The Anonymous Widower

Network Rail’s Test Track Take Centre Stage As Hydrogen Is Delivered By Rail For The First Time

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from GeoPura.

These three paragraphs introduce the story.

Network Rail, working with rail and energy partners Freightliner and GeoPura, has transported hydrogen for the first time on Britain’s rail network, marking a major step forward for both the rail and energy sectors.

The milestone was achieved yesterday (Wednesday 3 December) at Network Rail’s Test Tracks* site in Tuxford, where freight operator Freightliner hauled a train of gas containers from Doncaster to High Marnham – marking Britain’s first shipment of hydrogen by rail.

It was part of a rail and energy industry innovation event showcasing several hydrogen initiatives. This included the first re-engineered hydrogen-powered shunting locomotive – seen as a step towards replacing diesel – another milestone towards the rail industry’s goal of becoming net zero. The event also demonstrated HPU hydrogen-powered generators, lighting towers and support vehicles.

These two paragraphs describe Network Rail’s test track at Tuxford and GeoPura’s hydrogen production facility at High Marnham.

Network Rail’s site at Tuxford runs all the way to High Marnham, where it sits adjacent to HyMarnham Power, the UK’s largest green hydrogen production facility operated by GeoPura and JG Pears. Built on the site of a former coal-fired power station, HyMarnham Power is one of the world’s first rail-connected hydrogen production facilities, and Network Rail’s Tuxford site will be the world’s first net-zero railway testing facility.

Currently, hydrogen is transported by road. This breakthrough marks a major step towards the rail network becoming a ready-made hydrogen distribution system, a rolling pipeline, with connections to all major industrial and urban centres across Britain – proving the practical capability of rail to transport hydrogen at scale. Hydrogen will also be utilised to decarbonise wider rail operations, from construction to ongoing maintenance and off-grid operations.

This OpenRailwayMap shows Tuxford and High Marnham.

Note.

  1. The blue arrow is Tuxford West junction.
  2. The North-South red track is the East Coast Main Line. East-West track indicated by the blue arrow is Network Rail’s Test Track
  3. The grey area, to the South of the Test Track in the East is the former site of High Marnham power station, where GeoPura have their hydrogen facility.
  4. If you continue East on the Test Track it connects to the Sheffield and Lincoln Line at Pye Wipe junction.

Sheffield could be the sort of city, that would need a lot of hydrogen to decarbonise.

Has  Hydrogen Been Transported From ICI’s Former Site At Runcorn By Rail

I ask this question, as I used to work at Runcorn in the 1960s, and I don’t remember seeing any hydrogen railway wagons.

I asked Google AI, the question in the title of this section and received this answer.

Hydrogen is typically transported from the INEOS (formerly ICI) site in Runcorn via pipeline or by road in cryogenic liquid tanker trucks or gaseous tube trailers, but it has not been historically transported by rail from that specific site.
The first ever trial shipment of hydrogen by rail on Britain’s network took place only very recently, in December 2025, as part of an industry innovation event. This trial involved transporting hydrogen containers from Doncaster to High Marnham, adjacent to the HyMarnham Power green hydrogen production facility.

It looks like my memory and Google AI agree.

December 5, 2025 Posted by | Artificial Intelligence, Energy, Hydrogen, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

FIRST TO THE FUTURE: Lumo Owner Bids To Turbo-Charge UK Rail With New Routes

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from First Group.

These first three paragraphs introduce FirstGroup’s application for the first phase of three separate applications to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) for new and extended open access rail services.

FirstGroup plc plans to expand its open access rail operations through its successful Lumo business, boosting connectivity, improving UK productivity and passenger choice across the UK.

The expansion aims to replicate the success of Lumo’s Edinburgh to London service in driving material growth on the East Coast Main Line. Lumo operates without government subsidy and contributes more per train mile to infrastructure investment than any other long-distance operator – delivering growth on the railway and connectivity to local communities, at a substantial benefit to the taxpayer.

FirstGroup has submitted the first phase of three separate applications to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) for new and extended open access rail services, which are described in these bullet points.

  • A revised application to run new services between Rochdale and London Euston via Manchester Victoria from December 2028; 
  • An extension to Lumo’s current Stirling to London Euston track access agreement to operate services beyond 2030;
  • A new route between Cardiff and York via Birmingham, Derby, and Sheffield from December 2028; and
  • Purchase of new trains meaning continued investment in UK manufacturing of c.£300 million, and long-term jobs.

This paragraph from the press release describes the philosophy of the rolling stock.

Should these applications be successful, FirstGroup will make use of its option to commit further investment in new Hitachi trains built in County Durham. This investment will include five battery electric trains for the Stirling route and three battery electric trains for Rochdale, supporting jobs at Hitachi’s Newton Aycliffe plant. For the services between Cardiff and York, it will deploy refurbished Class 222s.

Note.

  1. The Class 222 trains will run the Euston and Stirling service until the future Hitachi trains are delivered in 2028.
  2. The Class 222 trains will run the Cardiff and York service from 2028.
  3. The Class 222 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph
  4. Avanti West Coast’s Class 390 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  5. Avanti West Coast’s Class 805 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph on electrification.
  6. Avanti West Coast’s Class 807 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  7. Grand Central Trains’s future Hitachi trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  8. Hull Trains’s Class 802 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  9. Lumo’s current Class 803 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  10. LNER’s current Class 800 and 801 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  11. LNER’s current InterCity 225 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  12. LNER’s future Class 897 trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph.
  13. All of the trains, with the exception of the Class 222 trains are electric and have been designed for 140 mph running and can do this if there is appropriate 140 mph signalling.

If the Class 222 trains don’t run on the East and West Coast Main Lines, then these lines could introduce 140 mph running in stages to speed up rail travel between London and the North of England and Scotland.

Rochdale And London

These three paragraphs from the press release describe the proposed Rochdale and London service.

The new Lumo service will operate the first direct service since 2000 between Rochdale and London. Services will call at Manchester Victoria, Eccles, Newton-le-Willows and Warrington Bank Quay. Eccles station connects other parts of the city of Salford, including the fast-growing MediaCity area, via the nearby interchange with Metrolink. Services to Newton-le-Willows will deliver greater rail connectivity for St Helens.

There will be three new return services on weekdays and Sundays, and four return services on Saturdays, which will provide 1.6 million people in the north-west with a convenient and competitively priced direct rail service to London, encouraging people to switch from cars to train as well as providing additional rail capacity. It will also deliver material economic benefits for the communities along the route, including regeneration areas such as Atom Valley and the Liverpool City Region Freeport scheme.

The application has been revised to address the ORR’s concerns about network capacity set out in its letter of July 2025 rejecting FirstGroup’s original application. Supported by extensive modelling, the company has identified sufficient space on the network to accommodate the proposed services. Services will also make use of the Government’s recent investment in power supply for the West Coast Mainline (WCML).

In FirstGroup’s Lumo Seeks To Launch Rochdale – London Open Access Service, I gave my thoughts for Lumo’s application last year.

Differences between the two applications include.

  • The service will be run by Lumo’s standard battery-electric Hitachi trains.
  • The original application was for six return journeys per day, whereas the new application is for three return services on weekdays and Sundays, and four return services on Saturdays.

Note.

  1. The battery-electric trains will be able bridge the 10.4 mile gap between Manchester Victoria and Rochdale, and return after charging on the West Coast Main Line.
  2. The battery-electric trains could be useful during engineering works or other disruptions.
  3. The trains would be ready for 140 mph running on the West Coast Main Line, when the digital signalling is installed.
  4. Is the extra return service on a Saturday to cater for football and rugby fans?

I still feel, that with Lumo’s battery-electric trains one or more services could extend across the Pennines to Hebden Bridge, Bradford Interchange or Leeds. Trains would be recharged for return at Leeds.

Stirling And London

This  paragraph from the press release describes the proposed Stirling and London service.

Stirling has a wide catchment area, with an estimated three million people living within an hour’s drive. Extending the current track access agreement for the Stirling route from May 2030 will support the shift from car to rail, and investment in the city, as well as in the service’s intermediate stations which include Larbert, Greenfaulds and Whifflet, thanks to greater connectivity to London. The four return services weekdays and Saturdays, and three on Sundays, on the new route are expected to start early in the company’s 2027 financial year.

In Lumo To Expand Scotland’s Rail Network With New London-Stirling Rail Route From Spring 2026, I gave my thoughts for Lumo’s application in June 2025.

Differences between the two applications include.

  • The service will only be run initially by Class 222 trains.
  • The service will be run by Lumo’s standard battery-electric Hitachi trains after 2028.
  • The original application was for five return journeys per day, whereas the new application is for four return services on weekdays and Saturdays, and three return services on Sundays.
  • In the original application, Lumo’s new route was to link London Euston directly to Stirling, also calling at Milton Keynes, Nuneaton, Crewe, Preston, Carlisle, Lockerbie, Motherwell, Whifflet (serving Coatbridge), Greenfaulds (serving Cumbernauld) and Larbert.

Note.

  1. The battery-electric trains could be useful during engineering works or other disruptions.
  2. The trains would be ready for 140 mph running on the West Coast Main Line, when the digital signalling is installed.
  3. Is the extra return service on a Saturday to cater for football and rugby fans?

It should be noted that there are always more return services per day going to Stirling, than Rochdale.

Could The Rochdale and Stirling Services Share A Path?

Consider.

  • The two services use the West Coast Main Line South of Warrington Bank Quay station.
  • Pairs of Class 803 trains can split and join.
  • A pair of Class 803 trains are shorter than an 11-car Class 390 train.
  • An 11-car Class 390 train can call in Warrington Bank Quay or Crewe stations.

I believe that the Rochdale and Stiring services could share a path.

  • One Weekday service per day would be a single train.
  • Going South, the trains would join at Warrington Bank Quay or Crewe stations.
  • Going North, the trains would split at Warrington Bank Quay or Crewe stations.
  • The pair of trains would share a platform at Euston station.

Operating like this would increase the connectivity and attractiveness of the services, and probably increase the ridership and profitability.

Cardiff And York  via Birmingham, Derby And Sheffield

These four paragraphs from the press release describe the proposed Cardiff and York service.

Lumo’s new route between Cardiff and York will join up the entire Great British Railway network, connecting all four main lines from the Great Western Main Line to the East Coast Main Line. The plans will also deliver more capacity and drive passenger demand on a previously underserved corridor.

The application proposes six return services each weekday – a significant increase from the current single weekly service.

Bringing Lumo’s popular low-cost model to the corridor will support local communities between Cardiff, Birmingham, Derby, Sheffield, and York. These cities alone have a combined population of more than 2.5 million people. The new services will give local communities access to jobs and services along the route, in support of significant investment that has already been committed by the Government and private sector. This investment includes the Cardiff Capital Regional Investment Zone, the £140million proposed refurbishment at Cardiff Central station, the West Midlands Investment Zone which is expected to create £5.5 billion of growth and 30,000 new jobs, as well as investment plans in Derby, Sheffield and York.

The ORR will now carry out a consultation exercise as well as discuss the applications with Network Rail to secure the required approvals.

Note.

  1. Only minimal details are given of the route.
  2. The TransPennine Upgrade will create a new electrified route across the Pennines between York and Huddersfield via Church Fenton, Leeds and Dewsbury.
  3. The Penistone Line is being upgraded, so that it will handle two trains per hour.
  4. In the 1980s, the Penistone Line took InterCity 125s to Barnsley.
  5. The connection with the Penistone Line at Huddersfield has been upgraded.

I am reasonably certain, that FirstGroup intend to route the York and Cardiff service over this partially electrified route.

Sections of the route will be as follows.

  • Cardiff and Westerleigh junction – 38 miles – Electrified
  • Westerleigh junction and Bromsgrove – 65.2 miles – Not Electrified
  • Bromsgrove and Proof House junction – 15 miles – Electrified
  • Proof House junction and Derby – 40.6 miles – Not Electrified
  • Derby and Sheffield – 36.4 miles – Not Electrified
  • Sheffield and Huddersfield – 36.4 miles – Not Electrified
  • Huddersfield and York – 41.9 miles – Electrified

There are only two sections of track, that is not electrified.

  • Westerleigh junction and Bromsgrove – 65.2 miles
  • Proof House junction and Huddersfield – 113.4 miles

Out of a total of 273.5 miles, I believe in a few years, with a small amount of extra electrification or more powerful batteries, Hitachi’s battery-electric high-speed trains will have this route cracked and the Class 222 trains can be sent elsewhere to develop another route.

October 30, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Huddersfield Station – 30th September 2025

This press release on the Network Rail Media Centre is entitled Huddersfield Station Set To Reopen Next Week With New Temporary Layout.

As it is now next week, I went to have a look at the progress today.

I made a mistake and got on a Grand Central Train, which meant, I had to change at York.

Speeding past Drax power station on the Selby Diversion, I took these pictures.

We were only in a 125 mph diesel, so we couldn’t take advantage of the 160 mph running, that the East Coast Main Line’s new signalling might allow on this section. The Wikipedia entry for the Selby Diversion, says this about the possible speeds.

The line was the first purpose-built section of high-speed railway in the UK having a design speed of 125 mph; however, research by British Rail in the 1990s indicated that the route geometry would permit up to 160 mph operation, subject to the necessary overhead line equipment and signalling upgrades. The new line also avoided the speed restriction over the swing bridge at Selby. The former ECML route, the NER’s 1871 York and Doncaster branch line, was closed from Selby northwards.

As the Selby Diversion opened in 1983, I wouldn’t be surprised that the calculations were performed on British Rail Research’s Pace 231-R, which was similar to the one I used at ICI and the pair, that NASA used calculate how to land Apollo on the moon.

When I eventually got to Huddersfield, I took these pictures.

Note.

  1. In I’ve Just Glimpsed The Future Of Train Travel Across The North Of England And I Like It, there are pictures of Huddersfield station, that were taken on the 21st August, soon after the work started.
  2. In Huddersfield Station – 15th December 2023, there are pictures of Huddersfield before the work started.
  3. Much of the work seems to have been done at the Western end of the station to lengthen the platform on the Penistone Line to Sheffield.
  4. Platform 2 for the Penistone Line has also been renumbered Platform 1.

Work still to be carried out at Huddersfield station, includes refurbishing the roof, installing the electrification and adding a couple of new platforms.

These are my thoughts.

Which Platforms Will Be Electrified?

This OpenRailwayMap shows the proposed electrification in Huddersfield station.

Note.

  1. The blue arrow in the North-East corner of the map indicates Huddersfield atation.
  2. The two red-and-black tracks going diagonally across the map are the Hudderfield Line.
  3. The red-and-black colour, indicates that the two tracks will be electrified.
  4. South of these two tracks, the Penistone Line sneaks into Platform 1 at Huddersfield station.
  5. The Penistone Line goes to Sheffield in a South-Westerly direction.
  6. There appears to be a crossover, so that trains from the Penistone Line can use both Platforms 1 and 2 in Huddersfield station.
  7. The OpenRailwayMap appears to show planned electrification between Stalybridge and Leeds stations.
  8. To the East of Leeds planned electrification is shown as far as Micklefield and Church Fenton stations.

Once installed, this electrification will create a complete electrified route across the Pennines from Liverpool Lime Street in the West to the East Coast Main Line in the East.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the planned electrification between Micklefield and Hull stations.

Note.

  1. Red tracks are electrified.
  2. Black tracks are not electrified.
  3. York is in the North-West corner of the map, with the electrified East Coast Main Line going through the station North-South.
  4. South of York, the East Coast Main Line now splits.
  5. The Western branch includes an electrified line to Micklefield station, Neville Hill depot and Leeds station.
  6. The Eastern Branch is the Selby Diversion, which is an electrified 160 mph line, that avoids the Selby coalfield.
  7. Running West-East across the map is the unlectrified Micklefield and Hull Line, which goes via Selby.
  8. Hull is in the South-East corner of the map.
  9. Hull is 42 miles from Micklefield and 36.1 miles from the Temple Hirst junction on the Selby Diversion, so it is within range of battery-electric trains, with charging at Hull station.
  10. Hitachi’s battery-electric Class 802 trains, used by Hull Trains and TransPennine Express, which are currently on test, should certainly be able to serve Hull.

Hull can become an electrified station, without the expense and disruption of full electrification.

How Long Is Platform 1 At Huddersfield Station?

This OpenRailwayMap shows the new Platform 1 at Huddersfield station.

 

Note.

The blue arrow indicates Huddersfield station.

  1. The three darker orange lines indicate the two through platforms 2 and 3, and the reconfigured bay platform 1.
  2. There is a cross-over between platforms 1 and 2, which connects Platform 2 to the Penistone Line.
  3. In the South-West corner of the map is a hundred metre scale.
  4. Using the scale, I estimate that the length of the bay platform 1 is around 120 metres.
  5. In the last two rows of pictures in the gallery of this post, a three car Class 150 train is shown in Platform 1.
  6. A three car Class 150 train is approximately sixty metres long.

Looking at the pictures, I wouldn’t be surprised if the new platform has been designed to take two three-car Class 150 trains. It would certainly take a pair of two-car Class 150 trains.

Other trains and their lengths that might use the platform include.

  • Class 170 – three-car – 70.85 metres
  • Class 195 – two-car – 48.05 metres
  • Class 195 – three-car – 71.40 metres
  • Class 195 – 2 x two-car – 96.10 metres
  • Class 810 – five-car – 120 metres

The Class 810 uses 24 metre cars, so that a pair of trains, will fit in St. Pancras. But with perhaps selective door opening could a single Class 810 train run a St. Pancras and Huddersfield service, perhaps with a split and join at Sheffield.

Electrification Across The Pennines

The TransPennine Route will be electrified between Liverpool Lime Street and Micklefield stations, once the current works between Huddersfield and Leeds are complete.

Sections without electrification include.

  • Bradford Interchange and Doncaster – 52.1 miles
  • Cleethorpes and Doncaster – 52.1 miles
  • Harrogate and Leeds – 18.3 miles
  • Hazel Grove and Doncaster – 52.6 miles
  • Hull and Micklefield – 42 miles
  • Hull and Temple Hirst junction – 36.1 miles
  •  Saltburn and Northallerton – 28.1 miles
  • Sunderland and Northallerton – 46.8 miles
  • Scarborough and York – 42.1 miles

I expect that Hitachi trains with batteries or CAF’s tri-mode trains will be able to handle these routes in a low-carbon manner.

Electrification Between Stalybridge And Huddersfield

This section is shown as being electrified on OpenRailwayMap.

But as it is only 18 miles and includes the Standedge Tunnels will the route use battery-electric trains?

October 1, 2025 Posted by | Computing, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

How Will The East Coast Main Line Timetable Change Affect Sheffield?

This article in the October 2025 Edition of Modern Railways is entitled Industry Gears Up For December ECML Timetable Change.

This is the first paragraph.

Major changes are planned to trains along the East Coast main line from 14 December as the long-heralded timetable takes effect.

In this post, I will see how the changes detailed in the article in Modern Railways will affect Sheffield and Doncaster.

Aberdeen-Edinburgh

This is said about Aberdeen and Edinburgh services.

Monday-Saturday services will not change between Aberdeen and Edinburgh, with all intermediate stations served at similar times.

The LNER service to and from King’s Cross will call additionally at Doncaster, Newark Northgate and Peterborough; the last LNER Monday-Friday departure from Aberdeen will terminate at Doncaster instead of Leeds, and the first LNER Monday-Saturday train to Aberdeen will start from King’s Cross at 05:48 instead of Leeds.

Note.

  1. An hourly fast train between Edinburgh and King’s Cross will have a journey time of 4 hours and 10 minutes, which is a saving of at least 12 minutes.
  2. There is an Aberdeen-Manchester air service, but no Edinburgh-Manchester or Leeds-Scotland air services.
  3. In Could London And Central Scotland Air Passengers Be Persuaded To Use The Trains?, I speculated about how air passengers could be tempted to use the trains between London and Central Scotland.
  4. It looks to me, that LNER are strengthening their services between Doncaster and Scotland.
  5. Will that 05:48 King’s Cross departure for Aberdeen, enable a working day in Aberdeen and return?

Is LNER’s aim to get travellers to use the trains between Doncaster and Scotland, as an alternative to driving or trains from Leeds?

Alnmouth and Berwick

This is said about Alnmouth services.

Quicker LNER journey times are promised to stations South of York, with King’s Cross-Alnmouth journey times up to 15 minutes quicker.

More TPE trains will run between Newcastle, Morpeth, Alnmouth, Berwick, Reston, Dunbar, East Linton and Edinburgh Waverley.

The number of trains calling at Durham on weekdays will fall from 18 to 13 Southbound and from 15 to 10 Northbound.

This is said about Berwick services.

LNER trains will call every two hours during the middle of the day, and the number of weekday trains to King’s Cross falls from 15 to 11 Southbound with a 13 to nine fall Northbound. More TPE trains will call.

Note.

  1. Lumo serves Newcastle, Morpeth and Edinburgh.
  2. Reston and East Linton are new stations.
  3. The stations between Newcastle and Edinburgh need adequate parking to attract commuters.

It looks to me, that LNER are timing the trains to attract day trips along the East Coast Main Line.

Bradford Forster Square/Interchange

This is said about Bradford Forster Square services.

The number of weekday trains will remain as per May 2025, but on Sundays, the number of trains serving Forster Square increases from two to six each way on a two-hourly interval. LNER stopping patterns change, with fewer trains calling at Peterborough and none at Grantham or Retford.

Trains currently stop at Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield Westgate, Leeds and Shipley, but surely a more regular six trains per day (tpd) is preferable.

 

This is said about Bradford Interchange services.

At Interchange, Grand Central Trains will run at different times to the May 2025 timetable, with King’s Cross journeys up to 20 minutes quicker. One GC each way will call at Peterborough, while some will stop at Pontefract Monkhill on Sundays for the first time.

Note.

  1. Trains currently stop at Peterborough, Doncaster, Pontefract Monkhill, Wakefield Kirkgate, Mirfield, Brighouse, Halifax and Low Moor
  2. Is the twenty minutes time saving due to the new digital signalling to the South of Doncaster?
  3. Is this another open access operator being allowed to do what they do best?

This looks to be a very useful service, which serves several stations, with no other service to London.

Doncaster

This is said about Doncaster services.

Additional trains calling at destinations including Birmingham New Street, Sheffield, York, Newark and Berwick-upon-Tweed. LNER Aberdeen/Inverness trains will call at Doncaster. EMR trains will be retimed at Doncaster to provide better connections with LNER’s revised timetables, but journeys from Doncaster to Sleaford and Spalding will require a change at Lincoln. This change has been made to “enable improved connections” at Peterborough, Sleaford, Lincoln and Doncaster. The number of trains calling at Stevenage falls from 24 to 19 Southbound and 24 to 21 Northbound, with Grantham stops dropping by seven trains to 28 Southbound and 4 to 29 Northbound.

If CrossCountry Trains were to switch their trains to Hitachi InterCity Battery trains, I believe that a version of these trains could handle routes like Plymouth and Aberdeen.

  • This would speed up services.
  • Trains would run close together and thus increase capacity.
  • Services could even be faster.

So expect a replacement order for CrossCountry Trains diesel multiple units soon.

Glasgow

LNER gave up serving Glasgow Central from King’s Cross in the December 2024 timetable change.

In Lumo Will Extend Its King’s Cross And Edinburgh Service To Glasgow, I talked about Lumo extending their King’s Cross and Edinburgh service to Glasgow Central station.

Hull

This is said about Hull services.

On Mondays-Fridays, Hull Trains will provide an extra train from London.

The LNER Monday-Friday Hull-Doncaster train will be withdrawn;

Northern will operate a 20:25 departure to Doncaster; calling at Brough and Selby.

Note.

  1. It looks like Great British Railways have surrendered Hull and Beverley to Hull Trains.
  2. Hull Trains are converting their Class 802 trains to battery-electric power.
  3. It is likely that Hull Trains upgraded trains will be able to use the Great Northern and Great Eastern Joint Line via Lincoln on battery power.

The new timetable appears to be ready for the future of Hull Trains.

Leeds

This is said about Leeds services.

LNER services will depart to King’s Cross at xx.10 and xx.40.

Northern will introduce an extra mostly hourly service between  Leeds and Sheffield calling at Wakefield Westgate. They will depart about 30 minutes earlier or later than the CrossCountry service.

Note.

  1. I would expect the two King’s Cross and Leeds services which would both stop at Doncaster and Wakefield Westgate would set the timings between Doncaster and Leeds.
  2. Currently, of the four trains that run to and from Leeds every two hours, two are planned to terminate at Leeds, one at Harrogate and one at Bradford Forster Square.
  3. There is also a daily service between King’s Cross and Skipton via Leeds.
  4. I can envisage another service between  King’s Cross and Ilkley via Leeds, Kirkstall Forge, Guiseley, Burley-in-Wharfedale and Ben Rhydding.
  5. I can envisage another service between King’s Cross and Huddersfield, via Leeds, White Rose, Morley, Batley, Dewsbury, Ravensthorpe, Mirfield and Deighton.
  6. I can envisage another service between King’s Cross and Hebden Bridge, via Leeds, White Rose, Morley, Batley, Dewsbury, Ravensthorpe, Mirfield, Sowerby Bridge, Mytholmroyd and Brighouse.
  7. An alternative to Hebden Bridge would be Rochdale, which already has four platforms and is on the Manchester Metrolink
  8. It appears that Bradford Forster Square, Harrogate, Huddersfield, Leeds and Skipton stations can turn nine or ten-car trains and Ilkley can turn five-car trains.
  9. I also believe that one of Hitachi’s InterCity Battery trains could use battery power to take the spectacular Settle and Carlisle Line to Carlisle or even Glasgow Central.
  10. If needed pairs of five-car trains could split and join at Leeds, with one train waiting at Leeds and the other train going on to another destination.
  11. The CrossCountry and Northern Trains services on the Sheffield and Leeds route via Doncaster and Wakefield Westgate would probably need to be modern battery-electric trains to maximise the capacity on the route.

There certainly seem to be opportunities to give a number of stations in Yorkshire an all-electric service to King’s Cross with a two-hourly frequency, in a time of a few minutes over two hours.

Lincoln

This is said about Lincoln services.

One more LNER train from King’s Cross will run, with the first train arriving earlier and the last train later. There will no longer be an LNER train serving Stevenage with passengers having to change at Newark Northgate or Peterborough. An improved service will run to and from Nottingham, with an increase from one to two trains per hour on Mondays-Saturdays. An hourly service will run to Crewe, and a new Matlock-Nottingham-Lincoln-Cleethorpes service will run. EMR will cease all bar morning peak direct trains to/from Leicester. Newark Northgate-Lincoln trains will be reduced from five to four on Mondays-Fridays, eight to four on Saturdays and ten to eight on Sundays.

Note.

  1. Travellers between Lincoln/Nottingham and the North/Scotland will have two trains per hour to Newark Northgate, where there will be two tph to the North/Scotland.
  2. The hourly Crewe service will give access to Liverpool Manchester and the West Coast Main Line.
  3. Will there still be a Liverpool and Norwich service or will this be replaced by East-West Rail?

There seems to be a big sort out to EMR services.

Newcastle

This is said about Newcastle services.

The number of trains serving King’s Cross increases from 35 to 53 Southbound on weekdays and from 36 to 52 Northbound. One train every hour will run non-stop to York. More TPE trains will run Northbound (see Alnmouth and Berwick), while Northern is retiming services on the Northumberland Line in anticipation of Northumberland Park and Bedlington stations opening in early 2026. A semi-fast hourly service between Newcastle and Middlesbrough will run on Mondays-Saturdays and there will be an hourly stopping service between them.

Note.

  1. There will be a big increase in services between King’s Cross and Newcastle.
  2. Is the aim to persuade travellers to use trains rather than airlines?
  3. LNER also runs one train per day (tpd) between King’s Cross and Middlesbrough.
  4. Grand Central Trains will be running at a frequency of six tpd between King’s Cross and Sunderland via Thirsk, Northallerton, Eaglescliffe, Hartlepool and Seaham.

Hull appears to have been left to Hull Trains and Glasgow to Lumo, and Sunderland appears to be left for Grand Central Trains.

Conclusions

I am coming to some conclusions about services on the East Coast Main Line, with respect to Sheffield.

Doncaster Is A Well-Equipped Station

Doncaster is the nearest station to Sheffield on the East Coast Main Line.

  • Over the last few years, Doncaster station has been improved.
  • It has a subway with a more than adequate number of lifts.
  • The station has nearly 600 parking spaces.
  • There is a taxi rank.
  • There is no Marks & Spencer’s food store, which is important for a coeliac like me.
  • There are thirty bus stands close to Doncaster station.
  • Doncaster station is well-equipped with cafes, a pub and coffee stalls.
  • All trains to Aberdeen, Bradford Forster Square, Bradford Interchange, Edinburgh, Hull, King’s Cross, Leeds, Sheffield and Wakefield seem to stop at the station.
  • There are several local trains per hour.
  • Changing trains is not a strenuous exercise.

Doncaster is one of the UK’s better regional stations.

Doncaster Needs A Connection To The Sheffield Supertram

One of the first things, I do when I arrive in a strange town or city is look for the local public transport network.

In 2019, Sheffield published an ambitious plan for their tram network, which I wrote about in Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 – Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

The post contained this map, of Sheffield’s plans for the trams.

Doncaster and Doncaster Sheffield Airport are connected to the current end of the tram-train route at Rotherham Parkgate.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the rail lines between Rotherham Parkgate and Doncaster.

Note.

  1. Doncaster station is in the North-East corner of the map.
  2. Rotherham Central station is in the South-West corner of the map.
  3. The blue arrow in the South-West corner indicates Rotherham Parkgate tram stop.
  4. Swinton, Mexborough and Conisbrough stations can be picked out.
  5. The dotted red line running North-South across the map is the route of the ill-fated Eastern Leg of High Speed Two.

It is a simple application of tram-train technology to connect Doncaster station and Doncaster Sheffield Airport to the Sheffield Supertram.

With all the comings and goings on the East Coast Main Line at Doncaster station, I believe that the tram-train connection to Sheffield and Rotherham is essential.

The Cities Of Bradford, Doncaster, Leeds, Sheffield and Wakefield Can Have a High-Frequency Rail Connection

Consider.

  • Four stations are all step-free with a bridge or subway served by lifts.
  • Bradford Forster Square station has level access to the platforms from the street.
  • The rail lines between the five stations are electrified, with the exception of Sheffield and Doncaster.
  • Services between the cities are run by CrossCountry Trains, Grand Central Trains, Hull Trains, LNER and Northern Trains.
  • Most maximum speeds are not unduly slow.

Consequently the five cities can have a high-frequency rail connection in excess of four tph.

Could this be the basis of a Five-Cities Metro?

Open Access Services

There are six open access services running on the East Coast Main Line.

  • Grand Central Trains – King’s Cross-Bradford Interchange via Peterborough, Doncaster, Pontefract Monkhill, Wakefield Kirkgate, Mirfield, Brighouse, Halifax and Low Moor – 4 tpd
  • Grand Central Trains – King’s Cross-Sunderland via Peterborough, York, Thirsk, Northallerton, Eaglescliffe and Hartlepool – 6 tpd
  • Hull Trains – King’s Cross-Hull via Stevenage, Grantham, Retford, Doncaster, Selby, Howden, Brough – 4 tpd
  • Hull Trains – King’s Cross-Beverley via Stevenage, Grantham, Retford, Doncaster, Selby, Howden, Brough, Hull and Cottingham  – 2 tpd
  • Lumo – King’s Cross-Edinbugh via Stevenage, Newcastle and Morpeth – 5 tpd
  • Lumo – King’s Cross-Glasgow Queen Street via Stevenage, Newcastle, Morpeth, Edinburgh and Falkirk High – 2 tpd

Note.

  1. tpd is trains per day.
  2. All seem to serve an exclusive area, except Lumo.
  3. In a couple of years, all could be using Hitachi trains.
  4. I suspect some services will swap their diesel generators for batteries.

Battery-power would allow some services to be zero-carbon, even when using the GNGE diversion.

 

 

 

 

September 22, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Do Hitachi Battery Electric InterCity Trains Have Problems?

I asked Google the question in the title of this post and got this answer.

While Hitachi’s battery-powered intercity trains have shown promising results in trials, particularly regarding fuel savings and emissions reduction, there are some potential challenges and considerations. These include safety concerns related to lithium battery fires, especially in the event of a crash or derailment, as well as range limitations for longer journeys. However, the technology is continuously evolving, and Hitachi is actively working to address these issues.

That seems fairly positive.

There is also this article on the BBC, which everybody should read, which is entitled Will New Battery-Powered Trains Replace Diesel, And Are They Safe?.

In The Data Sheet For Hitachi Battery Electric Trains, I look at the data sheet, that Hitachi published in late 2023.

These were my conclusions about the data sheet.

These are my conclusions about Hitachi’s battery packs for Class 80x trains, which were written in November 2023.

  • The battery pack has a capacity of 750 kWh.
  • A five-car train needs three battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
  • A nine-car train needs five battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
  • The maximum range of a five-car train with three batteries is 117 miles.
  • The maximum range of a nine-car train with five batteries is 121 miles.

As battery technology gets better, these distances will increase.

Hitachi have seen my figures.

They also told me, that they were in line with their figures, but new and better batteries would increase range.

125 mph trains with a 120 mile range on batteries, would revolutionise UK train travel.

LNER’s Class 897 Trains

In the Wikipedia entry for LNER, this is said about LNER’s new ten CAF tri-mode trains.

In November 2023, LNER placed an order for 10 ten-car tri-mode (electric, diesel and battery power) Civity trains from CAF. In August 2024, it was announced that the units will be designated Class 897 under TOPS.

According to their Wikipedia entry, it appears the Class 897 trains will be delivered from 2027.

Can I Build A Schedule For The Introduction Of New Trains, Services and Batteries?

I think that I can from the information that is out there.

  • East Coast Main Line – December 2025 – Introduction of Lumo between London King’s Cross and Glasgow
  • West Coast Main Line – Spring 2026 – Introduction of Lumo between London Euston and Stirling
  • Midland Main Line – 2026-2027 – Introduction of EMR Class 810 trains between London St. Pancras and Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield.
  • East Coast Main Line – From 2027 – Introduction of LNER Class 897 trains between London King’s Cross and Yorkshire.

Note.

  1. The two Lumo services use trains already in service.
  2. The Class 810 trains for EMR are being debugged and introduced at the present time.
  3. The only new trains are the Class 897 trains for LNER.
  4. The introduction of the Class 897 trains will allow LNER to withdraw some trains for refurbishment and fitting of batteries.

This would mean that before the next general election, almost the full timetable between London and the North of England and Scotland would have been implemented using diesel-electric technology.

Is it a low-risk start to the full electrification of services to the North?

The second-phase would see battery-electric trains introduced.

I believe that Grand Central’s new trains would be brought into service first.

  • The new trains are scheduled to be introduced in 2028.
  • Grand Central will still have the diesel trains for backup.
  • Their new trains would be similar to the other Hitachi trains.
  • It looks like they could be doing some splitting and joining.

After the Grand Central trains had been introduced successfully, the trains for the other Hitachi operators would have batteries fitted.

I suspect short routes like Lincoln would be electrified with battery-electric trains first.

There would also need to be short lengths of electrification erected, so that trains could be charged to send them on their way.

Other routes could also be electrified in the same way.

  • Basingstoke and Exeter
  • Birmingham and Aberystwyth
  • Bristol and Penzance
  • Cardiff and Swansea
  • Crewe and Holyhead
  • Edinburgh and Aberdeen
  • Edinburgh and Inverness
  • Reading and Taunton
  • Swindon and Gloucester

If this technique could work for main lines, surely a scaled down version with smaller trains would work for branch lines.

Conclusion

Consider.

  • It looks to me, that someone has planned this thoroughly.
  • It all fits together extremely well.

It could be the first phase of a cunning plan to use battery-electric trains to electrify the UK’s railways.

Passengers will also see benefits, from when Lumo runs its first train into Glasgow Queen Street station.

I don’t think Hitachi’s trains have any problems, but there is enough float in this plan to make sure, it can be implemented on time and on budget.

 

August 6, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Darlington Station – 26th June 2025

I visited Darlington station, three times on my trip.

These pictures are in chronological order.

Note.

  1. The station is being given a major upgrade, so it can handle more trains.
  2. The station has a large number of top-quality Victorian features.
  3. The station is Grade II* Listed.
  4. Inside the enormous train-shed are two long platforms, that handle most of the trains and two South-facing bay platforms.
  5. Two new platforms, which are numbered 5 & 6,  and possibly a double-track avoiding line are being added outside the train-shed on the East side.
  6. In images with a comment saying Note Platform 5, the new long electrified Platform 5 can be seen.
  7. Platform 5 appears to be already electrified at its Southern end.

These three OpenRailwayMaps shows the future layout.

 

The first OpenRailwayMap shows the junction, where the branch to Newton Aycliffe, Shildon and Bishop Auckland connects.

Note.

  1. The red tracks are electrified and indicate the East Coast Main Line.
  2. The track curving off to the North-West is the Bishop Auckland Branch.
  3. The black tracks are not-electrified.
  4. The Bishop Auckland Branch is shown dotted black and red, as it will be electrified, so that Hitachi can get their new trains to the East Coast Main Line.
  5. The two tracks of the East Coast Main Line are very straight and the map shows them to have a 125 mph operating speed.

The second OpenRailwayMap, shows the lines immediately to the South of Darlington station.

 

Note.

  1. The red tracks are electrified.
  2. The black tracks are not electrified.
  3. Tracks are number 4, 3, 2 and 1 from the West.
  4. The Southern ends of Platforms 1 and 4, and Platforms 2 and 3, which are inside the current train-shed appear to be virtually unchanged.
  5. Platform 1 is electrified and will probably still cater for Southbound trains.
  6. Platforms 2 and 3 are bay platforms without electrification for trains terminating at Darlington.
  7. Platform 4 is electrified and will probably still cater for Northbound trains.
  8. There is an electrified avoiding line to the East of Platform 1.
  9. The brick wall of the current train shed is in the white space to the East of Platform 1.
  10. Outside the current train shed are two electrified 125 mph lines, an electrified through platform and a South-facing bay platform without electrification.
  11. The  new electrified platform looks very long. Could it be long enough to handle a pair of High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains? I suspect though it is long enough to handle the splitting and joining of a pair of five-car Hitachi Class 80x trains.
  12. The new bay platform looks longer that the current bay platforms 2 & 3. Is it long enough to handle a five-car Hitachi Class 80x train?
  13. It does appear from the track layout, that the new electrified platform is connected to the East Coast Main Line, the Saltburn branch and stabling sidings to the North of the station.
  14. The new bay platform appears to be connected to the Saltburn branch.

The two new platforms also appear to be adjacent to an area of the station, which is labelled Darlington Station Gateway East. I would assume, that this proximity will be used to make the station easy for changing trains.

The third OpenRailwayMap shows the section of the station between the two previous maps.

Note.

  1. The red tracks are electrified.
  2. The black tracks are not-electrified.
  3. The Darlington end of the Bishop Auckland Branch is shown dotted black and red, as it will be electrified, so that Hitachi can get their trains to and from the East Coast Main Line.
  4. Both Platforms 1 and 4 appear to connect to the East Coast Main Line, so high speed services can operate as they do now, by taking a diversion through the current Darlington station.
  5. To the East of the East Coast Main Line, there appear to be some very useful stabling sidings.

I have some general thoughts about Darlington station.

Will Trains Not Stopping At Darlington Station Use The New 125 mph Lines Through the Station?

It does appear that the two 125 mph lines through the new part of the station are very straight.

  • They are shown as 125 mph, but could be faster.
  • It should be remembered that according to Wikipedia, British Rail built the Selby Diversion for 160 mph in 1983.
  • Between Durham and York stations is 66.2 miles of mainly 125 mph railway.

I believe that cutting out the need for trains to slow to go through Darlington station could save several minutes.

Will Trains Stopping At Darlington Station Use The Current Platforms 1 And 4 As They Do Now?

The track layout would seem to allow this and those changing to another train, would not have to walk a long way.

Can Trains Stopping At Darlington Station Use The New Eastern Platforms?

I have examined the second and third maps in detail and it looks as if the track layout will allow trains on the East Coast Main Line in both directions to stop at the long electrified platform.

The shorter bay platform appears to be only connected to the Tees Valley Line to Middlesbrough and Saltburn.

How Long Are The New Eastern Platforms?

Estimating against the scale on the map, I reckon these are the likely lengths.

  • Long electrified platform – 400 metres – Appears to be numbered 5
  • Bay platform – 200 metres – Appears to be numbered 6.

These are very useful lengths.

An Aerial View Of The New Platforms

This image from Tees Valley Combined Authority shows the Northern ends of the new platforms and the new footbridge.

Note.

  1. The original four-platform Victorian station is on the right, which is the Western side.
  2. The East wall of the Victorian train shed can be clearly seen.
  3. The two absolutely straight 125 mph lines, that allow trains to bypass the original station are closest to the wall.
  4. The long electrified platform, which appears to be numbered 5, also appears to be absolutely straight.
  5. The unelectrified bay platform, which appears to be numbered 6, is to the left.
  6. Platforms 5 and 6 would seem to be separated by a wide island platform, which would make interchange easy.

This page on the Network Rail web site, gives more information.

Car Parking At Darlington Station

This image from Tees Valley Combined Authority shows the Northern end of the station.

Note.

  1. The three sections of the Victorian station.
  2. The two new platforms ; 5 and 6 at the top of the image.
  3. The two 125 mph lines bypassing the Victorian station.
  4. There are two new footbridges connecting the Victorian station to the land on the other side of the 125 mph lines.

To the left of the station, there appears to be a massive multi-story car-park.

I asked Google about the new car park at Darlington station and got this reply.

The new multi-story car park at Darlington Station will have a capacity of more than 650 vehicles. This is part of a larger £140 million redevelopment of the station, which also includes new platforms and an eastern concourse. The car park will include accessible parking bays and electric car charging points.

This image from Tees Valley Combined Authority shows the car parking from the South.

Note.

  1. The building appears to be a five-story car park.
  2. There appears to be a very easy connection between the car park and the bridge to the station.
  3. From the roof layout, there appears to be several lifts.
  4. It looks like there will be a large area between the platforms and the car park, where travellers can meet and socialise.
  5. The bay platform 6 already has a pair of red buffer stops.

Railways may have come to Darlington two hundred years ago and it looks like they are getting the car parking at the station ready for at least the next two hundred.

Further Electrification

If as I expect, the UK embraces battery electric technology for local and regional trains, I can see the three South-facing bay-platforms being electrified, so they could charge he battery-electric trains.

This picture shows that bars have been placed across Platforms 2 and 3, that could be used to support the electrification.

This method has been used in Victorian stations in the UK before. I show some installations and discuss electrifying Victorian stations in Could Hull Station Be Electrified?.

 

Darlington Station And High Speed Two

This graphic shows the original service pattern for High Speed Two.

Note.

  1. There are seventeen paths terminating in the South at Euston station.
  2. Six of these paths go to Leeds, Newcastle or York.
  3. As the Eastern leg has been abandoned, that means there will be no High Speed Two trains to Leeds HS2, York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle via the East Coast Main Line.

Darlington was to be served by these hourly services.

  • Train 17 – Birmingham Curzon Street and Newcastle via East Midlands Hub, York, Darlington and Durham.
  • Train 23 – London and Newcastle via York and Darlington.

Both trains would have been a single 200 metre long High Speed Two Classic-Compatible train.

Joining And Splitting Trains At Darlington

As Platform 5 looks like it would be a 400 metre long platform, it would look like it would be possible to handle a pair of High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains.

But these trains will not now be serving Darlington in the near future, as the Eastern leg of High Speed Two has been cancelled.

A pair of nine-car Class 801 trains would be 467.4 metres long and might be able to fit into Platform 5.

But a pair of seven-car trains would certainly fit into a 400 metre Platform 5.

In Do Class 800/801/802 Trains Use Batteries For Regenerative Braking?, I found this snippet in an Hitachi document.

To simplify the rearrangement and management of train configurations, functions are provided for identifying the train (Class 800/801), for automatically determining the cars in the trainset and its total length, and for coupling and uncoupling up to 12 cars in
normal and 24 cars in rescue or emergency mode.

So I suspect with software updates two nine-car trains could run together.

Suppose LNER wanted to attack the airlines on the London and Scottish route.

  • Two seven- or nine-car Class 800 or 801 trains would leave Edinburgh working as a pair.
  • First stop would be Platform 5 in Darlington.
  • The trains would split in Darlington.
  • One train would go to King’s Cross stopping at perhaps Doncaster and Peterborough.
  • The other train would go to St. Pancras stopping at perhaps Leeds, Sheffield, Nottingham and Bedford.

Note.

  1. A seven-car Azuma would be under 200 metres long.
  2. Seven-car trains would fit in St. Pancras.
  3. LNER have run an Azuma train into St. Pancras.
  4. The train would interchange with East-West Rail at Bedford.
  5. Travellers to and from East Anglia would change at Peterborough.

Large areas of England would have a fast route to and from Scotland.

 

 

 

 

June 30, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Darlington And Bishop Auckland – 26th June 2025

My second trip out from Darlington was to Bishop Auckland station and I took these pictures on the way up and down.

Note.

  1. Bishop Auckland station is a one-platform station, but all the other stations seem to be two-platform stations.
  2. The railway museum; Locomotion seems to be within walking distance of Shildon station.
  3. There is a short section of electrified track, that Hitachi use to test trains and get them to the East Coast Main Line.

The stations seemed tidy and clean, but more step-free access is needed.

I have some further thoughts.

The Location Of Hitachi Rail

This Google Map shows the location of Hitachi Rail.

 

Note.

  1. Heighington station on the Tees Valley Line is marked by the red arrow.
  2. Hitachi Rail is the large building in the South-West corner of the map.
  3. There appear to be electrified sidings to the North of the factory, which have a connection to the Tees Valley Line.

From the map it looks efficient and well-designed.

Could The Services On The Branch Be Run By Battery-Electric Trains?

I don’t think there would be too many problems.

  • Bishop Auckland and Darlington is only twelve miles.
  • Both platforms at Darlington used by Tees Valley Line services are electrified.
  • The single platform at Bishop Auckland station could be fitted with one of Siemens’s Rail Charging Convertors.
  • Hitachi at Newton Aycliffe might like some more formal electrification between Newton Aycliffe and Darlington stations.
  • An electrified Tees Valley Line would surely be useful to Hitachi for showing the capabilities of battery-electric trains.

This would be a very easy line to run using battery-electric trains.

June 27, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Farage Wants HS2 Scrapped

The title of this post, is the same as a sub-title in this article on The Times. which is entitled HS2: Labour confirms delay until 2033.

This is the sub-heading.

Nigel Farage has called for the whole HS2 project to be scrapped.

These two paragraphs give NF’s view.

The Reform UK leader told the Commons: “Has the moment not come, rather than having another reset, to recognise this is a failure?

“Let’s scrap HS2, let’s use the tens of billions of pounds we can save in the next decade to upgrade railway lines across the entirety of the United Kingdom to the benefit of many millions and spend the rest on other national priorities in these financially straitened times.”

Farage’s simplistic plan will appeal to his disciples, but the major thing that is needed, is more capacity between South and North. Or North and South depending on where you live!

HS2 will provide an extra seventeen paths between London and a large triangular junction in the West Midlands.

If HS2 Is Not Built There Will Be More Cars And Trucks On The Roads

In Footage Released Of East West Rail’s First Commercial Freight Train, I wrote about the SEGRO Logistics Park Northampton (SLPN), which would generate lots of road and rail traffic. Without developments like HS2, the roads will just get clogged up.

High Speed Two’s Originally Proposed Service Pattern

This graphic shows the original service pattern for High Speed Two.

Note.

  1. There are seventeen paths terminating in the South at Euston station.
  2. Six of these paths go to Leeds, Newcastle or York.
  3. As the Eastern leg has been abandoned, that means six extra trains can run between London and the large triangular junction in the West Midlands.

Six extra trains running to the West side of England and Scotland could give a substantial improvement of services.

High Speed Yorkshire

HS2 needs to be paired with High Speed Yorkshire, which would mainly be an upgrading of the East Coast Main Line running at up to 160 mph to serve Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, the North-East and East Scotland.

Note.

  1. British Rail built the Selby Diversion in the 1980s to run at 160 mph.
  2. Digital signalling is currently being installed on this route and this will allow trains to speed through the two bottlenecks of the Digswell Viaduct and the Newark Crossing.
  3. Times of three-and-a-half hours between King’s Cross and Edinburgh, should be possible.

These times should give the airlines a good kicking on London-Newcastle and London-Scotland routes.

Fast services would run on High Speed Yorkshire to Alnwick, Barnetby, Barnsley, Beverley, Berwick, Bradford, Brough, Cleethorpes, Darlington, Doncaster, Durham, Edinburgh, Goole, Grantham, Grimsby, Harrogate, Huddersfield, Hull, Leeds, Lincoln, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Peterborough, Pontefract, Retford, Rotherham, Scarborough, Scunthorpe, Sheffield, Skipton, Stevenage, Sunderland, Wakefield, Worksop and York.

Most of these towns and cities are already served by Hitachi or other high speed trains from King’s Cross.

A high proportion of the services to Yorkshire destinations will be under two hours from London.

When the current trains need replacing, they could be replaced by High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains.

Onward From Handsacre Junction

Services to the North-West and Scotland will join the Trent Valley Line at Handsacre junction.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the Trent Valley Line between Crewe station and Handacre junction.

Note.

  1. The proposed route of High Speed Two is shown as a dotted line, running diagonally across the map.
  2. The red track to its West is the Trent Valley Line, which is a section of the West Coast Main Line.
  3. Handsacre junction is in the South-East corner of the map.
  4. The blue arrow indicates Stafford station on the West Coast Main Line.
  5. The main High Speed Two tracks will not connect to Stafford or Stoke-on-Trent stations.
  6. Crewe station is in the North-West corner of the map.
  7. Crewe station and Handsacre junction are 37.6 miles apart.

With the exception of the 6 mile twin-track section between Stafford Trent Valley and Colwich junctions, it appears that Crewe station and Handsacre junction is all quadruple track.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the Trent Valley Line between Stafford stationand Colwich junction.

Note.

  1. The Trent Valley Line, which is a section of the West Coast Main Line, runs across the map.
  2. The arrow in the North-West corner of the map indicates Stafford station.
  3. Colwich junction is in the South-East corner of the map.
  4. About three-quarters of the way across, the track is shown in cream. This is the twin-track Shugborough Tunnel, which is around a half-mile long.
  5. The Shugborough Tunnel has a 100 mph maximum speed.
  6. The portals of Shugborough Tunnel are Grade II Listed and the Wikipedia entry for the tunnel is certainly worth a read.

How Many High Speed Two trains per hour (tph) will use the Trent Valley Line route?

The original proposal in the graphic earlier shows these trains.

  • 4 – London to Lancaster/Liverpool Lime Street – Splits at Crewe
  • 5 – London to Liverpool Lime Street
  • 6 – London to Stafford, Stoke -on-Trent and Macclesfield
  • 7 – London and Birmingham Interchange to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly
  • 8 – London to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly
  • 9 – London to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly
  • 10 – London and Birmingham Interchange to Preston, Carlisle, Edinburgh Haymarket and Edinburgh Waverley/Glasgow Central – Splits at Carlisle
  • 11 – London Euston to Preston, Carlisle, Edinburgh Haymarket and Edinburgh Waverley/Glasgow Central – Splits at Carlisle
  • 12 – Birmingham Curzon Street to Wigan North Western, Preston, Lancaster, Oxenholme, Penrith, Carlisle, Edinburgh Haymarket and Edinburgh Waverley Or Wigan North Western, Preston, Lancaster, Carlisle, Lockerbie, Motherwell  and Glasgow Central- Services alternate.
  • 13 – Birmingham Curzon Street to East Midlands Hub, Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly
  • 14 – Birmingham Curzon Street to East Midlands Hub, Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly

Note.

  1. It looks like there will be eleven High Speed Two tph on the Trent Valley Line.
  2. As East Midlands Hub will not be built, I will assume trains 13 and 14 will be Birmingham Curzon Street to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly.
  3. Other trains will need to use the route.
  4. I suspect that freight trains, that couldn’t maintain 100 mph would not be allowed.

I believe that digital signalling can handle all the trains between Handsacre Junction and Crewe.

  • Trains 10 and 11 would run every thirty minutes to give two tph between London and Glasgow Central and two tph between London and the two Edinburgh stations.
  • Each of these trains would lead a flight of trains behind them through the Trent Valley Line.
  • The last trains going North in the flights, would be trains 4 and 6, as they stop on the Trent Valley Line section.

I have written a lot of scheduling algorithms in the last fifty years and I wouldn’t be surprised if flights could be up to 7 or 8 trains, running 3 or 4 minutes apart.

It would be an impressive sight.

What Timings Would Be Possible On High Speed Two Using Handsacre Junction And The Trent Valley Line?

In Where Is Handsacre Junction? I calculated some times on High Speed Two to various destinations, using Handsacre junction and the Trent Valley Line. This is a more comprehensive table.

  • London and Blackpool North – 205 mph – 1:55
  • London and Blackpool North – 140 mph – 2:12
  • London and Carlisle – 205 mph – 2:45
  • London and Carlisle – 140 mph – 3:01
  • London and Crewe – 205 mph – 1:03
  • London and Crewe – 140 mph – 1:19
  • London and Edinburgh Waverley  – 205 mph – 4:14
  • London and Edinburgh Waverley  – 140 mph – 4:30
  • London and Glasgow Central  – 205 mph – 4:22
  • London and Glasgow Central  – 140 mph – 4:38
  • London and Handsacre junction – 205 mph – 0:35
  • London and Handsacre junction – 140 mph – 0:51
  • London and Lancaster – 205 mph – 1:50
  • London and Lancaster – 140 mph – 2:06
  • London and Liverpool Lime Street  – 205 mph – 1:46
  • London and Liverpool Lime Street  – 140 mph – 2:02
  • London and Manchester Piccadilly  – 205 mph – 1:41
  • London and Manchester Piccadilly  – 140 mph – 1:57
  • London and Preston – 205 mph – 1:31
  • London and Preston – 140 mph – 1:47
  • London and Stafford  – 205 mph – 0:45
  • London and Stafford  – 140 mph – 1:01
  • London and Stoke-on-Trent – 205 mph – 0:55
  • London and Stoke-on-Trent – 140 mph – 1:11
  • London and Wigan North Western – 205 mph – 1:17
  • London and Wigan North Western – 140 mph – 1:33

Note.

  1. 205 mph could be the average speed between London Euston and Handsacre junction for High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains.
  2. 140 mph could be the average speed between London Euston and Handsacre junction for Class 390 trains.
  3. Times are in hh:nn.
  4. For times North of Handsacre junction are typical Class 390 times.

A typical timing between London Euston and Handsacre junction for Class 390 trains is 71 minutes, so if High Speed Two services were run using Class 390 trains, twenty minutes would be saved on all services via Handsacre junction compared to current Avanti West Coast services.

I have some other thoughts.

Using Class 390 Trains Is Not My Idea

This article on Rail nBusiness UK is entitled Viewpoint: Buy tilting trains and finish Delta Junction to salvage HS2, says Gibb.

This is the sub-heading.

UK: Procurement of a fleet of tilting trains and a focus on Birmingham – Manchester services are key to making the most the descoped High Speed 2 scheme, former Virgin Trains executive Chris Gibb tells Rail Business UK.

Chris Gibb has the right experience. and has been used as a go-to man, when projects are in trouble.

The major points of his plan are as follows.

  1. Connect High Speed Two to the Trent Valley Line to go North from the Midlands.
  2. Initially, use Class 390 trains or Pendelinos on Liverpool, Manchester and Scottish services.
  3. Run Class 390 trains at 140 mph between Euston and Handsacre junction.
  4. When the Pendelinos need to be retired, buy a new set of tilting trains.
  5. Complete the North-to-West leg of High Speed Two’s triangular junction, so that trains can run between Birmingham Curzon Street and Manchester.
  6. Gibb proposes a Blackpool service, that splits and joins with a Liverpool service. I assume he means train 5.

Gibb feels a fundamental review of the operating principles and fleet requirements is now needed.

It is a well-thought out viewpoint and very much a must-read.

 

 

 

 

June 21, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Train Lengths Between King’s Cross and Edinburgh

If you ask Google, what is the platform length at King’s Cross station, you get the following answers.

  • Platform 0 – 305 metres
  • Platform 1 – 304 metres
  • Platform 2 – 285 metres
  • Platform 3 – 289 metres
  • Platform 4 – 290 metres
  • Platform 5 – 270 metres
  • Platform 6 – 288 metres
  • Platform 7 – 288 metres
  • Platform 8 – 289 metres
  • Platform 9 – 276 metres
  • Platform 10 – 276 metres

This OpenRailwayMap shows the tracks linking to the eleven platforms at King’s Cross.

Note.

  1. The red tracks are the electrified platforms in King’s Cross.
  2. The two pink tracks are the Piccadilly Line underneath the station.
  3. Platform 0 is on the right and Platform 10 is on the left.
  4. The platform number is shown alongside the track.

Platform 0 is the newest platform, which opened in 2010 and also the longest at 305 metres.

Many of the trains using the station are Hitachi Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains, which have cars of the following lengths.

  • Driving car – 25.85 metres
  • Intermediate car – 26 metres

These lengths mean that individual trains have the following lengths.

  • Five-car – 129.7 metres
  • Nine-car – 233.7 metres
  • Ten-car – Pair of five-cars – 259.4 metres

Note.

  1. It would appear that nine- and ten-car trains can use all platforms 0-8 in the main station.
  2. Platform 5 may be short at 270 metres, but Real Time Trains shows it can handle nine- and ten-car trains.

Real Time Trains doesn’t seem to show any nine- and ten-car trains using Platforms 9 and 10. Is the approach just a bit tight?

These are some further thoughts.

LNER’s New Class 897 Trains

I asked Google how long will be LNER’s new ten-car Class 897 trains. This is the answer I received.

The Class 897 train will be 218.7 meters (717 ft 6 in) long, according to Wikipedia. These trains will be ten-car units.

Have these trains been designed, so they can fit in Platforms 9 and 10 at King’s Cross and other shorter platforms, that LNER serve?

Other train classes, that could use Platforms 9 and 10 at King’s Cross include.

  • Five-car Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains – 129.7 metres
  • Five-car Class 180 trains – 116.52 metres
  • Five-car Class 222 trains – 116.16 metres
  • Six-car Class 717 trains – 121.7 metres
  • Eight-car Class 379/387 trains – 163.12 metres
  • Eight-car Class 700/0 trains – 162 metres
  • Twelve-car Class 700/1 trains – 242.6 metres

Real Time Trains or my eyes have observed all these trains, except for the twelve-car Class 700 trains in Platforms 9 and 10 at King’s Cross.

It does appear that the shorter ten-car Class 897 trains improve utilisation of the platforms at King’s Cross station.

Could Twelve-Car Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 Trains Run Into King’s Cross?

Consider.

  • LNER and Lumo have both said, they want to win passengers from the airlines on Anglo-Scottish routes.
  • Extra paths on the East Coast Main Line are at a premium and hard to come by.

In Do Class 800/801/802 Trains Use Batteries For Regenerative Braking?, I found this extract in a Hitachi document on their web site.

To simplify the rearrangement and management of train configurations, functions are provided for identifying the train (Class 800/801), for automatically determining the cars in the trainset and its total length, and for coupling and uncoupling up to 12 cars in
normal and 24 cars in rescue or emergency mode.

So if say LNER or Lumo wanted a twelve-car train, it would be possible. It also looks like one twelve-car train can rescue another.

Train lengths would be as follows.

  • Five-car Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains – 129.7 metres
  • Six-car Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains – 155.7 metres
  • Nine-car Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains – 233.7 metres
  • Twelve-car  Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains – 311.7 metres
  • Twelve-car – Pair of six-car Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains – 311.4 metres

As Platform 0 is 305 metres and Platform 1 is 304 metres, I suspect that King’s Cross  station could accept twelve-car formations of Hitachi Class 800, 801, 802 or 803 trains, with fairly minor modifications.

But what about other stations?

Berwick-on-Tweed

Both platforms are around 233/234 metres, so twelve-car trains couldn’t call, unless the platforms were lengthened.

Bradford Forster Square

From the pictures, that I took in Bradford Forster Square Station – 20th May 2025, of a pair of LNER five-car trains, I suspect that the new Platform 0 and the extended Platform 1 will accept twelve-car trains, or could easily be modified.

Darlington

Both platforms, where LNER call are over 350 metres long, so Darlington can handle twelve-car trains.

Doncaster

Doncaster has four long platforms and I am fairly sure, the station could be easily modified to handle twelve-car trains.

Durham

Both platforms are over 260 metres, so twelve-car trains couldn’t call, unless the platforms were substantially lengthened.

Edinburgh Waverley

Platform 5 and 6 at Edinburgh Waverley station were both lengthened to 275 metres to accept ten-car LNER trains in 2016. I suspect more lengthening will be needed.

Leeds

Platforms 8 and 11 at Leeds station are both over 320 metres, so should be long enough to accept twelve car LNER trains.

Newark Northgate

Platforms 1 and 2 at Newark Northgate station are only 133 metres. Some platform lengthening would be needed for twelve-car trains to be able to call.

Newcastle

Platforms 2, 3 and 4 at Newcastle station are 362, 304 and 268 metres respectively. I believe with small improvements, that the station could be easily modified to handle twelve-car trains.

Northallerton

Both platforms are around 261/270 metres, so twelve-car trains couldn’t call, unless the platforms were lengthened.

Peterborough

Platforms 3, 4 and 5 at Peterborough station are only 265 metres. Some platform lengthening would be needed for twelve-car trains to be able to stop.

Wakefield Westgate

Both platforms at Wakefield Westgate station are only 255 metres. Some platform lengthening would be needed for twelve-car trains to be able to stop.

York

Four platforms at York station are over 315 metres.

Could A Twelve-Car Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 Trains Run Between King’s Cross And Edinburgh?

This would surely be the ultimate competition for the airlines.

Consider.

  • It would use a single twelve-car Hitachi train or a pair of six-car trains.
  • It could be fitted with batteries, so it could use the Great Northern and Great Eastern Joint Line diversion, through Lincoln, when there is engineering works or overhead wiring troubles.
  • It would use either Platform 0 or Platform 1 at King’s Cross.
  • It would use a lengthened platform at Edinburgh.
  • Peterborough, Doncaster, York, Darlington and Newcastle could be possible stops.
  • I estimate an LNER layout would carry 696 Standard Class and 86 First Class passengers.
  • I estimate that a Lumo layout would carry 965 Standard Class passengers.

Note that an Airbus A321neo single-aislr airliner can carry 244 passengers.

 

June 4, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

After 104 Years UK’s Longest Train Route Is Cancelled For Ever

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

These three paragraphs describe the last journey.

With a muted fanfare the UK’s longest train rolled out of Aberdeen on Friday morning for its final sojourn down to Penzance, ending a service that connected both ends of the country for more than 100 years.

The 8.20am CrossCountry train took 13 hours and 20 minutes, with stops at 35 stations along the way, to cover the 774-mile route. Passengers spent more than two hours of the journey in the stations.

The service, which was launched in 1921, headed south through York, Bristol, Taunton and Truro on its way past some of the country’s finest landscapes, and arrived in Penzance at 9.31pm.

Looking at a ticket site and it appears that by using two trains from Aberdeen to King’s Cross and Paddington to Penzance you can be a few minutes faster, if you know your Underground.

This route will get quicker.

  • As the East Coast Main Line rolls out its new digital signalling, this should speed up trains, by allowing some running at 140 mph instead of the current 125 mph.
  • LNER will also be bringing their new tri-mode (electric/battery/diesel) trains into service, which could give some speed improvements on the diesel section North of the Forth Bridge in terms of speed and ride noise, especially as ScotRail will be partially electrifying part of this section.
  • GWR should also be upgrading some of their fleet to tri-mode, which should improve speed and ride noise on the sections, where the route is not electrified.
  • CrossCountry could compete, by buying new trains, but it would be a big financial risk, as the London route should get quicker, as track improvements and increased use of digital signalling speed up services from London to Aberdeen and Penzance.

CrossCountry ‘s owner; Arriva isn’t standing still, but have applied for extra Grand Central open access services on the East Coast Main Line to Scunthorpe and Cleethorpes and a new service from Newcastle to Brighton via Birmingham, which will partly fill the gap caused by the loss of the Aberdeen and Penzance service, by linking with GWR at Reading and LNER at Newcastle.

May 16, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

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