Battery Train And Fast Charger To Be Tested In London
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
This is the first paragraph.
Great Western Railway has signed an agreement to test Vivarail’s Class 230 battery multiple-unit and fast charging technology under real-world conditions on the 4 km non-electrified branch between West Ealing and Greenford in West London.
As an engineer, who started designing control systems for rolling mills in the mid-1960s and went on to get a Degree in Control and Electrical Engineering from Liverpool University, before working for ICI applying computers to a variety of problems, I can’t look at a railway line like the Greenford Branch without wanting to automate it.
I had one amateurish attempt in An Automated Shuttle Train On The Greenford Branch Line. I was trying to get four trains per hour (tph) on the branch and I don’t think that is possible, with the Class 230 trains.
Now we know the train we are dealing with, I could plan an automated system, that would drive the train.
- Each journey on the branch takes around 11-12 minutes.
- Two tph would take between 44 and 48 minutes shuttling between the two stations in an hour.
- The article states that recharging takes ten minutes.
- If the train charged the batteries once per hour, that would leave between two and six minutes for the other three stops.
- Any freight train using the branch seems to take about six minutes, so they could sneak through, when the shuttle is having a fast charge.
- I would also use a similar system to that originally used on the Victoria Line. After the driver has closed the doors and ascertained that there were no problems, they would press a button to move the train to the next station and then automatically open the doors.
From this rough calculation to run a two tph service, I suspect that the train needs to be able to go between West Ealing and Greenford stations in ten minutes. Assuming one ten minute Fast Charge per hour, this would give three minutes and twenty seconds to turn the train, at the three terminal station stops.
I certainly feel, that an automatic shuttle would be possible.
Very Light Rail – A Revolution
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Engineer.
It is a good explanation of what very light rail is all about and the design concepts behind the first vehicle, which is called Revolution.
My feeling is that Any Very Light Rail vehicle should be able to run a short branch line route as capably as a Class 153 train.
But hopefully with better passenger and driver comfort and facilities.
- The speed of Revolution is 65 mph and that of a Class 153 train is 75 mph, so is that close enough?
- I would hope that Revolution has better acceleration as it has an electric transmission.
- Revolution has 56 seats and a wheelchair space and is PRM-compliant, whereas the Class 153 train has a few more seats and only some are PRM-compliant.
- Revolution has wi-fi and power sockets and most Class 153 trains don’t.
The quality of the seats and the view from the trains will probably be the tie-breaker.
The article doesn’t say, but surely they would find more applications, if they could run in pairs, do they might be able to replace a two-car Class 150 train.
Reading the whole article gives me the impression, that the designers have done thorough job to design a lightweight train, that both passengers and drivers will like.
I will reserve my judgement until I see and ride one of these trains.
An Automated Shuttle Train
In An Automated Shuttle Train On The Greenford Branch Line, I proposed an automated shuttle on the Greenford branch.
The Greenford Branch Line has the following features.
- It is 2.5 miles long.
- It is double-track.
- It is not electrified.
- There is a single platform station at both ends with three intermediate stations.
- The service frequency is two tph.
- Trains take 11-12 minutes to go between the two terminals.
- Freight trains also use the line.
To run the ideal four tph, trains would need to do a round trip between West Ealing and Greenford in fifteen minutes.
Suppose the Revolution vehicle was automated with the driver having a supervisory role.
- The train would shuttle between West Ealing and Greenford, leaving each station, when it was ready, so as many trips as possible were performed.
- On seeing a green signal, the driver would tell the train to proceed top the other station, if they knew it to be safe.
- If a freight train needed to come through, the shuttle train would stay in either West Ealing or Greenford stations out of the way protected by the signalling, until the freight train had cleared the track.
- Freight trains and the shuttle would never be on the same piece of track at the same time, which would greatly aid safety.
I suspect that at least three trains would go between the two stations in every hour, with perhaps four in the Peak.
West Ealing Station Goes Step-Free As Part Of Crossrail Upgrades
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Ian Visits.
The title says it all.
These pictures, which were taken on the 31st March 2021, show West Ealing station.
Note
- It is fully step-free.
- As at Acton Main Line station, the lifts are very disabled-friendly.
- The terrible staircases of the old station have yet to be demolished.
- There is just a small amount of work to finish.
It is a fine addition to London’s portfolio of stations.
But one thing is not covered in the article – What is going to happen to the Greenford Branch?
- Currently, it is only hourly.
- Will it be going to four trains per hour (tph) ? It certainly needs this frequency to be a feeder line for Crossrail, which could have as many as six tph stopping in the station.
- Will it be run by battery electric trains.
- Will three-car Aventras work the route, as I wrote in Could Three-Car Aventras Run Services On The Greenford Branch??
- Will it be going to an automated shuttle, as I wrote in An Automated Shuttle Train On The Greenford Branch Line?
- Will it be run by Class 230 trains, as I wrote in Will The Class 230 Trains Be Coming Home??
- Will the management of the route go to Transport for London?
I think I would favour the automated shuttle! But then I’m a trained Control Engineer.
- Two-car battery electric train.
- Option of being lengthened to three cars.
- I suspect Alstom, CAF, Stadler and Vivarail could all provide trains.
- There would be level access between train and platform to reduce station dwell times.
- Automated like the Victoria Line, where when ready to depart, the driver presses a button to close the doors and then the train moves automatically to the next station.
- The driver could sit in the middle of the train with screens to see front and rear, so they wouldn’t even have to change ends, which wastes time.
- Or they might choose to sit in the front cab or even use a sophisticated remote control, developed with gaming or military drone experience.
- Charging would be automatic at both terminals.
- One train would run a continuous service with a timetable, which just said services would be a service approximately every fifteen minutes
- Trains would have wi-fi and passengers could view front and rear camera images on their devices.
- Trains would be stabled at night in one of the two terminal platforms and could have a spruce up each night from a mobile or the station cleaning crew.
- Trains might need to have sufficient performance to run a service into and out of Paddington, at the beginning and end of the day. But if Crossrail services were reliable and six tph, this feature could be superfluous. But other services might need a main line capability at say 60 or 70 mph to relocate to and from the main depot.
- On the Greenford Branch, signallers and/or the driver would need the ability to park the train in the next terminal station, when a freight train is passing through.
Get this automated branch line right and the technology could be used in several places around the UK.
Crossrail Trains Cleared To Use The Heathrow Tunnel
This title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Ian Visits.
These are the first four paragraphs.
Last month, a significant achievement took place on the Crossrail project, which is far more important than the headlines make it seem to be.
At a basic level, the Office of Rail Regulation approved the use of the new Class 345 trains that will be used on the Elizabeth line to carry passengers into the Heathrow tunnels.
The practical implication being that TfL Rail will in the next few weeks be able to run from Paddington to Heathrow direct, as they were supposed to start doing back in May 2018.
The delay has been caused by the bane and saviour of modern railways, the signalling system.
Ian then goes on to give a full and understandable explanation of the complex nature of modern rail signalling.
Ian finishes by giving a detailed description of the Class 345 trains‘ Auto-Reverse feature.
Around half of westbound trains will terminate at Paddington, but to head back eastwards, once all the passengers are off, they carry on westwards to Westbourne Park, then return back to Paddington on the eastbound line.
Normally that means the train driver would drive to Westbourne Park, stop, walk through the train to the other end, then drive back. But with “auto-reverse”, as soon as the train leaves Paddington, the driver switches to automatic and starts walking through the train to the other end. By the time the train arrives at Westbourne Park sidings, the driver will be sitting in the drivers cab at the other end of the train ready to head back into Central London.
I feel we need more automation on trains.
Possible Uses Of Automation
These are some possibilities.
Reversing In Services
Several services, require the driver to change ends and then drive the train from the other end, when calling at a station.
- Some Nottingham and Skegness services, reverse in Grantham station.
- Maidenhead and Marlow services, reverse in Bourne End station.
- Norwich and Sheringham services, reverse in Cromer station.
I could envisage an automatic system, that took the train from A to B to C etc. under the control of the driver.
- They might just touch a screen or button to move to the next station, as drivers have done on the Victoria Line.
- Both cabs would have a remote video screen showing the view from the other end of the train.
- The driver could drive the train from either cab.
- Arriving at a station, the automation would stop the train in the correct position.
- As on a Victoria Line train, the driver would monitor the system at all times and take control and drive manually, if required.
- The driver might also have a sophisticated remote control, so that if he needed to walk through the train to change cabs, he would still be in full control.
The guard might also have a remote control, for use in the very rare case of driver incapacitation, where he would need to halt the train.
Shuttle Services
There are services in the UK, where a single train shuttles between two stations.
- Brockenhurst and Limington Pier – 11 minutes
- Grove Park and Bromley North stations – 5 mins
- St. Erth and St. Ives stations – 10 mins
- Slough and Windsor & Eton Central – 6 mins
- Sudbury and Marks Tey – 19 mins
- Twyford and Henley stations – 12 mins
- Watford Junction and St. Albans Abbey – 16 minutes
Note.
- The time shown is the time for a single journey.
- All these services use a single train, where the driver changes ends before each journey.
- The services use a dedicated platform at both terminals.
- There is a dedicated track between the terminals.
- Some of these services may need a more frequent service.
If the driver doesn’t change ends, would the time saved allow more trains per hour (tph)?
I think the following improvements are possible.
- Grove Park and Bromley North – three tph to four
- Slough and Windsor & Eton Central – three tph to four
- Watford Junction and St. Albans Abbey – If the journey time could be reduced to fourteen minutes or less, there is a chance that the service could be doubled to two tph.
It looks that if the driver change ends, then it appears the following frequencies are possible, with these journey times.
- Less than six-and-a-half minutes – four tph
- Less than nine minutes – three tph
- Less than fourteen minutes – two tph
I do wonder if an automated shuttle on the Abbey Line could run at the required two tph, with only minimal infrastructure works.
An Automated Shuttle Train On The Marlow Branch Line
The Marlow Branch Line has the following features.
- It is 7 miles long, between Maidenhead and Marlow stations.
- It is single-track.
- It is not electrified
- Trains on the route are two-car diesel trains.
- There is a single platform at Marlow station.
- There is an electrified bay-platform at Maidenhead station.
- There are three intermediate stations.
- The service frequency is one tph.
- Trains take six minutes to go between the two terminals.
A unique problem is that trains reverse at Bourne End station on each trip, which takes 4.5 minutes for the driver to change ends and restart the train.
Currently a round trip from Maidenhead to Marlow takes 49 minutes.
By using an automated shuttle train, could this round trip time be reduced to enable one train to operate at a frequency of two tph?
Automation would reduce the 4.5 minutes at Bourne End to perhaps thirty seconds, but that would only bring the round trip time down to 41 minutes.
The station stops on the round trip would be as follows.
- Furze Plat – 30 seconds
- Cookham – 30 seconds
- Bourne End – 30 seconds
- Marlow – 1 minute
- Bourne End – 30 seconds
- Cookham – 30 seconds
- Furze Plat – 30 seconds
- Maidenhead – 2 minutes
Adding the stops up, that leaves just twenty-four minutes to cover the fourteen miles of the round trip.
This is an average speed of 35 mph.
I think that an appropriate train would be able to run an automated shuttle, with a frequency of two tph.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be battery-powered
- It would have an operating speed of perhaps sixty mph.
- It would have fast acceleration and deceleration.
- It would probably be a tram-train to negotiate the tight bend at Bourne End station.
The following infrastructure works would also be needed.
- The track would be improved to allow higher speeds.
- The points would be automated at Bourne End
- A fast charging system would be added to the bay platforms at Maidenhead and possibly Marlow stations.
An automated shuttle may have possibilities on this most difficult of branch lines.
An Automated Shuttle Train On The Slough-Windsor & Eton Line
The Slough-Windsor & Eton Line has the following features.
- It is 2.5 miles long.
- It is single-track.
- It is not electrified
- Trains on the route are two- or three-car diesel trains.
- There is a single platform station at either end with no intermediate stations.
- The service frequency is three tph.
- Trains take six minutes to go between the two terminals.
The service on this line, can get exceedingly full and needs greater capacity.
To run the ideal four tph, trains would need do a round trip between Slough and Windsor & Eton Central in fifteen minutes.
If we assume that the two end stops take a total of three minutes, then that leaves just twelve minutes to cover the five miles of the round trip.
This is an average speed of 25 mph.
As with the Greenford Branch, I think that an appropriate train would be able to run an automated shuttle, with a frequency of four tph.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be battery-powered
- It would have an operating speed of perhaps fifty mph.
- It would have fast acceleration and deceleration.
- It would have three- or four-cars.
The only infrastructure works that would be needed, would be to provide a fast charging station at Slough station.
An Automated Shuttle Train On The Brentford Branch Line
The Brentford Branch Line
There are various proposals to add a passenger service to the Brentford Branch Line.
The Brentford Branch Line has the following features.
- It is 4 miles long.
- It is a mixture of single and double-track.
- It is not electrified.
- There is a bay platform at Southall station, that could be used, as a Northern terminal.
- Freight trains also use the line.
If the Greenford Branch can mix an automated shuttle and freight trains, then it would be very likely, that a similar approach would work on this branch.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be battery-powered.
- It would be highly automated.
- Charging would be carried-out in the bay platform at Southall station.
A service of at least two tph would be provided, that would link Brentford to Crossrail.
An Automated Shuttle Train Between Romford And Upminster
The Romford-Upminster Line has the following features.
- It is 3.5 miles long.
- It is single-track.
- It is electrified with 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- The maximum speed is only 30 mph.
- There is a single platform station at either end with one intermediate station.
- The service frequency is two tph.
- Trains take nine minutes to go between the two terminals.
- No other trains use the line.
To run the ideal four tph, trains would need to do the round trip between Romford and Upminster in fifteen minutes.
If we assume that the two end stops take one minutes and the two intermediate ones take thirty seconds, then that leaves just twelve minutes to cover the seven miles of the round trip.
This is an average speed of 35 mph.
As with the Greenford Branch, I think that an appropriate train would be able to run an automated shuttle, with a frequency of four tph.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be able to use the 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- It would have an operating speed of perhaps sixty mph.
- It would have fast acceleration and deceleration.
The only infrastructure works that would also be needed, would be to improve the line to allow higher speeds.
An Automated Shuttle Train On The Greenford Branch Line
The Greenford Branch Line has the following features.
- It is 2.5 miles long.
- It is double-track.
- It is not electrified.
- There is a single platform station at both ends with three intermediate stations.
- The service frequency is two tph.
- Trains take 11-12 minutes to go between the two terminals.
- Freight trains also use the line.
To run the ideal four tph, trains would need to do a round trip between West Ealing and Greenford in fifteen minutes.
If we assume that the two end stops take two minutes and the six intermediate ones take thirty seconds, then that leaves just eight minutes to cover the five miles of the round trip.
This is an average speed of 37.5 mph.
I don’t have the calculation experience or knowledge of train performance to prove it, but I think that an appropriate train would be able to run an automated shuttle, with a frequency of four tph.
The train (or tram-train) would have the following features.
- It would be battery-powered.
- It would be highly automated.
- It would have an operating speed of perhaps sixty mph.
- It would have fast acceleration and deceleration.
The following infrastructure works would also be needed.
- The track would be improved to allow higher speeds.
- The points would be automated.
- Level access between platform and train would be provided.
- A fast charging system would be added to the bay platforms at Greenford and West Ealing stations.
If four tph could be achieved on the Greenford Branch with just one automated shuttle and no electrification, this would be exactly what the operator, the passengers and the Government ordered.
Automated Shuttle Trains With A Train Captain
There are various short routes on the UK rail network, where shuttle trains work a frequency of perhaps two or three trains per hour (tph), that is generally felt by passengers and train operators to be inadequate.
Examples include the following.
Could the frequency on these lines be increased using automation?
The Automated Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway is not a simple railway, but it is fully automated.
- Trains are driverless
- A Train Captain is responsible for patrolling the train, checking tickets, making announcements and controlling the doors.
- The Train Captain can take control of the train if required.
It is a system that seems to have worked well for many years.
An Automated Shuttle With A Train Captain
Could a similar principle be applied to a shuttle train?
As an example, I’ll use the Bromley North Line.
Consider.
- The line is two miles long and trains take five minutes each way.
- The current frequency is three tph.
- There are problems at Grove Park station with connections in the Peak.
- The route is double-track.
- The current service is operated by a single train, manned only by a driver.
It would appear if the Bromley North Line could be run at four tph, this would be a welcome improvement.
One of the problems of driver-operated shuttle services like this, is that at each end of the route, the driver must change ends, which takes a couple of valuable minutes.
To operate a frequency of four tph, the round-trip must be performed in fifteen minutes.
- Each leg takes five minutes.
- There are four stops in a round trip; one at Grove Park, one at Bromley North and two at Sundridge Park.
I believe that a single automated train, with a Train Captain on board to look after safety, open and close the doors and start the train after each stop, should be able to handle the much-needed four tph on the Bromley North Line.
How Would The Automation Work?
Many years ago, a Central Line driver explained to me how the original automation of the Victoria Line worked.
- A train would arrive in the station and stop in the correct place automatically with high precision.
- The doors would be opened.
- After passengers had unloaded and loaded, the doors would be closed.
When the doors were closed and everything was safe, the driver would push a button to ask the automation to take the train to the next station.
Automation has moved on since the 1960s, and I believe that some form of on-train automation would be able to handle a simple shuttle.
- Only one track would probably be need to used to remove the complication of points.
- Only one train would be used for the shuttle, as this increases safety.
- Sensors would determine the exact position of the train.
- CCTV cameras, including ones looking forwards and backwards, would be relayed to the Train Captain and their Control Station in the middle of the train.
- The Train Captain would have an Emergency Stop Button.
If something goes wrong or the train is being taken to and from the depot, the Train Captain would go to the forward cab, switch off the automation and drive the train in the normal manner.
I am sure, that it would not only be a very safe system, but if it made full use of the capabilities of modern trains, it would speed up services sufficiently, so that frequencies could be increased.
What Trains Would Be Suitable?
I think that the choice of trains would be wide, but I think they must have the following characteristics.
- An ability to perform a station stop and restart quickly.
- Fast acceleration and deceleration.
- Level access between platform and train.
- Walk-through interior, to help the Train Captain perform their duties.
- Lots of wide double doors and large lobbies.
All these characteristics would enable the train to save time on the route.
Power would be anything that could be used on the route. For the Bromley North Line, that would be either third-rail electrification or battery power.
Battery power, though on this route, would have a problem.
If the train is running an intense shuttle service, with stops taking a minute or even less, the train never stops long enough to charge the batteries. As the route is electrified with 750 VDC using third-rail, this would need to be used on the Bromley North Line.
Although, I have used the word train in this section, I suspect trams, tram-trains or light rail vehicles could be used.
All vehicles would retain their driving cabs for the following reasons.
- If there is a problem, the Train Captain can drive the train, as happens on the Docklands Light Railway.
- If the train needs to be positioned to and from a depot, the train could be driven manually.
I also feel that for these reasons, the Train Captain would be a fully qualified driver.
Examples of vehicles that could be used, if appropriate automation were to be fitted include.
Class 399 Tram-Train
Class399 tram-trains are working successfully in Sheffield and they have been ordered for the South Wales Metro, where they will run under both overhead and battery power.
As an Electrical Engineer, I believe that it would not be the most difficult piece of engineering to fit these tram-trains with the ability to run under third-rail power.
The tram-trains would have similar capacities, cross-section and performance to the current Class 466 trains.
The only modifications that would be needed to the route, would be to adjust the platforms used by the tram-train to give level access between tram-train and platform.
A Three-Car Aventra Or Similar
Three-car Class 730 Aventra trains, have been ordered by West Midlands Railway and Aventras have also been ordered to run using third-rail power.
As with the Class 399 tram-train, these trains could probably work the route successfully, subject to suitable platform modification.
How Fast Could Stops Be Performed?
I have timed stops on the London Overground and the London Tramlink rarely do you find a time from brakes on to brakes off in excess of a minute, without a red signal being involved.
I have measured some London Overground stops are at thirty seconds some London Tramlink stops at twenty seconds.
If a shuttle had the track to itself and the train was a modern design, I could see maximum timings on the Bromley North Line as follows.
- Bromley North – One minute
- Sundridge Park – Thirty seconds
- Grove Park – One minute
Surely, with station stop times like these and perhaps faster running than the current 30 mph, the goal of four tph could be comfortably achieved.
What Happens With Delays?
Suppose, an incident occurs, and the train is delayed.
After the incident is successfully sorted, the train could just carry on or wait until it was on schedule for the next train.
Within a few minutes, the train would be running to time.
Some Other Selected Routes
Over the next few days, I will be adding calculations for other routes.
Slough And Windsor & Eton Central
Extra routes will be added here.
Conclusion
On the Bromley North Line, selective automation should be able to enable a four tph service using one train or tramtrain.
The Anonymous Widower 