Oakervee Review – Calvert Station
The Oakervee Review says this on Page 53, about a new station at Calvert in Buckinghamshire.
The Review also heard evidence from a number of informed stakeholders suggesting there should be a new station near Calvert, where HS2 would cross East-West Rail proposals to improve connectivity along the OxfordCambridge corridor. Previously, due to the impact on speed, no interim station had been planned between London and Birmingham Interchange.
The Review concluded that the DfT should consider making passive provision for a future HS2 station near to Calvert. If it is decided that a HS2 station should be built near to Calvert, passive provision will help prevent any disruption to HS2 services. There could be merit in developing an HS2 station in the future here if local plans support a significant residential and commercial development in this region, and if there is passenger demand to justify the cost of developing a station here. Without this coordinated planning, the experience of HS1 stations risks being repeated. The Review notes that the cost of developing a future station near Calvert could be shared with others including potentially the East West Rail Company.
I must admit, that I like the concept of a new station at Calvert.
Read The Oakervee Review
I’ve just read most of the Oakervee Review.
Click this link to read the pdf.
It contains a lot of interesting detail in the 130 pages
I shall be commenting in detail later.
Will High Speed Two’s Classic-Compatible Trains Have Battery Operation?
I believe it is very likely, that High Speed Two’s new classic-compatible trains will have battery capabilities.
- Batteries would handle energy generated by regenerative braking.
- Batteries would give a train recovery capability in case of overhead catenary failure.
- Batteries would be used for depot movements.
- Batteries would probably improve the energy efficiency of the trains.
Effectively, the batteries would power the train and would be topped-up by the electrification and the regenerative braking.
But would they be able to give the trains a route extension capability on lines without electrification?
Consider.
- Battery technology is getting better with energy capacity per kilogram increasing.
- Batteries will be full, when the train leaves the electrification.
- These trains will be as light as possible.
- Trains will not be running at speeds in excess of perhaps 100 mph without electrification.
- Fast charging can be provided at station stops.
I think, that trains could be able to do at least 40 to 50 miles on a full charge.
Fast Charging Technology
The most promising fast-charging technology is Vivarail’s system of using a length of conventional third-rail connected to a bank of batteries. When the train connects with the third-rail, electricity flows to the batteries on the train.
There are also others working on systems that use short lengths of overhead electrification.
Both systems can be totally automatic and safe.
Example Routes
These are three possible example routes.
Aberdeen And Edinburgh
These are the distances between stops on the route between Aberdeen and Edinburgh.
- Aberdeen and Stonehaven – 12 miles
- Stonehaven and Montrose – 24 miles
- Montrose and Arbroath – 14 miles
- Arbroath and Dundee – 17 miles
- Dundee and Leuchars – 8 miles
- Leuchars and Kirkaldy – 25 miles
- Kirkcaldy and Inverkeithing – 13 miles
- Inverkeithing and Edinburgh – 13 miles
It is a total of 130 miles without electrification.
The route is also generally flat and mainly along the coast.
Inverness And Edinburgh
These are the distances between stops on the route between Inverness and Strirling.
- Inverness and Aciemore- 35 miles
- Aviemore and Kingussie – 12 miles
- Kingussie and Pitlochry – 43 miles
- Pitlochry and Perth – 30 miles
- Perth and Gleneagles – 15 miles
- Gleneagles and Stirling – 17 miles
It is a total of 152 miles without electrification.
As there are some steep gradients, there may be a need for some electrification in certain sections of the route.
Holyhead And Crewe
These are the distances between stops on the route between Holyhead and Crewe
- Holyhead and Bangor – 25 miles.
- Bangor and Llandudno Junction – 16 miles
- Llandudno Junction and Colwyn Bay – 4 miles
- Colwyn Bay and Rhyl – 10 miles
- Rhyl and Prestatyn – 4 miles
- Prestatyn and Flint – 14 miles
- Flint and Chester – 13 miles
- Chester and Crewe – 21 miles
It is a total of 105 miles without electrification.
The route is also generally flat and mainly along the coast.
A Stepping-Stone Approach
I believe there is a design of fast charger, that in say a three minute stop can charge the battery sufficient to get to the next station. The electrification might continue for perhaps a couple of hundred metres from the station on the tracks where the trains are accelerating.
A train making a stop at a station would do the following.
- As it approaches the stop, the train’s kinetic energy is turned into electricity by the regenerative braking.
- This energy is stored in the batteries.
- In the station, the batteries are charged from the fast charger or electrification.
- Whilst stopped, the batteries provide the power for the train’s systems.
- Accelerating away would use the batteries or electrification if it is installed.
The train’s computer would monitor the batteries and control the various power systems and sources to run the train in the most efficient manner.
This sequence would be repeated at each stop as the train progressed to its destination.
Extra Electrification
In the section on the challenging Edinburgh and Inverness route, I said that some gradients would probably need to be electrified to maintain progress.
But there are other sections, where electrification has been suggested.
- Stirling and Perth
- Crewe and Chester
So could we be seeing a mixture of electrification and charging stations on routes to allow electric trains to serve routes, where full electrification is impossible for practical, scenic, heritage or cost reasons?
The South Wales Metro is to use discontinuous electrification to save the cost of rebuilding innumerable bridges.
Conclusion
I believe that engineers can design high speed trains, that will be able to run on existing lines using battery power to serve the remoter parts of Great Britain.
Could High Speed Two Have A Station At Ashby-de-la-Zouch?
This morning, I was listening to Andrew Bridgen, who is the Member of Parliament for North West Leicestershire, giving the reasons for a strong opposition to High Speed Two.
- High Speed Two will reduce the number of services between Leicester and London.
- His constituency does not have a rail station.
- His constituency would do better for the Ivanhoe Line to get a passenger service.
- His constituents are badly affected by the building of the line.
- His constituents will need to drive North to East Midlands Hub station to use High Speed Two.
Some points are valid, although I think no rail company would reduce the number of services between Leicester and London.
The Future Of Services Between Leicester And London
East Midlands Railway currently run four trains per hour (tph) between Leicester and London, with the fastest trains taking five minutes over the hour.
New 125 mph bi-mode Class 810 trains, will be running all main line services on the Midland Main Line from 2023, using electric power between London and Market Harborough.
It is also planned to increase the line speed between London and Market Harborough to 140 mph, so the trains can really use their design speed, by updating the electrification, signalling and track.
From these published plans, I would feel that East Midlands Railway are intending that all Leicester and London services are within the hour.
Reinstatement Of Services On The Ivanhoe Line
This has been promised off-and-on for some time and I wrote about it in Silent Hydrogen Trains On The Cards For New Line Linking Burton And Leicester, after one of my alerts picked up “hydrogen trains”.
The Association Of Train Operating Companies Plan For The Ivanhoe Line
This is taken from the Wikipedia entry for the Ivanhoe Line.
In 2009 the Association of Train Operating Companies published a £49 million proposal (Connecting Communities: Expanding Access to the Rail Network) to restore passenger services to the line that would include reopening stations at Kirby Muxloe, Bagworth and Ellistown, Coalville Town, Ashby de la Zouch, Moira, and Gresley (for Swadlincote). There is also some support in the Leicester area for the line to have new stations to serve Leicester City F.C.’s stadium and the suburb of Braunstone.
Wikipedia also says, it could be developed as a no-frills line.
Given the government’s enthusiasm for reopening lines closed by Beeching, I suspect that this line will be reopened to passenger traffic in the next few years.
Ashby-de-la-Zouch Station
This section of the route map for High Speed Two, shows where the Ivanhoe Line crosses it, just by a major road junction outside Ashby-de-la-Zouch.
Note.
- High Speed Two is shown in orange.
- The Ivanhoe Line runs West-East from the West edge of the map and after crossing the A42 and High Speed Two it curves South-East.
Where the two lines cross would it be sensible to build a simple interchange station?
- Andrew Bridgen’s constituency has a electorate of over 72,000.
- The station would be well-connected to the road network via the the M42, A42 and A51.
- There would appear to be plenty of space for parking.
- It would ease the problems of going by train between Leicester and Birmingham.
- A bridge will have to be built at the location of the station to carry High Speed Two over the Ivanhoe Line, so why not design the bridge with simple platforms?
- As High Speed Two’s trains will be designed with fast acceleration and deceleration, the stops would be very quick
- Passengers would only be allowed on the High Speed Two platforms, when trains are in the station.
Perhaps given its location it could be called the Heart of England Parkway station?
The Station Site
This Google Map shows the station site.
Note.
- The Ivanhoe Line is at the bottom of the map.
- There is a spur from the line into the space.
- High Speed Two will run almost North-South parallel to the A42.
It looks like an abandoned open-cast coal-mine or quarry. Does anybody else know better?
Conclusion
There has already been speculation for the building of a similar station, which I wrote about in Should High Speed Two Have A Station At Calvert?, so perhaps it’s not a totally crazy idea,
Perhaps, there are other places, where High Speed Two crosses other main lines, where parkway stations could be built?
Which Supermarket Group Will Go For Hydrogen First?
The big supermarket groups need to reduce their carbon footprints.
One area, where they can reduce the amount of carbon-dioxide they emit is in transport.
It is my view that battery-powered articulated trucks will not be seen in large numbers, without a significant improvement in battery and charging technology.
But hydrogen-powered articulated trucks have been developed by Hyundai, as I wrote about in Tesla Has A Rival In New Hyundai Hydrogen-Powered Semi-Truck Concept.
Supermarket groups are surely ideal companies to use hydrogen-powered trucks.
They use a centralised distribution system from large depots, generally using articulated trucks.
Trucks would probably fill-up at the beginning of a delivery run at the central depot, just as they probably do with diesel now.
The only problem would be on long deliveries, where they might need to refuel before returning to the depot.
Surely, the obvious thing to do, would be to install a hydrogen filling station alongside the petrol and diesel at some of the larger superstores.
- Companies like ITM Power build special hydrogen filling stations, that only need connections to electricity and tap water.
- Provided the supermarket group has a good corporate deal on green electricity, the hydrogen cost to the group should be the same .
- This filling station would also be able to fill up their hydrogen-powered vans used for local deliveries.
- Managers and those, who had a company car could be given ones powered by hydrogen.
The filling station could also be used to sell hydrogen to the supermarket’s customers.
Linked with a How Green Is Your Supermarket? advertising campaign, this could see hydrogen-powered vehicle sales take off!
Would other supermarket groups follow like greedy lemmings?
Ballard-Powered Fuel-Cell Tram-Buses From Van Hool Now In Revenue Service In France
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on Green Car Congress.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Ballard Power Systems announcedthat 8 ExquiCity tram-buses built by Van Hool NV and powered by 8 Ballard FCveloCity-HD 100-kilowatt fuel cell modules have been inaugurated at a ceremony in Pau, France and are now in revenue service in Pau’s Bus Rapid Transit System.
The Van Hool ExquiCity tram buses have the following specification.
- Two sections
- Length – 18.6 metres (New Routemaster – 11.2 metres)
- Width – 2.6 metres (New Routemaster – 2.52 metres)
- Weight – 18.5 tonnes (New Routemaster – 12.8 tonnes)
- Passengers – 125 (New Routemaster – 80-87 – More on a 21/38/73 in the Peak)
- Hydrogen Range – 300 km.
- Power – 100 kW (New Routemaster – 138 kW)
I have compared with a New Routemaster, as both vehicles are designed as hybrids with a power source charging a battery which drives the vehicle, through a Siemens traction motor.
The Glider buses in Belfast are diesel-electric hybrid versions of the ExquiCity.
Conclusion
I do wonder from looking at the comparison with a New Routemaster, that the ExquiCity could be an interesting way to get 56 % more passengers into 66 % more road space. But it may be more efficient to use two New Routemasters to carry 28 % more passengers in 29 % more road space than the ExquiCity.
It is interesting to note that the Mercedes Citaro bendy buses in London, which were so hated by motorists because they blocked junctions were also eighteen metres long like the ExquiCity.
Obviously, if buses ran on a separated bus way, the length is not a problem.
I do feel though, that a purpose-built hydrogen-powered double-deck bus, will be better for most UK towns and cities.
This article on the BBC is entitled Wrightbus Owner Jo Bamford Says Coming To NI Is Revelation.
This is a paragraph.
Mr Bamford, the son of JCB chairman Lord Bamford, told BBC News NI he has a keen interest in the use of hydrogen to power buses and that was the main reason he got involved with Wrightbus.
Consider.
- Wrightbus designed and built the chassis for the diesel-electric hybrid New Routemaster.
- Wrightbus pioneered the low-floor bus.
- In March 2015 JCB made a strategic investment of £4.9M in hydrogen company; ITM Power.
- ITM Power built the hydrogen filling station for the ExquiCity tram-buses in Pau.
It looks to me, that Jo Bamford, with some help from his father, has assembled the components for a serious assault on the hydrogen bus market.
Paddington Square – 7th February 2020
Paddington Square is a new development springing up to the East of Paddington station.
This Google Map shows the location between the station and St. Mary’s Hospital.
The development will include the following.
- A Twenty-storey tower.
- Offices
- Four floors of upmarket shops
- A rooftop restaurant.
- A new public square
- A new entry into the Bakerloo Line, which will have a step-free connection to Crossrail.
It will certainly improve, what is rather a grotty area of Central London.
There is nothing much to see at the moment.
It’s just a big hole, which is surrounded by hoardings.
I’ve Gone Cashless
I have now setup my bank account, so that I can make small payments using from my phone, using the contactless facility.
These are a few short observations.
- The thirty pound limit may be a little too low.
- You can’t be cashless on the Blackpool tramway. I was allowed to go free!
- Some small shops still won’t accept them or apply a minimum spend. Obviously, they don’t want my business and didn’t get it.
- I never have any change for beggars. I follow TfL’s advice and give to the Whitechapel Mission, who look after the genuine homeless.
- Some estabishments have gone cashless only!
The only time I use cash, is for tips in restaurants and paying black cabs.
Could New Routemaster Buses Be Converted To Hydrogen Power?
London has a thousand New Routemaster buses.
They are generally liked by passengers and drivers, although some Labour politicians think they should be replaced, because of their association with Boris.
They were introduced in 2011, so with a refurbishment, I suspect that they could be in service for perhaps another ten years.
The big feature in the design is that they are genuine hybrid buses with a small Cummins engine halfway up the back stairs, a battery under the front stairs and electric drive with regenerative braking.
I do wonder though, that because of the electric transmission, that these buses could be converted to hydrogen-powered buses.
It could be a more affordable route to create a thousand new zero-carbon buses for the streets of London or any other city for that matter.
Given that Wrightbus, who built the New Routemasters, is now owned by a member of the Bamford family of JCB fame and the company is reported to be going down the hydrogen bus route, I would suspect that conversion to hydrogen is on somebody’s mind.
The Anonymous Widower 