A Railway Station At Liverpool University
In Liverpool’s Forgotten Tunnel, I showed this map, which shows a proposed reopening of the Wapping Tunnel as a passenger route between Liverpool Central and Edge Hill stations.
Note.
- The map shows a station at University
- The Wapping Tunnel is shown as a dotted blue line.
- Between four and eight trains per hour (tph) would be running through University station.
This Google Map shows the line of the tunnel.
Note.
- Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral is in the North-West corner of the map.
- Much of area of the map is taken up by buildings of Liverpool University.
- Crown Street Park is in the South-East corner of the map and contains one of the ventilating shafts for the tunnel.
- Blackburne Place in the South-West corner of the map contains another ventilating shaft.
The location of the shafts, probably means that the tunnel runs vaguely along Myrtle Street.
Not knowing that area of the campus well, it could be where Grove and Myrtle Streets intersect.
This Google Map shows the area.
It should be noted that this area of Liverpool is built on sandstone and tunnelling isn’t the most challenging operation, so it might be possible to create a very passenger-friendly station.
Passenger Services Through The Station
I think that my best estimate of passenger service through the station would be as follows.
Frequency
The frequency would be between four and eight tph. These are quite low frequencies for a modern railway and Merseyrail exceeds this frequency in several places.
Westbound
Currently, trains on the Northern Line branches to Ormskirk and Kirkby appear to turnback at Liverpool Central station. So it would appear, that it would be more likely, that Westbound services at Liverpool University station would terminate at Kirkby or Ormskirk.
Passengers wanting to travel to and from stations on the Wirral Line, would need to change at Liverpool Central station.
Eastbound
Currently, local services out of Liverpool Lime Street, that are run by Northern, are as follows.
- Half hourly service to Manchester Oxford Road (via Warrington Central, most local stations)
- Hourly service to Manchester Airport (via Warrington Central and Manchester Piccadilly, limited stop)
- Hourly service to Blackpool North (limited stop)
- Half hourly service to Wigan North Western (via St Helens Central, all stations)
- Hourly service to Crewe (via Newton-le-Willows, Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport, all stations)
- Hourly service to Warrington Bank Quay (via Earlestown, all stations)
Note.
- The services actually add up to eight tph.
- As Merseyrail’s new Class 777 trains will have a pantograph for 25 KVAC overhead electrification and a battery capability, they could be used on all routes.
- But I do think that the trains may not be suitable for all routes because of their 75 mph operating speed.
- It might be better to serve Blackpool North station by extending an hourly Ormskirk service to Preston and Blackpool North, with stops at all stations.
So could the services Eastbound from Liverpool University station be as follows.
- Half hourly service to Manchester Oxford Road (via Warrington Central, most local stations)
- Half hourly service to Wigan North Western (via St Helens Central, all stations)
- Hourly service to Warrington Bank Quay (via Earlestown, all stations)
The services add up to five tph and I would expect selective increases would balance the services, so that eight tph ran through Liverpool University and Edge Hill stations.
Liverpool’s Forgotten Station
Edge Hill station is Liverpool’s forgotten station.
For instance, it could be the only train station in the UK, with a better than two trains per hour (tph) service in both directions, that doesn’t have any displays telling passengers, when the next train is arriving.
These pictures show the station.
Note.
- The station is Grade II* Listed.
- It does have a good clock.
- There are four platforms on two islands.
- The only way to get to Platforms 3 and 4, is by one of the worst subways, I’ve seen in many years.
If ever a station needed a good makeover, it is Edge Hill.
This Google Map shows the station.
Note.
- The Northern island platform is 1 & 2. All trains using these platforms seem to use platforms 1 to 5 at Liverpool Lime Street station.
- The Southern island platform is 3 & 4. All trains using these platforms seem to use platforms 6 to 10 at Liverpool Lime Street station.
- The deep four-track cutting, that leads to Lime Street station can be clearly seen to the West of the station.
- The lines to the South of the station, that run to the West, lead to the disused Wapping Tunnel. Surprisingly, the tracks still seem to be in place.
- The lines to the North of the station, that run to the West, lead to the disused Victoria Tunnel, that used to take freight to and from Liverpool Docks.
There is certainly a lot of space around the station to put in extra platforms and a flyover or two.
Connecting The Wapping Tunnel To The Lines Going To The East
In Liverpool’s Forgotten Tunnel, I talked about a resurrected plan to use the Wapping Tunnel for passenger trains.
This was my opening sentences of the post.
The Wapping Tunnel in Liverpool was designed by George Stephenson and was the first tunnel in the world to be bored under a city.
It used to take goods trains between Liverpool Docks and the Liverpool and Manchester Line.
During the 1970s preparations were made to connect the Wapping Tunnel to Merseyrail’s Northern Line, so that trains could run between the Northern Line and the City Line, which would have connected the North and East of the City.
But the project was never completed.
I also included this recent map of the scheme.
The proposed line through the Wapping Tunnel, is shown as a dotted blue line.
Components of the scheme include.
- Four to eight tph instead of turning back at Liverpool Central station would use the Wapping Tunnel to access Edge Hill and then continue to Liverpool South Parkway, Manchester Airport, Manchester Oxford Road, St. Helens, Warrington and Wigan.
- A new station will be built at Liverpool University.
- A new station could be built at St. James. at a future date.
It looks to be a sensible scheme, providing the engineering isn’t too difficult.
New Platforms On The Wapping Tunnel Lines
This Google Map shows the lines leading to the Wapping Tunnel.
Note.
- Platform 4 is just off the Northern side of the map.
- There is a double track leading to the Wapping Tunnel.
- It looks like the other tracks are the entry to a marshalling yard, that used to serve the Docks, through the Wapping Tunnel.
I can see two platforms on either side or a single island platform between the two tracks being built, that is connected to the current station using a stylish step-free bridge, as at Leeds or Reading stations.
Connecting To The Liverpool South Parkway Route
This Google Map shows the Wapping Tunnel lines, as they pass to the South of the station.
Note.
- The Eastern ends of the two island platforms are clearly visible.
- Platforms 1 and 2, which connect to Wavertree Technology Park, St. Helens and Wigan are the Northern platform.
- Platforms 3 and 4, which connect to Liverpool South Parkway, Runcorn and London are the Southern platform.
- The lines through the Wapping Tunnel, are the two closest lines to the station.
It does appear that connecting the Wapping Lines to those to Liverpool South Parkway would probably need a series of well-designed crossovers.
In fact they might already be in place and just need refurbishment or replacement.
Connecting To The Wavertree Technology Park Route
Trains needing to go between the Wapping Tunnel lines and the lines towards Wavertree Technology Park, St. Helens and Wigan would need to cross right over the busy lines into Liverpool Lime Street station.
So I suspect for efficient operation, a flyover or dive-under will need to be built.
Conclusion
I don’t think that the engineering to connect the Wapping Tunnel lines to the Eastern routes from Edge Hill station, will be too challenging, as there is certainly plenty of space.
I also feel, that an innovative architect can create an efficient station with character.
It’s A Privilege To Work Here!
I was speaking to a young station assistant at Liverpool Lime Street station, who I suspect could have been a trainee or an apprentice, when he came out with the title of this post.
These pictures show the platforms at the station, since the recent remodelling.
Note.
- The platforms are wide and can take an eleven-car Class 390 train.
- TransPennine Express’s five-car Class 802 trains are easily handled in the shorter platforms of the Western train shed.
- I suspect Avanti West Coast’s new Class 807 trains, which are fifty-two metres longer than the Class 802 trains, could fit into the Western train shed, if needed.
It is certainly a station with a large capacity and I believe, with a few tweaks the station will be able to handle High Speed Two and Northern Powerhouse Rail.
Train Lengths Into Liverpool Lime Street
These are the lengths of the various trains that will be terminating at the station.
- Class 350 train – eight cars – 160 metres
- Class 350 train – twelve cars – 240 metres
- Class 390 train – nine cars – 217.5 metres
- Class 390 train – eleven cars – 265.3 metres
- Class 730 train – five cars – 120 metres
- Class 730 train – ten cars – 240 metres
- Class 802 train – five cars – 130 metres
- Class 802 train – ten cars – 260 metres
- Class 807 train – seven cars – 182 metres
- High Speed Two Classic-Compatible train – 200 metres
That looks like future-proofing to me!
An Almost Absence Of Red
I have looked at arrivals into Liverpool Lime Street over the last couple of days on Real Time Trains and nearly all trains seemed to be on time.
So has all the work to improve the track and signalling on the approaches to the station, over the last couple of years, resulted in better time keeping?
Certainly, train and passenger flows seemed to be smooth.
Conclusion
Wikipedia says this about Liverpool Lime Street station.
Opened in August 1836, it is the oldest still-operating grand terminus mainline station in the world.
I’ve used Lime Street station for nearly sixty years and finally, it is the station, the city needs and deserves.
I’ve been to grand termini all over the world and Lime Street may be the oldest, but now it is one of the best.
Reclassify Hydropower Now – As Renewable Energy
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Cal Matters.
It is written by a politician and details the mess California seems to be in over energy policy.
In the UK and Europe in general, hydro-electric power is generally considered to be renewable.
But not always in California, where environmentalists are against dams. So in the last heatwave, California was importing hydropower from places like the Hoover Dam.
We must get our policies and definitions right on what is and what isn’t renewable energy.
Possibly One Of The Best Underground Railways In A Smaller City In The World!
I took these pictures, as I took the Wirral Line between James Street and Lime Street stations.
I do compare them with the dingy inside of Essex Road station, which was refurbished by British Rail about the same time.
Merseyrail’s stations and trains are generally immaculate and that can’t be said for the dirty and tired infrastructure on the Northern City Line. As I indicated in the title of this post, t is one of the best underground railways under the centre of a smaller city. Liverpool would probably be regarded as a second size of city as it lacks the several millions of London, Paris or Berlin.
The tunnels of Merseyrail’s Northern and Wirral Lines, would have been probably been used as a model for British Rail’s proposed Picc-Vic Tunnel, that sadly never got to be built!
Manchester would be very different today, if it had an underground railway across the City to the standard of that in Liverpool or Newcastle.
This map clipped from Wikipedia show the proposed route of the Picc-Vic Tunnel.
Some of the other proposals included.
- The tunnel would be twin bores and jus under three miles long.
- The tunnel would be electrified with 25 KVAC overhead wires.
- The rolling stock would have been Class 316 trains, which would have been similar to those on Merseyrail.
- Train frequency could have been forty trains per hour (tph)
In some ways the specification was more ambitious than Crossrail, which might be able to handle 30 tph, at some time in the future. But Dear Old Vicky, which was designed at the same time, is now handling forty tph.
Wikipedia says the following routes could have run through the tunnel.
Note.
- The Styal Line now provides the link to Manchester Airport.
- The route map on the Wikipedia entry, shows only Bury and Bolton as Northern destinations. But surely fanning out the trains could have run to Barrow-in-Furness, Blackburn, Blackpool, Burnley, Clitheroe, Colne, Hebden Bridge, Kirkby, Preston, Rawtenstall, Tochdale, Southport, Stalybridge, Todmorden, Wigan and Windermere
The only problem, I could see would be that there would need to be a lot of electrification North of Manchester, some of which has now been done.
There have also been developments in recent years that would fit nicely with a system of lines running through the Picc-Vic Tunnel.
More Services In Manchester Piccadilly And Manchester Victoria Stations
If you look at Liverpool Lime Street station after the remodelling of the last few years, the station is now ready for High Speed Two.
You could argue, that it would be more ready, if the Wapping Tunnel connected services to and from the East to the Northern Line, as I wrote about in Liverpool’s Forgotten Tunnel, as this would remove a lot of local trains from the station.
The Picc-Vic Tunnel would have done the same thing for Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria stations and removed the local services.
This would have left more space for High Speed Two and other long distance services.
Northern Powerhouse Rail
The original plan also envisaged an East-West Tunnel at a later date. – Northern Powerhouse Rail?
But the creation of capacity by the diversion of local services from Manchester Victoria into the Picc-Vic Tunnel, would surely have enabled the station to be developed thirty years ago as a station on an improved TransPennine route.
Tram-Trains
The system would have accepted tram-trains, which hadn’t been invented in the 1970s.
Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport had only one runway in the 1970s and I think only a few would have believed, it would have expanded like it has.
The Picc-Vic Tunnel would create a superb service to the Airport, at a frequency upwards of six tph.
High Speed Two
The Picc-Vic Tunnel would have created the capacity in for Manchester Piccadilly station and allowed High Speed Two services to use the station.
In The Rival Plans For Piccadilly Station, That Architects Say Will ‘Save Millions’, I talked about a radical plan for extending Manchester Piccadilly station for High Speed Two, that has been put forward by Weston Williamson; the architects.
This sort of scheme would also fit well with the Picc-Vic Tunnel.
Conclusion
Manchester was short-changed and not building the Picc-Vic Tunnel was a major mistake.
It would have created an underground railway in a similar mould to that of Liverpool’s, but it would probably have served a larger network.
They would probably be the best pair of underground railways for smaller cities in the world.
Seats On Avanti West Coast
I went to Liverpool yesterday on an Avanti West Coast Class 390 train in Standard Class.
I booked on Monday and asked for a table seat.
I actually got a set of four to myself, as this picture shows.
When I got back, out of curiosity I tried to book a complete set of four seats for possibly a family or a group, who were in the same bubble.
I got three seats together and a fourth a few seats away.
So if you need to do that, I would suggest you’re careful with the booking or do it in the traditional manner.
Having travelled twice to the North West in recent weeks, I wouldn’t recommend First Class, as all you get extra is a better pair of seats.
Incidentally, when I came back, because of the weather, I abandoned my trip around the city and got to Lime Street with an hour or so to wait.
But I was able to change my booking for an earlier train for about thirteen pounds and still got a set of four to myself.
A New Design For Flow Batteries
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article in phys.org, which documents a development from the Mendeleev University in Russia.
The Russians are claiming they have developed a novel architecture.
Green Bus Maker Reveals Plan For Scottish Hydrogen Fuel Production Facility
\the title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Herald.
Thwaw are the introductory paragraphs.
Jo Bamford, chief of Ryze Hydrogen, has revealed plans to create a hydrogen production facility in Scotland.
He said the production unit will be sited outside Glasgow and it is expected to be operational by November next year when the rescheduled COP26 climate event is due to take place in the city.
Mr Bamford earlier said Glasgow could run 300 hydrogen-powered buses, while Aberdeen is set put a fleet of hydrogen powered double deckers on the road.
You can’t fault Jo Bamford’s ambitions.
Beeching Reversal – Goodrington and Churston Stations
This is one of the Beeching Reversal projects that the Government and Network Rail are proposing to reverse some of the Beeching cuts.
I wrote about a similar project, that had been proposed by the Association of Train Operating Companies in Between Exeter And Paignton. after I visited Devon, three years ago.
The basic idea is described in a section called Plans in the Wikipedia entry for the Riviera Line, where this is said.
In 2009 the Association of Train Operating Companies identified Brixham as one of fourteen towns for which the provision of a new railway service would have a positive benefit-cost ratio. This would be an extension of the Great Western Railway service beyond Paignton to Churston station on the Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway, which would then act as a railhead for Brixham. It would also serve other housing developments in the area since the opening of the steam railway, and may require the doubling of that line between Paignton and Goodrington Sands.
This Google Map shows between Paignton and Goodrington Sands stations.
Note.
- Paignton station is marked by a station sign towards the top of the map.
- Goodrington Sands station is towards the bottom of the map.
The two stations seem well placed to serve the serve the town of Paignton and its beaches.
This second Google Map shows the Goodrington Sands and Churston stations in relation to Brixham and Berry Head.
Note.
- Goodrington Sands station is at the top of the map.
- Two other stations on the Dartmouth Steam Railway are shown; Greenway Halt and Churston.
- Churston station is the most Northerly of the pair.
Churston station looks well-placed for Brixham.
These are my thoughts.
The Current Train Service
The train service between Paignton and Exeter St. Davids is run by Great Western Railway.
There are basically two services,
- A two train per hour (tph) service between Paignton and Exmouth via Torquay and Exeter St. Davids. I have used it and it is a useful local service for commuters, shoppers and visitors, although it could do with some modern trains.
- Occasional trains during the day to London Paddington.
There are also some CrossCountry trains going to and from Manchester Piccadilly.
The Dartmouth Steam Railway also runs trains between Paignton and via Goodrington Sands and Churston.
Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train
This train is described in this infographic from Hitachi.
I believe it will revolutionise rail travel in the South West of England, as shorter lengths of electrification, will enable this train based on current Class 800 and Class 802 trains to run all-electric services between London Paddington and Exeter St. Davids, Newquay, Paignton, Penzance and Plymouth.
Exeter St. Davids As A Hub For Battery Electric Trains
Exeter St. Davids station could become a major hub for battery electric trains.
These are distances to various stations.
- Barnstaple – 39 miles
- Exmouth – 11 miles
- Paignton – 28 miles
- Plymouth – 52 miles
- Taunton – 32 miles
- Yeovil Junction – 49 miles
All of these would be in range of a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or any battery electric train with sufficient range, that was fully-charged at Exeter St. Davids station.
The station has plenty of space and several long platforms, so I believe it would make an ideal hub for battery electric trains.
Could Battery Electric Trains Work The Riviera Line?
The Riviera Line was designed by Brunel for atmospheric power. Perhaps, he had observed the weather and felt the massive seas would make it difficult for for the steam locomotives of the day?
As an Electrical Engineer, I certainly couldn’t recommend electrifying through Dawlish with 25 KVAC overhead wires.
I took the picture from an InterCity 125 in 2011 and the seas seem to have got worse. Remember, that the line was washed away at Dawlish in February 2014.
But Hitachi’s Class 802 trains, seem to be handling the route on diesel power, without too much trouble.
I would expect that if one or more of the diesel engines are swapped for battery packs that the performance in heavy seas will not be worse.
But the biggest advantage of battery electric trains on the Riviera Line would surely be one of marketing.
And not just of the environmentally-friendly train service by Great Western Railway and CrossCountry, but by Hitachi in the marketing of their trains all over the world.
The only minor problem, I can see, could be the provision of charging at Paignton, as a 28 mile journey twice might be on the limit of the range of a battery electric train. Unless of course, bigger batteries were fitted!
A Splash-and-Dash At Newton Abbott
Newton Abbott station is roughly halfway between Plymouth and Exeter St. Davids and might be needed to give a Splash-and-Dash to trains between Devon’s two cities.
Some trains terminate at the station and others seem to take a leisurely stop at the station, so it could be a valuable calling point in a discontinuous electrification strategy.
Edginswell Station
Wikipedia has an entry for a new Edginswell station.
This is said.
Edginswell railway station is a proposed station in the Edginswell area of Torquay, Devon. The station would be located on the Riviera Line between Newton Abbot and Torre stations. Edginswell will be the location of employment and housing development and the new station will support this development. The station would also serve Torbay Hospital, The Willows retail park and the Torquay Gateway development area.
Plans for the station are being developed by Network Rail and Devon County Council.
This Google Map shows the area, where I think the station could be built.
Note.
- The large red dot indicates Edginswell.
- The main road across the map, was built on the North side of the Riviera Line.
- The Willows retail park lies to the North of the Hospital on the other side of the road and the railway.
- Torbay Hospital lies in the bend of the road and the railway.
This second Google Map shows an enlargement of the area to the North of the large red dot in the previous map.
Note.
- The A380 or South Devon Expressway leaving the map to the North-West. This road connects Torquay and the neighbouring towns and villages to the A38 and M5, which connect to the rest of the UK Motorway network.
- The Riviera Line passing across the North-East corner of the map.
Could this be the position to build a large Park-and-Ride station?
- It is a sizeable site, with good rail and road connections.
- I would estimate that the distance between Edginswell and Churston is under ten miles.
- Frequent electric shuttle buses could take people to the hospital and the nearby retail parks.
- Battery electric shuttle trains with a frequency of up to four tph could run between Exeter St. Davids and Paignton or another suitable terminal.
- Shuttle trains could charge at Edginswell and probably manage two round trips in an hour.
- This article on DevonLive is entitled Gridlocked Devon: Pollution – The Invisible Killer On Devon’s Roads, says a lot in the title.
- Long distance trains run by Great Western Railway or CrossCountry could call.
- Could some heritage trains terminate at Edginswell station?
- Would a Park-and-Ride station allow some of the land taken up by car parking along the coast, to be released for other purposes, more in tune with today’s mood?
It would be very interesting to see what would happen, if Edginswell station was built as a Park-and-Ride station with a Turn-Up-and-Go service to Torquay and Paignton and their beaches.
Paignton Station
This Google Map shows Paignton station.
Note.
- The station has three National Rail platforms and one heritage platform for the Dartmouth Steam Railway.
- There is also a level crossing at the Northern end of the station, where Torbay Road crosses the railway.
Obviously, I don’t know the definitive answer, but would fitting a Fast Charge system to charge battery trains into the station be difficult because of the lack of space.
Goodrington Sands Station
This Google Map shows Goodrington Sands station.
Note.
- Goodrington Sands station has two platforms.
- There is a comprehensive track layout between Paignton and Goodrington Sands stations.
- South of Goodrington Sands station, the line becomes single-track
- Goodrington Sands station appears to be surrounded by car parks.
- The only bridge across the railway appears to be at the North end of the station.
I think that a well-designed Goodrington Sands station could feature the following.
- Charging for battery trains.
- There might be a bay platform to turn and charge trains.
- A step-free bridge across the tracks.
- Easy walking routes to the nearby attractions.
- At least four tph to and from Edginswell, if that is built as a Park-and-Ride station.
Churston Station
This Google Map shows Churston station.
Note.
- Churston station is towards the South-West corner of the map.
- The station has two platforms.
Until I see the station, I am inclined to think, that the site would be a difficult one, in which to fit a Fast Charge system.
Conclusion
I can see the addition of Goodrington Sands and Churston turning the Riviera Line into a Coastal Metro between Exmouth and Churston.
I do think, the following would make it the ultimate rail line for the area.
- A Park-and-Ride station at Edginswell.
- Battery electric operation.
- A Turn-Up-and-Go frequency of four tph, between Exeter St. Davids and Churston.
- Two tph between Exmouth and Churston.
- One tph between London Paddington and Churston.
- One tph between Manchester Piccadilly and Churston.
It may be that some trains will turn back at Paignton or Goodrington Sands.
There are certainly a lot of possibilities.
Trains Are The New Age Planes
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Seeking Alpha.
It is an article well worth a read about the future development of railways in the United States.
The Anonymous Widower 