CrossCountry’s Bournemouth And Manchester Piccadilly Service
Whilst I was at Basingstoke station yesterday one of CrossCountry‘s services between Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly came through, so I took these pictures.
It was a long formation of Class 220 trains.
Could This Service Be Replaced By Hitachi Regional Battery Trains?
This Hitachi infographic gives the specification of the Hitachi Regional Battery Train.
I feel that in most condition, the range on battery power can be up to 56 miles.
I can break the Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly route into a series of legs.
- Bournemouth and Basingstoke – 60 miles – 750 VDC third-rail electrification
- Basingstoke and Reading – 15.5 miles – No electrification
- Reading and Didcot North Junction – 18 miles – 25 KVAC overhead electrification
- Didcot North Junction and Oxford – 10 miles – No electrification
- Oxford and Banbury – 22 miles – No electrification
- Banbury and Leamington Spa – 20 miles – No electrification
- Leamington Spa and Coventry – 10 miles – No electrification
- Coventry and Manchester Piccadilly – 101 miles – 25 KVAC overhead electrification
Note.
- 63 % of the route is electrified.
- The short 15.5 mile gap in the electrification between Basingstoke and Reading should be an easy route for running on battery power.
- But the 62 mile gap between Didcot North Junction and Coventry might well be too far.
The train would also need to be able to work with both types of UK electrification.
If some way could be found to bridge the 62 mile gap reliably, Hitachi’s Regional Battery Trains could work CrossCountry’s service between Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly.
Bridging The Gap
These methods could possibly be used to bridge the gap.
A Larger Battery On The Train
If you look at images of MTU’s Hybrid PowerPack, they appear to show a basic engine module with extra battery modules connected to it.
Will Hitachi and their battery-partner; Hyperdrive Innovation use a similar approach, where extra batteries can be plugged in as required?
This modular approach must offer advantages.
- Battery size can be tailored to routes.
- Batteries can be changed quickly.
The train’s software would know what batteries were fitted and could manage them efficiently.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train able to handle a gap only six miles longer than the specification.
Battery And Train Development
As Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train develops, the following should happen.
- Useable battery capacity will increase.
- The train will use less electricity.
- Actions like regenerative braking will improve and recover more electricity.
- Driving and train operating strategies will improve.
These and other factors will improve the range of the train on batteries.
A Charging Station At Banbury Station
If some form of Fast Charge system were to be installed at Banbury station, this would enable a train stopping at Banbury to take on enough power to reliably reach Oxford or Coventry depending, on their final destination.
This method may add a few minutes to the trip, but it should work well.
Electrification Of A Section Of The Chiltern Main Line
This could be an elegant solution.
I have just flown my helicopter between Bicester North and Warwick Parkway stations and these are my observations.
- The Chiltern Main Line appears to be fairly straight and has received a top class Network Rail makeover in the last couple of decades.
- There are a couple of tunnels, but most of the bridges are new.
- Network Rail have done a lot of work on this route to create a hundred mph main line.
- It might be possible to increase the operating speed, by a few mph.
- The signalling also appears modern.
My untrained eye, says that it won’t be too challenging to electrify between say Bicester North station or Aynho Junction in the South and Leamington Spa or Warwick Parkway stations in the North. I would think, that the degree of difficulty would be about the same, as the recently electrified section of the Midland Main Line between Bedford and Corby stations.
The thirty-eight miles of electrification between Bicester North and Warwick Parkway stations would mean.
- The electrification is only eight-and-a-half miles longer than Bedford and Corby.
- There could be journey time savings.
- As all trains stop at two stations out of Banbury, Leamington Spa, Warwick and Warwick Parkway, all pantograph actions could be performed in stations, if that was thought to be preferable.
- Trains would be able to leave the electrification with full batteries.
- The electrification may enable some freight trains to be hauled between Didcot and Coventry or Birmingham using battery electric locomotives.
Distances of relevance from the ends of the electrification include.
- London Marylebone and Bicester North stations – 55 miles
- London Marylebone and Aynho junction – 64 miles
- Didcot North and Aynho junctions – 28 miles
- Leamington Spa and Coventry stations – 10 miles
- Leamington Spa and Birmingham Snow Hill stations – 23 miles
- Leamington Spa and Stratford-upon-Avon stations – 15 miles
- Warwick Parkway and Birmingham New Street stations – 20 miles
- Warwick Parkway and Birmingham Snow Hill stations – 20 miles
- Warwick Parkway and Kidderminster – 40 miles
- Warwick Parkway and Stratford-upon-Avon stations – 12 miles
These figures mean that the following services would be possible using Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train.
- Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street
- Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Birmingham Snow Hill
- Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Kidderminster
- Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Stratford-upon-Avon
- CrossCountry – Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly
- CrossCountry – Southampton Central and Newcastle
- Midlands Connect – Oxford and Birmingham More Street – See Birmingham Airport Connectivity.
Other services like Leicester and Oxford via Coventry may also be possible.
As I see it, the great advantage of this electrification on the Chiltern Main Line is that is decarbonises two routes with the same thirty-eight miles of electrification.
Conclusion
CrossCountry’s Bournemouth And Manchester Piccadilly service could be run very efficiently with Hitachi’s proposed Regional Battery Train.
My preferred method to cross the electrification gap between Didcot North junction and Coventry station would be to electrify a section of the Chiltern Main Line.
- The electrification would be less than forty miles.
- I doubt it would be a challenging project.
- It would also allow Hitachi’s proposed trains to work Chiltern Main Line routes between London Marylebone and Birmingham.
I am fairly certain, that all passenger services through Banbury would be fully electric.
Beeching Reversal – Unlocking Capacity And Services Through Bramley (Hants)
This is one of the Beeching Reversal projects that the Government and Network Rail are proposing to reverse some of the Beeching cuts.
Bramley Station
Bramley (Hants) station is on the Reading-Basingstoke Line, which is 15.5 miles long.
- The line is double-track.
- Bramley station is the nearest one to Basingstoke station.
- The two stations are about five miles apart.
- The basic local service is two trains per hour (tph), with trains taking a few minutes under half-an-hour.
- The speed limit is listed in Wikipedia at 75 mph and my Class 165 train was travelling at about 60 mph on both journeys between Basingstoke and Bramley stations.
This Google Map shows Bramley station.
Note the level crossing, just to the North of the station.
These are some pictures, that I took, whilst I spent about thirty minutes at Bramley station.
Note
- In the thirty minutes, I was at the station, two long freight trains and three passenger trains came through.
- The level crossing barriers were going up and down like a whore’s drawers.
- Each level crossing closure resulted in long queues at the barriers.
It reminded me how bad the level crossing at Brimsdown station used to be in the Peak in 1966, when I crossed it twice every day to go to and from work at Enfield Rolling Mills. At least I was on two wheels and it gave me a break from pedalling!
There is more on the problems of the level crossing on this article on the Bramley Parish Council web site, which is entitled Living With Our Level Crossing.
Current Future Plans For the Reading-Basingstoke Line
The Wikipedia entry for the Reading-Basingstoke Line has a Future section, where this is said.
The railway is listed with Network Rail as part of route 13, the Great Western main line, and was due to be electrified with 25 kV overhead wiring by 2017 as part of the modernisation of the main line.[8] In July 2007, plans were agreed to build a station in Reading south of Southcote Junction in the Green Park business park, serving the southern suburbs of Reading and also the Madejski Stadium. Construction of Reading Green Park railway station was expected to be completed in 2010; the plans were suspended in 2011, but were reinstated in 2013. It is now set to open by the end of 2020[9], with electrification along the line at a later date.
It is my view, that the new Reading Green Park station will probably mean that four tph between Reading and Basingstoke stations will be needed. especially if a second new station were to be built at Chineham.
But four tph would probably be impossible, without improving the traffic of both rail and road through Bramley.
Solving The Level Crossing Problem
Ideally, the level crossing should be closed and the road diverted or put on a bridge,
If you look at a wider map of the area, building a by-pass to enable road traffic to avoid the crossing will be difficult if not impossible.
But this is not an untypical problem on rail networks and not just in the UK.
I suspect that with precise train control using digital ERTMS signalling, trains and level crossing closures can be timed to improve traffic on both road and rail.
Consider.
- If trains crossed on the level crossing and they were under precise control, this would reduce the number of level crossing closures per hour.
- If the line speed was higher and the trains ran faster, this should ease timetabling, as there could be more train paths per hour.
- Faster accelerating electric trains would save time too, by shortening station dwell times.
- A third track might be laid in places.
- The signalling could possibly drive the train or tell the driver exactly what speed to travel, so trains passed on the crossing or in the station.
As Network Rail and their contractors roll-out ERTMS, they’ll discover better and more intelligent ways to deploy the system.
Electric Trains Would Help
Electric trains accelerate faster and if they use regenerative braking to batteries, this cuts station dwell times.
But powering them by electrification would mean the connecting lines between the Reading and Basingstoke Lines and the nearest electrified lines would also have to be electrified. This would make the scheme excessively expensive.
But Battery Electric Trains Could Be Better!
I believe that battery electric trains, would be a more-than-viable alternative.
- You still get the performance advantages of electric trains.
- With charging at just one end of the route, a battery electric train could run a round trip on battery power.
The big advantage, would be that the only new electrification infrastructure needed would be to charge the trains.
Charging Battery Electric Trains At Reading Station
Reading is a fully electrified station and the shuttle trains to and from Basingstoke station, appear to use Platform 2.
This Google Map shows electrification gantries over Platforms 1, 2 and 3 at Reading station.
Note.
- The route between Reading station and Southcote junction, where the Basingstoke and Newbury routes divide, may be under two miles, but it is fully electrified.
- Trains take three minutes to travel between Reading station and Southcote junction.
- Trains wait for up to twenty minutes in the platform at Reading station.
It would appear that trains get enough time at Reading to fully charge the batteries.
Charging Battery Electric Trains At Basingstoke Station
The shuttle trains between Reading and Basingstoke stations, appear to use Platform 5 in Basingstoke station.
This Google Map shows Platform 5 at Basingstoke station.
Platform 5 is towards the top of the map and contains a two-car train.
These pictures show the platform.
Note.
- There would appear to be space on the North side of Platform 5 to install another platform, if one should be needed.
- It appears from the Google Map, that Platform 5 could take a four-car train.
- The platform is wide and spacious for passengers.
- I suspect a Fast Charge system of some sort could be installed in this platform.
As at Reading, trains can take around twenty minutes to turn back at Basingstoke, which would be ideal for a battery charge.
What Trains Could Work The Shuttle?
After South Western Railway‘s interim Managing Director; Mark Hopwood’s comments, that led me to write Converting Class 456 Trains Into Two-Car Battery Electric Trains, these trains must be a possibility.
I also think, that as both South Western Railway and Great Western Railway are both First Group companies, there won’t be too much argument about who supplies the trains for the shuttle.
CrossCountry Trains Between Reading And Basingstoke
CrossCountry will need to replace their Class 220 trains with electric or bi-mode trains soon, to meet the dates for decarbonisation.
The prime candidate must be a dual-voltage version of Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train, which could easily work the 15.5 miles between Reading and Basingstoke on battery power, after charging up on the electrification at both ends.
The trains could also be easily fitted with the ERTMS signalling equipment that will be required to go smoothly along the line.
Freight Trains Between Reading And Basingstoke
We might see this section of the UK rail network, electrified for freight, but as it would require lots of connecting electrification, I think it is more likely that freight locomotives will be powered by an alternative fuel like hydrogen or bio-diesel. This would cut electrification needs, but still reduce carbon emissions.
Freight locomotives are already being fitted with the required ERTMS signalling equipment.
Conclusion
I am absolutely sure, that there’s a technological solution in there, that can increase the number of trains through Bramley.
But diverting the road traffic and clossing the level crossing would appear to be difficult.
Coulsdon South Station Has Gone Step-Free
Coulsdon South station went step-free a couple of months ago, so I went to take a look.
These are my thoughts.
The Bridge
Mechanically, the bridge is typical of many in the UK, but someone has taken care over the design, by the use of well-chosen colours and bricks.
The Café
We need more station cafes like Jaconelli’s Espresso Bar.
- Full range of proper coffee and other drinks.
- Cakes and snacks.
- Gluten-free options.
- Wude selection of alternative milks
- Knowledgeable and friendly staff.
I suspect it is also owner-managed, as most cafes of this type would be in Italy.
It’s one of the best cafes of its type, that I’ve found in a long time.
The Old Bridge
According to one of the guys in the café the old bridge needed replacing.
But leaving it intact, gives the young, fit or agile a second route across the tracks.
Local Walks And Attractions
There are walks nearby in the Surrey Hills and on the London Loop.
I was also told, that you can get a bus to the Lavender Fields.
Zone Six Station On Thameslink
The station is in Zone Six, which puts it in Freedom Pass territory.
It also has two Thameslink and two Southern trains per hour, so it is easily reached.
Car Parking And A Taxi Service
This Google Map shows the station.
Note the car parking and a taxi service, which is called District Cars.
Conclusion
Coulsdon South is now a very well-equipped station and it must be an ideal place to meet a friend, family member or work colleague to either have a chat or a serious discussion.
Surely, with more people continuing to work from home, the need for meetings between those in the office and those at home will grow! Zoom etc. can only do so much and the cpncept doesn’t suit everybody!
So perhaps we’ll see more community-managed meeting rooms, like the one I described in The Newly-Decorated White Horse Room In Westbury Is Open For Bookings.
Solar To Hydrogen Efficiency Record Broken By Australian National University Researchers
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Hydrogen Fuel News.
The traditional route to produce green hydrogen from solar panels, is to create electricity and then use electrolysis to create the hydrogen.
This process goes direct and an improvement in efficiency of 17.6 %.
Rolls-Royce Commences Series Production Of Hybrid-Ready MTU PowerPacks For Irish Rail
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on CleanTechnica.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Rolls-Royce is to supply its very first series production MTU PowerPacks which are prepared for future use as hybrid traction units: Iarnród Éireann Irish Rail, the national railway operator of the Republic of Ireland, has ordered 41 of these MTU Hybrid-ready PowerPacks. Fitted with MTU 6H 1800 R86 engines, the PowerPacks comply with the EU Stage V emissions directives and each delivers 375 kW from the diesel engine as well as 150 kW from the electrical machine.
Later the aim would be to add batteries to the PowerPacks to make the trains fully hybrid.
I do think Rolls-Royce MTU might have a game-changer here.
- You take a modern fleet of diesel multiple units like a British Class 170 trains or an Irish Class 22000 trains,
- For starters you replace the old diesel engine, with a modern one that meets all the latest environmental regulations.
- It surely helps both sales and engineering, when the old diesel engine was supplied by MTU.
- Later you fit appropriately sized batteries to the PowerPack to create full hybrids with regenerative braking.
In Iarnród Éireann Orders Stage V MTU PowerPacks, I said this about fuel consumption and emissions.
The aim is to achieve a reduction of over thirty percent in both fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.
I would suspect that with savings like that, the case for conversion might be an easy sell.
Hitachi Rail To Acquire Perpetuum In Digital Expansion
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
This is the first two paragraphs.
Hitachi Rail Ltd has agreed to acquire Southampton-based condition monitoring specialist Perpetuum as part of a strategy to strengthen the use of digital technology in rail operations.
Established as a university spin-off less than a decade ago, Perpetuum developed the use of bogie-mounted self-powered vibration sensors to monitor the condition of rolling stock. Wireless equipment fitted to around 3 000 vehicles operating across three continents sends back real-time data about the performance of wheelsets, gearboxes, motors and bogies.
It seems to me, that Hitachi have bought an interesting company.
Let’s hope they develop the technology, but keep that development in Southampton.
Do We Need More New Measurement Trains?
In New Measurement Train – 30th July 2020, I said this.
With all the spare InterCity 125 trains at present, will Network Rail create a second train?
We have now had the tragic Stonehaven Derailment, where three have been sadly killed.
Increasingly, we seem to be getting weather-related problems on the UK’s railways.
I can remember several in the last few years.
So perhaps just as the Hatfield Crash led to the New Measurement Train, we should up our testing and the development of new tests.
Extra trains would increase the amount of testing, but also provide more laboratory space to test the testing systems in real railway conditions.
Perhaps, if a University or high-tech company has a feasible idea, there should be a mechanism, whereby they can rent space in the trains, just as they can on satellite launchers.
Funding To Develop Geothermal Energy Plans For Disused Flooded Coal Mines
The title of this post, is the same as that of this page on the University of Strathclyde web site.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Researchers at the University of Strathclyde have won early stage funding to develop plans to tap into the geothermal energy contained within disused, flooded coal mines in Scotland.
I have talked about this technique before in Can Abandoned Mines Heat Our Future?, which I wrote after I attended a public lecture at The Geological Society.
This page on the Geological Society web site, gives a summary of the lecture and details of the speaker; Charlotte Adams of Durham University.
This paragraph indicates the scale of the Scottish project, which has been called HotScot.
Heat trapped in 600 km3 of disused mine-workings in the Central Belt of Scotland could meet up to 8% of Scotland’s domestic heating demand.
It looks to be a very comprehensive project.
Conclusion
As this appears to be the second project where disused coal mines are used as a source of heat, after one in Spennymoor, that I wrote about in Exciting Renewable Energy Project for Spennymoor. I wouldn’t be surprised to see other projects starting in other mining areas.
And not just in the UK, as techniques developed by engineers and scientists get more efficient and more affordable.
Converting Class 456 Trains Into Two-Car Battery Electric Trains
Mark Hopwood is the interim Managing Director of South Western Railway and in Special Train Offers A Strong Case For Reopening Fawley Line, I quote him as saying the following about the trains for the Fawley Branch Line.
However, SWR’s Mark Hopwood favours a much bolder plan. “We’d have to take a decision, once we knew the line was going ahead. But my personal belief is that we should be looking for a modern environmentally-friendly train that can use third-rail electricity between Southampton and Totton and maybe operate on batteries down the branch line.”
Pressed on whether that would mean Vivarail-converted former-London Underground stock, Hopwood ads. “It could be. Or it could be a conversion of our own Class 456, which will be replaced by new rolling stock very shortly. But I don’t think this is the time to use old diesels.
Mark Hopwood is so right about using old diesels.
- Where possible new and refurbished trains should be zero-carbon.
- Diesel is to be banned by 2035 in Scotland and 2040 in England and Wales.
- Diesel trains and hydrogen trains for that matter need to refuelled.
- Get the diagrams right and battery electric trains can be charged on existing electrification or automatic Fast Charging systems, when they turn back at terminal stations.
- Electric trains attract passengers.
- Battery electric trains are mouse-quiet!
Who would use anything else other than electric trains with a battery option for sections without electrification?
The Class 456 Train
These pictures show some of the twenty-four Class 456 trains, that are in South Western Railway’s fleet.
This is the specification of a Class 456 train.
- Two cars
- Operating speed – 75 mph.
- Capacity – 152 seats – Although the plate on the train says 113!
- Built 1990-1991
- Ability to work in pairs.
Most trains seem to be used to lengthen trains from eight to ten cars, as some of the pictures shows. As these 4+4+2 formations will be replaced with new 10-car Class 701 trains or pairs of five-car Class 701 trains, the trains will be looking for a new role.
Does this explain Mark Hopwood’s statement?
It should be noted that the Class 456 trains are members of the Mark 3 family, and bare a strong resemblance to the Class 321 train, which are shown in these pictures.
Note that I have included the side view, as it shows the amount of space under these trains.
Some Class 321 trains are being converted to Class 600 hydrogen trains, by Alstom at Widnes. Others have been given a life-extending Renatus upgrade.
Are The Driver Cars Of Class 456 and Class 321 Trains Identical?
The trains may look similar, but does the similarity go deeper?
Could Alstom Use Class 600 Hydrogen Train Technology To Create A Class 456 Train With a Battery Capability?
Consider.
- Alstom are positioning themselves as Train Upgrade Specialists in the UK. They have already signed a near billion pound deal to upgrade and maintain Avanti West Coast’s fleet of Class 390 trains.
- Alstom are creating the Class 600 hydrogen train from withdrawn Class 321 trains.
- A hydrogen-powered train is basically a battery electric train with a hydrogen tank and fuel cell to charge the batteries.
- The Class 600 train doesn’t appear to be making fast progress and is still without an order.
- One possible hydrogen route must surely be London Waterloo and Exeter, so I suspect Alstom are talking to South Western Railway.
- The Class 456 trains are owned by Porterbrook, who would probably like to extend the useful life of the trains.
Could it be that the battery core and AC traction package of Alstom’s hydrogen system for the Class 600 train can turn old British Rail-era electric multiple units into battery electric multiple units with a useful range?
It is certainly a possibility and one that is also within the capability of other companies in the UK.
Could The Class 456 Trains Receive a Class 321 Renatus Interior And Traction Package?
As Class 321 and Class 456 trains were built around the same time, the two trains must share components.
These pictures show the current interior of a Class 456 train.
This is excellent for a two-car electric multiple unit, built thirty years ago! Although, the refurbishment is more recent from 2014-15.
- Note the wheelchair space and the copious rubbish bins.
- I also spotted a stowed wheel-chair ramp on the train. It can be seen if you look hard in the picture that shows the wheelchair space.
- Some might feel that toilets should be provided.
These pictures show the interior of a Class 321 train, that has been given the Renatus upgrade.
What is not shown is the more efficient AC traction package.
I have been told or read, that the Renatus interior will be used in the conversion of a Class 321 train to an Alstom Class 600 or Breeze hydrogen train.
On the other hand, the current Class 456 interior would probably be ideal for a branch line, where one of initial aims would be to attract passengers.
Could A Class 456 Train Have a Lightweight Traction Package?
Consider.
- The Class 456 train will access electrification that is only 750 VDC third-rail.
- Batteries work in DC.
- The new traction motors will work in AC, if they follow the practice in the Class 321 Renatus and the Class 600 train.
- Regenerative braking will charge the batteries in both trains.
- Air-conditioning and other hotel services can work in DC.
Some components needed to run from 25 KVAC like a transformer could be left out to save weight and improve acceleration.
I would suspect that a Class 456 train with batteries could use a slimmed-down traction system from the Class 600 train.
On both Class 456 and 600 trains a core system, that would power the train, might contain.
- The traction battery or batteries.
- The traction motors that both drive and brake the train,
- Third-rail electrification shoes, so that the batteries could be charged in a station, as required.
- A clever computer system, that controls the acceleration, braking and charging as required.
On the Class 600 train, there would also be the following.
- Hydrogen tanks and fuel cells to provide an independent power source to charge the batteries.
- A pantograph to access 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- Extra electrical gear to access the electrification.
I think it would be possible to design the Class 456 train with batteries as the basic train and just add the extra hydrogen and electrical gubbins to make it a Class 600 train.
Could A Class 456 Train Be Modified To Use 25 KVAC Overhead Electrification?
As I said, there are a lot of similarities between Class 456 trains and Class 321 trains.
As the Class 321 trains are equipped to use 25 KVAC Overhead Electrification, I suspect train modification specialists could create a Class 456 train, that could use overhead electrification.
What Battery Range And Size Would Be Needed In A Class 456 Train?
These are typical branch line lengths for South Western Railway.
- Fawley Branch – 8 miles
- Wareham and Swanage – 11 miles
- Lymington Branch – 5.6 miles
- Reading and Basingstoke – 15.5 miles
I would suspect that a range of thirty miles on battery power would be sufficient for a Class 456 train with batteries.
In an article in the October 2017 Edition of Modern Railways, which is entitled Celling England By The Pound, Ian Walmsley says this in relation to trains running on the Uckfield Branch, which is not very challenging.
A modern EMU needs between 3 and 5 kWh per vehicle mile for this sort of service.
So applying that formula gives battery capacity of between 180 kWh and 300 kWh.
In Issue 864 of Rail Magazine, there is an article entitled Scotland High Among Vivarail’s Targets for Class 230 D-Trains, where this is said.
Vivarail’s two-car battery units contains four 100 kWh lithium-ion battery rafts, each weighing 1.2 tonnes.
If 200 kWh can be placed under the floor of each car of a rebuilt London Underground D78 Stock, then I think it is reasonable that up to 200 kWh can be placed under the floor of each car of the proposed train.
This picture of the Driver Car of a Class 321 train, shows that there is quite a bit of space under those trains.
Are the Class 456 trains similar? This is the best picture I have got so far.
It does appear that space is similar to that under a Class 321 train.
If we assume that the Class 456 train can have the following specification.
- Battery capacity of 200 kWh in both cars.
- Regenerative braking to battery.
- Power consumption of 4 kWh per vehicle mile.
I think we could be approaching a range of fifty miles on a route without too many energy-consuming stops.
Charging The Batteries
I like the Vivarail’s Fast Charge concept of using third-rail equipment to charge battery trains.
This press release from the company describes how they charge their battery electric Class 230 trains.
- The system is patented.
- The system uses a trickle-charged battery pack, by the side of the track to supply the power.
- The first system worked with the London Underground 3rd and 4th rail electrification standard.
As the length of rails needed to be added at charging points is about a metre, installing a charging facility in a station, will not be the largest of projects.
Under How Does It Work?, the press release says this.
The concept is simple – at the terminus 4 short sections of 3rd and 4th rail are installed and connected to the electronic control unit and the battery bank. Whilst the train is in service the battery bank trickle charges itself from the national grid – the benefit of this is that there is a continuous low-level draw such as an EMU would use rather than a one-off huge demand for power.
The train pulls into the station as normal and the shoe-gear connects with the sections of charging rail. The driver need do nothing other than stop in the correct place as per normal and the rail is not live until the train is in place.
That’s it!
As an electrical engineer, I’m certain the concept could be adapted to charge the batteries of a conventional third-rail train.
Vivarail’s press release says this about modification to the trains.
The train’s shoe-gear is made of ceramic carbon so it is able to withstand the heat generated during the fast charge process.
That wouldn’t be a major problem to solve.
Class 456 Train With Batteries And Class 600 Train Compared
The following sub-sections will compare the trains in various areas.
Lightweight Design
As I suspect that the basic structure of the Class 456 and Class 600 trains are similar, systems like toilets, air-conditioning, traction motors and seats will be chosen with saving weight in mind.
Every kilogram saved will mean faster acceleration.
Operating Speed
The current Class 321 train is a 100 mph train, whilst the current Class 456 train is only a 75 mph train.
I wonder if applying the modern traction package of the Class 321 Renatus to the Class 456 train could speed the shorter train up a bit?
Range Away From Electrification
Alstom have quoted ranges of hundreds of miles for the Class 600 train on one filling of hydrogen, but I can’t see the Class 456 train with batteries doing much more than fifty miles on a full charge.
But using a Fast Charge system, I can see the Class 456 train with batteries fully-charging in under ten minutes.
Fast Charge systems at Romsey and Salisbury stations would surely enable the Class 456 trains with batteries to run the hourly service over the thirty-eight mile route between the two stations.
Passenger Capacity
The current Class 456 trains have a capacity of 152 seats.
In Orders For Alstom Breeze Trains Still Expected, I said this.
The three-car Alstom Breeze is expected to have a similar capacity to a two-car diesel multiple unit.
But until I see one in the flesh, I won’t have a better figure.
If South Western Railway were wanting to replace a two-car diesel Class 158 train, they’d probably accept something like 180 seats.
Increasing Passenger Capacity
There are compatible trailer cars around from shortening Class 321 trains from four to three cars and there may be more from the creation of the Class 600 trains.
I suspect that these could be added to both Class 456 and Class 600 trains to increase capacity by fifty percent.
As a two-car train, the Class 456 train might be a bit small, but putting in a third car, which had perhaps slightly more dense seating and possibly a toilet and even more batteries could make the train anything the operator needed.
Suitability For London Waterloo and Exeter via Salisbury
This is South Western Railway’s big need for a zero emission train.
- It is around 170 miles
- Only 48 miles are electrified.
- It is currently worked by three-car Class 159 trains working in pairs.
- Class 159 trains are 90 mph trains.
I have believed for some time, that with fast charging, a battery electric train could handle this route.
But, I would feel that.
- Class 456 trains would be too slow and too small for this route.
- Class 600 trains would be too small for this route.
On the other hand, I believe that Hitachi’s Class 800 train with a battery electric capability or Regional Battery Train, which is described in this infographic from the company, could be ideal for the route.
The proposed 90 km or 56 mile range could even be sufficient take a train between Salisbury and Exeter with a single intermediate charge at Yeovil Junction station, where the trains wait up to ten minutes anyway.
There are other reasons for using Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train rather than Class 600 trains.
- First Group have a lot of experience of running Hitachi Class 80x trains, through their various subsidiaries.
- They could share depot facilities at Exeter.
- No specialist facilities would be needed.
- A five-car Class 801 with batteries would have a convenient 300 seats.
- I suspect they could be delivered before Alstom’s Class 600 train.
As the only new infrastructure required would be Fast Charge facilities at Salisbury and Yeovil Junction stations, I feel that Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train, should be a shoe-in for this route.
First Delivery
The Wikipedia entry for the Class 600 train, says introduction into traffic could be in 2024. Given, the speed with which Greater Anglia’s Class 321 trains were updated to the Renatus specification, we could see Class 456 trains with a battery capability and new interiors running well before 2024.
A Few Questions
These questions have occurred to me.
Could The Technology Be Used To Create A Class 321 Battery Electric Train?
I don’t see why not!
I believe a Class 321 battery electric train could be created with this specification.
- Three or four cars. Remember the Class 320 train is a three-car Class 321 train.
- 100 mph operating speed.
- Regenerative braking to the batteries.
- Renatus or operator-specified interior.
- Toilet as required.
- Electrification as required.
- Battery range of around sixty miles.
- Ability to use a Fast Charge system, that can easily be installed in a terminal platform.
Trains could be tailored to suit a particular route and/or operator.
Any Other Questions?
If you have any other questions, send them in and I’ll add them to this section.
Conclusion
It does appear that if the Class 456 trains, were to be fitted with a battery capability, that they would make a very useful two-car battery electric train, with the following specification.
- Two cars
- Operating speed – 75 mph. This might be a bit higher.
- Capacity – 152 seats
- Ability to work in pairs.
- Modern interior
- Range of 45-50 miles on batteries.
- Ability to charge batteries in ten minutes in a station.
- Ability to charge batteries on any track with 750 VDC third-rail electrification.
This is the sort of train, that could attract other operators, who don’t have any electrification, but want to electrify short branch lines.
Special Train Offers A Strong Case For Reopening Fawley Line
The title of this post is the same as that of an article in Issue 911 of Rail Magazine.
This is the opening paragraph.
On July 28, a South Western Railway train ran along the Fawley Branch Line. to make the case for reopening to passenger services after a 54-year gap.
On board were the Rail Minister; Chris Heaton-Harris, Network Rail Chairman; Sir Peter Hendy, Managing Director of South Western Railway; Mark Hopwood and Lord Montagu of Beulieu.
The article reports the trip and fills in more of the details, that make more sense of my sketchy post called Reintroduction Of Passenger Rail Services On The Waterside Line.
These are some points from the article.
The Infrastructure Needs Updating
This is a quote from the article.
The route has a line speed of 30 mph, with lower speed restrictions at level crossings, some of which are still hand-operated. Semaphore signals operated from by mechanical levers from Marchwood remain in use. A token is given to the driver to allow the train to run towards Fawley. All this would require updating.
Elsewhere the article says there are ten level crossings.
Housing Is The Game Changer
This is another quote from the article.
The big change is urban sprawl. In the half century since passenger services ended, housing estates for thousands of people have been built alongside the line. mostly for commuters into Southampton and the surrounding conurbation.
Up to 5,000 further new homes are planned, including an all-new small town on the site of the former Fawley power station on the southern tip of Southampton Water. Planning permission for at least 1,300 homes was granted the very evening before the Fawley train ran.
This Google Map shows the the town of Hythe and the giant Fawley Refinery.
Note.
- Hythe is towards the top of the map on Southampton Water.
- The refinery is the large beige blob in the middle on Southampton Water.
- The Fawley Branch runs close to the water and finishes inside the secure fence of the refinery.
- There will be stations at Marchwood, Hythe Town and Hythe & Fawley Parkway.
- The parkway station will be to the North of the refinery.
- The major housing site is on the former Fawley power station site, which is the Southernmost beige blob.
- The blue dot towards the West indicates the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu.
It looks to me, that an electric shuttle bus between Hythe & Fawley Parkway, Beaulieu and the various housing sites would be a good idea.
The Cost Of The Scheme
This is another quote from the article.
The campaign to open the line has been spearheaded by the Three Rivers Community Rail Partnership.
Chairman Nick Farthing says:
“For £45m, you get the track, signalling and level crossings sorted. You get a 60 mph railway with three stations = upgrading Marchwood, a new station for Hythe, and Fawley park-and-ride (just beyond Holbury, where Hardley Halt used to be).
“Three Rivers commissioned a level crossing study from Network Rail, so we know what has to be done. We’ve used a rail-approved contractor to work out how much the three stations will cost.
Three Rivers have also identified some affordable diesel rolling stock.
South Western Railway’s Innovative Train Plan
This is another quote from the Rail Magazine article.
However, SWR’s Mark Hopwood favours a much bolder plan. “We’d have to take a decision, once we knew the line was going ahead. But my personal belief is that we should be looking for a modern environmentally-friendly train that can use third-rail electricity between Southampton and Totton and maybe operate on batteries down the branch line.”
Pressed on whether that would mean Vivarail-converted former-London Underground stock, Hopwood adds. “It could be. Or it could be a conversion of our own Class 456, which will be replaced by new rolling stock very shortly. But I don’t think this is the time to use old diesels.
Converting Class 456 Trains Into Two-Car Battery Electric Trains discusses this conversion in detail.
Conclusion
This plan seems to be coming together strongly.
All the partners like Three Rivers Community Rail Partnership, Network Rail, South Western Railway and other local interests seem to be acting together and very professionally.
The Anonymous Widower 