to be another quirky, useful and reliable railway to add to the Glasgow Subway.
Is This The Most Unusual Idea For A New Railway Service in The UK?
In Issue 864 of Rail Magazine there is an article about the Class 230 train demonstration in Scotland, that I wrote about in Battery Class 230 Train Demonstration At Bo’ness And Kinneil Railway.
This is a paragraph.
HITRANS Partnership Manager Frank Roach told RAIL that he was keen to interest Transport Scotland in using battery Class 230s to run shuttle services between Wick and Thurso.
I don’t live in the Far North of Scotland and I’ve never been further North on the mainland that Inverness, so I have no right to criticise the need for a new rail shuttle service between Thurso and Wick.
This Google Map shows the Far North of Scotland.
Note.
- Wick is in the South-East corner of the map.
- Thurso is in the North-West corner of the map.
- John O’Groats is in the North-East corner of the map.
- Georgemas Junction, which connects to the Far North Line to Inverness, is indicated by the red array.
This second Google Map shows Wick.
Note.
- The single-platform Wick station.
- Wick Airport, which used to have flights to Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
This third Google Map shows Thurso.
Note.
- The single-platform Thurso station.
- Scrabster with its harbour that has a ferry to the Orkneys.
Consider.
- Wick and Thurso are both towns with populations in the region of 7-8,000 people.
- I suspect that if you live in Wick and want a new widget for your boiler, that it will be in Thurso. And of course, vice-versa!
- Wick and Thurso get four trains per day to and from Inverness and the same number of trains each way between the two towns.
- So it’s not very convenient if an elderly person, who can’t drive wants to go and visit their sibling or friend in the other town for the afternoon.
The two towns would appear to be twenty-nine minutes or twenty-one miles apart by rail.
The article also states that a battery-powered Class 230 train can run at up to sixty mph with acceleration similar to that of an EMU up to forty mph.
Each round trip would probably take an hour, so a single train could provide an hourly service.
I would think, that using the fast charging system described in Charging A Battery-Powered Class 230 Train at Thurso and Wick stations, that a single train could shuttle all day between the two stations with an intermediate stop at Georgemas Junction station.
I suspect the Inverness and the shuttle services could interface seamlessly in something like the following way.
- The shuttle train would arrive in Wick and connect to the charging system.
- The Class 158 train from Inverness would arrive behind the shuttle.
- The Class 158 train would go to Thurso and back.
- The Class 158 train would leave for Inverness.
- The shuttle train would resume its shuttling between Wick and Thurso.
The Class 158 would have taken over one cycle of the shuttle.
The only works needed other than the installation of the charging system, could be to lengthen the platform to accommodate the two trains.
To try to predict the number of passengers that would use this shuttle will be very difficult.
- The train would have a high novelty value for the locals.
- The train could run seven days a week.
- The train could become a quirky tourist attraction.
- Train operators might like to see it for ideas for their problem lines.
- It might encourage a whole number of new ideas.
If say it happened at times, that the train was full, then it could probably be lengthened to by adding a trailer car.
A big beneficiary could be Vivarail.
They would have a service that was providing an hourly shuttle in a remote area, which could show off the features and benefits of the train.
- Remote servicing.
- No diesel fuel required.
- Hourly running
- Fast charging.
- Operation in cold and inclement weather.
- An unusual demonstration location.
There’s even the local Wick Airport to bring in interested parties.
This idea reminds me of a story I heard many years ago. GEC were attempting to sell an Air Traffic Control Radar to a Middle Eastern country.
- The most convenient installation of this radar in the UK was at Prestwick Airport, so the GEC salesman arranged for GEC’s corporate HS 125 business jet to take the prospective purchasers.
- It turned out to be a glorious autumn day.
- As the salesman returned with his guests to the plane, he was pulled aside by the pilot.
- The pilot told him, that there was no greater sight in the world, than the Scottish Highlands on a day like this, so would he like the Arabs to be shown the views.
- They then flew around the Highlands for thirty minutes or so before returning to London.
Was that the most unusual favour, that ever secured an order?
Charging A Battery-Powered Class 230 Train
In Issue 864 of Rail Magazine there is an article about the Class 230 train demonstration in Scotland, that I wrote about in Battery Class 230 Train Demonstration At Bo’ness And Kinneil Railway.
This was said about charging a battery-powered Class 230 train.
A prototype rapid charging facility at its Long Marston base would use short sections of third-rail to quickly recharge a Class 230’s batteries. He said that the third-rail shoegear fitted t the trains in their London Underground service could handle higher currents than simply plugging a cable into the train.
The rapid charging concept consists of a shipping container of batteries that are trickle charged from a mains supply. When a Class 230 sits over the short sections of third-rail, electricity can be quickly transferred to the train’s batteries. When the train is away, the power rails are earthed to ensure they pose no risk The concept provides for charging a Class 230 as it pauses at a terminus before making its return journey.
What surprises me, is the claim, that third-rail is a very effective way of charging the batteries.
But Vivarail’s charging method using third-rail must open up affordable charging in stations and depots with poor-quality or low-capacity electricity supply.
Further Development
The design is very much capable of further development.
- The charging system could be used with any train, which has a third-rail capability.
- It could be made to work in both terminal and through platforms.
- The operation could be totally automatic .
- The system would switch on when the train stops over top and it completes the electrical circuit to allow charging.
- When the train moves away and breaks the circuit, the system would switch off and earth the third-rail.
- The batteries in the charging system could be charged by solar- or wind-power, instead of mains power.
I believe we’ll see some very ingenious charging systems for battery/electric trains.
It’s All About Going Dutch For Eurostar!
In today’s Times, there is an article called Eurostar Sets Pace As Channel Tunnel Booms.
The article says.
Passengers on the Eurostar trains topped 3 million in the quarter, in increase of 12 per cent.
Apparently, there has been a big increase on the Amsterdam route, with more to come.
- A third daily service will start next summer.
- Direct return journeys could be possible next year.
- Five London-Amsterdam return journeys could follow.
That all looks good and I’m sure it would be better if the terrible connecting trains to North Germany, that I wrote about in From Amsterdam To Hamburg The Hard Way, were to be improved.
The Anonymous Widower 