The Anonymous Widower

RWE Opens ‘Grimsby Hub’ For Offshore Wind Operations And Maintenance

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

This is the sub-heading.

RWE officially opened its ‘Grimsby Hub’ offshore wind operations and maintenance (O&M) facility in the UK on 9 July. From the new O&M base, located at Associated British Ports’ (ABP) Port of Grimsby, RWE’s teams will maintain and operate the Triton Knoll and Sofia offshore wind farms.

These are the first two paragraphs.

The Grimsby Hub also houses RWE’s new UK Centralised Control Room (CCR), which has been set up to provide 24/7 monitoring of the company’s UK offshore wind farms and can provide services such as marine coordination, turbine operations, alarm management, high voltage monitoring and Emergency Response services with a team of twelve operatives, the developer says.

The O&M facility is already employing over 90 Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs), according to RWE, and is expected to employ around 140 RWE staff by 2027, as well as create approximately 60 new locally sourced jobs through the development of the CCR and ongoing offshore operations.

Note.

  1. Does RWE’s new UK Centralised Control Room control all their UK offshore wind farms?
  2. I have added them all up and there are almost 12 GW around our shores.
  3. I’ve read somewhere, that RWE are the UK’s largest power generator. From these figures, that would not surprise me.

This Google Map shows the location of RWE’s facilities in Grimsby.

Note.

  1. The bright red arrow at the top of the map indicates RWE Generation UK in Grimsby Docks.
  2. There is another RWE location to the right of the bright red arrow.
  3. There is a line of stations along the coast, which from left-to-right are Stallingborough, Healing, Great Coates, Grimsby Town, Grimsby Docks, New Clee and Cleethorpes.
  4. Cleethorpes is not shown on the map.
  5. Doncaster and Cleethorpes are 52.1 mile apart, which is within the range of a battery-electric Hitachi and other trains.
  6. Charging would be at Doncaster, which is fully electrified and at Cleethorpes, by a short length of electrification.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the layout of and the railways around Grimsby Dock.

Note.

  1. Cleethorpes station is indicated by the blue arrow, in the South-East corner of the map.
  2. Cleethorpes station has four platforms, but no electrification.
  3. Grimsby Docks are to the North of the railway to Cleethorpes.
  4. This Wikipedia entry for Cleethorpes station, shows other railways and light railways served the area. Some were even electric.

These are a few of my thoughts on the development of railways between Sheffield and Cleethorpes.

RWE Will Be A Large Driver Of Employment In Grimsby

Earlier I wrote.

  • Does RWE’s new UK Centralised Control Room control all their UK offshore wind farms?
  • I have added them all up and there are almost 12 GW around our shores.
  • I’ve read somewhere, that RWE are the UK’s largest power generator. From these figures, that would not surprise me.

It’s a long time, since I’ve added resources to a large project, so I asked Google AI, “How many people are needed to support a 1 GW offshore wind farm in the UK?”, and received this answer.

Based on data from large-scale UK offshore wind projects, a 1 GW (1,000 MW) offshore wind farm generally requires between 300 and 600+ people to operate and maintain, depending on whether the staff count includes direct operations, service vessel crews, and long-term supply chain partners. 
Operational Staffing: Ørsted’s 1.2 GW Hornsea 1 and 1.3 GW Hornsea 2 projects are supported by an East Coast Hub in Grimsby, which maintains a workforce of over 600 people.

Direct & Indirect Support: For a large-scale project, this often breaks down into approximately 100–150 direct, permanent, high-skilled roles (technicians, engineers, management) and hundreds more in indirect, contracted, or supply chain roles (vessel crews, port operations, logistics).

Industry Average: Studies suggest that for operations and maintenance (O&M), around 50–100 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs are generated per GW of installed capacity in terms of direct, permanent staff.

Key Takeaways for a 1 GW Farm:

  • Direct Technicians/Operators: ~100–200+ (working on-site, turbines, or in control rooms).
  • O&M Support Services: ~300–400+ (vessel operators, port logistics, supply chain).
  • Total Operations Personnel: 300–600+ people. 

Google AI appeared to have borrowed the figure from Ørsted and Hornsea 1 and 2.

So if it’s correct, there will be a total of 7,200 personnel supporting RWE’s wind farms in the UK. Even if only a third were employed in Grimsby, that is still a lot of people to accommodate and who will need to travel to work.

I also think a lot of personnel will come in by train, as the station is close to RWE’s locations.

Will Grimsby Have An Aberdeen-Sized Office-Shortage Problem?

One of the biggest problems, I was always hearing in the 1970s, was the shortage of offices in Aberdeen for the use of the oilmen.

In RWE Goes For An Additional 10 GW Of Offshore Wind In UK Waters In 2030, I talked about RWE’s plans for the future and published this table of new wind farms.

  • Sofia – 1,400 MW
  • Norfolk Boreas – 1380 MW
  • Norfolk Vanguard East – 1380 MW
  • Norfolk Vanguard West – 1380 MW
  • Dogger Bank South – 3000 MW
  • Awel y Môr – 500 MW
  • Five Estuaries – 353 MW
  • North Falls – 504 MW

Note.

  1. Sofia is nearly complete.
  2. Only the three Norfolk and the Dogger Bank South wind farms  are on the East side of England and suitable to be serviced from Grimsby., but they still total 7,140 MW.

Has Grimsby got the office-space for all the people needed?

Could The Cleethorpes And Liverpool Lime Street Service Be Run By Battery-Electric Rolling Stock?

The various sections of this route are as follows.

  • Cleethorpes and Doncaster – No Electrification – 52.1 miles
  • Doncaster and Meadowhall – No Electrification – 15.2 miles
  • Meadowhall and Sheffield – No Electrification – 3.4 miles
  • Sheffield and Dore & Totley  – No Electrification – 4.2 miles
  • Dore & Totley and Hazel Grove – No Electrification – 29.2 miles
  • Hazel Grove and Stockport – Electrification – 3.3 miles
  • Stockport and Manchester Piccadilly – Electrification – 5.9 miles
  • Manchester Piccadilly and Deansgate – Electrification – 0.8 miles
  • Deansgate and Liverpool South Parkway -Not Electrified – 28.2 miles
  • Liverpool South Parkway and Liverpool Lime Street – Electrified – 5.7 miles

Adding the sections together gives.

  • Cleethorpes and Hazel Grove – No Electrification – 104.1 miles
  • Hazel Grove and Deansgate – Electrification – 10 miles
  • Deansgate and Liverpool South Parkway -Not Electrified – 28.2 miles
  • Liverpool South Parkway and Liverpool Lime Street – Electrified – 5.7 miles

Note.

  1. To cover the 104.1 miles to Hazel Grove battery-electric trains would probably need to leave Cleethorpes with full batteries.
  2. Doncaster is a fully-electrified station and passing trains may be able to have a quick top-up.
  3. In South Yorkshire Now Has Better North-South Connections, I calculated that Doncaster is a very busy station with 173 express trains per day calling at the station or one every 8.5 minutes.
  4. Will trains be able to stop for a long period to charge batteries?
  5. It may be prudent to electrify between Meadowhall and Sheffield, under the Midland Mainline Electrification.
  6. Sheffield and Dore & Totley is shown that it will be electrified, under the Midland Mainline Electrification.
  7. Do we really want to have electrification marching along the Hope Valley Line?
  8. I believe that hydrogen-hybrid locomotives will be a better solution for freight trains on scenic lines like the Hope Valley, as they are zero-carbon, powerful and with a range comparable to diesel.

I believe CAF, Hitachi and Siemens have off the shelf rolling stock and factories in this country, who could build trains for the Cleethorpes and Liverpool Lime Street route.

How Would You Charge Battery-Electric Trains At Cleethorpes?

This picture shows Cleethorpes station

Note.

  1. The four long platforms without  electrification.
  2. The platforms have recently been refurbished.
  3. The train in Platform 2 is a TransPennine Express Class 185 Siemens Desiro diesel train.

The simplest way to electrify the station would be to put up enough 25 KVAC overhead wires, so that battery-electric trains needing a charge could put up a pantograph and have a refreshing drink.

In Technology Behind Siemens Mobility’s British Battery Trains Hits The Tracks, I wrote about Siemens Rail Charging Converter.

This is a visualisation of a Siemens Rail Charging Converter in action.

Note.

  1. The track is electrified with standard 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
  2. The train is a standard Siemens electric or battery-electric train.
  3. Siemens Rail Charging Converter, which is the shed in the compound on the left is providing the electricity to energise the catenary.
  4. I suspect, it could power third rail electrification, if the Office of Rail and Road ever allowed it to be still installed.
  5. The Siemens Rail Charging Converter does have one piece of magic in the shed. I suspect it uses a battery or a large capacitor to help power the electrification, as it can be powered from any typical domestic grid supply.
  6. I also wonder, if it has safety devices that cut the power outside the shed if track workers or intruders are detected, where they shouldn’t be?
  7. It could even cut the power, when trains are not running to save power and increase safety.

This looks to me, that a Siemens Rail Charging Converter could be a superb example of out-of-the-box thinking.

Could The Cleethorpes And Barton-on-Humber Service Be Run By Battery-Electric Rolling Stock?

This OpenRailwayMap shows the railways of North-East Lincolnshire.

Note.

  1. Cleethorpes is in the South-East Corner of the map.
  2. Barton-on-Humber is in the North-West corner of the map and marked by a blue-arrow.
  3. Stations from South to North would be New Clee, Grimsby Docks, Grimsby Town, Great Coates, Healing, Stallingborough, Habrough, Ulceby, Thornton Abbey, Goxhill, New Holland and Barrow Haven.
  4. The line is double track.
  5. Cleethorpes and Barton-on-Humber is just 22.8 miles.
  6. A round trip would be under fifty miles, which would be well within range of a full-charge at one end.
  7. Service is one train per two hours (tp2h), which would only need a single train, shuttling between Cleethorpes and Barton-on-Humber.
  8. Two trains could provide an hourly service.

I would expect, that well-designed, solid and reliable German engineering could build a Siemens’ Rail Charging Connector that could charge four trains per hour (tph) at Cleethorpes station.

At present services are.

  • TransPennineExpress – 1 tph to Liverpool Lime Street.
  • East Midlands Railway – 1 tp2h to Barton-on-Humber
  • East Midlands Railway – 1 tp2h to Matlock via Lincoln and Nottingham
  • Northern Trains – 1 train per day (tpd) Sheffield via Brigg.

That is probably only about two tph.

Could The Cleethorpes And Sheffield Service Be Run By Battery-Electric Rolling Stock?

This is a description of the current Cleethorpes and Sheffield service.

  • It is run by Northern Trains.
  • The morning train leaves Sheffield at 09:54 and arrives in Cleethorpes at 11:40.
  • The afternoon train leaves Cleethorpes at 13:20 and arrives in Sheffield at 15:10.
  • The train is a Class 150 diesel train, which is a bit of a Joan Collins of a train – Of a certain age, but still scrubs up extremely well!
  • Intermediate stations are Worksop, Retford, Gainsborough Central, Kirton Lindsey, Brigg, Barnetby and Grimsby Town
  • The route length is 71.6 miles
  • Trains take about 45-50 minutes.

It is also a parliamentary train.

The Wikipedia entry for parliamentary train gives this description of the Cleethorpes and Sheffield service.

Via Kirton Lindsey & Brigg. Became a parliamentary service when weekday services were withdrawn in 1993. Regular trains have operated between Gainsborough and Sheffield for most timetable periods since. Suspended January 2022 by Northern, who cited COVID-19 and staffing issues , but the service was reinstated in December 2022. Changed in May 2023 to be one return journey on weekdays only.

In the 1950s and 1960s I lived in Felixstowe part of the time and in the 1970s and 1980s I lived near Woodbridge and I observed first hand the development of the Port of Felixstowe and the effects it had on the surrounding countryside.

The development of the Port of Felixstowe, has brought the following.

  • Improved roads and railways.
  • Ipswich is now an hour from London by train.
  • Ipswich is now a University town.
  • New housing and other developments, both in Ipswich and Felixstowe and the surrounding countryside.
  • Employment also has increased considerably, both in the Port and in surrounding towns.
  • Ipswich’s football team is very much respected all over Europe and has won the English top division, the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup.

When you consider the jobs that RWE could create in the Port of Grimsby, I believe that this could have similar effects in Grimsby and Cleethorpes, as the Port of Felixstowe had in East Suffolk.

Already, the following are being talked about.

  • A direct rail link between Cleethorpes and Grimsby to London.
  • Battery-electric trains between Cleethorpes and Grimsby and Doncaster, Manchester and Liverpool Lime Street.

I believe that an improved rail link between Cleethorpes and Sheffield could be the catalyst for much needed housing along the route, which would be to the benefit of Cleethorpres, Grimsby, Sheffield and all the intermediate towns and villages on the route.

and the affects this will have on the countryside around the town, I believe that a strong case can be made out for a more frequent service between Cleethorpes and Sheffield.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

July 16, 2025 Posted by | Artificial Intelligence, Design, Energy, Sport, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

East Midlands Railway’s Dirty Trains

I took these pictures today on my return from East Midlands Parkway.

The trains seemed particularly dirty. Perhaps it’s the colour scheme.

 

October 17, 2024 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , | 2 Comments

More Open Access Services Could Be On The Way

In the February 2024 Edition of Modern Railways, there is an article which is entitled First Bid For Sheffield To King’s Cross Paths.

The article is mainly about FirstGroup’s proposal for a new Sheffield and London service, running under the Hull Trains brand.

But, this is the last paragraph.

Modern Railways understands First is working on a number of proposals for additional open access services, and this is an early statement of intent. Other existing open access proposals include Grand Union Trains’ plans for London to Stirling and Cardiff to Edinburgh services, along with an already approved London to Carmarthen service, and the recently submitted Wrexham, Shropshire and Midland Railway application for a London to Wrexham service. It is understood other organisations, including MTR and Virgin, are also working up plans for new open access services.

These are my thoughts.

Grand Union Trains

These posts talk about Grand Union Trains services, where a proposal has been filed with the Office of Rail and Road.

Note.

  1. All three services are substantially electrified.
  2. Cardiff and Edinburgh is not electrified between Severn Tunnel Junction and Doncaster, which is 180.7 miles, but 258.4 miles are electrified.
  3. Once the Midland Main Line is electrified, the longest section of unelectrified track is the 72.5 miles between Severn Tunnel Junction and Bromsgrove.
  4. Carmarthen and London has 145.1 miles of electrification between London and Cardiff and about 75 miles of unelectrified track West of Cardiff.
  5. Stirling and Euston is fully electrified.

A bi-mode or tri-mode train with an independent range at least 190 miles would be able to handle all three services. It would also allow extension of the Stirling service to Perth, if later that was felt to be a better terminus.

Trains able to be used would include.

  • CAF Tri-Mode Train – As being built for LNER
  • Class 221 train – Will be released soon by Avanti West Coast.
  • Class 222 train – Will be released soon by East Midlands Railways
  • Class 802 train
  • Class 755 train – A Greater Anglia driver told me, the train is designed for 125 mph.
  • Class 93 locomotive and a rake of coaches.

Note.

  1. All trains except the Class 221 and Class 222 trains would be able to make use of the electrification.
  2. The Class 93 locomotive option is not a 125 mph train.
  3. CAF Tri-Mode Train and the Class 802 train have digital signalling as standard, which could allow some 140 mph running.

But I do believe after the completion of the Midland Main Line electrification, a battery-electric high speed train with an independent range of around 100 miles could also handle all routes with perhaps charging in a couple of stations, like Carmarthen.

The services could of course be commenced using refurbished Class 221 and Class 222 trains from Avanti West Coast and East Midlands Railways respectively.

I can see a bidding and design war going on between CAF, Hitachi and Stadler to supply Grand Union Trains.

Liverpool Lime Street Station

Liverpool Lime Street station has been updated and has the capacity for extra services.

I also feel, that with the improvements to the West Coast Main Line and especially between Crewe and Liverpool in preparation for High Speed Two, that journey times between London and Liverpool will improve to around two hours.

Given the attractions of Liverpool, this will increase passenger numbers on the route and I believe extra services will be viable.

The Wikipedia entry for the station says this about a proposal from Virgin.

In June 2019, Virgin Trains lodged an application for an open access service from London Euston to Liverpool Lime Street calling at Nuneaton, Tamworth, Lichfield Trent Valley, Liverpool South Parkway and Liverpool Lime Street to rival the future West Coast Partnership franchise Avanti West Coast from December 2022.

It does seem to have gone quiet.

A Fast Zero-Carbon Route Between England And Ireland

This OpenRailwayMap shows Liverpool South Parkway station and Liverpool John Lennon Airport.

Note.

Liverpool South Parkway station is in the North-West corner of the map.

The orange track at the top of the map is the Liverpool branch of the West Coast Main Line.

At the bottom of the map, the long runway of Liverpool John Lennon Airport can be seen.

I believe that a fast link could be developed between the station and the airport.

  • Initially this would be a coach.
  • But later it could be developed as a tram-train from the City Centre, that also would call at Liverpool South Parkway station.

Operation of the airport could be ideal for up to 30-seater electric airliners.

Destinations served could include.

  • Belfast City – 151 miles
  • Bristol – 135 miles
  • Cardiff – 135 miles
  • Derry/Londonderry – 210 miles
  • Dublin – 140 miles
  • Glasgow – 186 miles
  • Haverfordwest – 127 miles
  • Humberside – 104 miles
  • London City – 176 miles
  • Norwich – 180 miles
  • Ronaldsway – 89 miles
  • Southend – 172 miles

Note.

  1. Liverpool appears to sit in circle of airports
  2. An Eviation Alice has a range of 290 miles with 9 passengers.
  3. The Wikipedia entry for Heart Aerospace, says their 30-seater electric airliner says it has a range of 124 miles or more if less passengers are carried.
  4. The East-West runway is also in line with the prevailing wind, which should help take-off.
  5. Liverpool Airport is located such that there is access to plentiful supplies of green electricity and hydrogen.

I will be very surprised if Liverpool Airport doesn’t develop into an airport for zero-carbon flights.

This could attract open access rail services from London and across the country.

Huddersfield

In First Bid For Sheffield To King’s Cross Paths, I postulated that Huddersfield station could be an ideal extension of FirstGroup’s proposed open access service between London King’s Cross and Sheffield.

 

 

February 14, 2024 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

East Midlands Railway To Leeds

This news story from the Department of Transport is entitled Yorkshire And The Humber To Benefit From £19.8 billion Transport Investment.

This is said about Leeds and Sheffield services.

The line between Sheffield and Leeds will be electrified and upgraded, giving passengers a choice of 3 to 4 fast trains an hour, instead of 1, with journey times of 40 minutes. A new mainline station for Rotherham will also be added to the route, which could give the town its first direct service to London since the 1980s, boosting capacity by 300%.

These are my thoughts.

A New Mainline Station For Rotherham

This page on Rotherham Business News, says this about the location of the Rotherham mainline station.

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) and Rotherham Council have been developing a scheme to return mainline train services to the borough for the first time since the 1980s. A site at Parkgate is the frontrunner for a regeneration project described by experts as “a relatively straightforward scheme for delivery within three to four years.”

Various posts and comments on the Internet back the councils preference for a new station at Rotherham Parkgate.

  • It  would be at Rotherham Parkgate shopping centre.
  • It connects to the tram-trains, which run half-hourly to Cathedral in Sheffield city centre via Rotherham Central.
  • There appears to be plenty of space.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the tracks at the current Rotherham Parkgate tram stop.

Note.

  1. The orange lines are the main railway tracks.
  2. Rotherham Parkgate is indicated by the blue arrow in the North-East corner of the map.
  3. Trains would run between Sheffield and Rotherham Parkgate via Meadowhall Interchange and Rotherham Central.
  4. Trains and tram-trains would share tracks through Rotherham Central.

After passing Rotherham Parkgate trains would go to Swinton, and then on to Doncaster or Leeds.

Sheffield And Leeds Via Rotherham Parkgate

Currently, there is an hourly service between Leeds and Sheffield, that goes through the Rotherham Parkgate site.

  • It calls at Outwood, Wakefield Westgate, Sandal & Agbrigg, Fitzwilliam, Moorthorpe, Thurnscoe, Goldthorpe, Bolton-upon-Dearne, Swinton, Rotherham Central, Meadowhall.
  • The service takes one hour and thirteen minutes, but there are eleven stops.
  • As the distance is 38.9 miles, that works out at an average speed of 32 mph.

I suspect this schedule was written for Pacers.

The Department of Transport is aiming for a forty minute journey, which is an average speed of 58.4 mph.

Consider.

  • If you look at the maximum speeds of the route from Rotherham Parkgate to Wakefield Westgate, it is 21.8 miles of 100 mph track.
  • About twenty miles to the South of Wakefield Westgate is electrified.
  • Leeds and Wakefield Westgate is 10.1 miles of 75-85 mph track.
  • LNER’s expresses leave Wakefield Westgate, eleven minutes after leaving Leeds.
  • I can find a TransPennine Express that takes thirteen minutes to go between Sheffield  and Rotherham Parkgate late at night on the way to the depot.

The eleven and thirteen minutes mean that leaves 16 minutes for Rotherham Parkgate to Wakefield Westgate, if Sheffield and Leeds are to be timed at forty minutes, which would be an average speed of 82 mph between Rotherham Parkgate and Wakefield Westgate.

I feel that for a forty minute journey between Leeds and Sheffield, the following conditions would need to be met.

  • Very few stops. Perhaps only Meadowhall, Rotherham Parkgate and Wakefield Westgate.
  • 100 mph running where possible.
  • 100 mph trains
  • Electric trains would help, as acceleration is faster. Battery-electric trains would probably be sufficient.
  • Some track improvements might help.

But forty minutes would certainly be possible.

At present there are five trains per hour (tph) between Leeds and Sheffield.

  • Northern – 2 tph – via Wakefield Kirkgate, Barnsley and Meadowhall – 58 minutes
  • Northern – 1 tph – via Outwood, Wakefield Westgate, Sandal & Agbrigg, Fitzwilliam, Moorthorpe, Thurnscoe, Goldthorpe, Bolton-upon-Dearne, Swinton, Rotherham Central and Meadowhall – One hour and 13 minutes
  • Northern – 1 tph –  via Woodlesford, Castleford, Normanton, Wakefield Kirkgate, Darton, Barnsley, Wombwell, Elsecar, Chapeltown and Meadowhall – One hour and 19 minutes.
  • CrossCountry – 1 tph – via Wakefield Westgate – 44 minutes

Note.

  1. Only the second service will go through Rotherham Parkgate.
  2. The CrossCountry service takes the more direct route avoiding Rotherham Parkgate.
  3. All trains go via Meadowhall, although the CrossCountry service doesn’t stop.
  4. If the CrossCountry service was run by electric trains, it might be able to shave a few minutes as part of the route is electrified.

The CrossCountry service indicates to me, that 40 minutes between Leeds and Sheffield will be possible, but a stop at Meadowhall could be dropped to save time.

Extending East Midlands Railway’s Sheffield Service To Leeds

Consider

  • Sheffield station has two tph to London all day.
  • The CrossCountry service looks like it could be timed to run between Leeds and Sheffield in forty minutes.
  • An East Midlands Railway Class 810 train could probably be timed at 40 minutes between Leeds and Sheffield via Meadowhall, Rotherham Parkgate and Wakefield Westgate.
  • The current Northern services could continue to provide connectivity for stations between Leeds and Sheffield.

Extending one tph of East Midlands Railway’s trains to Leeds would probably be sufficient to give two fast trains per hour between Leeds and Sheffield.

  • The East Midlands Railway and CrossCountry services could provide a fast service between Leeds and Sheffield in forty minutes.
  • If they were electric or battery-electric trains, I suspect that they could call at Meadowhall, Rotherham Parkgate and Wakefield Westgate.
  • They could be backed up by the two tph through Barnsley, which could probably be speeded up to around fifty minutes by electrification or using battery-electric trains.

The East Midlands Railway service between London and Leeds would be under three hours.

  • Rotherham would get an hourly train to London.
  • ,London and Leeds in under three hours, would be slower than Leeds and King’s Cross.
  • But the electrification of the Midland Main Line would speed it up a bit.

A fast Leeds and Derby service might compensate for the loss of the Eastern leg of High Speed Two.

Sheffield And Doncaster Via Rotherham Parkgate

At present there are three tph between Sheffield and Doncaster.

  • Northern – 1 tph – via Meadowhall, Rotherham Central, Swinton, Mexborough and Conisbrough – 42 minutes
  • Northern – 1 tph – via Meadowhall – 28 minutes
  • TransPennine Express – 1 tph – via Meadowhall – 27 minutes

Note.

  1. The first Northern train continues calling at all stations to Adwick.
  2. The second Northern train continues calling at all stations to Scarborough.
  3. Both Northern services go through Rotherham Parkgate.
  4. The TransPennine Express service takes the more direct route avoiding Rotherham Parkgate.
  5. All trains go via Meadowhall.

These services would give good connectivity for a London train, with a change at Rotherham Parkgate.

Improving Tracks Between Doncaster, Leeds and Sheffield

Consider.

  • About 65 % of the main routes between Doncaster, Leeds and Sheffield have a maximum operating speed of 100 mph.
  • Doncaster and Leeds is electrified.
  • Only 35 miles is without electrification.
  • The Midland Main Line is in the process of being electrified to Sheffield.
  • There are plans to extend the Sheffield tram-trains to Doncaster Sheffield Airport, that I wrote about in Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 – Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

There is also heavyweight electrification infrastructure through Rotherham Central for the Sheffield tram-trains.

As it is only used by the tram-trains it may be only 750 VDC. But it can probably handle 25 KVAC.

  • Could these routes be improved to allow faster running?
  • Would it be cost-effective to electrify between Sheffield and the East Coast Main Line and the Doncaster and Leeds Line?
  • Alternatively battery-electric trains could be run on the routes between Doncaster, Leeds and Sheffield, charging at all three main stations.

Any form of electric train should be faster, as acceleration and deceleration is faster in any electric train, be it powered by electrification, batteries, hydrogen or a hybrid diesel-battery-electric powertrain.

Conclusion

 

 

November 2, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Could Train Services At Liverpool Lime Street Station Be Made Carbon-Free?

This map from OpenRailwayMap shows Liverpool Lime Street station.

Note.

  1. There are ten platforms, which are arranged in two sets of five.
  2. Electrified tracks are shown in red.
  3. The lilac track is the loop of the underground Wirral Line.

It would appear that the station is fully electrified.

Services To And From Liverpool Lime Street 

These services currently run to and from Liverpool Lime Street station.

  • Avanti West Coast – London Euston – 1 tph – Electric
  • East Midlands Railway – Norwich – 1 tph – Diesel – Electrified to Liverpool South Parkway – 25.2 miles to electrification at Trafford Park.
  • London Northwestern Railway – Birmingham New Street – 1 tph – Electric
  • Northern – Blackpool North – 1 tph – Electric
  • Northern – Manchester Airport – 1 tph – Electric
  • Northern – Manchester Oxford Road – 1 tph – Diesel – Electrified to Liverpool South Parkway – 25.2 miles to electrification at Trafford Park.
  • Northern – Warrington Central – 1 tph – Diesel – Electrified to Liverpool South Parkway – 12.7 miles to Warrington Central.
  • Northern – Wigan North Western – 2 tph – Electric
  • TransPennine Express – Cleethorpes – 1 tph – Electric – Electrified to Liverpool South Parkway – 25.2 miles to electrification at Trafford Park.
  • TransPennine Express – Glasgow – 2 tpd – Electric
  • TransPennine Express – Hull – 1 tph – Electric
  • TransPennine Express – Newcastle – 1 tph – Electric
  • Transport for Wales – Chester – 1 tph – Diesel – Electrified to Runcorn – 13.9 miles to Chester.

Note.

  1. tpd is trains per day
  2. tph is trains per hour
  3. There are nine electric services and four diesel services.

It looks to me, that by using battery-electric trains on the four diesel services, Liverpool Lime Street station can be made carbon-free.

Distances on battery power for each service would be as follows.

  • East Midlands Railway – Norwich – Both ways – 25.2 miles between Liverpool South Parkway and Trafford Park with charging at both ends.
  • Northern – Manchester Oxford Road – Both ways – 25.2 miles between Liverpool South Parkway and Trafford Park with charging at both ends.
  • Northern – Warrington Central – Both ways – 12,7 miles between Liverpool South Parkway and Warrington Central with charging between Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway.
  • Transport for Wales – Chester – Both ways – 13.9 miles between Runcorn and Chester with charging between Liverpool Lime Street and Runcorn.

Note the flexibility of battery-electric trains allows a variety of charging regimes.

Conclusion

Liverpool Lime Street Station can be made carbon-free

 

October 20, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Could Sheffield Station Become A Battery-Electric Train Hub?

Promised Improvements To Train Services At Sheffield

This news story from the Department of Transport is entitled Yorkshire And The Humber To Benefit From £19.8 billion Transport Investment.

Sheffield station gets several mentions of improvement to these routes.

Sheffield And Hull

This is said about train services between Sheffield and Hull.

The number of trains between Hull and Sheffield will be doubled, to 2 per hour, with capacity also doubled.

These points describe typical current services.

  • The route is 59.4 miles long.
  • Modern Class 170 trains take 78 minutes.
  • There are stops at Meadowhall, Doncaster, Goole and Brough.
  • The maximum speed of the line is mostly around 70 mph, with one short section of 100 mph.
  • The average speed is 45.7 mph.
  • The train continues to Scarborough after a six-minute stop at Hull.

I believe that if this route were to be electrified, that a time around an hour would be possible between Sheffield and Hull.

Sheffield and Scarborough takes two hours and 45 minutes. With electrification, this time could be less than two hours and 30 minutes.

But it would be around 113 miles of new double-track electrification.

I believe that Sheffield and Hull is a route that could be run by battery-electric trains, that would be charged at both ends of the route.

Sheffield And Leeds

This is said about train services between Sheffield and Leeds.

The line between Sheffield and Leeds will be electrified and upgraded, giving passengers a choice of 3 to 4 fast trains an hour, instead of 1, with journey times of 40 minutes. A new mainline station for Rotherham will also be added to the route, which could give the town its first direct service to London since the 1980s, boosting capacity by 300%.

These points describe typical current services.

  • The route is 41.1 miles long.
  • Modern Class 195 trains take 56 minutes.
  • There is a few miles of electrification at the Leeds end.
  • There are stops at Meadowhall, Barnsley and Wakefield Kirkgate.
  • The maximum speed of the line is mostly around 60-70 mph.
  • The average speed is 44 mph.

I believe that if this route were to be electrified, that a time around fifty minutes might be possible between Sheffield and Leeds.

That is not really good enough, but if they went through a new mainline station for Rotherham, the trains would be able to use 100 mph tracks all the way to Leeds. There would also be electrification between South Kirby junction and Leeds.

I suspect forty minutes should be possible with 100 mph running between Rotherham and Leeds.

I believe that Sheffield and Leeds is a route that could be run by battery-electric trains, that would be charged at both ends of the route.

Sheffield And Manchester

This is said about train services between Sheffield and Manchester.

The Hope Valley Line between Manchester and Sheffield will also be electrified and upgraded, with the aim of cutting journey times from 51 to 42 minutes and increasing the number of fast trains on the route from 2 to 3 per hour, doubling capacity.

In Electrification Of The Hope Valley Line, I talked about electrification of the line and how the services on the line could be run by battery-electric trains.

This was my conclusion in the linked post.

I believe that full electrification of the Hope Valley Line is not needed, if battery-electric trains are used.

I also believe that battery-electric trains and the current improvements being carried out on the Hope Valley Line will enable a forty minute time between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield.

I believe that the Hope Valley Line could be speeded up, by the use of intelligent engineering, rather than expensive and disruptive electrification.

Don Valley Line

This is said about the Don Valley Line.

Communities will be reconnected through the reopening of lines and stations closed under the Beeching reforms of the 1960s. This will include the restoration of the Don Valley Line between Stocksbridge and Sheffield Victoria, and new stations at Haxby Station, near York, Waverley, near Rotherham, and the Don Valley Line from Sheffield to Stocksbridge.

I’ve talked about the Don Valley Line before in Reopening The Don Valley Section Of The Former Woodhead Line Between Stocksbridge and Sheffield Victoria To Passenger Services.

The Don Valley Line has a comprehensive Wikipedia entry, which is well worth a read.

Could the Don Valley Line be worked by battery-electric trains?

It would appear that these promised improvements to and from Sheffield could be worked by battery-electric trains.

Now that battery-electric trains are being developed, it could also have services, using these trains.

Could Battery-Electric Trains Improve Other Services At Sheffield?

These are some possibilities.

Chesterfield And Sheffield Victoria

This news story from the Department of Transport is entitled East Midlands To Benefit From £9.6 billion Transport Investment.

This news story also talks about the Stocksbridge Line and Sheffield Victoria, where this is said.

Funding will also be provided for the Barrow Hill Line between Chesterfield and Sheffield Victoria, with a new station at Staveley in Derbyshire.

I wrote about the Barrow Hill Line in Reinstatement Of The Barrow Hill Line Between Sheffield And Chesterfield.

In the related post, this was my conclusion.

This looks to be a very sensible project.

  • It could be run with either trains or tram-trams.
  • It should be electrified, so it could be zero-carbon.
  • Tram-trains could be used to make stations simpler.
  • It could give an alternative route for electric trains to Sheffield station.
  • The track is already there and regularly used.

But surely the biggest reason to built it, is that it appears to open up a lot of South and South-East Sheffield and North-East Chesterfield for development.

Now that battery-electric trains are being developed, Chesterfield and Sheffield could also have services, using these trains.

Sheffield And Adwick

Nothing is said in the news story about train services between Sheffield and Adwick.

Consider.

  • Sheffield and Adwick is 22.7 miles.
  • Journeys take fifty minutes.
  • There are seven intermediate stations.
  • This is an average speed of 27.2 mph.
  • Adwick and Doncaster is 4.4 miles and electrified.
  • There are generous turn-round times at both ends of the route.
  • There are rather unusual reversing arrangements at Adwick.

I wonder if electric trains on this route, would knock a few minutes off the journey time because of the better acceleration and deceleration of electric trains.

Could this route be another route from Sheffield suitable for battery-electric trains?

  • The train could fully charge between Adwick and Doncaster and at Adwick.
  • It is only a short route with a round trip under sixty miles.

I believe this route could be very suitable for battery-electric trains.

Sheffield And Huddersfield

Nothing is said in the news story about train services in the Penistone Line between Sheffield and Huddersfield.

Consider.

  • Sheffield and Huddersfield is 36.4 miles.
  • Journeys take one hour and nineteen minutes.
  • There are fifteen intermediate stations.
  • This is an average speed of 27.6 mph.
  • Huddersfield is being electrified as part of the TransPennine Upgrade.

I wonder if electric trains on this route, would knock a few minutes off the journey time because of the better acceleration and deceleration of electric trains.

Could this route be another route from Sheffield suitable for battery-electric trains?

Sheffield And Lincoln

Nothing is said in the news story about train services between Sheffield and Lincoln.

Consider.

  • Sheffield and Lincoln is 48.5 miles.
  • All Sheffield and Lincoln services start in Leeds.
  • Journeys take one hour and twenty-five minutes.
  • There are nine intermediate stations.
  • This is an average speed of 34.2 mph.
  • There is no electrification.
  • Turn-round time at Lincoln is 26 minutes.
  • All trains terminate in Platform 5 at Lincoln.

I wonder if electric trains on this route, would knock a few minutes off the journey time because of the better acceleration and deceleration of electric trains.

Could this route be another route from Sheffield suitable for battery-electric trains?

  • Platform 5 could be electrified at Lincoln.
  • There may need to be a battery top-up at Sheffield and Leeds.

I believe this route could be very suitable for battery-electric trains.

Electrification Between Sheffield And London

Consider.

  • The Midland Main Line electrification is creeping up from London.
  • It should soon be installed between St. Pancras and Market Harborough.
  • Sheffield and Market Harborough is 81.9 miles.
  • The Class 810 trains that will run the Sheffield and London route can’t be far off entering service.

There might be scope for running battery-electric trains on the route, until the electrification is complete.

A Battery-Electric Train Hub At Sheffield

I believe that a fair proportion of services to and from Sheffield could be run using battery-electric trains or bog-standard electric trains.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the platforms at Sheffield.

Note.

  1. The lilac tracks are those of the Sheffield Supertram.
  2. The darker lines are the tracks in the station.
  3. Tracks could be electrified as required.

Eventually, Sheffield will be a fully-electrified station, because of the Midland Main Line electrification.

But why not do it sooner rather than later, so that by running new or refurbished battery-electric trains to places like Huddersfield, Hull, Leeds, Lincoln, London and Manchester?

  • Services would be speeded up by around a minute or two for each stop.
  • Faster journeys may attract more passengers.
  • Routes would be creating less carbon emission and pollution.
  • In some cases, routes would be zero carbon.

Some routes would need electrification at the terminal to charge the trains, but Leeds, London St. Pancras and Manchester are already fully electrified.

Charging Long Distance Battery-Electric Trains When They Stop In Sheffield

These long distance services stop in Sheffield.

  • CrossCountry – Plymouth and Edinburgh
  • CrossCountry – Reading and Newcastle
  • East Midland Railway – London and Leeds
  • East Midland Railway – Liverpool Lime Street and Norwich
  • Northern – Leeds and Lincoln
  • Northern – Leeds and Nottingham
  • Northern – Sheffield and Cleethorpes
  • TransPennine Express – Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes

battery-electric trains could be given a top-up, as they pass through.

I am assuming that CrossCountry, East Midland Railway, Northern and TransPennine Express will be running suitable battery-electric trains.

Battery-Electric Train Hubs

To be a battery-electric train hub, a station probably needs to have all or nearly all of its platforms electrified.

  • It should be able to fully-charge any battery-electric trains terminating in the station, provided that the turn-round time is long enough.
  • It should be able to give a through battery-electric train a boost if required, so that it gets to the final destination.

It would appear that there are already several battery-electric train hubs in the England, Scotland and Wales.

This map from OpenRailwayMap shows Liverpool Lime Street station, with electrified tracks shown in red.

It would appear that the station is fully electrified and is an excellent battery-electric train hub.

This map from OpenRailwayMap shows Manchester Piccadilly station, with electrified tracks shown in red.

It would appear that the station is fully electrified, except for the Northernmost platform, and is an excellent battery-electric train hub.

This map from OpenRailwayMap shows Leeds station, with electrified tracks shown in red.

It would appear that the station is fully electrified and is an excellent battery-electric train hub, with twelve electrified bay platforms.

Conclusion

I can see a very comprehensive scheme being developed for Sheffield, based on a hub for battery-electric trains at Sheffield station.

 

October 17, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Could East Midland Railway’s Leicester And Lincoln Service Be Extended To Burton On Trent?

After my trip to Lincoln and Cleethorpes earlier this week, I got to thinking about how train services could be improved in the area.

Cleethorpes As A Battery-Electric Train Hub Station

In Cleethorpes Station – 28th June 2023, this was my last sentence.

Cleethorpes station could be at the centre of its own battery-electric train network, with all trains powered by just 3.3 miles of single-track electrification.

Services running to Cleethorpes station could be.

  • East Midlands Railway – Barton-on-Humber and Cleethorpes via Barrow Haven, New Holland, Goxhill, Thornton Abbey, Ulceby, Habrough, Stallingborough, Healing, Great Coates, Grimsby Town, Grimsby Docks and New Clee, which currently runs two-hourly, but probably should run hourly. Barton-on-Humber and Grimsby Town is not electrified and is 19.6 miles or 39.2 miles for a round trip.
  • East Midlands Railway – Leicester and Cleethorpes via Syston, Sileby, Barrow-upon-Soar, Loughborough, East Midlands Parkway, Attenborough, Beeston, Nottingham, Newark Castle, Collingham, Swinderby, Hykeham, Lincoln, Market Rasen, Barnetby, Habrough and Grimsby Town which currently runs two-hourly, but probably should run hourly. Nottingham and Grimsby Town is not planned to be electrified and is 77.8 miles.
  • LNER – London King’s Cross and Cleethorpes via Stevenage, Peterborough, Grantham, Newark Northgate, Lincoln, Market Rasen, Barnetby, Habrough and Grimsby Town, which would run at least two trains per day (tpd). Newark Northgate and Grimsby Town is not electrified and is 60.6 miles.
  • TransPennine Express – Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes via Liverpool South Parkway, Warrington Central, Birchwood, Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield, Meadowhall, Doncaster, Scunthorpe, Barnetby, Habrough and Grimsby Town, which runs hourly. Hazel Grove and Grimsby Town is not electrified and is 101.4 miles.

Note.

  1. All services to Cleethorpes could be run using a battery-electric train, with the range of a Stadler FLIRT Akku, which is 139 miles.
  2. Cleethorpes station will soon have four terminal platforms. Could it be one platform for each service?
  3. The 3.3 miles of single-track electrification would be between Cleethorpes and Grimsby stations.
  4. I am assuming that all services should be at least hourly, except London King’s Cross.
  5. If the frequency of services to London King’s Cross, were to be increased, the extra services would take-over paths of the East Midlands Railway services between Lincoln and Cleethorpes.
  6. I am also assuming that the Midland Main Line electrification has been completed through Leicester to Nottingham, as is currently planned.

Cleethorpes will become a very well-connected station.

Collateral Benefits Of Cleethorpes As A Fossil Fuel-Free Station

If all services to Cleethorpes are run by battery-electric trains, then there will be collateral benefits.

  • All passenger train services in North-East Lincolnshire will be zero-carbon.
  • TransPennine Express’s Southern route between Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes via Manchester, Sheffield and Doncaster will be zero-carbon.
  • LNER’s services to London King’s Cross from Lincolnshire will be zero carbon.

Manchester and Sheffield will be linked by an hourly electric service, just as it was between 1953 and 1981.

The Ivanhoe Line

I wrote about the Ivanhoe Line in Reinstatement Of The Ivanhoe Line.

  • There is a proposed reinstatement of passenger services between Leicester and Burton-on-Trent stations.
  • I estimate it’s a distance of around 37 miles.
  • There would be some new stations on the route.

In the Wikipedia entry for the Ivanhoe Line, there is a section called Future, where this is said.

The intermediate stations are capable of taking only a two-coach train, which has led to overcrowding on some services, especially now that the service is extended to Nottingham and Lincoln. The latest Route Utilisation Strategy for the East Midlands makes recommendations for platform lengthening.

East Midlands Parkway railway station has now been built on the route. The Borough of Charnwood’s local plan of 2004 anticipates a station at Thurmaston.

In 2022 the closed section of the line was one of nine schemes chosen to undergo a feasibility scrutiny by Network Rail as part of the government’s Restoring Your Railway programme. If approved, work could start in 2024 and the line reopened in 2026

Note.

  1. The first paragraph refers to the existing section of the Ivanhoe Line, to the North of Leicester.
  2. I went to Burton once for the football and it’s a difficult place to get to from North London by train.
  3. Burton-on-Trent station was fully refurbished in 2011.
  4. Burton-on-Trent station has hourly services from CrossCountry trains.

It seems that a creditable plan is emerging.

Service Frequency Between Burton-on-Trent And Leicester

As Burton-on-Trent station has hourly services, I suspect that this will be the initial frequency between Burton-on-Trent and Leicester.

But I could see this frequency being increased, if there were long waits during interchange at Burton-on-Trent.

Average Speed Of The Service And Estimate For A Time Between Cleethorpes And Burton-on-Trent

The current Grimsby Town and Leicester service is over a route of 105.3 miles and a direct service takes two hours and thirty-seven minutes.

This is an average speed of 40.24 mph.

I can now give an estimate for a Cleethorpes and Burton-on-Trent service.

The distance will be 105.3+3.3+37, which is 145.6 miles.

An estimate of the time using a speed of 40.24 mph is three hours and thirty-seven minutes.

But seeing that a good proportion of the route has a 110 mph operating speed, I suspect that a 100 mph train could do the trip faster.

Could Cleethorpes And Burton-on-Trent Be Worked By A Battery-Electric Train?

The route could be effectively four sections.

  • Cleethorpes and Grimsby Town – 3.3 miles – Electrified
  • Grimsby Town and Nottingham – 77.8 miles – Not Electrified
  • Nottingham and Leicester – 27.5 miles – Being Electrified
  • Leicester and Burton-on-Trent – 37 miles – Not Electrified

Note.

  1. In a round trip, there are two sections of 77.8 miles and two consecutive sections of 37 miles.
  2. Battery-electric trains would be charged on the electrified section of the route.

I am sure that a battery-electric train with a range of greater than 77.8 miles would handle the service.

July 1, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cleethorpes Station – 28th June 2023

I took these pictures at Cleethorpes station yesterday.

Compare them with this one taken three years ago.

Note.

  1. It appears a Platform 4 has been created on the seaward side of the station.
  2. The track in Platform 4 in yesterday’s pictures appears to be newly-ballasted, whereas three years ago it had an air of dereliction.
  3. There is now a smart blue wooden fence separating the tracks from the station concourse.
  4. Strangely, the lighting between Platforms 3 and 4 had been installed three years ago.
  5. There are different types of lighting on the two islands. Could this be because Network Rail are looking for the lights that perform best in a seaside environment?

This Google Map shows Cleethorpes station.

Note.

  1. The track in Platform 4 appears to be complete.
  2. The station is very handy for the beach.

In Azuma Test Train Takes To The Tracks As LNER Trials Possible New Route, I said this.

It looks like three platforms 2, 3 and 4 at Cleethorpes station were checked.

I think it is possible to say, that once Network Rail’s brickies and paviours have tidied up, that Cleethorpes station will be LNER-ready and could accept a service from London via Lincoln, Market Rasen, Barnetby and Grimsby Town.

What Will Be The Initial Service Of The London and Cleethorpes Service?

The Wikipedia entry for Cleethorpes station, says this about the London service.

In the 1970s Cleethorpes had a twice daily return service to London King’s Cross, typically hauled by a Class 55 Deltic.

Three people, I spoke to about the possible service, mentioned that two trains per day would be the frequency.

I certainly think, that this frequency, could be a sensible initial frequency.

If it worked in the 1970s, I can see why it might work in the 2020s.

  • Kids still like to go to the seaside and the station is close.
  • This area of North-East Lincolnshire, is getting increasingly important as an energy and hydrogen powerhouse.
  • Cleethorpes station has the space to handle more train services.
  • Cleethorpes station has a small depot nearby, which could ease train operations, by stabling a train overnight for an early start in the morning.

But there is one factor that could attract passengers to use the train between King’s Cross and Cleethorpes. I believe that the soon-to-be-announced Hitachi battery-electric Class 800 trains could be able to handle the route without using a drop of fossil fuel.

Running Battery-Electric Class 800 trains Between King’s Cross And Cleethorpes

Consider.

  • Cleethorpes and Lincoln is 47.2 miles with three stops.
  • Lincoln and Newark Northgate, where the electrification starts is 16.7 files.
  • Cleethorpes and Newark Northgate is 63.9 miles, with an out-and-back trip being 127.8 miles.
  • Battery-electric trains would do most of their charging between King’s Cross and Newark Northgate.
  • Full or partial charging should be possible at both Cleethorpes and Lincoln.
  • Battery-electric trains could give help, in cases of catenary failure on the East Coast Main Line.
  • In What Will Be The Range Of A Hitachi Class 800 Battery Train?, I said that I believed a Class 800 battery train would eventually have a battery range in excess of the Stadler FLIRT Akku’s 139 miles, as no-one likes being second.

I believe these strategies are possible.

Charge A Round Trip At Cleethorpes

Consider.

  • This is a range of just 63.9 miles.
  • The service would use Platform 4 at Cleethorpes station.
  • Charging at Cleethorpes could be by a short length of overhead electrification in Cleethorpes station or a specialist charger in the small depot.
  • Charge time would be around 15 minutes.
  • If charging were in the station, there would be no shunting of trains around.

This could be a simple and efficient way to run the service.

A Battery Round Trip To Cleethorpes

  • This is a range of 127.8 miles.
  • The service would use Platform 4 at Cleethorpes station.
  • I believe that this service would need a simple charger at Cleethorpes station, as trains do get delayed and these delays on a battery-electric train, may increase the need for charging.
  • Also what would happen in Grimsby Town were at home to a London club in the FA Cup?

This could be a reliable way to run the service, but I believe drivers need a charging facility at Cleethorpes as a fail-safe backup.

Electrification Between Grimsby Town And Cleethorpes

In Between Lincoln And Cleethorpes – 28th June 2023, I said this.

3.3 miles between Grimsby Town and Cleethorpes took just ten minutes.

All trains terminating at Cleethorpes would get at least twenty minutes of charging, every time, they turned round at the station.

Much of the route between Grimsby Town and Cleethorpes is only single-track, so this could be a very affordable option.

I don’t think there would be many objectors to electrifying between Grimsby Town and Cleethorpes.

An hourly train would use twenty minutes in ever hour between Grimsby Town and Cleethorpes, it looks like the limit would be three trains per hour terminating at Cleethorpes.

So could the three trains be the following?

  • One train to Liverpool Lime Street.
  • One train to Lincoln, with alternate trains continuing to Nottingham, Loughborough and Leicester and some trains to Kings Cross.
  • One train to Barton-on-Humber.

Note.

  1. The Liverpool Lime Street train, would use batteries between Grimsby Town and Hazel Grove, which is 101.4 miles.
  2. A London King’s Cross train, would use batteries between Grimsby Town and Newark Northgate, which is 60.6 miles.
  3. A Leicester train, could use batteries between Grimsby Town and Leicester, which is 105.3 miles. Nottingham and Grimsby Town is 77.8 miles.
  4. Leicester and Nottingham services would need electrification at the Western end.
  5. King;s Cross, Leicester and Nottingham services would be arranged so Lincoln and Cleethorpes was an hourly service.
  6. A Barton-on-Humber train, would use batteries between Grimsby Town and Barton-on-Humber , which is 19.6 miles or 39.2 miles for a round trip.

Cleethorpes station could be at the centre of its own battery-electric train network, with all trains powered by just 3.3 miles of single-track electrification.

 

June 29, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Blue Peter-Style Repair To A Train Window

My train between Lincoln and Peterborough was delayed by a broken window.

These pictures show how it was repaired.

Obviously someone spent their childhood watching Blue Peter.

It’s amazing what you can do with sticky-back plastic and yellow tape.

June 29, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , | 2 Comments

The Lack Of Phone Charging On East Midlands Railways

I arrived at Lincoln station yesterday, after my trip from London, with a full battery on my phone, as LNER trains have charging points. But by the time I left Cleethorpes station to come home, my phone was dead, as I suspect the latest version of a news app, I use is a battery drainer.

There were also no charging points on TransPennine’s Class 185 trains or East Midlands Railways Class 170 trains.

Only, when I boarded a British Rail-era Class 158 train to get to Peterborough, was I able to recharge my phone.

There is surely a need for phone chargers on every train.

 

June 29, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , | 5 Comments

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