The Anonymous Widower

London Will Still Need Crossrail 2 To Deal With HS2 Influx, London Mayor Predicts

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Building.

This is the first paragraph.

Sadiq Khan says he expects mothballed scheme will eventually get built.

I don’t disagree that it will eventually get built, but it will be long after both Sadiq Khan and myself have gone.

You might think, that as I live in Dalston, I would be very much in favour of Crossrail 2 being built as soon as possible.

But then, I’m a duck-and-diver and there will always be a quick route to get to Euston.

I currently use four routes regularly and coming home, if it’s late or I want to get home quickly to cook supper say, I can take a taxi for a reasonable price.

The easiest way is actually to walk about two hundred metres and get a 73 bus to directly outside Euston station.

I very much feel we need to improve access in London to High Speed Two and that this can be done by making sure several smaller projects are completed before High Speed Two opens.

Improved Underground Connections At Euston Station

This page on the High Speed Two web site, says this about the station layout and Underground connections at the rebuilt station.

HS2 will deliver eleven new 400m long platforms, a new concourse and improved connections to Euston and Euston Square Underground stations. Our design teams are also looking at the opportunity to create a new northerly entrance facing Camden Town as well as new east-west links across the whole station site.

I would suspect that connection to the Underground will have step-free options.

I wrote about Underground connections at Euston station in Ian Publishes Details Of Future Developments At Euston And Euston Square Underground Stations.

The developments certainly look comprehensive and include a new entrance in Gordon Street on the South side of Euston Road.

Note.

  1. The view is looking North.
  2. A tunnel from this entrance will lead to the Eastern ends of the platforms at Euston Square station, where it appears there will be at least escalator access.
  3. The tunnel will also lead into Euston station.
  4. It is a simple improvement, that shouldn’t be too challenging.

This diagram shows the layout of the tunnel.

It looks to me to be a neat design, that could be installed between Gordon Street and Euston Square stations without disturbing the traffic on the busy Euston Road.

Once the subway and the Gordon Street entrance were built, there would have these benefits.

  • There would be a step-free route between Euston and Euston Square stations.
  • It would be a shorter walk  in an air-conditioned tunnel, rather than currently along the very polluted Euston Road.
  • It would be the fastest way to transfer between Euston and Kings Cross or St. Pancras stations.
  • It would give excellent access to the other London terminal stations of Liverpool Street, Moorgate and Paddington.
  • It would give step-free access to Crossrail at Farrington, Liverpool Street, Moorgate, Paddington and Whitechapel
  • With a change at Farringdon or Liverpool Street to Crossrail, it would offer the fastest route to Canary Wharf.
  • The Gordon Street entrance would improve walking routes between Euston station and University College London and other buildings on the South side of Euston Road.

I also suspect that as this project is part of the rebuilding of Euston station for High Speed Two, that it will be completed before Euston station opens for High Speed Two.

If possible, it should be built much sooner to improve access between Euston station and the sub-surface lines.

Once open, even without other improvements at Euston station, this subway would improve access to Euston station by a very substantial amount.

Camden Town Station Upgrade

In 2015, I went to see an exhibition about the proposed expansion of Camden Town station and wrote The Camden Town Station Upgrade Exhibition.

I believe this upgrade should be delivered before High Speed Two opens around the end of this decade.

But due to the financial problems of Transport for London, this project has now been kicked into the long grass.

The Wikipedia entry for Camden Town station, states that upgrading the station will take four years.

Northern Line Split

The completion of the Camden Town Station Upgrade will enable the splitting of the Northern Line into two separate lines, after the completion of the Northern Line Extension to Battersea and the Bank Station Upgrade.

  • Northern Line West – Edgware to Battersea Power Station via Camden Town, Euston, Charing Cross and Waterloo.
  • Northern Line East – High Barnet to Morden via Camden Town, Euston, Kings Cross, Moorgate, Bank and London Bridge.

Each branch will be running at least 24 trains per hour (tph) and will significantly increase capacity between High Speed Two and other terminal stations and the City of London.

The Northern Line should be split into two lines by the time High Speed Two opens, but with no start date in sight for the Camden Town Station Upgrade, this might not be possible.

Victoria Line Improvements

The Victoria Line or Dear Old Vicky probably won’t be able to help much, but I do think it would be feasible to improve the three most inadequate stations on the line.

I doubt the money can be found to carry out these improvement projects, that are essential, but very much smaller than the Camden Town Station Upgrade.

Sub-Surface Lines Improvements

The big project on the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan Lines is the Four Lines Modernisation (4LM) project.

  • It is an upgrade of the trains, track, electrical supply, and signalling systems.
  • This will add 27 % more capacity in the Peak.
  • As anybody will know, who has been to a major event at Wembley Stadium, the new S8 Stock trains, that have been running for a few years now, have an almost infinite capacity.
  • Incidentally, the S8 Stock trains hold 1350 passengers, which is not far short of the 1500 that each Crossrail Class 345 train can hold.
  • Euston Square station will have a step-free connection from the rebuilt Euston station complex.

Most of the Modernisation will be completed by 2023.

I believe that the sub-surface lines will become the main method to get to and from the upgraded Euston station, until Crossrail 2 is built.

  • There will be direct trains to around seventy stations from Euston Square station.
  • With a change at Paddington to Crossrail, there is a route to Heathrow Airport and Reading.
  • With a change at Farringdon or Liverpool Street to Crossrail, there is a route to East London, Canary Wharf and South East London.
  • With a change at Farringdon to Thameslink, there are routes to over a hundred stations.
  • With a change at Whitechapel to the East London Line, there are routes to North, East and South London.

When you consider that the Metropolitan Line opened in 1863 and was the first passenger-carrying underground railway in the world, hasn’t it done well?

When the Euston Square station upgrade is complete, I will probably use that route to get home from Euston, changing on to a bus at Moorgate, which stops close to my house.

Old Oak Common Station

High Speed Two’s Old Oak Common station is introduced like this on this page on the High Speed Two web site.

Old Oak Common is a new super hub set to be the best connected rail station in the UK.

This map from Transport for London shows the various lines at the station.

Note.

  1. The bright blue line is High Speed Two.
  2. The purple line is the Great Western Main Line and Crossrail.
  3. I suspect that the interchange between these three lines will be a good one.
  4. Will all Great Western services stop at Old Oak Common station?
  5. The orange lines are London Overground services, with two new stations; Old Oak Common Lane and Hythe Road close to the main Old Oak Common station.
  6. The green line is the Southern service between Milton Keynes and South Croydon.
  7. The red line is the Central Line and it could be joined to the main station.
  8. There are plans for a West London Orbital Railway, from Brent Cross and West Hampstead in the North to Hounslow and Kew Bridge in the West, that would call at the main Old Oak Common station.

Old Oak Common station could be well connected to most of London, through its Crossrail. London Overground and West London Orbital connections.

It is my view that these three smaller projects must be completed before the opening of High Speed Two.

  • Hythe Road station
  • Old Oak Common Lane station
  • West London Orbital Railway.

None of these three projects would be very challenging.

Chiltern Railways And High Speed Two

Chiltern Railways already have a London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street service

Birmingham Moor Street station will be close to High Speed Two’s Birmingham Curzon Street station.

Plans exist for a second London terminus for Chiltern Railways close to the main Old Oak Common station.

  • Could Chiltern Railways become a partner for High Speed Two on routes like between Leeds and Banbury?
  • They could certainly bring passengers to Old Oak Common from Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Warwickshire.
  • One of my principles on High Speed Two, is that it should be a One-Nation railway.

Old Oak Common would be a very different station to Marylebone with its very useful Crossrail. London Overground and West London Orbital connections.

The terminal for Chiltern Railways at Old Oak Common is another project that should be completed before the opening of High Speed Two.

The Duality Of Euston and Old Oak Common Stations

Euston and Old Oak Common stations could almost be considered to be one station.

  • All High Speed Two trains terminating or starting at Euston also call at Old Oak Common station.
  • They will be just five minutes apart.
  • Both stations have comprehensive networks of connections.
  • Taken together the connections from both stations cover most of London and the South East.

There could be advantages for both operators and passengers.

  • Would a ticket to and from London Terminals be usable at both stations?
  • For some London destinations, passengers might prefer to use one terminal or the other.
  • By changing at Old Oak Common to Crossrail will probably be the fastest way to Heathrow, the West End, the City, Canary Wharf and other places.
  • Passengers could make the decision about the London terminal to use en route.
  • Operators sometimes put the cleaning crew on the train at the last station before the terminal to save time in the turnround. The closeness of the two stations would enable this.

I think the London end of High Speed Two has been designed to make it easy for the operator and passengers.

The Losers If Crossrail 2 Isn’t Built

Crossrail 2 will provide better access to High Speed Two and the London terminals of Euston, Kings Cross, St. Pancras and Victoria for parts of London and the South East.

Victoria Line Passengers

The Victoria Line will have interchanges with Crossrail 2 at the following stations.

  • Tottenham Hale
  • Euston and Kings Cross St. Pancras on the Victoria Line and Euston St. Pancras on Crossrail 2
  • Victoria

Note.

  1. Crossrail 2 will relieve capacity on the Victoria Line between Tottenham Hale and Victoria
  2. There will be a very comprehensive interchange at Euston St. Pancras to serve High Speed Two, Eurostar and classic lines out of Euston, Kings Cross and St. Pancras.

From what has been disclosed about the connrection between Euston and Euston Square stations transfer between Euston and Kings Cross and St. Pancras will be a lot easier than it is now.

This reworking of the poor connection to Euston Square station might take some pressure off the Victoria Line.

It might also might be possible to squeeze more trains down Dear Old Vicky.

Passengers On The Suburban Lines Into Waterloo

The suburban lines into Waterloo will go into tunnel at Wimbledon and connect directly to Victoria, Euston, St. Pancras and Kings Cross.

This will be superb access for South West London to four major London terminals.

Without Crossrail 2, passengers  will have to use one of these routes to get to and from Euston.

  • Change at Waterloo to the Northern Line.
  • Change at Waterloo to the Bakerloo Line and then at Oxford Circus to the Victoria Line.
  • Change at Vauxhall to the Victoria Line.

Could it be, that the Northern Line Extension should be extended to Clapham Junction station, as it is an aspiration over a safeguarded route under Battersea Park?

In An Analysis Of Waterloo Suburban Services Proposed To Move To Crossrail 2, I showed it was possible to run a Crossrail 2 schedule of four tph into Waterloo station, if the following were done.

  • More platform capacity in Waterloo.
  • Modern high-performance 100 mph trains like Class 707 trains or Aventras.
  • Some improvements to track and signals between Waterloo and Wimbledon stations.
  • Wimbledon station would only need minor modifications.
  • A measure of ATC between Waterloo and Wimbledon stations.

This would not be a large project

Passengers In Balham And/Or Tooting

Crossrail 2 is planned to run between Wimbledon and Victoria via the following stations.

Note.

  1. Crossrail 2 should take pressure off the Northern Line.
  2. Public Opinion is against King’s Road Chelsea station. How will their cleaners, cooks and nannies get to work? Especially, as the roads in the area are already jammed by Chelsea tractors.
  3. The original route favoured Balham to give an interchange with National Rail. Tooting Broadway also has geological problems for the tunneling.
  4. On the other hand, Sadiq Khan supports the route through Tooting Broadway, which better serves his former constituency.

This Map from cartometro.com shows the rail lines in the area.

Note.

  1. Balham station in the North is an interchange station between the Northern Line and National Rail, with a possible four National Rail platforms.
  2. Tooting Broadway is a simple through station on the Northern Line.
  3. The next station after Wandsworth Common towards London is Clapham Junction.
  4. Transport for London have been advocating a new Streatham Common station, that would be an interchange between the lines through Streatham Common and those through Streatham.
  5. Streatham and Tooting stations are on the Wimbledon Loop Line, which only carries two tph in both directions.

Since I have been writing this blog, there have been several ideas to make better use of the National Rail lines in this area.

There was even a plan that I wrote about in 2016 called The Streatham Virtual Tube.

  • Trains would run through Streatham Common, Streatham, Streatham, Hill, Balham, Wandsworth Common, Clapham Junction and into Victoria.
  • Trains could also go North from Clapham Junction to Old Oak Common for High Speed Two.
  • The Streatham Common Interchange would be built. This would give a useful interchange to the Wimbledon Loop Line.
  • There would be four tracks through Streatham.
  • A tunnel would be build to allow trains to go through both Streatham and Streatham Hill stations.
  • It would have an interchange at Balham with the Northern Line.
  • It could have an interchange at Clapham Junction with an extended Battersea Branch of the Northern Line.
  • Suppose it had a frequency of perhaps six or even ten tph.

I think it might work, but it shows what can be done, with a bit of out-of-the-box thinking.

Passengers In Dalston And Hackney

One of the entrances to the proposed massive double-ended Crossrail 2 station at Dalston will be at the end of my road and very close to where my mother used to work and where her mother was actually born.

East London had not had major rail improvements since the 1950s and 1960s, when most of the lines into Liverpool Street were electrified and the Southbury Loop was reopened.

But since the creation of the Overground in 2007 from the remains of the ill-performing Silverlink, with the addition of new trains and ticketing and a good clean, there has been a series of smaller projects that have been completed, in and around East and North London.

Note.

  1. There have also numerous smaller upgrades like the addition of lifts to several stations.
  2. Stations between Stratford and Shenfield have been upgraded for Crossrail.
  3. There has also been considerable upgrades to the electrification, which in some places was not in the best of condition.
  4. Most lines have a frequency of four tph or more.

Some may feel that East London has done well with rail improvements in the last few years.

I would agree in some ways, but would counter by saying that before the Overground was created, East London’s were in a terrible state and their state today is a excellent example of what can be achieved by good design, planning and execution, without spending vast sums.

East London and the boroughs of Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Newham and Waltham Forest in particular, now have a good rail network, that is going to get a lot better with the addition of Crossrail.

  • The North London Line is about half a mile to the North of where I live and can walk to two stations or get a bus to another three.
  • Crossrail will be a couple of miles to the South with station entrances at Moorgate, Liverpool Street, Whitechapel and Stratford.
  • There are four electrified railway lines with new trains, which run North-South with connections to the two East-West lines.
  • Although my quickest way to Crossrail will be a bus from close to my house to outside Moorgate station.
  • I suspect that everybody in the Borough of Hackney and the Eastern part of Islington will be able to get to a Crossrail station in well under thirty minutes.
  • In addition, from where I live the Gospel Oak to Barking Line runs a couple of miles North of the North London Line.

I believe that Dalston’s success over the last decade has been a collateral benefit of its comprehensive rail system, supported by lots of shiny new buses.

Does Dalston want Crossrail 2? Probably, Yes!

Does Dalston need Crossrail 2? Possibly, No!

Do other areas of large cities need Dalstonisation of their railway and bus systems? Absolutely!

I certainly don’t regret moving to Dalston!

Note that one of the reasons I’m so keen on the West London Orbital Railway is that it could do the same for North West London, as the Overground and the Lea Valley Lines have done for North East London.

Passengers Along The Lea Valley

Crossrail 2 will connect the Lea Valley Lines to Dalston and on to Central London.

It will involve the following changes to the West Anglia Main Line.

  • Four-tracking of the route at least as far as Broxbourne.
  • A junction South of Tottenham Hale station will connect the route to a tunnel to Dalston.
  • Level crossings at Brimsdown, Enfield Lock and Cheshunt will be removed.
  • Like Crossrail, stations would be substantially step-free.
  • The signalling will be upgraded to full in-cab digital ERTMS signalling, that is used by Crossrail and Thameslink under London.

This would enable 10-15 tph running between Tottenham Hale and Broxbourne stations.

With all the development going on around Cambridge and possible expansion of Stansted Airport, I believe that even if Crossrail 2 is not build, then there will be pressure to four-track the West Anglia Main Line, remove the level crossings and improve the stations and signalling.

If this were to be done, then there is an interim plan that could be implemented that I wrote about, four years ago in Could A Lea Valley Metro Be Created?

I envisaged the following.

  • Updating the West Anglia Main Line to four-tracks and a standard suitable for Crossrail 2.
  • Using the double-track loop at Stratford  as the Southern terminal, for some of the trains.
  • Updating the Victoria Line stations. The major interchange at Tottenham Hale station has already been improved substantially.
  • Providing an appropriate service between Stratford and Broxbourne stations.
  • Terminating some Stansted and Cambridge services in the Stratford Loop, as Stratford has better connections to South London and Kent than Liverpool Street.
  • Integrating Lea Valley Metro, London Overground and Greater Anglia services to Bishops Stortford, Cambridge and Hertford North stations.

Note.

  1. All services connect to Crossrail and the Central Line at the Southern end.
  2. Services to Liverpool Street connect to National Rail services, the Lea Valley Lines of the London Overground and the Circle, District and Metropolitan Lines.
  3. Services to Stratford connect to National Rail services, the North London Line of the London Overground and the Jubilee Line.
  4. Could alternate trains serve Liverpool Street and Stratford?
  5. Could splitting services between Liverpool Street and Stratford mean that the largest proportion of routes have just a single change?

As Transport for London and the train operating companies know where passengers want to go and actually go, I’m sure that a service pattern, that is acceptable to all could be created.

Conclusion

Crossrail 2 is quoted as being a £33 billion project.

I believe that with a good review lots of money could be saved and other smaller projects could be planned and executed to handle the expected increase in the number of passengers.

I would do the following.

  • Camden Town station – Upgrade
  • Chiltern Railways – Build their connection to Old Oak Common station
  • Euston Station – Improve connections to Euston and Euston Square Underground stations.
  • Northern Line – Extend the Battersea branch to Clapham Junction
  • Northern Line – Split Into Two Lines
  • Overground – Build Old Oak Common Lane and Hythe Road stations
  • Southern – Build the new Streatham Common station and implement The Streatham Virtual Tube.
  • South Western Railway – Run four tph on all proposed Crossrail 2 routes into Waterloo station
  • Victoria Line – Upgrade Highbury & Islington, Oxford Circus and Walthamstow Central stations and increase the frequency if possible
  • West Anglia Main Line – Upgrade ready for Crossrail 2 and develop the Lea Valley Metro

All of these projects would have their own benefits, whether Crossrail 2 is built or not!

Only when the needs of all passengers have been assessed in a few years, should we make a decision about Crossrail 2.

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 27, 2021 Posted by | Transport | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

The Pedestrian Tunnels In Bank Station

Growing up in London in the 1950s, I was always intrigued by the escalator connection between Bank and Monument stations, shown on the tube map.

The connection opened in the 1930s, but I can’t remember using it until recently.

It is not shown on the latest map.

The combined Bank and Monument stations now have lots of tunnels and some will be affected by the works to extend the station.

Arriving On The DLR

These pictures show arriving on the DLR and taking the route up the escalator to the Central, Northern and Waterloo and City Lines.

Note.

  1. Once at the top of the escalator, the Central, Northern and Waterloo and City Lines are accessed by more tunnels.
  2. The tunnel, that used to run between the two platforms appears to be closed off at the moment.
  3. Could the Northern end be being turned into an information point?

Access To The Central Line

This visualisation shows the current and future access to the Central Line.

Note.

  1. The two fat curved grey tunnels on the left are the Central Line.
  2. The straighter one on the left is the Eastbound tunnel, with East at the top.
  3. The curved one is the Westbound tunnel.
  4. The tunnel facing us, between the Central Line tunnels is the triple escalator barrel from the entrance under Bank junction.
  5. Just visible underneath it is the spiral staircase that connects to the Northern Line.
  6. A new triple escalator will connect the Central Line platforms down to the main North-South travelator.
  7. Above the new escalators is the current connection between the Central Line platforms and the DLR.

These pictures show the connection between the Central and Northern Lines via the spiral staircase.

Note that once down the spiral staircase, the passage is level.

Northern Access To The Northern Line Platforms

Currently, there are two staircases down from the lobby, where both the previous routes end to the Northern Line platforms.

This visualisation shows the Northern ends of the current Northern Line platforms.

Note.

  1. North is to the left.
  2. The two tracks and the narrow island platform of the current Northern Line on the far side of the visualisation.
  3. The two staircases leading up from Northern Line to a lobby, where passengers can walk North to the Central Line.
  4. The double escalator barrel going down to the DLR.
  5. The three cross passages linking the DLR escalators to the lobby between the Central and Northern Lines.
  6. The most Southerly of these cross passages has a lift to the DLR.

These pictures show the two staircases leading up from the Northern Line platforms.

Other pictures show, top of the stairs, the lobby and the current state of the Southbound platform.

After completion of the upgrade, the following works will have been done.

  • The Southbound track will be filled in.
  • The Northbound platform will be extended over the former Southbound track and platform, to make a very wide platform.
  • The doors in the tunnel walls will become cross passages to the new Southbound platform about thirty metres to the West, the triple bank of escalators to the new Cannon Street entrance, escalators to the DLR and the travelator to the Central Line.

What will happen to the two short staircases?

At present they lead up to lobby with passages to the DLR and the Central and Waterloo & City Lines and the lifts.

  • It all depends on how much, they will be used with so many new routes in the station.
  • They could be refurbished, with perhaps one for up and one for down.
  • They could be shut off.

There certainly is space for wide staircases, leading down to the very wide single platform.

I think they should be kept to please the duckers-and-divers.

From The Northern Line Platforms To Monument Station

This is the original 1930s escalator connection between the Northern Line at Bank station and the District and Circle Lines at Monument station.

Note.

  1. Judging by the two sets of blue hoardings, there will be some extra passages connection to this route.
  2. The escalator is surprisingly long.

I do wonder, if this route might tend to be sidelined, as many passengers will find the new Cannon Street entrance quicker.

From Monument Station To The DLR

These pictures show going between Monument station And The DLR.

Note.

  1. Except at the DLR end, there is no blue hoardings hiding the construction work.
  2. The tunnel between the two platforms is blocked off.
  3. At the DLR rnd, both platforms can be accessed.

It strikes me that after the completion of the expansion of Bank station, this tunnel will be substantially the same.

 

February 23, 2021 Posted by | Transport | , , , , , | 1 Comment

DLR Extension To Thamesmead Gets Preliminary Funding

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on IanVisits.

This is the opening paragraphs.

TfL has secured funding to carry out more work on plans to extend the DLR from Beckton to Thamesmead.

The current proposals are for a new station be built in Beckton, with a bridge over (or tunnel under) the Thames to a new station in Thamesmead. Both sites are subject to lots of new housing being built, or planned, and the DLR extension was included in TfL’s latest financial plans.

Ian also gives this map.

This Google Map shows the area, where the extension will be built.

Note.

  1. The Eastern end of the runway at London City Airport in the South-Western corner of the map.
  2. The proposed location of Thamesmead station is by the roundabout in the South-Eastern corner of the map.

I estimate that the River Thames is around 500-600 metres wide at this point.

North Of The Thames

This Google Map shows more detail around the ring road of Armada Way on the North side of the Thames.

Note.

  1. The ring road of Armada Way in the centre of the map.
  2. Beckton Depot of the DLR takes up the Southern part of the land enclosed by Armada Way.
  3. The Northern part of the enclosed land is what is left of Beckton Gas Works.
  4. Gallions Reach station by Gallions roundabout, aligned North-South along the road.
  5. Note how the DLR goes under the road to read Beckton station in the North West corner of the map.
  6. To the North of the Armada Way ring, there is Gallions Reach Retail Park.
  7. Surrounding everything to North and East is the massive Becton Sewage Treatment Works.

I am not sure how the extension will connect to the existing Beckton branch of the DLR, but it does look that it could sneak around the inside of Armada Way and strike out directly across the Thames, from a junction to the North of Gallions Reach station.

This Google Map shows Gallions Roundabout and Gallions Reach station.

The connection to Beckton Depot to the North of the station can be picked out. It appears trains can enter and leave the depot in both directions.

This further Google Map shows Armada Way as it goes across the Northern side of the Beckton Gas Works site and along the Southern side of Gallions Reach Retain Park.

Note.

  1. The current route to Beckton station can be seen entering a short tunnel to go under the road.
  2. Could the route go inside Armada Way?

A station appears to be planned in this area called Beckton Riverside.

South Of The Thames

This Google Map shows the area which will be served by the extension South of the river.

Note.

  1. From the first map in this post it would appear that the route from the North makes landfall just to the East of the blue dot on South bank of the River.
  2. Thamesmead station would appear to be by the middle of the three roundabouts shown on the road crossing the map.

Much of the land between, the current buildings and the river could be developed.

Bridge Or Tunnel?

The major piece of construction will be the bridge or tunnel to connect the two halves of the extension.

Consider.

  • The frequency of the extension could be fifteen trains per hour (tph)
  • A bridge may stop large ships like HMS Ocean and MS Deutschland coming upriver to Greenwich or the Pool of London.
  • London has tried to develop a cruise ship terminal at Enderby’s Wharf near Greenwich.
  • Bringing cruise ships into London creates employment.
  • The Docklands Light Railway already has two tunnels under the river.
  • A tunnel would probably be less than a kilometre.

For these reasons, I think, a tunnel will be the more likely option.

Although, I always like railway bridges across a river, as they can become tourist attractions.

A Few Thoughts

These are a few thoughts.

A Frequency Of 15 tph

In his article, Ian says this about the frequency.

If the DLR extension is built, then it’s provisionally expected to be able to offer 15 trains per hour – roughly one every four minutes.

Currently, the frequency between Tower Gateway and Beckton is only 7.5 tph in the Peak and six tph in the Off-Peak.

  • If the Beckton service were to be extended to Thamesmead, to run a frequency of 15 tph, would still need more trains for the service.
  • But where would the extra trains terminate in the West?
  • Could this be handled with the new trains and better signalling?

I’m not sure, but it seems that the Docklands Light Railway is being setup with another 15 tph capacity in the East.

Could it be that the Thamesmead extension will be run back-to back with another extension in the West.

In A Connection Between City Thameslink Station And The Docklands Light Railway, I described a possible Westward extension of the Docklands Light Railway to Euston, St. Pancras and Victoria stations.

This map shows the route.

Note.

  1. Could St. Pancras and Victoria both take half of the 15 tph from Thamesmead?
  2. Bank currently , turns 22.5 tph in the Peak and 18 in the Off Peak.
  3. The new trains may be able to work with shorter headways.
  4. Currently, Euston, St. Pancras and Victoria have no direct connection to Canary Wharf.

I think the DLR could end up with a Peak service something like this service.

  • 7.5 tph – St. Pancras and Lewisham via Canary Wharf
  • 7.5 tph – St. Pancras and Woolwich Arsenal
  • 7.5 tph – Victoria and Lewisham via Canary Wharf
  • 7.5 tph – Victoria and Thamesmead

Except at Custom House and with a walk at Canary Walk, the connection to Crossrail is poor.

Conclusion

The extension of the Docklands Light Railway to Thamesmead, looks to be a sensible project to serve much-needed housing at Beckton and Thamesmead.

But I feel it needs to be built alongside a Western Extension of the Docklands Light Railway to Charing Cross, Euston, St. Pancras and Victoria.

  • This would enable a train frequency of at least 7.5 tph to Thamesmead.
  • Or 15 tph if the existing Tower Gateway service were to be extended from Becton to Thamesmead.
  • This extension would also provide a direct link between Euston, Kings Cross and St. Pancras stations and Canary Wharf and perhaps take some pressure from the Bank branch of the Northern Line.

But the extension’s primary function would be to balance the Docklands Light Railway and allow capacity through Bank to the East to be increased.

It could be an affordable fill-in, while we wait for better times, in which to build Crossrail 2.

 

December 25, 2020 Posted by | Transport | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tottenham Court Road Western Entrance – 2nd December 2019

These pictures show the new Western entrance to Tottenham Court Road station.

This Google Map shows the location of the massive double-ended station.

Note.

  1. Soho Square is the green space in the middle of the map.
  2. The Eastern entrance to the station is by Centre Point in the North East corner of the map.
  3. The new Western entrance is to the West of the red arrow.

The size of the station is such, that passengers will have to make sure they get out at the right end of the train.

  • For Marks and Spencer at the Pantheon, get out at the Western entrance to the station.
  • For Primark and the other shops clustered around the current station entrance, get out at the Eastern entrance to the station.
  • For Tottenham Court Road, Charing Cross Road, the Dominion Theatre and Centre Point, get out at the Eastern entrance to the station.

A few years ago, a young Crossrail engineer told me, that the stations are very long underground.

Perhaps they should have a directory of all shops, theatres, hotels, attractions and other sites on the platforms, to ensure that passengers use the best entrabce for their destination.

This image shows a visualisation of the station.

Note.

  1. The Westerm entrance is the one on the left.
  2. Centre Point at the Eastern end of the complex, by the Eastern entrance.

The visualisation also shows lots of detail.

The Connecting Tunnel Between The Two Entrances

There appears to be a connecting tunnel between the two entrances.

This pictures show the inside of the Eastern end of the tunnel which has already been built.

Note.

  1. The relatively cramped Central Line platform.
  2. The tunnel has good connections to the Central Line.
  3. It looks like the Western end of the connecting tunnel will be extended towards the Western Entrance.
  4. Obviously, breaking through between the connecting tunnel and its extension, will be one of the last jobs to do.

The completed tunnel will allow the following.

  • Passengers entering the station at either entrance to be able to access the Central Line.
  • Passengers needing to access the Northern Line to be able to enter at the Western Entrance and use the connecting tunnel.

Will this tunnel be a good walking route, when it’s raining cats, dogs and hippopotami on the surface?

Access To Crossrail

Both entrances will have their own step-free access to the Crossrail platforms.

Because Crossrail is at a different level to the Central and Northern Lines, it appears that passengers needing to change to and from Crossrail will probably come to the surface by lift or escalator and then go back down again using a second set.

This may seem to make walking distances longer, but I suspect the following.

  • It makes the station easier to construct.
  • Access to existing lines can be maintained during construction.
  • It allows for the installation of multiple escalators for high capacity.

There are also older stations in London, where there are up and down changes of lines. So perhaps it’s an affordable way of building the connection.

Changes Between Crossrail and The Central Line

Crossrail and the Central Line have several interchanges.

  • Stratford, where the interchange is cross-platform.
  • Liverpool Street
  • Tottenham Court Road
  • Bond Street
  • Ealing Broadway, where the interchange is on the surface. See Crossrail And Ealing Broadway Station for my thoughts on the interchange.

I suspect that there will be a certain amount of ducking and diving by passengers, as they go on their easiest way. Many will probably change at Stratford, as it is a walk across the platform.

Will Tottenham Court Road station see a lot of passengers changing between Crossrail and the Central Line?

I have no idea. But I suspect that Transport for London will be able to make an accurate prediction, based on information from London’s contactless ticketing.

It does look though from the visualisation, that the following can be ascertained.

  • There will be an escalator and a walk to change between Crossrail and the Central Line at Tottenham Court Road station.
  • The change may be easier at the Western end of the Crossrail station.
  • The design of the Central Line with two tunnels close together and not much space for stairs and lifts between them, makes a high-capacity link to the large connecting tunnel difficult to built.
  • There appears to be no provision to extend the connecting tunnel to the West. The original plan was to pedestrianise Oxford Street, but that has been abandoned, due to pressure from residents and Westminster Council.

It is an illustration of the difficulty of connecting to London’s older Underground lines.

Changes Between Crossrail and The Northern Line

Crossrail and the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line only have the single interchange at Tottenham Court Road station.

  • Does this mean it is expected to be busy, as the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line serves Euston, Waterloo and will serve the new Battersea extension?
  • From the visualisation, there appear to be lots of connections between Crossrail and the Northern Line at the Eastern entrance.

These pictures show some of the tunnels leading to both Crossrail and the Northern Line at the Eastern entrance.

It looks like Transport for London are expecting a party. But you’ll probably need to be in the Eastern end of the Crossrail trains, to do a fast interchange.

If you get out at the Western end of the train, you’ll have to walk back along the connecting tunnel.

Crossrail 2

Crossrail 2 will complicate and improve things further at Tottenham Court Road station, as it sits between the proposed Crossrail 2 stations of Victoria and the mega-station Euston-St. Pancras-Kings Cross.

Will Cinderella Come To The Rescue?

The Docklands Light Railway (aka Cinderella) was the star of the 2012 Olympics transport system and she now has ambitions to expand to the West, as I wrote about in A Connection Between City Thameslink Station And The Docklands Light Railway.

This map from Transport for London, shows the possible Western extension of the DLR.

With all the problems of the funding of Crossrail 2, this extension could create a lot of important connections across the City.

It already connects or will soon connect.

  • Canary Wharf and Bank
  • City Airport and Bank
  • Crossrail’s South Eastern Branch and Bank, with a change at Custom House station.

The upgrade at Bank, which should complete in a couple of years will help, with better connections to the Central, Circle, District and Northern Lines.

If the extension to the DLR is built, it would connect Canary Wharf, City Airport and Crossrail’s South Eastern Branch in the East, with Charing Cross, Euston, Kings Cross, St. Pancras, Thameslink and Victoria in the West.

It would also take the pressure off of some of Central London’s most crowded lines.

So get your coal shovel out Cindy and start digging!

 

December 5, 2019 Posted by | Transport | , , , , | 3 Comments

Protests After Claim That Hitachi Has Lost T&W Contract

The title of this post is the same as that of this article on Railnews.

This is the introductory paragraphs.

There have been protests in north east England after a report claimed that Hitachi has been ruled out of the three-way contest to build a £500 million fleet for Tyne & Wear Metro.

The other contenders are CAF and Stadler, and the source of the claims says ‘insiders’ at Nexus have been told that Hitachi will be ‘overlooked’.

It should be noted that the two other bidders have orders for similar trains in the pipeline.

CAF

In TfL Awards Contract For New DLR Fleet To Replace 30-year-old Trains , I wrote about how CAF had been awarded the contract for new trains for the Docklands Light Railway.

I also said this about the possibility of CAF being awarded the contract for the new trains for the Tyne and Wear Metro.

In Bombardier Transportation Consortium Preferred Bidder In $4.5B Cairo Monorail, I indicated that as the trains on the Tyne and Wear Metro and the trains on the Docklands Light Railway, are of a similar height and width, it might be possible to use the same same car bodies on both trains.

So now that CAF have got the first order for the Docklands Light Railway, they must be in prime position to obtain the Tyne and Wear Metro order!

A second order would fit well with the first and could probably be built substantially in their South Wales factory.

Stadler

Stadler seem to be targeting the North, with new Class 777 trains for Merseyrail and Class 399 tram-trains for Sheffield and bids in for tram-trains and and new trains for the Tyne and Wear Metro.

Their trains are both quirky, accessible and quality and built to fit niche markets like a glove.

Only Stadler would produce a replacement for a diesel multiple unit fleet with a bi-mode Class 755 train, with the engine in the middle, that is rumoured to be capable of running at 125 mph.

Note the full step-free access between train and platform, which is also a feature of the Merseyrail trains.

Does the Tyre and Wear Metro want to have access like this? It’s already got it with the existing trains, as this picture at South Shields station shows.

Stadler’s engineering in this area, would fit their philosophy

I first thought that Stadler would propose a version of their Class 399 tram-trains. for the Tyne and Wear Metro and wrote Comparing Stadler Citylink Metro Vehicles With Tyne And Wear Metro’s Class 994 Trains.

This was my conclusion.

I am led to the conclusion, that a version of the Stadler Citylink Metro Vehicle similar to those of the South Waes Metro, could be developed for the Tyne and Wear Metro.

My specification would include.

  • Length of two current Class 994 trains, which would be around 111 metres.
  • Walk through design with longitudinal seating.
  • Level access between platform and train at all stations.
  • A well-designed cab with large windows at each end.
  • Ability to use overhead electrification at any voltage between 750 and 1500 VDC.
  • Ability to use overhead electrification at 25 KVAC.
  • Pantographs would handle all voltages.
  • A second pantograph might be provided for reasons of reliable operation.
  • Ability to use onboard battery power.
  • Regenerative braking would use the batteries on the vehicle.

Note.

  1. Many of these features are already in service in Germany, Spain or Sheffield.
  2. The train would be designed, so that no unnecessary platform lengthening is required.
  3. As in Cardiff, the specification would allow street-running in the future.
  4. Could battery range be sufficient to allow new routes to be developed without electrification?

I also feel that the specification should allow the new trains to work on the current network, whilst the current trains are still running.

But since I wrote that comparison in June 2018, Merseyrail’s new trains have started to be delivered and Liverpudlians have started to do what they do best; imagine!

The Tyne and Wear Metro has similar ambitions to expand the network and would a version of the Class 777 train fit those ambitions better?

Conclusion

I wouldn’t be surprised if Hitachi misses out, as the experience of the Docklands Light Railway or Merseyrail fed into the expansion of the Tyne and Wear Metro could be the clincher of the deal.

They would also be the first UK customer for the Hitachi trains.

 

September 22, 2019 Posted by | Transport | , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

A Short Cruise At Greenwich

I had taken the Emirate air-line to North Greenwich with friends and we decided we needed to go to the Cutty Sark.

So we took one of the Thames Clippers, from where I took these pictures.

About the pictures.

  • The first pictures show Greenwich Power Station, which generates electricity for Transport for London on a standby basis. It must be one of oldest power stations still producing electricity, although nowadays it doesn’t use coal, but six massive gas turbines.
  • The rest of the pictures show the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site.

The trip between the two piers took only a few minutes.

A Tourist Route Between Bank/London Bridge/Tower of London And Maritime Greenwich

I do this route on a sunny day, when I perhaps want to show a guest around London.

  • Take the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) from Bank or Tower Gateway stations to Royal Victoria station.
  • Take the Emirate Air-Line across the Thames to Greenwich. Peninsular
  • North Greenwich isn’t overloaded with attractions, unless you’re seeing a show or event at the O2. But it’s getting better!
  • Take the Thames Clipper one stop to Greenwich. They run every twenty minutes.

If you want to be boring you can always catch the DLR to Cutty Sark station.

A few points.

Docklands Light Railway

The Docklands Light Railway is often thought by Londoners, commuters and visitors as a bit of a Cinderella.

However, like Cinderella she works hard all day and provides reliable and efficient transport, where the only alternatives are buses, bicycles,  taxis and Shank’s pony.

Just after the 2012 Olympics, I met a big cheese in Transport for London on a DLR train. He felt that the DLR had been the star in getting everybody to the games.

It must be one of the most successful light railways in the world!

And yet, no-one has ever thought to build another running on the same principles.

  • Mainly elevated track.
  • Mainly step-free stations
  • Universal step-free train-to-platform access.
  • High-visibility trains for passengers.
  • Trains every three or four minutes.
  • Friendly, interested, visible staff.
  • Driverless operation with a train captain looking after passengers and driving in emergency.
  • Contactless ticketing

Perhaps the lack of a full-time driver on every train, means that many other places would have massive union problems.

Emirates Air-Line

I’ve taken many people on the Emirates Air-Line and few haven’t been impressed.

The best time in my view is just as the sun sets, as these pictures show.

Note that unless you want a souvenir ticket, just use your bank card to touch-in and touch-out! My last one-way trip cost me £3.50 and appeared on my credit card statement labelled TFL TRAVEL CH Conractactless.

Thames Clippers

Since I moved back to London in 2010, the Thames Clippers have been continuously expanding and improving.

  • .Five new boats have been delivered since the Olympics.
  • Several piers have been improved, rebuilt or added in recent years.
  • Cpmtactless ticketing can be used for all services. Payments are labelled THAMES CLIPPERS.

It should be noted that if you are a holder of a London Freedom Pass, you can get a discount on tickets at a machine.

Plans exist for the following.

  • Extending the route to new housing developments at Barking and Thamesmead in the East.
  • A new pier at Silvertown in October 2019, which could have a walking or bus link to the City Airport.

I can also see the following.

  • Extensions to the West past Putney Pier to places like new housing at Brentford and Kew Gardens.
  • Further extensions to the East to support the massive housing developments.
  • Better connections to the London Underground, London Overground and National Rail stations.
  • More use being made of the Thames Barrier as a tourist attraction.
  • Thames Clippers becoming a river tube line.
  • Thames Clippers appearing on the Tube map, just as the Emirate Air-Line does!
  • A quick and easy connection between the City Airport, Canary Wharf and the Cities of London and Westminster being developed.

The last would surely appeal to City businessmen and those wanting to celebrate a special event.

If Venice can run a boat between the Airport, and St. Mark’s Square why can’t London do the equivalet?

Crossrail

Crossrail is the Elephant-in-the-Room, that will surely make its presence felt along the South Bank of the Thames, when it is extended to Ebbsfleet, as it surely will be.

  • There will be a short walking interchange at Woolwich between Crossrail and the Tghames Clippers.
  • If Crossrail build a station at Silvertown for London City Airport, this could be another interchange.
  • If Crossrail eventually terminates at Gravesend, there could even be possibilities that far East.

The possibilities of designing the Crossrail Extension in conjunction with the Thames could open up the river has as both a leisure attraction and a transport artery.

Conclusion

London will reach towards the sea, to further enhance and add space to the undoubted Capital of the World!

 

 

A

September 13, 2019 Posted by | Transport | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Crossrail Portal At Pudding Mill Lane Station

These pictures show the Crossral portal at Pudding Mill Lane station, as it is approached on a DLR train from Stratford station.

The portal does appear to be rather functional.

September 13, 2019 Posted by | Transport | , , | Leave a comment

TfL Awards Contract For New DLR Fleet To Replace 30-year-old Trains

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Technology Magazine.

I don’t think this is a surprise, as the winning design is based on CAF’s Metro train, which is in widespread use, in Europe and around the world.

The Trains

They would appear to be of a similar specification to most modern Metro trains, as would be expected.

The Possibility Of A Second Order

In Bombardier Transportation Consortium Preferred Bidder In $4.5B Cairo Monorail, I indicated that as the trains on the Tyne and Wear Metro and the trains on the Docklands Light Railway, are of a similar height and width, it might be possible to use the same same car bodies on both trains.

So now that CAF have got the first order for the Docklands Light Railway, they must be in prime position to obtain the Tyne and Wear Metro order!

June 12, 2019 Posted by | Transport | , , | 1 Comment

Plans Shown Off For A Bridge Across The Thames At The Barrier

The title of this post is the same as that of an article on IanVisits.

This Google Map shows the location of the Thames Barrier.

Note the City Airport to the North and Charlton to the South.

I think it could be a valuable link for pedestrians and cyclists.

The Northern End

The Northern end of the bridge would be a pleasant five-minute stroll through Thames Barrier Park to the Pontoon Dock DLR station, as this Google Map shows.

Note that there is a cafe in the park.

The Southern End

What would happen at the Southern end of the bridge is less clear, as this Google Map shows.

The Thames Barrier is visible at the top of this map.

Could a network of cycle and walking routes be created between Maryon Park and the bridge?

These could also extend East to Charlton station and The Valley and West to Woolwich Dockyard station, which is just on the map.

Conclusion

I think it could be a valuable link for pedestrians and cyclists, through a new cross-river park.

 

 

June 4, 2019 Posted by | Transport | , , , , | Leave a comment

Bombardier Transportation Consortium Preferred Bidder In $4.5B Cairo Monorail

The title of this post is the same as that of this article on the Toronto Star.

This the first three paragraphs of the article.

Bombardier Transportation says its consortium has been named preferred bidder in a C$4.5 billion contract to build and supply a new monorail system in Egypt’s capital.

The company’s potential share of the design and build contract for the system in Cairo is C$1.8 billion with an operations and maintenance deal valued at about C$1.67 billion over 30 years.

The 54-kilometre monorail will connect East Cairo with the New Administrative City and a second 42-km line will connect 6th October City with Giza.

The railway division of Bombardier Inc. will deliver the project in partnership with two Egyptian companies Orascom Construction and the Arab Contractors with the trains being developed and built in Derby, Britain.

The article then mentions the Bombardier Innovia monorail.

  • The latest Innovia 300 monorail is automated and driverless.
  • These trains can travel at 80 kph
  • They can handle 48,000 passengers per hour in both directions.
  • The latest versions are manufactured in Brazil, Canada and China
  • The latest versions are installed or planned in Brazil, China, Saudi Arabia and Thailand.

I think there must be more to this project than the article in the Toronto Star.

What Are The Strengths Of The Innovia 300 Monorail?

This is Bombardier’s video of the monorail.

It looks to be a well-designed system, that has several strengths.

  • It is automated and driverless.
  • Cars are short and the trains can take quite curves, with as low as a 46 metre radius.
  • Trains can have up to eight cars. The Cairo trains will be four cars.
  • The latest cars look stylish, with cab design not unlike an Aventra.
  • The cars appear to be walkthrough.
  • The track is a slender concrete beam with walkways on either side for passenger evacuation and maintenance.
  • The tracks wouldn’t necessarily have to be elevated.
  • Construction could be quicker than a conventional railway.
  • It could also be built to travel over roads, railways, water and building, by placing the beam at the right height.

I would like to see one in operation, but Brazil is a long way, so I’ll stick with the video for the moment.

Why Develop And Build In Derby?

Why would a big company like Bombardier, with already three production lines for the monorail, want to setup another production line in Derby?

Bombardier say that the trains will also be developed in Derby.

Perhaps, some or all of these reasons apply.

  • The cross-section of an Innovia 300 monorail car looks to be about the size of a British train.
  • Can Derby’s manufacturing technology that has been used successfully to build Electrostar and Aventra bodies be applied to the Innovia monorail.
  • Derby has good relations with a large number of appropriate suppliers in the UK and Europe.
  • The new version will use the Aventra parts bin to cut development and manufacturing costs.
  • Supporting the Egyptian system from Derby will not be difficult.
  • Canada has better relations with the UK, than Brazil or China.

But even so, development could surely have been continued in Canada.

So Bombardier must have very good reasons!

Are Bombardier Proposing A Closely-Related Design For The Tyne And Wear Metro?

The current Class 994 trains of the Tyne and Wear Metro have the following dimensions.

  • Width – 2.65 metres
  • Height – 3.45 metres
  • Car Length – 27.8 metres
  • Train Length – 55.6 metres

The Class 710 train, which is an Aventra has the following dimensions.

  • Width – 2.77 metres
  • Height – 3.76 metres

So it would appear that the standard Aventra might be too large to fit the Metro, where Bombardier are approved bidders.

It does appear that Bombardier have designed the Aventra’s body from three aluminium extrusions, so these could be resized to fit the smaller dimensions of the Metro.

But looking at the video of the Innovia 300 monorail, I get the impression, that above the floor, the body might be almost the same size as that needed for the trains for the Metro.

So Bombardier would need to design an appropriate chassis, to replace that used for the monorail.

This could mean that the bodies on both trains could be identical.

  • Four fifteen metre cars, would give a length of sixty metres.
  • If longer trains are needed, then extra cars could be inserted up to a length of eight cars.
  • The trains would be walk-through with lots of doors for easy exit according to the video.
  • The four-car design would enable tight curves could be negotiated.
  • There would surely be advantages in support and maintenance.
  • Cabs could be provide for the driver if required.

I also believe that any new trains must have step-free access between train and platform. This picture shows a current train at South Shields station.

 

That is not bad for a system that opened forty years ago.

I would think that Bombardier will make the access better, when designing a new chassis from scratch.

But the big advantages of commonality between the Innovia monorail and the Metro cars, would be in the areas of support and expansion or lengthening of the fleet in the future.

What About The Docklands Light Railway?

The Docklands Light Railway like the Tyne and Wear Metro, is another one-off system, that is incompatible with most other rail systems in the UK.

The DLR is intending to replace the rolling stock and Bombardier has been shortlisted.

The current trains of the DLR have the following dimensions.

  • Width – 2.65 metres
  • Height – 3.47 metres
  • Car Length – 28 metres
  • Train Length – 56 metres

Give or take a few millimetres, they are almost the same size as the trains on the Tyne and Wear Metro.

Could we see similar trains on the Tyne and Wear Metro and the Docklands Light Railway?

Wikipedia says that the new DLR fleet will be 87 metres long, so could that mean six 14.5 metre cars?

A Possible Tram-Train?

Bombardier build trams and have supplied them to the UK.

The UK has just started to develop tram-train systems, with the South Wales Metro being developed in the next few years with Class 399 tram-trains.

If Bombardier use the concept, I’ve outlined here for the Tyne and Wear Metro and the Docklands Light Railway, I believe it is only a short development to get a tram-train, that could run in the UK

I’m sure that they could get it to work in Blackpool, where the company supplied their trams for the Blackpool tramway.

Are Bombardier Expecting Orders From Europe?

It was only in 2014, that the first Innovia 300 monorail route, Line 15 (São Paulo Metro), opened in Brazil.

But since then, have several Transport Authorities, City Councils and Governments visited Brazil to have a look?

Do Bombardier feel that they will be selling other systems in Europe?

If so, then Derby will be an excellent sales, development,  production and support base.

Could We See Some Monorails In The UK?

If you look at the list of Bombardier Innovia systems on Wikipedia, there are several short systems at places like airports and theme parks and a few longer systems of which the Cairo system will be the longest.

I can see opportunities for the shorter distance systems.

  • As a part of developments of Heathrow Airport’s third runway.
  • As a part of the development of Gatwick Airport’s second runway.
  • Linking Ebbsfleet International and Northfleet stations.
  • Linking East Midlands Airport to East Midlands Parkway station.
  • Linking the proposed Eden Centre at Morecambe with Lancaster station.
  • Linking Bristol Airport to the City Centre
  • Greenhithe station to the Bluewater shopping Centre.
  • It could be a modern replacement for the Liverpool Overhead Railway.

There are probably other locations at stations, airports and theme parts, where Innovia monorail systems could be installed.

As to a longer system in the UK, the only one I can think off would be to link High Speed Two at East Midlands Hub station to Derby and Nottingham and perhaps East Midlands Airport.

But then that would then be a system on Derby’s doorstep.

Conclusion

There are possibilities and with a billion pound-plus order, the project could be on its way!

But surely, the big advantage to Bombardier is if they get the orders for the new trains for the Tyne and Wear Metro and the Docklands Light Railway, they can create trains with a lot of shared components for all three applications.

The two UK systems would get trains that weren’t totally unique, which must ease maintenance and future expansions of the respective systems.

 

 

May 28, 2019 Posted by | Transport | , , , , , | 5 Comments

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