The Anonymous Widower

Nicholas Lane – 1st May 2023

Nicholas Lane is a lane in the City of London, that runs between Cannon Street in the South and Lombard Street in the North.

This Google Map shows the lane.

Note.

  1. Nicholas Lane tuns diagonally across King William Street.
  2. Cannon Street can be seen in the South-West corner of the map.
  3. The new entrance to Bank station is on Cannon Street.
  4. Nicholas Lane runs up the side of the new station entrance.
  5. There are two bus stops for the 21, 43 and 141 buses on King William Street.

The bus stops are within easy walking distance of the new station entrance, if you walk along the Southern section of Nicholas Lane.

These pictures show Nicholas Lane and King William Street.

Note.

  1. I suspect some coffee shops or a fast food joint will appear at the King William Street end of Nicholas Lane.
  2. The windows on the corner could be ready to be a shop.
  3. In Bank Station Upgrade – 6th January 2023, I described the eight storey building, that will sit on top of the station entrance.

The lane could also a preferred route for many, who are changing at Bank station to or from the buses.

May 1, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , | Leave a comment

Elizabeth Line Takes Fliers Away From Heathrow Express

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.

These three paragraphs add details to the story.

The opening of the Elizabeth Line has eaten into the revenues of Heathrow Express, the country’s most expensive railway service per mile travelled.

Filings reveal that Heathrow Express, which offers a 15-minute service between London Paddington and Heathrow, has failed to recover to pre-pandemic levels despite flight volumes at the airport returning to near-normal. Heathrow said revenues from Heathrow Express in the first three months of the year were £22 million.

While that is 50 per cent more than in the same period last year, when Covid-19 travel restrictions were beginning to be relaxed, it is almost a third down on the £31 million of revenues in the first quarter of 2019.

Considering how air travel is on the upturn, Heathrow Express would not appear to be performing as the airport expects.

Remember, that First Group are paid by Heathrow Airport to run the service, which is owned by the airport.

In So Many Cases On A Train!, I wrote about a trip from West Ealing to Moorgate station. These were my opening sentences.

This afternoon about three, I went to West Ealing station to see what it was like to transfer between the Elizabeth Line Central Tunnel and the Western Branch at Paddington.

Coming back, I took an Elizabeth Line service that had started from Heathrow Airport and it was one of the busiest Lizzies, I’d ever ridden!

To get on the train at West Ealing station, I got in to probably coach 4 of 9, as that was in the dry and the back end of the train I needed for Moorgate station was certainly in the wet.

I then had to walk half the length of the train to get to the back of the train.

It was not easy, as the train was full of scores of passengers with large wheelie cases.

It certainly got me thinking about how passengers were getting to and from Heathrow and I came to this conclusion.

Lizzie will start a revolution in travel to and from Heathrow.

Judging by the title of the article in The Times, the revolution has already started.

Consider these reasons.

  • Heathrow Express is overpriced.
  • It doesn’t go where many passengers want to go.
  • It’s not the best way to get workers to and from the airport.
  • The ULEZ will discourage passengers and staff from driving to the airport.

In Effects Of The ULEZ In West London, I said this about journeys to and from the airport.

Heathrow Airport is one of the world’s busiest airports and 76,000 people work at the airport, with many more employed nearby.

The airport handled 61.6 million passengers in 2022, which is a few short of 170,000 per day.

If you consider that those that work at the airport do two trips per day and passengers generally do one, that means there are 322,000 trips per day to or from the airport.

But as it now so easy to get to the Airport using the Elizabeth Line will more people use the new line to meet and greet and say goodbye to loved ones or business associates. Since the Elizabeth Line opened, I’ve met a couple of friends at Heathrow, who were passing through.

I wonder, if that daily journey total of 322,000 could be nearer to 350,000 or even 400,000.

If the ULEZ charge makes some passengers and staff switch from their car to using a bus or train, this probably means that public transport to and from the airport, will need to be boosted by a substantial amount.

I can see airport workers lobbying for free tickets on Heathrow Express, but they probably live closer to the airport than Paddington or perhaps even in the Eastern areas of London served by the Elizabeth Line.

The Elizabeth Line Is Showing Signs Of Running Out Of Capacity

In the last few weeks, I’ve been on some very full Elizabeth Line trains.

Articles, like this one on Rail Advent, which is entitled Transport for London Looks Into Funding For Additional Elizabeth Line Trains, are also starting to appear.

These three paragraphs explain the problem.

Transport for London has announced that they are looking for confirmation from the Government regarding funding so that they can look into the possibility of purchasing additional Elizabeth Line trains.

The news from TfL comes after the recent announcement of delays to HS2 terminating at London Euston.

TfL says that without the extra trains, there is insufficient capacity on the Elizabeth Line (until HS2 is extended to Euston in the 2040s) for passengers looking to use HS2 and the Elizabeth Line to get into Central London.

Alstom also appear to want the space in the factory to build other trains.

So it appears that Transport for London must act soon.

Heathrow Express Needs To Be Repurposed

In Extending The Elizabeth Line – High Speed Trains On The Elizabeth Line, I talked about running faster trains through the Central Tunnel of the Elizabeth Line.

As any train would have to be compatible with the platform-edge doors in the central tunnel of the Elizabeth Line, the trains would have to be dimensionally identical to the current Class 345 trains.

  • Nine cars
  • Possibility of lengthening to ten cars.
  • 204.73 metres long.
  • 6 sets of doors per carriage
  • Ability to run under full digital signalling.
  • The trains would be designed for a higher speed of at least 110 or 125 mph, to enable running on the fast lines of the Great Western Main Line.
  • The trains would have Heathrow Express branding and interior.

Services could be as follows.

  • Heathrow Terminal 4 and Southend Victoria via Bond Street and Liverpool Street for the City and Stratford.
  • Heathrow Terminal 5 and Ebbsfleet International via Bond Street and Liverpool Street for the City and Canary Wharf.

Note.

  1. Both services would be two trains per hour (tph)
  2. Traffic would determine, which Eastern terminal is paired with which Western terminal.
  3. Each route would also have two Elizabeth Line tph on the same route.

The Heathrow Express services would run as follows.

  • Between Heathrow Airport and Paddington, they would run as now.
  • I believe that by using the power of the digital signalling, they could be slotted into the queue of Elizabeth Line trains taking the Central Tunnel.
  • They would run through the Central Tunnel, as just another Elizabeth Line train, stopping at all stations.
  • Southend Victoria trains would stop at Stratford, take the fast lines to Shenfield, after which they would stop at all stations to Southend Victoria.
  • Ebbsfleet International trains would stop at all stations from Abbey Wood to Ebbsfleet International.

Note.

  1. Trains would stop at Old Oak Common after it opened for High Speed Two and GWR.
  2. All ticketing would be contactless.
  3. Passengers using Heathrow Express to the West of Paddington, would pay an extra fee, but nothing like today’s price.

These Heathrow Express routes would have advantages.

  • Southend Airport and Southend Victoria would get a direct fast train to Central London and High Speed Two.
  • Heathrow would have a direct connection with Continental train services at Ebbsfleet International.
  • Capacity could be increased by going to ten-car trains.
  • Heathrow Express could release their platforms at Paddington.
  • There would be two fast tph between Heathrow and Stratford.
  • There would be two fast tph between Heathrow and Canary Wharf.
  • There would be four fast tph between Heathrow and Bond Street for the shopping and Liverpool Street for the City of London.
  • There would be four fast tph between Heathrow and Farringdon for Thameslink, Gatwick and Luton Airports.

Heathrow Express trains will be fifteen minutes faster to all destinations.

I don’t think there would be any major disadvantages.

 

 

May 1, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Kentish Town Station – 30th April 2023

This article on the BBC is entitled Kentish Town Tube Station Set To Close For Year.

This is the sub-heading.

Kentish Town Tube station is set to close for up to a year while its 26-year-old escalators are replaced.

Other works will also be performed during the closure.

  • The ticket office will be removed.
  • The ticket barriers will be realigned.
  • New paintworks, flooring, wall tiling, and new signage will also be fitted.

These pictures show the current state of Kentish Town station.

Note.

  1. The Victorian frontage of the station could do with a refurbishment.
  2. The platforms need to be restored to be the same standard as the clock.
  3. The escalators don’t look as bad as the article says, but new ones will give them forty years.
  4. Information around the gate-line for both the Underground and Thameslink, is not to the standards this passenger expects.
  5. The stairs connecting the London Underground station to the Thameslink bridge could be improved.
  6. The Thameslink information is good.
  7. The bridge needs lifts.

There is even a side-gate to access the Thameslink platforms, if the main entrance is closed.

Are More Trains Needed?

For a Sunday morning, both stations were surprisingly busy.

But there were only two Thameslink trains per hour (tph) between Luton and Rainham.

On all days except Sunday, the four tph Sutton Loop Line is usually running, but on Sunday it appears it’s only the Luton and Rainham service.

I suspect the Sunday service will be boosted for the duration of the closure.

Could The Side Gate Be Used Permanently?

The side-gate to the Thameslink platforms will have to be used during the station closure.

But could some arrangement be designed, so that it could be used all of the time?

Conclusion

With an unlimited budget, there’s a lot that could be done at this station.

 

April 30, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten-Car Hull Trains

On Friday, about eleven in the morning, I was standing on the platform at Finsbury Park station, when unusually I saw a pair of Hull Trains’s Class 802 trains go through as a ten-car train.

A few minutes later, I took a train to King’s Cross, where I took these pictures.

Note.

  1. The four platforms are numbered from 1 to 4 from the right.
  2. The Hull Train is in platform 3.
  3. The fourth picture clearly shows the 11:18 Hull Trains service has ten carriages.

Hull Trains were also selling tickets on the train.

Hull Trains Timetable On April 29th 2023

These trains ran South.

  • Beverley-Kings Cross – 0557 – 5 cars
  • Hull-Kings Cross – 0824 – 10 cars
  • Hull-Kings Cross – 1033 – 5 cars
  • Hull-Kings Cross – 1330 – 5 cars
  • Hull-Kings Cross – 1531 – 5 cars
  • Hull-Kings Cross – 1836 – 5 cars

And these trains ran North

  • Kings Cross – 0727-Hull – 5 cars
  • Kings Cross – 0948-Hull – 5 cars
  • Kings Cross – 1148-Hull – 10 cars
  • Kings Cross – 1448-Hull – 5 cars
  • Kings Cross – 1748-Beverley – 5 cars
  • Kings Cross – 1948-Hull – 5 cars

Note.

  1. The ten-car trains only run to Hull.
  2. The daily number of seats between Hull and London has been increased by 16.7 %.
  3. Four trains are needed to run 5 x five-car and 1 x ten-car trains in each direction.

I can see this timetable being used on other busy days.

April 29, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , | 11 Comments

World First As HS2 Trials Dual-Fuel Piling Rig On London Site

The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item on HS2.

This is the piling rig.

These are the two bullet points.

  • Four piles installed using a hydrogen dual-fuel piling rig, cutting the use of traditional fuel by 36%.
  • Trial is the first real world use of the technology on a construction site.

These three paragraphs outline the project.

HS2 has taken a further step forward in decarbonising the constructure sector, completing a world first by installing four 30-metre deep piles on a London site using a hydrogen dual-fuel piling rig.

The trial took place as part of work done in partnership by ULEMCo and Cementation Skanska, working with the world-leading Business Research Establishment (BRE), funded through the BEIS Phase 1 Red Diesel Replacement competition.

ULEMCo and Cementation Skanska successfully modified a medium sized CFA piling rig, converting it so that the machine component operated using energy from on-board hydrogen tanks. Using the dual-fuel system, both diesel and biofuels (HVO) can be mixed with hydrogen, displacing the fuel with hydrogen, resulting in a reduction in fuel use and lower CO2 emissions.

Note.

  1. We’re going to see a lot more large machines converted to dual-fuel and pure hydrogen.
  2. ULEMCo from Aintree, seem to be one of the leaders in the field of dual-fuel conversions.

You certainly see lots of these machines working around London and other big cities.

April 28, 2023 Posted by | Hydrogen, Transport/Travel | , , , , , | 2 Comments

Govia Thameslink Railway Issues a Prior Information Notice For New Trains

This article on Railway Gazette is entitled UK Railway News Round-Up and contains this section.

Govia Thameslink Railway has issued a prior information notice seeking the provision of between 21 and 30 four-car 25 kV 50 Hz 160 km/h through-gangwayed EMUs with air-conditioning and toilets for use on existing and/or additional Great Northern services from May 2024. Maintenance would be undertaken in-house at Hornsey depot, supported by a Technical Support & Spares Supply Agreement.

I find this all a bit puzzling.

  • The trains that need replacing are surely the eighteen Class 313 trains, that run on the West Coastway Line, as they are some of the oldest trains on the UK network.
  • If Govia Thameslink Railway were serious about decarbonisation, they would also replace the Class 171 diesel trains, that work the Marshlink Line and the Uckfield branch, with electric trains with a range of thirty miles on batteries.

How many trains would be needed to replace the Class 313 and Class 171 trains?

  • The eighteen three-car Class 313 trains could be replaced with an equal number of new four-car trains and this might result in a rise in passenger numbers.
  • I would assume the eighteen trains includes allowances for trains in maintenance and spare trains for when a train fails.
  • It may be possible to  replace the six four-car Class 171 trains used on the Marshfield Line with three new four-car trains, which have a range of thirty miles on batteries.
  • The eleven two-car Class 171 trains used on the Uckfield branch could be replaced with three new four-car trains, which have a range of thirty miles on batteries and would run as four-car trains.
  • If eight-car trains were needed on the Uckfield branch, there would be a need for six new four-car trains.
  • If twelve-car trains were needed on the Uckfield branch, there would be a need for nine new four-car trains.

Note.

  1. If four-car trains are needed on the Uckfield branch, this means a total of 18+3+3 or 24 trains.
  2. If eight-car trains are needed on the Uckfield branch, this means a total of 18+3+6 or 27 trains.
  3. If twelve-car trains are needed on the Uckfield branch, this means a total of 18+3+9 or 30 trains.

Trains on these Southern routes wouldn’t be stabled at Hornsey depot, but could be moved to Hornsey for maintenance  using Thameslink.

But the puzzling bit is that the prior information notice says that the trains will be.

Four-car 25 kV 50 Hz 160 km/h through-gangwayed EMUs with air-conditioning and toilets for use on existing and/or additional Great Northern services from May 2024.

Note.

  1. There is no mention of the trains being able to run on 750 VDC third-rail infrastructure.
  2. The trains will run on Great Northern services and the Class 313 and Class 171 trains run on Southern routes.
  3. The only Great Northern services, that have not been moved to Thameslink are Kings Cross and Cambridge, Ely and King’s Lynn and services to Moorgate.
  4. The Moorgate services have their own dual-voltage Class 717 trains.
  5. Govia Thameslink Railway have ambitions to double the frequency of trains to King’s Lynn.
  6. Two eight-car trains per hour (tph) between King’s Cross and King’s Lynn would need sixteen operational four-car trains.
  7. Two twelve-car trains per hour (tph) between King’s Cross and King’s Lynn would need twenty-four operational four-car trains.

If Govia Thameslink Railway are thinking of thirty new trains, they must have other destinations in mind.

Could we be seeing a double swap?

  • An appropriate number of new trains are procured to run Great Northern services between Kings Cross and Cambridge, Ely and King’s Lynn.
  • The Class 387 trains released will be moved to the South to replace the Class 313 and Class 171 trains.
  • Some or all of the transferred Class 387 trains will be fitted with batteries to give a range of thirty miles without electrification.

Note.

  1. Could the new trains be Siemens Desiro City trains like the Class 700 and Class 717 trains, which are already maintained at Hornsey depot? It would surely be more efficient and save money.
  2. Class 387 trains are dual voltage and would need little or no modification to replace the Class 313 trains.
  3. Uckfield and Hurst Green junction is 24.7 miles.
  4. Ashford International and Ore is 25.4 miles
  5. Adding a battery to a Class 387 train has not been done, but Bombardier converted a near-identical Class 379 train to battery-electric operation over eight years ago.
  6. Converting a Class 387 train gives a dual-voltage battery-electric train.
  7. I suspect a charger would be needed at Uckfield. Could it be a short length of 25 KVAC overhead electrification?

Could all the Class 387 trains, that will replace the Class 313 and Class 171 trains be identical to ease the problems, when a train develops a fault?

Conclusion

It looks a good plan.

It also opens up the following possibilities.

  • Deployment of 750 VDC battery-electric trains on other routes.
  • Deployment of 25 KVAC overhead battery-electric trains on other routes.
  • Deployment of tri-mode battery-electric trains on other routes.
  • Charging of battery-electric trains using a short length of 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
  • Fitting of batteries to Class 379 trains to create a 25 KVAC overhead battery-electric train.

It might be possible to convert other Electrostars to battery-electric operation.

Ignoring Class 387 trains on dedicated services like Heathrow and Gatwick Express, these trains are available for conversion.

  • Class 379 trains – Stored – 30 trains
  • Class 387 trains – Govia Thameslink Railway – 40 trains
  • Class 387 trains – Great Western Railway – 33 trains

Note.

  1. This gives 103 trains.
  2. They all have good interiors.
  3. They are all 100/110 mph trains.
  4. All trains could be updated to 110 mph.
  5. All trains can use 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
  6. The Class 387 trains can also use 750 VDC third-rail electrification.
  7. The Class 379 trains were built in 2010-2011.
  8. The Class 387 trains were built from 2014.

I believe both classes will make excellent battery-electric trains.

Where will they be deployed?

These are a selection of routes starting in the South-East of England.

  • Ashford International and Eastbourne.
  • Gravesend and Hoo.
  • London Bridge and Uckfield.
  • London Paddington and Bedwyn.
  • London Paddington and Oxford.
  • Reading and Basingstoke.
  • Reading and Gatwick.
  • Reading and Redhill.
  • Slough and Windsor & Eton Central.
  • Twyford and Henley-on-Thames

I’ve only added routes which are less than thirty miles.

 

 

 

April 27, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Would Zero-Carbon Trucks Have Better Fuel Security?

There’s just been a story on the BBC, about the need for better truck stops.

One truck owner, said that a truck can carry up to fifteen hundred pounds of diesel and they are always being targeted by thieves.

So would zero-carbon trucks be less of a target for thieves?

I’ve never seen this mentioned in the discussion of zero-carbon vehicles.

April 27, 2023 Posted by | Hydrogen, Transport/Travel | , , | Leave a comment

Hail The Hercules

The title of this post was used on the front page to indicate an article in the Meccano Magazine about the arrival of the Lockheed Hercules in the mid-1950s.

The Wikipedia entry for the Hercules, starts with this sentence.

The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medevac, and cargo transport aircraft.

The aircraft first flew in 1954 and nearly seventy years later they are still doing the same operations, they were designed for, with various reports of Hercules flying to the remote Wadi Seidna airstrip in Sudan.

This Google Map shows the airstrip.

Note.

  1. There appears to be two runways and some form of operational building or terminal.
  2. The River Nile is at the East of the map.

It looks like an airfield, where Hercules are intended to be used, even in circumstances, where severe damage has been inflicted to the runway.

When Metier Management Systems and Artemis  were sold to Lockheed, I had several conversations with senior people and the company was and probably still is rightly proud of its long-lived design.

 

April 26, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , | 3 Comments

EU Co-Legislators Agree On SAF Blend Targets For Aviation

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Renewables Now.

These are the first two paragraphs.

The European Council and the Parliament on Tuesday reached a provisional political agreement on the ReFuelEU Aviation proposal, which will set new rules requiring fuel suppliers to blend sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) with kerosene in increasing amounts from 2025.

The European Commission, which made the proposal, welcomed this outcome on Wednesday and noted that the measure is expected to reduce aircraft carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by about two-thirds by 2050 versus a “no action” scenario. The ReFuelEU Aviation initiative is part of the “Fit for 55” package.

Measures include.

  • Aviation fuel companies to make sure that at least 2% of the fuel they supply at EU airports in 2025 is SAF.
  • This share is supposed to gradually increase and reach 70% in 2050.
  • A minimum share of synthetic fuels will be required from 2030.
  • Aircraft operators departing from EU airports will be required to carry only the volume of fuel they need for a particular flight in order to avoid further emissions associated with extra weight or carbon leakage caused by tankering practices.
  • Airports to ensure that their fuelling infrastructure is fit for SAF distribution.

Note.

  1. I can see some airlines complaining about some of these measures.
  2. I can also see the fourth measure about tankering having negative effects on airline costs and ticket prices.

Michael O’Leary’s comments will be interesting.

 

April 26, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , | Leave a comment

Clapham High Street Could Gain Direct Overground Routes To Victoria Station

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Clapham Nub News.

These two paragraphs introduce the article.

Local councillors and the Clapham Transport Users Group have been in discussions with Network Rail about the direct route once the current ‘Networker’ trains are replaced.

Clapham High Street lost its direct services to Victoria in December 2012 when the South London Line was withdrawn in favour of the London Overground to Clapham Junction.

This forces passengers onto the Northern Line, which through Clapham has two dangerous-looking stations; Clapham Common and Clapham North.

I have a few thoughts and observations.

Clapham High Street Station

These pictures show Clapham High Street station.

Note.

  1. The station is Grade II Listed.
  2. There are four tracks through Clapham High Street station.
  3. Only the lines used by the London Underground have platforms.
  4. I don’t think it will be difficult to add platforms to the other two tracks.
  5. The platforms will probably take five-car trains.
  6. Access to the platforms is by a subway, which could probably be extended to the other side of the tracks.
  7. A second entrance would be closer to Clapham North station.
  8. I suspect step-free access would not be too difficult to install.
  9. The tracks are over railway arches, which could be developed to add to the quality businesses in the area.

This Google Map shows the station.

Note.

  1. Clapham High Street station is in the North-West corner of the map.
  2. Clapham North station is at the Eastern edge of the map in the middle.
  3. There seems plenty of space for two more platforms.

I think there is a lot of scope to improve this station.

Tracks Through Clapham High Street Station

This map from cartometro.com shows the tracks through Clapham High Street station.

Note.

  1. The Overground tracks are shown in orange and black.
  2. The fast lines, which are to the North of the Overground lines are shown in black.
  3. Shepherds Lane and Voltaire Road  junctions allow trains on the fast lines to call in Clapham High Street station.

I suspect full digital signalling will be employed for efficiency of handling the junctions.

Services Through Clapham High Street Station

These services run through Clapham High Street station.

  • London Overground – Dalston Junction and Clapham Junction – four tph – Goes via Denmark Hill and Peckham Rye
  • Southeastern – London Victoria and Ashford International – one tph – Goes via Brixton, Herne Hill and West Dulwich
  • Southeastern – London Victoria and Dartford – two tph – Goes via Denmark Hill, Peckham Rye, Nunhead and Lewisham
  • Southeastern – London Victoria and Dover Priory – one tph – Goes via Brixton, Herne Hill and West Dulwich
  • Southeastern – London Victoria and Gillingham – one tph – Goes via Denmark Hill, Peckham Rye, Nunhead and Bromley South
  • Southeastern – London Victoria and Orpington – two tph – Goes via Brixton, Herne Hill and West Dulwich
  • Southeastern – London Victoria and Ramsgate – one tph – Goes via Brixton, Herne Hill and West Dulwich

Note.

  1. tph means trains per hour.
  2. The London Overground services could be increased to 6 tph.
  3. Only the London Overground services stop in Clapham High Street station.
  4. The Dartford, Gillingham and Orpington trains are pathed for 90 mph trains.
  5. The Ashford International, Dover Priory and Ramsgate trains are pathed for 100 mph trains.

It is a comprehensive timetable.

Southeastern’s New Trains

In Battery EMUs Envisaged In Southeastern Fleet Procurement, I wrote about Southeastern’s proposed new trains.

Full details haven’t been announced yet, but I think we can be sure of the following.

  • The first trains to be replaced will be the Networker trains, because they are the oldest and slowest.
  • The new trains will have selected door opening (SDO),  as this a feature of nearly all modern trains.
  • I also suspect the trains will be capable of running at 100 mph and will be five cars long, with the ability to run in pairs.

This will enable the new trains to cross over from the fast lines to the Overground lines to stop in Clapham High Street station.

How Many Trains Would Stop At Clapham High Street Station?

Currently  trains passing through the station are as follows.

  • London Overground – 4 tph – Stopping
  • Southeastern – 3 tph – 100 mph services to Ashford International, Dover Priory and Ramsgate – Non-stop
  • Southeastern – 5 tph – 90 mph services to Dartford, Gillingham and Orpington – Non-stop

Note.

  1. It is likely that the London Overground service will go to 6 tph.
  2. Would 100 mph services always go through without stopping?
  3. In an ideal world would it be best if services alternated?

I suspect that a better service could be provided between Clapham High Street and Victoria with very little expenditure on infrastructure.

High Speed One Issues

An article in the July 2017 Edition of Modern Railways is entitled Kent On The Cusp Of Change.

The article suggests that Fawkham junction, could be used to allow Southeastern Highspeed services to access Victoria as a second London terminal, to increase capacity on High Speed One.

The route could be via Clapham High Street, Denmark Hill, Bromley South, St. Mary Cray, Swanley and Farningham Road.

The Arches Underneath

There are several railway arches underneath the tracks at Clapham High Street station.

Some of the businesses look good and there are several other arches that are boarded up.

Railway arches are now generally owned by The Arch Co.

In Findlater’s Corner At London Bridge – 11th February 2023, I wrote about the company’s restoration of some arches at London Bridge station, which included these pictures.

I suspect that a similar restoration in up-market Clapham could be a good investment for The Arch Co.

A Four-Platform Clapham High Street Station

Consider.

  • There is space for two new platforms alongside the fast lines.
  • The station entrance is in an arch, that goes right under the tracks.
  • Putting lifts in an arch would not be the most challenging of tasks.
  • A second entrance in Gauden Road would be nearer Clapham North Underground station.
  • It should also be remembered that the Government is giving out levelling up funding.
  • Hackney is to receive this type of funding and I wrote about it in Hackney Central Before Levelling Up.

I can see a fully-accessible four-platform station being built at Clapham High Street station.

Denmark Hill Station

Denmark Hill station is the next station to the East of Clapham High Street station and after a rebuild is now a high quality station, with these features.

  • Four tracks and platforms.
  • Frequent trains to Ashford International, Clapham Junction, St. Pancras, Victoria and Whitechapel.
  • Full step-free access with lifts.
  • A solar roof.
  • A Grade II listing.
  • King’s College and Maudsley Hospitals are next door.
  • A pub.

I wrote about the station in Denmark Hill Station – 4th September 2021.

These are a few pictures.

Note the solar roof. There’s more about the roof on this page of the BiPVco web site.

On the About page, there is a section called Our Story, where this is said.

BIPVco was established in April 2015 following five years of collaborative research between Tata Steel LCRI (Low Carbon Research Institute) and Swansea University with support from the Welsh government.

The research program developed ways of integrating thin-film CIGS PV cells directly onto the same substrates that make roofs and walls so that true BIPV functionality would become integral to the building envelope and could be achieved without having to resort to heavy on site mounting systems.

Our manufacturing processes were further enhanced to suit commercial production, and the products and procedures were tested and accredited before commercial launch.

Working with select partners, we designed and built many pilot PV integrated roofs between 2015 and 2017 in varying climates, including Nigeria, Canada, UAE and the UK, to demonstrate product suitability in all environments. The full commercial launch was effected in June of 2017.

They certainly seem to have taken solar panels to a new level.

I would also rate Denmark Hill station one of the finest suburban railway stations in the world!

Peckham Rye Station

The next station to the East of Denmark Hill station is Peckham Rye station.

Like many other stations and buildings in London, including the original Denmark Hill station, Peckham Rye station was designed by Charles Henry Driver.

These are some pictures, I’ve taken over the years at Peckham Rye station.

Note.

  1. It is a very busy station.
  2. I’ve read somewhere, that it is the busiest station in the UK, without any step-free access.
  3. It could be a magnificent station.
  4. One of the people driving this project is the architect; Benedict O’Looney.

This page on the Network Rail web site is entitled Peckham Rye Station Upgrade and it starts with this statement.

On 7th March 2022, we submitted Planning Permission and Listed Building Consent applications to upgrade Peckham Rye station to make it fully accessible with more capacity and better facilities for passengers.

It’s all a bit out of date, but these pictures, that I took this morning, indicate that something is progressing.

This article on IanVisits gives a few more details.

South London Crosslink

The South London Crosslink, doesn’t seem to have a website or a Wikipedia entry.

But it is mentioned in a question and answer to the London Mayor.

In response to this question.

Will you consider bringing the Victoria rail service back to Clapham High Street station and providing direct trains to Brixton, Herne Hill, and Bromley South?

The Mayor gave this answer.

The Department for Transport (DfT) is responsible for these services, as they run Southeastern railway as operator of last resort. Transport for London (TfL) is not opposed to the existing Southeastern services to and from Victoria making additional calls at Clapham High Street should the DfT, wish to take the idea forward.

There are however several practical issues that would need to be taken into consideration, and any changes to the service would be subject to cost-effective solutions being found to these.

The Clapham High Street platforms are too short for the eight-car trains used on the Victoria to Dartford and Orpington metro routes, and the existing rolling stock lacks a safety intervention called “Selective Door Opening” that enables trains to call at a station where the platform is shorter than the train. There are also technical restrictions, such as the frequent routing of these services along an adjacent pair of tracks which do not have any platforms, which would make implementation difficult using the existing railway infrastructure. Finally, there would need to be clear consideration on the wider capacity of the rail network and the robustness of the timetable. All of these concerns could affect the value for money of any proposal for these services to call at Clapham High Street station.

As I showed earlier, it looks like new trains will solve most of these problems. If they don’t, then the wrong trains have been ordered.

But there’s still not much about where the route will go after Peckham Rye, except for vague mentions of Dartford and Orpington.

I asked a friend and they said the South London Crosslink could possibly go to Bellingham.

This map from cartometro, shows the route between Denmark Hill and Crofton Park stations.

Note.

  1. Denmark Hill station is in the North-West corner of the map.
  2. Crofton Park station is in the South-East corner of the map.
  3. The route would be via Peckham Rye and Nunhead stations.
  4. It is not a very fast route with an operating speed of 50-60 mph.
  5. In Nunhead Junction Improvement, I wrote about improvements needed at Nunhead junction to the East of Nunhead station to improve capacity for freight trains.

This second map from cartometro, shows the route between Crofton Park and Bellingham stations.

Note.

  1. Crofton Park station is in the North-West corner of the map.
  2. Bellingham station is in the South-East corner of the map.
  3. The line going diagonally across the map from North-East to South-West is the Hayes Line to Hayes.
  4. There are plans to create an interchange station at Catford.

This Google Map shows Bellingham station.

Note.

  1. Bellingham station is at the top of the map.
  2. Bellingham station is on the Catford Loop Line.
  3. South of Bellingham station are a series of sidings.

Is the reason, that Bellingham station was proposed as a terminus, that with a proper interchange at Catford, it creates a very efficient operational railway with some convenient sidings thrown in?

This map from cartometro, show the track layout at Bellingham station.

I believe that the sidings could be used as a turnback siding for trains from both directions.

These pictures show trains in the sidings.

And these are of the station.

Note.

April 23, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

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