Platform Canopies To Be Renovated For Passengers At Lancaster Station
The title of this post is the same as that of this press release from Network Rail.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Station platform canopies are being renovated at Lancaster to improve passenger journeys on the West Coast Main Line.
Network Rail is investing £9.5m to restore and upgrade the station building for the future.
This picture from Network Rail shows an aerial view of the station.
Note that the camera is looking South.
This picture shows the current canopies.
Network Rail can surely do better on a Grade II Listed Building.
The press release lists that this work will be done.
- Replacing all glazing in the platform canopies
- Repairing and strengthening the structure of the canopy structures
- Repainting across the station
The press release says the work won’t affect train services, but will be done when trains aren’t running.
These are my thoughts.
Lancaster Station and High Speed Two
Lancaster station will be a terminus on the High Speed Two Network.
Note.
- Train 4 , which is a pair of 200 metre High Speed Classic Compatible trains, leaves London Euston and splits at Crewe, with one train going to Liverpool Lime Street and the other to Lancaster.
- Train 12, which runs between Birmingham Curzon Street and Scotland, also calls at Lancaster.
Both trains will be single 200 metre High Speed Classic Compatible trains at Lancaster station and platforms 3, 4 and 5 can handle them.
But how will the Lancaster train terminate?
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows the lines through Lancaster station.
Note.
- The red lines are electrified with 25 KVAC overhead wires.
- In the North-West corner of the station are the bay platforms 1 and 2, which handle Morecambe services.
- West Coast Main Line services between London Euston and Scotland, go through platforms 3 and 4 in the middle of the station.
- On the East side of the station is platform 5 which is on a loop off the West Coast Main Line.
I would expect that the London Euston and Lancaster service will generally terminate in platform 5.
Wikipedia says this about platform 5 and the signalling.
Platform 5, which can be used by both northbound and southbound trains or by terminating services.
All platforms are signalled for arrivals and departures in either direction.
That all sounds very convenient.
There may be some minor changes for the longer High Speed Two trains, but I doubt it would be too challenging.
Onward To Morecambe
The Eden Project North at Morecambe could attract a lot of traffic.
- Lancaster will be just two hours and three minutes from London by High Speed Two.
- There are numerous rail connections from Lancaster to all over the North of England and Scotland.
- Would you drive for two hours to the Eden Project North, if there was a convenient and quicker train?
- Train companies may offer combined tickets for the attraction with rail tickets.
Wikipedia says this about the development and opening of the attraction.
Having been granted planning permission in January 2022 and with £50 million of levelling-up funding granted in January 2023, it is due to open in 2024 and predicted to benefit the North West economy by £200 million per year.
I’ve always wanted to go to the Eden Project in Cornwall, but it’s difficult if you don’t drive.
However, I might manage to get to Eden Project North.
Trains between Morecambe and Lancaster are at least hourly.
- I think they can use any platform at Lancaster.
- Morecambe station has two platforms.
- Morecambe and Lancaster stations are four miles apart, with probably half electrified.
- A battery-electric train could work between Morecambe and Lancaster.
I can envisage two main ways to arrange the connection between Morecambe and Lancaster.
- Trains arrive in Lancaster and passengers for Morecambe catch the next Morecambe train for two stops, that take ten minutes.
- When High Speed Two serves Lancaster from Euston, the shuttle train can wait in the Northern end of Platform 5 and when the High Speed Two train arrives passengers can just walk up the platform to the shuttle.
But if the Eden Project North is as successful as the Cornish original, there is going to be a need for more trains between Morecambe and Lancaster.
This Google Map shows Morecambe station.
Note that the island platform is probably about 160 metres long.
This would accommodate.
- A five-car Class 802 or Class 805 train.
- A pair of four-car Class 319, Class 321 trains.
- A pair of three-car Class 331 trains.
But why not be bold and lengthen at least one platform to the full two hundred metres, so that it can accommodate a High Speed Classic Compatible train?
This would also accommodate.
- A seven-car Class 807 train.
- A pair of four-car Class 331 trains.
All of these electric trains would need the Morecambe branch line to be electrified to Morecambe station.
But the Eden Project North would get the public transport access it needs.
Electrifying To Morecambe
This map from OpenRailwayMap, shows the Morecambe Branch Line between the West Coast Main Line and Morecambe station.
Note.
- The tracks shown in red on the Eastern side of the map are the West Coast Main Line.
- The black lines are the unelectrified tracks of the Morecambe branch line.
- Morecambe station is marked by the blue arrow.
- Much of the Morecambe branch line is single track, with some sections of double track.
- The distance between the West Coast Main Line and Morecambe station is around 2.1 miles.
I don’t think it would be the most challenging of electrifications.
A Green Route To The Isle Of Man And Ireland
This map from OpenRailwayMap, shows the terminal of the Morecambe Branch Line at Heysham Port.
Note.
- There is a rail connection to the West Coast Main Line via Morecambe, which is shown in yellow.
- The port appears to have three berths for ferries.
- There are only a couple of train services per day.
- South of the port is the Heysham nuclear power station, which has a capacity of 2.5 GW.
At a first glance, it would appear, that a rail-served passenger terminal could be built close to the port.
I suspect most passengers using Heysham are travelling with a vehicle.
The problem is also that the ferry crossing to Belfast takes around eight hours and there are faster and more convenient routes.
The ferries could be decarbonised by using ammonia or hydrogen fuel, but I doubt that they would be any faster.
I suspect that getting more passengers to use Heysham for the Isle of Man or Ireland will be a difficult proposition to sell to passengers.
And it is made even more difficult with such an infrequent train service.
Before High Speed Two
Avanti West Coast might like to run a train between Euston and Morecambe for the Eden Project North.
Are National Rail Promoting Theme Parks?
I found this page on the National Rail web site, which is entitled Theme Parks.
It gives a list of most theme parks and their nearest stations.
Does such a page exist for hospitals, cathedrals and other similar groups.
Landmark Levelling Up Fund To Spark Transformational Change Across The UK
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from the UK Government.
These are the four bullet points.
- More than 100 projects awarded share of £2.1 billion from Round 2 of government’s flagship Levelling Up Fund.
- Projects will benefit millions of people across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and create jobs and boost economic growth.
- £672 million to develop better transport links, £821 million to kick-start community regeneration and £594 million to restore local heritage sites.
- Successful bids include Eden Project North in Morecambe, a new AI campus in Blackpool, regeneration in Gateshead, and rail improvements in Cornwall
The press release expands the last bullet point.
Projects awarded Levelling Up Fund money today include:
Eden Project North
Eden Project North will receive £50 million to transform a derelict site on Morecambe’s seafront into a world class visitor attraction. It will also kick-start regeneration more widely in Morecambe, creating jobs, supporting tourism and encouraging investment in the seaside town.
Note.
- Because of its closeness to the West Coast Main Line, it will have excellent rail connections to all over the North of England and Central and Southern Scotland, through Lancaster, which will only be a shuttle train away.
- One of High Speed Two’s direct destinations will be Lancaster, which will be served by High Speed Two by hourly trains to Birmingham, Carlisle, Crewe, London, Preston, Warrington and Wigan and by two-hourly trains to Edinburgh, Glasgow, Lockerbie and Motherwell.
- London and Lancaster will be a journey of just two hours and three minutes.
I believe that this high quality rail access will ensure the success of the Eden Project North.
Cardiff Crossrail
Cardiff Crossrail has been allocated £50 million from the fund to improve the journey to and from the city and raise the economic performance of the wider region.
The Cardiff Crossrail is obviously a good project from the little that I’ve read about it. But it does need a web site to explain the reasoning behind it.
Blackpool Multiversity
Blackpool Council and Wyre Council will receive £40 million to deliver a new Multiversity, a carbon-neutral, education campus in Blackpool’s Talbot Gateway Central Business District. This historic funding allows Blackpool and The Fylde College to replace their ageing out-of-town centre facilities with world-class state-of-the-art ones in the heart of the town centre. The Multiversity will promote higher-level skills, including automation and artificial intelligence, helping young people secure jobs of the future.
Blackpool certainly needs something.
My suggestion in Blackpool Needs A Diamond, was to build a second Diamond Light Source in the North to complement the successful facility at Harwell.
I don’t think the two proposals are incompatible.
Fair Isle Ferry
Nearly £27 million has been guaranteed for a new roll-on, roll-off ferry for Fair Isle in the Shetland Islands. The service is a lifeline for the island, supporting its residents, visitors and supply chains, and without its replacement the community will become further isolated.
Note.
- Will it be a British-built ferry?
- Will it be hydrogen-powered? After all by the time it is built, the Northern Scottish islands will be providing enough of the gas to power a quarter of Germany.
- Surely, a hydrogen-powered roll-on, roll-off ferry will be a tourist attraction in its own right.
I hope the Government and the islanders have a good ship-yard lined up
Gateshead Quays And The Sage
A total of £20 million is going towards the regeneration of Gateshead Quays and the Sage, which will include a new arena, exhibition centre, hotels, and other hospitality. The development will attract nearly 800,000 visitors a year and will create more than 1,150 new jobs.
I don’t know much about the Sage, but this project seems very reasonable.
Mid-Cornwall Metro
A £50 million grant will help create a new direct train service, linking 4 of Cornwall’s largest urban areas: Newquay, St Austell, Truro, and Falmouth/Penryn. This will level up access to jobs, skills, education, and amenities in one of the most economically disadvantaged areas in the UK.
I wrote about this scheme in The Proposed Mid-Cornwall Metro, where I came to this conclusion.
I believe that a small fleet of Hitachi Regional Battery Trains could create an iconic Metro for Cornwall, that would appeal to both visitors and tourists alike.
Judging by the recent success of reopening the Dartmoor Railway to Okehampton in Devon, I think this scheme could be a big success. But it must be zero-carbon!
Female Changing Rooms For Northern Ireland Rugby
There is £5.1 million to build new female changing rooms in 20 rugby clubs across Northern Ireland.
Given the popularity of the female version of the sport in England, Scotland and Wales, perhaps this is a sensible way to level it up in Northern Ireland. As rugby is an all-Ireland sport, perhaps the Irish have already sorted the South?
Northern Eden Project Worth £125 million Gets Green Light
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Plans to transform the seafront of a deprived town into a £125 million northern outpost of the Eden Project have been given the green light.
Councillors in Lancashire approved plans for the site on Morecambe seafront which it is hoped will attract around a million visitors and create 400 jobs.
I think the Eden Project Morecambe could be a real Northern success.
Here’s my reasoning.
Location, Location, Location
These are the three most important factors with any house, building or property.
Morecambe has a superb location for visitors coming by car or train, as is close to both the M6 Motoway and the West Coast Main Line.
I wrote about getting to the Eden Project in Getting To The Proposed Morecambe Eden Project By Train.
I suspect visitors coming by road, would drive to a suitable Park-and-Ride and then take a train.
Lancaster Will Be A High Speed Two Station
Lancaster will be served by the following High Speed Two services.
- London Euston – Two hours and three minutes – One tph
- London Old Oak Common – One hour and fifty-six minutes – One tph
- Birmingham Curzon Street – One hour and six minutes – One tph
- Crewe – Fifty-nine minutes – One tph
- Warrington Bank Quay – Forty-two minutes – One tph
- Wigan North Western – Thirty-one minutes – Two tph
- Preston – Seventeen minutes – Two tph
- Oxenholme – Twelve minutes – One tp2h
- Penrith – Thirty-five minutes – One tp2h
- Carlisle – Fifty-two minutes – One tph
- Lockerbie – One hour and eleven minutes – One tph
- Edinburgh – Two hours and twelve minutes – One tp2h
- Motherwell – One hour and fifty-six minutes – One tp2h
- Glasgow – Two hours and twelve minutes – One tp2h
Note.
- tph is trains per hour.
- tp2h is trains per two hours.
- A shuttle train between Lancaster and the Eden Project Morecambe will probably add ten minutes.
High Speed Two will make the Eden Project Morecambe one of the best connected entertainment venues in the UK.
Avanti West Coast And TransPennine Express North Of Warrington Bank Quay After High Speed Two Opens
When High Speed Two opens, it is likely that North of Warrington Bank Quay station, the operating speed of this section of the West Coast Main Line will be faster than the current 125 mph, as the track will have been straightened and digital signalling will have been installed.
It will probably be at least 140 mph.
These trains will be running express passenger services on the route and will be able to match the speed and timings of High Speed Two’s Classic-Compatible trains to the North of Warrington Bank Quay station.
- Avanti West Coast’s Class 390 trains
- TransPennine Express’s Class 397 trains
- TransPennine Express’s Class 802 trains
There is likely to be savings of a few minutes on these services.
- Avanti West Coast – London Euston and Glasgow Central
- TransPennine Express – Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly and Glasgow Central
- TransPennine Express – Liverpool Lime Street and Glasgow Central
Connections from the North-West of England and Southern Scotland will be fast and frequent.
Eden Project Morecambe Will Be A Day Trip For Greater North West England
An area defined by Carlisle, Blackburn, Manchester, Crewe, Chester, Liverpool and Blackpool will be close enough to have a day trip to the venue.
Eden Project Morecambe Is Unlikely To Be A Poor Attraction
The Eden Project Morecambe must be worth attending, but with twenty years experience of running a similar attraction in Cornwall, it is unlikely to be a failure.
Eden Project Morecambe Will Be Easier To Travel To Than The Original Eden Project For Many
I have never even been past the Eden Project in Cornwall, as it is not the easiest place to get to without a car.
I intend to go, but it will probably need two nights in a hotel to do it justice.
But Eden Project Morecambe could well be much shorter trip from London.
Currently, Avanti West Coast’s fastest time between London Euston and Lancaster are two hours and forty minutes, which would mean an under three hours trip both ways to and from Eden Project Morecambe. The Cornish site is probably nearly five hours by public transport.
Conclusion
All these factors should contribute to the success of the attraction.
Lancashire’s Eden Project Encouraged By Survey Results
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on the Lancashire Post.
Apparently, 99 % of those surveyed were in favour.
More can be found at edenproject.com/north.
Eden Project Morecambe Now ‘Certain’
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Westmoreland Gazette.
I’ve always liked the Eden Project Morecambe and can’t see why it will not be as big a success, as its Cornish sister.
- It has good transport links.
- It could be served by battery electric trams or trains from the West Coast Main Line.
- It is within an two hours ,of the large population centres of Blackpool, Liverpool, Manchester and North Lancashire.
- It is a complimentary attraction to the Lake District.
But above all, it catches the mood of today’s world.
£82m, 30m High Aerial Tramway Vision Would Link Eden Project North To Lancaster University And M6
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Lancaster Guardian.
This is the first two paragraphs.
Proposals for an £82m aerial tramway project linking Lancaster, Morecambe and the university have been drawn up by the man behind the initial plans for Eden Project North.
Standing at more than 30m high, the Aerial Tramway System would link the proposed Eden Project North, the Bay Gateway, Lancaster Railway Station, the University of Cumbria’s Lancaster campus, Lancaster University and junction 33 of the M6 motorway.
Iy is an interesting suggestion.
But I do question the cost.
The Emirates Air Line in London has the following characteristics.
- I kilometre in length
- 2 stations
- 34 gondolas in use at one time.
- ten-seat gondolas
- 90 metres maximum height.
The proposed Lancaster and Morecambe aerial tramway has the following characteristics.
- I0 kilometres in length
- 5 stations
- 30 gondolas in use at one time.
- thirty-five-seat gondolas
- 30 metres maximum height.
As the cost of the Emirate Air Line is reported at £60million, I’m afraid that £82million for the Lancaster and Morecambe aerial tramway are slightly ambitious.
In Getting To The Proposed Morecambe Eden Project By Train, I laid out how a large zero-carbon rail system could develop around Morecambe.
I also concluded that journeys to and from Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Manchester, could be made zero-carbon.
Conclusion
There could be better ways to acgieve the same local objectives.
Getting To The Proposed Morecambe Eden Project By Train
I originally wrote this post as part of Thoughts On The Morecambe Bay Eden Project, in August 2018, but I now feel it is better as a standalone post!
Current Train SAervices To Morecambe
Morecambe is served by the Morecambe Branch Line, This diagram from Wikipedia, shows how Morecambe is well-connected to Lancaster and the West Coast Main Line.
Note.
- The line has two stations in the town at Bare Lane and Morecambe and another at the nearby Heysham Port.
- Service between Morecambe and Lancaster seems to have a frequency of two trains per hour (tph) and a journey time of around ten minutes.
- There are also upwards of three services a day to and from Skipton and Leeds, which reverse at Lancaster.
I don’t think that a train every half-hour, is sufficient to serve a major attraction.
Possible Expansion Of The Train Service
As both Bare Lane and Morecambe stations have two platforms and there used to be extra tracks along the route, I think it would be possible to create a railway system to Morecambe that could include.
- Two tph to and from Lancaster.
- Trains to and from Leeds via Lancaster, Carnforth, Hellifield for the Settle & Carlisle Railway and Skipton
- Trains to and from Windermere via Lancaster, Carnforth and Oxenholme Lake District.
- Trains to and from Carlisle via Lancaster, Carnforth, Barrow and the Cumbrian Coast Line.
There is tremendous scope to expand rail services in an area of scenic beauty, that includes the Lake District and the Pennines.
Creating an iconic attraction at Morecambe could be a catalyst to develop the rail services in the wider area.
A decent rail service with good provision for bicycles and wheelchairs, might also encourage more tourism without the need for cars.
The West Coast Main Line And High Speed Two
The West Coast Main Line, which will also be used by High Speed Two trains in the future goes between Lancaster and Carlisle.
- Trains to and from Morecambe, Windermere and Barrow will have to share with the 125 mph trains on the West Coast Main Line.
For this reason, I feel that the specification for local trains must be written with care.
Battery Trains Between Morecambe And Lancaster
In my view, the short Morecambe and Windermere Branch Lines are ideal for services that use battery trains, which would charge the batteries on the electrified West Coast Main Line.
- All trains between Lancaster and Morecambe could use battery power.
- Morecambe to Windermere could even be a 125 mph electric train on the West Coast Main Line, that used batteries on the short branch lines at either end.
Consider
- Bombardier are talking about a 125 mph bi-mode Aventra with batteries. Diesel power would not be needed, so add more batteries.
- Battery trains are talking about ranges of thirty miles, in a few years.
- Batteries would be charged on the West Coast Main Line.
- The trains would not be slow enough to interfere with the expresses on the West Coast Main Line.
How cool is that?
The battery-powered trains would surely fit in well with the message of the Eden Project.
Hydrogen-Powered Trains Between Morecambe And Leeds
In my view these routes would be ideal for environmentally-friendly hydrogen-powered trains.
- Morecambe and Leeds
- Lancaster and Carlisle via Barrow and Workington
- Carlisle and Newcastle
- Carlisle and Leeds via the Settle and Carlisle Line.
All passenger trains in Cumbria would be zero-carbon.
Conclusion
Morecambe and the Eden Project could be at the centre of an extensive zero-carbon rail network.
These major cities would have direct electric trains to Lancaster, which would be a short local train ride away.
- Birmingham
- Edinburgh
- Glasgow
- Liverpool
- London
- Manchester
All journeys could be zero-carbon.
2022 Opening For £80m Eden Project North Which Would Attract Up To 8,000 People A Day To Morecambe
The title of this post is the same as that of this article in the Lancaster Guardian.
This is the first paragraph.
The Eden Project North would open in autumn 2022 at a cost of £80m and attract up to 8,000 people a day to Morecambe – if planning and funding can be agreed.
Given the undoubted success of the Eden Project in Cornwall, I would be very surprised if this project doesn’t go ahead.
Morecambe’s Eden Project North To Feature Giant ‘Mussel’ Pavilions
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the first three paragraphs.
A new Eden Project will feature five giant mussel-shaped domes inspired by local marine life, plans have revealed.
Morecambe’s Eden Project North will include “performance spaces, immersive experiences and observatories”, the charity behind plans for it has said.
The Eden Project, which runs the Cornish attraction of the same name, said the new site would also feature “re-imagined lidos” and gardens.
It appears that the next stage is to obtain the funding.
I must admit, that I was sceptical about the Eden Project in Cornwall, when it was announced in the late 1990s. But it is now a popular visitor attraction, which attracted over a million visitors iin 2017.
Morecambe Eden Project Gains Chancellor’s Backing
The title of this post is the same as that of this article in the Westmoreland Gazette.
This is the first paragraph.
Plans for an Eden Project in Morecambe have received official backing from the Chancellor today as he pledged £100,000 in today’s budget to support the development of the proposals being led by Eden Project International.
This is surely good news for the project.
The Anonymous Widower 