Reopening The Oswestry – Gobowen Line
On October 27th this Beeching Reversal Project was given £50,000 to build a case for reopening.
These are my thoughts.
Gobowen Station
Gobowen station appears to be a fine station.
- It is Grade II Listed.
- It has two platforms.
- It is on the Shrewsbury-Chester Line.
- Transport for Wales run trains to Birmingham New Street, Cardiff Central, Chester, Holyhead and Shrewsbury.
- Avanti West Coast will start running services to and from London Euston via Wrexham in December 2022.
Wikipedia says this about the future of the station.
Gobowen station may become the northern terminus of the proposed Cambrian Heritage Railways line to Llynclys, Pant and Blodwel via Oswestry. Shropshire Council was to acquire the coal yard at Gobowen for railway-related uses, including car parking for the station. If the plans are fully realised, the station would have three platforms, one of which would be for the Heritage Railway.
It does look as if, Shropshire Council have got the money for a full study.
This Google Map shows Gobowen station.
Note.
- The two tracks of the Chester-Shrewsbury Line each have a platform.
- Step-free access is by the level crossing, which is at the North end of the station.
- It looks like it would be space to convert the Northbound platform into an island platform, where the Western platform face would be for the heritage trains.
This second Google Map shows the tracks at the South end of Gobowen station.
Note.
There is a set of points to allow trains to access a third platform at Gobowen station.
The single-track line to Oswestry branches off to the West at the bottom of the map.
It would appear that a bay platform at Gobowen station can be created to handle trains to Oswestry.
Oswestry Station
Oswestry station appears to be another fine station.
- It is also Grade II Listed.
- It has just a single platform.
- It appears to be owned by the local authority.
This Google Map shows the station.
Note.
- The station is the large building with the chimneys in the South-East corner of the map.
- The single platform is behind it.
- The platform is long enough to take a 1200 metre long train.
This station would make an ideal terminus.
The Track Between Oswestry And Gobowen
The track is single-track with a couple of foot crossings, so I don’t think it will need much to bring it up to a modern standard.
A Shuttle Service Between Oswestry And Gobowen
I suspect a two-car shuttle train between the two stations would suffice for most of the day.
Transport for Wales have some Class 230 trains and these would be ideal. They could even be battery-electric trains if a battery charging system were to be installed at one station.
Could Avanti West Coast Run A Service To London?
It looks like Avanti West Coast’s Class 805 trains could run along the line between Gobowen and Oswestry.
So could Avanti’s planned service to Gobowen terminate at Oswestry instead?
It would all depend on the passenger forecasts and actual numbers
Could Avanti West Coast Run A Battery-Electric Service To London?
Consider.
- Oswestry is a town of 17,500 people, so probably has a reasonable electricity supply, especially if it were to be backed up by a battery.
- The amount of renewable electricity produced over the border in Wales is only going to grow.
- There is plenty of space at Oswestry to put in a charging system to replace the batteries.
Distances are as follows.
- Crewe and Chester – 21.1 miles
- Chester and Gobowen – 24.6 miles
- Gobowen and Oswestry – 3.3 miles
This is a total distance of 49 miles.
Avanti West Coast have ordered thirteen bi-mode Class 805 trains, which will replace the diesel Class 221 trains currently working between London Euston and Chester. Holyhead and Shrewsbury.
- They will run at 125 mph between Euston and Crewe using electric power.
- If full in-cab digital signalling were to be installed on the electrified portion of the route, they may be able to run at 140 mph in places under the wires.
- They will use diesel power on the North Wales Coast Line to reach places like Chester, Holyhead and Wrexham.
- According to an article in Modern Railways, the Class 805 trains could be fitted with batteries.
I wouldn’t be surprised that when they are delivered, they are a version of the Hitachi’s Intercity Tri-Mode Battery Train, the specification of which is shown in this Hitachi infographic.
Note.
- I suspect that the batteries will be used to handle regenerative braking on lines without electrification, which will save diesel fuel and carbon emissions.
- The trains accelerate faster, than those they replace.
- The claimed fuel and carbon saving is twenty percent.
- It is intended that these trains will be introduced next year.
But Hitachi have not given any predictions of the range of these trains on battery power alone.
However, they do claim a battery range of 56 miles for the Hitachi Regional Battery Train, which is based on similar technology.
I believe it would be possible to run a zero-carbon London Euston and Oswestry service.
- The trains would be Class 805 trains fitted with batteries.
- Trains could stop at Milton Keynes Central, Lichfield Trent Valley, Stafford, Crewe, Chester, Wrexham General and Gobowen.
- Trains would use electrification between London Euston and Crewe.
- Trains would recharge their batteries South of Crewe and at Oswestry.
I doubt that a battery-electric zero-carbon train serving Cheshire, Shropshire and North-East Wales would have a negative effect on the area.
Just as Hull and Lincoln seem to be moving towards a frequency of one train per two hours from London, I wonder if this service could ever attain the same frequency.
Onward From Oswestry
Cambrian Heritage Railways are planning to run services past Oswestry on their heritage railway.
Will this be a good idea?
Where Now For First Group?
First Group are a shareholder in Avanti West Coast.
They also own Lumo, who last week launched their open-access service between London and Edinburgh. Their marketing is all about being green and sustainable.
I just wonder if a battery-electric service to Gobowen is successful, they will apply this model all over the group.
Hull Trains service between London and Hull is an obvious possibility for a battery-electric zero-carbon service.
Conclusion
It looks to me, that reopening of the Oswestry – Gobowen Line opens up other possibilities.
Ipswich And Peterborough In A Battery Train
Greater Anglia have a fleet of bi-mode electro-diesel Class 755 trains, that could be converted into tri-mode electro-diesel-battery trains. I reported on this in Battery Power Lined Up For ‘755s’.
If when fitted with batteries these trains had a range of say 55-65 miles on battery power, these Greater Anglia routes could be handled using battery and electric power.
- Ipswich and Cambridge
- Ipswich and Felixstowe
- Ipswich and Lowestoft
- London and Lowestoft
- Marks Tey and Sudbury
- Norwich and Cambridge
- Norwich and Great Yarmouth
- Norwich and Lowestoft
- Norwich and Sheringham
Note.
- Marks Tey and Sudbury is planned to be extended to Colchester Town. Is this to allow a Class 755 train with a battery capability to charge the batteries on the Great Eastern Main Line? No charging facilities would then be needed on the branch.
- I have left out the current Ipswich and Peterborough service.
- There is speculation that Greater Anglia want to run a Cambridge and Wisbech service via Ely and March.
It is also reported that some or all Peterborough and Ipswich services will continue to Colchester.
- There is a convenient bay platform at Colchester to reverse the trains.
- A Colchester and Peterborough service, would give travellers in North Essex easier access to LNER services at Peterborough.
- Frequencies from Colchester and Ipswich across Suffolk would be improved.
If the trains were to run on battery power between Stowmarket and Ely, the batteries could be charged between Colchester and Stowmarket. Note that Stowmarket and Ely is about forty miles, which should be within battery range.
Ely and Peterborough is thirty miles, which again is within battery range. So would the train top up the batteries at Ely in perhaps a five minute stop?
Extra Electrification At Ely
There could be three battery-electric services needing to charge batteries as they pass through Ely.
- Colchester/Ipswich and Peterborough
- Norwich and Stansted Airport
- Cambridge and Wisbech
So would it be sensible to extend the electrification for a few miles towards Peterborough and Norwich to give the battery a quick top-up? It should be noted that the notorious Ely Junction is to be remodelled.
Use Of A Bi-Mode Class 755 Train On The Sudbury Branch Line
I took these pictures today on a visit to the Sudbury Branch Line in Suffolk.
The two stations shown are Marks Tey, where the branch joins the Great Eastern Main Line and Sudbury, which is the Western terminus of the branch.
Both stations have short platforms.
To simplify this description, I will identify the four cars of the Class 755 train as follows.
- Driver East Car – Driver car with passengers on the Marks Tey end of the train.
- Passenger Car – The passenger car, which also has the bike space and the Universal Access Toilet.
- PowerPack – The smaller car that powers the train.
- Driver West Car – Driver car with passengers on the Sudbury end of the train.
This Google Map shows Marks Tey station.
The short and gently curving, Sudbury Branch Line platform is on the North side of the station.
To make it easy for passengers to get in and out of the train, Greater Anglia seem to have devised a cunning plan.
- The Class 755 trains run with the end with the Driver East and Passenger Cars are towards Marks Tey and Colchester stations.
- The driver stops the train in the station, so that the two passenger cars, are in the same place as a two-car diesel multiple unit, like a Class 156 train, would be.
- The two pairs of wide double doors and the level step-free access, encourage passengers to enter the train.
- Interestingly, the PowerPack Car of the train is at the narrowest part of the platform and is this deliberate to encourage passengers to enter through the doors facing them on the platform.
- The Driver West Car doesn’t come into the platform.
- At busy times, when the Driver West Car will need to be used, passengers will walk through the PowerPack Car.
- Bicycles can be wheeled between the platform and the space in the Passenger Car.
The method of operation has avoided any expensive lengthening of the short and curvy platform.
This second Google Map shows Sudbury station.
At least the single platform is straight.
A similar procedure is used at Sudbury station to that at Marks Tey.
- The driver stops the train in the station, so that the Driver West and Passenger Cars either side of the PowerPack Car are in the station.
- Passengers have two sets of doors and level access to get into and out of the train.
- Bicycles can be wheeled between the platform and the space in the Passenger Car.
- There is no direct access to the Driver West Car at the Marks Tey end of the train, but passengers can walk through the train.
Lengthening of the platform is not necessary.
Important Routes With Few Passengers
Suppose you have a route that at certain times of the day needs a three-car train, but at other times two-cars or even only one car.
I can think of the case of a large industrial site like a nuclear facility or power station, that has lots of passengers, when people are going to and from work and students are going to and from school and college, but at other times of the day, passenger numbers are low.
The conductor indicated to me, that the design of the train allows the doors on the PowerPack to be locked, thus restricting movement.
This could save operating costs if thought out properly.
Wheelchair Passengers To And From Sudbury
The conductor indicated that this was a problem for some directions.
- London to Sudbury is just a walk or push between platforms.
- Sudbury to Ipswich and Norwich is just a walk or push between platforms.
- Sudbury to London is take a train to Colchester from Marks Tey and use the lifts to change direction for London.
- Ipswich and Norwich to Sudbury is take a train to Witham and use the lifts to change direction for Marks Tey.
The local MP is Pritti Patel and she has been pushing hard for a step-free bridge with lifts, which would solve the problem.
Sudbury And Colchester Town
Greater Anglia have proposed that the Sudbury service be extended to Colchester Town station.
There may be problems running on the busy Great Eastern Main Line between Marks Tey and Colchester, but at least there appears to be a freight loop just to the North of Marks Tey, on the London-bound track.
Some things would help.
- Redesign of the junction to allow a faster turnout.
- The extra power of the Class 755 trains.
- Electrification of Platform 3 at Marks Tey station.
- Full digital in-cab signalling on the Great Eastern Main Line.
It might even be worthwhile putting in a simple flyover for Sudbury-bound trains.
Could Battery Power Be Used On The Sudbury Branch Line?
Class 755 trains have been designed, so that diesel engines in the ~PowerPack Car can be replaced with batteries, which can be charged from electrification.
If and when a suitable battery module is developed, then it could just be slotted in.
Some form of charging would be needed and the proposal to change the service into s Sudbury and Colchester Town service, would allow the trains to be charged on the main line.
The German Solution
I can’t help feeling that the Germans or the Welsh would use a different solution.
In Could There Be A Tram-Train Between Ipswich And Felixstowe?, I discuss the East-West Rail Link’s idea of running tram-trains between Ipswich and Felixstowe.
- It would have a frequency of four trains per hour.
- It would probably start in the forecourt of Ipswich station.
- It could either go to Felixstowe station or perhaps through the High Street and down to the Sea Front.
- It would go via Portman Road, Ipswich Town Centre, Ipswich Hospital, before joining the Felixstowe Branch Line to the East of the town.
The reason for this proposal, is to get more freight trains into the Port of Felixstowe.
Now look at this Google Map of North Colchester.
Note.
- Colchester station in the middle of the map on the Great Eastern Main Line, which runs East-West.
- A junction to the East of the station, where the lines from Colchester Town, Clacton and Walton join the Great Eastern Main Line.
- Colchester Hospital at the top of the map.
Without doubt,, the Germans would create a tram-train network based on Colchester station.
- Sudbury and Marks Tey could be served in the West, by perhaps building a third track alongside the Great Eastern Main Line
- Marks Tey and Sudbury would be on battery power.
- Colchester Hospital and perhaps the football ground and a Park-and-Ride could be served in the North, by adding tracks to the junction East of Colchester.
- Colchester Town could be served in the South, using the existing tracks.
The network would certainly connect a lot of important places to the main station.
- It would improve access to Colchester Hospital.
- It would solve the step-free problem at Marks Tey.
- It could open up much needed new housing developments.
With 100 mph tram-trains or trains able to work as trams, it could reach places using the various routes in the area, like Clacton, Harwich and Walton.
Stadler have already designed 100 mph diesel trains, that work in Zwickau in Germany, alongside and share tracks with the city’s trams.
It seems that if you have a specification, Stadler will make it.
Conclusion
Greater Anglia are going to have fun with these trains.
Their level access is liked by passengers.
The short car length, allows the trains to call in curvy platforms.
Greater Anglia Submits Bid to Improve Colchester Station
The title of this post is the same as that as this article on Rail Advent.
Colchester station is a busy station, that handles four and a half million passengers in a year.
The main stations on the Great Eastern Main Line have following passenger numbers in millions.
- Shenfield – 4 – Fully step-free
- Ingatestone – 0.8
- Chelmsford – 8.5 – Fully step-free
- Hatfield Peverel – 0.4
- Witham – 2.5 – Fully step-free
- Kelvedon – 0.8
- Marks Tey – 0.6
- Colchester – 4.5 – Partially step-free
- Manningtree – 1.2 – Fully step-free
- Ipswich 3.3 – Fully step-free
- Needham Market – 0.1
- Stowmarket – 1.0 – Going step-free
- Diss – 0.7
- Norwich – 4.4 – Fully step-free
I think it is fairly obvious, that the the very busy Great Eastern Main Line has not been high in the queue for full step-free access.
As the article says, Colchester has a lift on one side of the station, there is only a wheelchair stair lift on a staircase on the other side.
Why did one of the busiest stations on the line get only half a solution?
Probably, a civil servant who lives in leafy Surrey, said “Colchester has two entrances! Their driver can come round! And it’s only East Anglia!”
There are developments, that are happening, that make updated step-free access at Colchester station absolutely essential.
- Greater Anglia are replacing the train fleet and all those new trains will attrract more passengers.
- All the new trains are step-free between train and platform.
- Greater Anglia will be increasing the frequency of trains between Colchester and Stowmarket and probably in other sections of the route as well.
- Greater Anglia are introducing a new service between Sudbury and Colchester Town. Wheelchair passengers between London and Sudbury will need to change at Colchester, as Marks Tey is not step-free.
- Greater Anglia is extending the Peterborough and Ipswich service to Colchester. This will surely increase the number of passengers wanting to cross over at Colchester.
The current system will work until three people turn up in wheelchairs at the same time.
Greater Anglia will get it in the neck, when the fault lies with the civil servants’ belief that East Anglia is a backwater that doesn’t need good facilities.
Other Stations
These stations on the Great Eastern Main Line has no step-free access or plans to install it.
- Ingatestone
- Hatfield Peverel
- Kelvedon
- Marks Tey
- Needham Market
- Diss
Note.
- Strangely, Ingatestone is probably the most important, as when the line is closed for engineering works, it is used as a bus interchange.
- Marks Tey is also important, because of interchange between Sudbury and London. Watch this one as Pritti Patel is the MP.
- Diss has had serious disabled access problems in the past.
- Needham Market could be difficult, but Stowmarket is an alternative.
All the stations between Liverpool Street and Shenfield will be fully step-free, when Crossrail is completed.
Conclusion
Personally, I feel that the whole Great Eastern Main Line should be made step-free.
The Anonymous Widower 