York And Church Fenton Electrification
This news item from Network Rail is entitled Yorkshire’s First New Electric Railway In 25 Years Set To Cut Carbon And Slash Journey Times.
This section summarised the work
Work began on the York to Church Fenton electrification scheme in October 2019, and to date has delivered:
- 17 kilometres of new, more reliable track, ready to run faster trains
- An innovative 65-metre-wide under-track crossing
- 270 new steel masts, which carry the overhead electric wires
When the new wires are energised, they will allow more environmentally friendly hybrid trains to run along this section at speeds of up to 125mph – that’s 30mph faster than they currently run.
This OpenRailwayMap shows between York and Church Fenton.
Note.
red lines indicate 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
York is in the North-East corner of the map.
Church Fenton is in the South-West corner of the map.
The track marked in red going South is the Selby Diversion, which was built in 1983 to avoid the Selby coalfield. It joins the York and Church Fenton route at Colton Junction.
The Colton Junction and Church Fenton section is marked in red and black, indicating this section is being electrified.
This second OpenRailwayMap shows between Church Fenton and Neville Hill TMD in the East of Leeds.
Note.
- Church Fenton is in the North-East corner of the map.
- Neville Hill TMD is the big black blob in the middle of the West edge of the map.
- The route marked in red and black will probably be the next to be electrified.
- Between Leeds and Neville Hill is electrified.
Electrification of Church Fenton and Neville Hill TMD means that the electrification between Leeds and York would be complete.
These services use this route between Leeds and York.
- TransPennine Express – 1 tph – Liverpool Lime Street and Newcastle
- TransPennine Express – 1 tph – Manchester Airport and Redcar Central
- CrossCountry – 1 tph – Plymouth and Edinburgh Waverley
In addition, the new electrified route will have other effects.
Electric trains will have direct electrified access to Neville Hill TMD from York.
Micklefield is only 42 miles from Hull and with charging at Hull, I suspect TransPennine’s Manchester Piccadilly and Hull service could go battery-electric.
Extending The Elizabeth Line – Improving The Route To Windsor & Eton Central Station
This post is now complete.
I took the Elizabeth Line to Slough station, for onward travel to Windsor & Eton Central station today and took these pictures along the route.
Note.
- I joined the Elizabeth Line at Moorgate station and took a train all the way to Paddington station.
- As a Freedom Pass holder, I use the Elizabeth Line for nothing.
- I changed between the Central and Western sections of the Elizabeth Line at Paddington.
- I also bought my Slough and Windsor & Eton Central ticket at Paddington from a machine, for the princely sum of £2.10. It was with a Senior Railcard.
- There is a lot of building going on along the route.
- The diesel train on the Slough-Windsor & Eton Line was a three-car Class 165 train.
I have some thoughts on how to improve the train service to Windsor.
What Do I Mean By Improving?
I don’t mean direct trains, as that would be impossible for various reasons.
- Platform length at Windsor & Eton Central station would be a problem.
- Flat crossing across the fast lines would slow the expresses.
- To make the running efficient, a flyover would need to be built. The disruption of building it and the cost would be immense.
What is needed, is a system, which means that getting from Central Elizabeth Line stations to Windsor & Eton Central station is as easily as possible.
Windsor Is One Of Our Premier Tourism Destinations
I suspect that on passenger numbers; Bicester Village, Cambridge, Oxford and Windsor are the four most visited tourist sites by rail from London.
I don’t think it’s a good idea to provide some of the services to these destinations, with the exception of Cambridge, with British Rail-era diesel multiple units.
Could A Four-Car Train Be Run On the Slough-Windsor & Eton Line?
I took this picture of the Slough end of the three-car Class 165 train in Windsor & Eton Central station.
It does appear that say a four-car Class 387 train could be fitted into the platform, with perhaps some adjustment to the platform and the track.
Would The Train Be Electric Or Battery-Electric Powered?
Consider.
- The Slough-Windsor & Eton Line is only 2.5 miles long.
- It is single-track.
- Trains take six minutes to do the trip.
- Modern electric trains with better acceleration could probably do the trip in four minutes.
- A battery-electric train will need charging.
This OpenRailMap map shows the electrification at Slough station.
Note.
- 25 KVAC overhead electrification is shown in red.
- The Slough-Windsor & Eton Line leaves the map in the South-West corner of the map and runs into the electrified Bay Platform 1.
- The electrification in Platform 1 could be used to charge a battery-electric train.
- The Slough-Windsor & Eton Line appears to be partially electrified at the Slough end.
I wonder, if the simplest, most-affordable, least risky approach is to electrify the 2.5 miles with 25 KVAC overhead electrification, as it would allow a standard Class 387 train to work the route.
Operation Of The Shuttle
Currently, the Class 165 trains take six minutes between Slough and Windsor & Eton Central stations, which means that with turning the train at each end of the route, where the driver must walk seventy metres or so to change ends only a three trains per hour (tph) schedule is possible.
If I look at some of the station-to-station stops on the Elizabeth Line, I suspect that a well driven electric train could go between Slough and Windsor & Eton Central stations in perhaps four minutes. With a well-marshalled stop at either end of the route in perhaps two minutes, it could be possible to do a round trip in twelve minutes, which would allow a four tph service.
Capacity would go up from nine cars per hour to sixteen. or an over seventy percent increase in capacity.
There are several ways that, this shuttle could operate.
- As now, where the drivers have to be fit to change ends in the time.
- Two drivers are used with one in each cab.
- Drivers walk back on arrival at the terminal and then step-up into the next train. This is standard London Underground practice at stations like Brixton and Walthamstow Central.
- The train is fully-automated and the driver sits in either cab with an override, that allows him to take control, if say protestors or criminals get on the track.
As a Control Engineer, I certainly feel the fourth option is possible.
Intriguingly, I suspect the concept could be proved with two drivers in an existing three-car Class 165 train, to see if four tph are possible.
Ticketing
Ticketing is less of a problem now, than it was before March 28th 2022, as from that date Windsor & Eton Central station is now in the contactless area, so you could touch in with your bank card at any station in the London contactless area and touch out at that station.
It’s all explained on this page on the Great Western Railway web site.
I am a Freedom Pass holder, which gives me the ability to get free travel to and from anywhere on the Elizabeth line for free, so getting to and from Slough for nothing, is no problem, if I use the Elizabeth Line.
But I would need a ticket for the section between Slough and Windsor & Eton Central stations.
Before I got on the Elizabeth Line at Moorgate, I tried to buy an extension ticket between Slough and Windsor & Eton Central stations, from the ticket machines at Moorgate, but it was not possible, so in the end, I made a detour to the ticket office at Paddington and bought the ticket there. But when the Elizabeth Line is fully connected, there will have to be a rethink, as Freedom Pass holders from say Ilford would want a day out in Windsor.
Perhaps the Slough-Windsor & Eton Central line should become a fixed-fare line, where a bank card would be charged say a pound for each journey.
Note that I only paid £2.10 for a return ticket at Paddington with my Senior Railcard.
A Better Interchange At Slough
Currently, the Off Peak frequency of trains at Slough is as follows.
- Slough and Windsor & Eton Central – 3 tph
- Slough and Paddington – Elizabeth Line – 2 tph
- Slough and Paddington – Great Western Railway – 2 tph – Non-stop
- Slough and Paddington – Great Western Railway – 2 tph – Stopping
In TfL Confirms Details Of Reading Services, I wrote that the Elizabeth Line will have 4 tph to London in the Off Peak, with two extra services in the Peak.
This indicates to me, that the Slough and Windsor & Eton Central service needs four tph.
Extending The Elizabeth Line – Linking To The Oxted Line
I believe that everybody in the South East of England needs the best access possible to the Elizabeth Line, by train from where they live.
- The Elizabeth Line serves the important places like Brick Lane, Canary Wharf, the City of London, Heathrow Airport, Liverpool Street station, the Olympic Park, Oxford Street and Paddington station directly.
- Because of its connection to Thameslink, the Elizabeth Line also serves important places like Bedford, Brighton, Cambridge, Gatwick Airport, Luton Airport and Tate Modern with a single change at Farringdon station.
- Using the Elizabeth Line, Thameslink and perhaps a bus, it is possible to get to most important places in Central London.
- The more passengers that use the Elizabeth Line and Thameslink, the more London’s businesses will thrive creating employment and tax revenues.
- It should also be remembered, that using a train to visit central London, probably cuts your carbon footprint.
- The Elizabeth Line also cost a fortune, so perhaps by using it, you will be getting some of your portion of what it cost you back.
This post is the first of several, where I discuss how to bring more passengers into the Elizabeth Line network.
The Oxted Line
The Oxted Line is a line with two branches; East Grinstead and Uckfield, which runs South from East Croydon station.
- The branch to East Grinstead is electrified, but the branch to Uckfield is not and is still run by diesel trains.
- Plans exist to run battery-electric trains on the Uckfield branch, but they always seem to be awaited,
- Network Rail are now saying that they will electrify the Uckfield branch with third-rail.
- All platforms on both branches can take ten-car trains, if not twelve.
- A reasonable amount of money has been spent on the Uckfield branch to improve it.
- Services on both branches are one train per hour (tph).
- London terminals of trains are London Bridge and Victoria, both of which have no easy connection to the Elizabeth Line.
The major faults of the current services are as follows.
- One tph is not enough.
- Victoria is an overcrowded terminal with no connection to the Elizabeth Line or Thameslink
- At London Bridge and East Croydon, there are tortuous step-free change to Thameslink.
- From London Bridge you can use the Northern Line to transfer to the Elizabeth Line, but it wouldn’t be the best route when taking a heavy case to Heathrow.
- From Victoria, you can use the Circle and District lines to the Elizabeth Line at Paddington.
The Oxted Line service needs to be improved.
I would do the following.
Move Uckfield Branch Services To Thameslink
This would mean that Uckfield services would call at East Croydon, London Bridge, Blackfriars, City Thameslink, Farringdon, St. Pancras and then terminate somewhere to the North.
- There would be a step-free change to the Elizabeth Line at Farringdon.
- East Croydon and London Bridge are still served.
- There are connections to the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City, Jubilee, Metropolitan, Northern, Piccadilly and Victoria Lines of the Underground.
- There will be no need for a terminal platform at London Bridge.
I believe that this gives much better connectivity.
Electrify To Uckfield
This is a long-debated question.
But as Thameslink trains are Class 700 trains, which are dual voltage, I’d electrify the Uckfield branch with 25 KVAC overhead electrification between Hurst Green and Uckfield.
Lightweight catenary could be used to reduce visual intrusion.
Note.
- The curved beam at the top of this overhead electrification gantry is laminated wood.
- Power changeover would take place at Hurst Green station.
Hopefully, the electric trains would offset any anger at overhead wires.
Run Two tph To Uckfield
I am fairly certain that when Network Rail lengthened the platforms on the Uckfield branch, that they arranged the track and signalling, so that two tph could use the branch.
Run An Hourly Shuttle Between Oxted And East Grinstead
This service would be as follows.
- It would terminate in the bay platform at Oxted station.
- This would give 2 tph on this route.
The existing hourly service between East Grinstead and Victoria would continue.
Conclusion
I believe that this simple scheme could give very good benefits to all stakeholders.
Kent Railway Viaduct Set For £3.5m Makeover
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Advent.
This 3D image from Google Maps, shows Ashurst station.
I think that the viaduct is to the left of the station.
This is a description of the work from Katie Frost, Network Rail’s route director for Sussex.
Our railway has a host of Victorian structures that underpin the millions of journeys passengers take with us every year and we have to take good care of them. Mill Stream Viaduct is made of metal, and we need to give it a thorough refurbishment to keep it strong for the future, blasting the old paint off, repainting and repairing the metal sections, replacing the decking, the track and the timbers that support the track too.
Certainly, £3.5 million would seem a lot, if it was just a simple repainting.
What About The Electrification?
Network Rail have been faffing about, deciding how they will get twelve car electric services to Uckfield.
However, in the April 2022 Edition of Modern Railways, there was a short article, which was entitled Uckfield Third Rail is NR Priority, where this was said.
Electrification of the line between Hurst Green and Uckfield in East Sussex and remodelling of East Croydon are the top Network Rail investment priorities south of the river, according to Southern Region Managing Director John Halsall. He told Modern Railways that third rail is now the preferred option for the Uckfield line, as it would allow the route to use the pool of third-rail EMUs in the area. This is in preference to the plan involving overhead electrification and use of dual-voltage units put forward by then-Network Rail Director Chris Gibb in his 2017 report.
NR has put forward options for mitigating the safety risk involved with the third-rail system, including switching off the power in station areas when no trains are present and section isolation systems to protect track workers. ‘The Office of Rail and Road hasn’t yet concerned third rail would be acceptable, but we ark working out ways in which it could be’ Mr Halsall told Modern Railways. He added that bi-mode trains with batteries were not a feasible option on this line, as the 10-car trains in use on the route would not be able to draw sufficient charge between London and Hurst Green to power the train over the 25 miles to Uckfield.
I feel that whatever method is used to get electric trains to Uckfield, there may well be some extra weight on the Millstream Viaduct at Ashurst. So giving the viaduct a makeover, is probably prudent.
I get the impression from the last few Editions of Modern Railways, that there will be a need for battery-electric multiple units in Kent and Sussex.
- Ashford and Ore is 25.4 miles – Electrified at both ends – Maximum trip – 25.4 miles.
- Oxted and Uckfield is 25 miles – Electrified at one end – Maximum trip – 50 miles.
- Hoo and Hoo Juncton is less than 10 miles – Electrified at one end – Maximum trip – 20 miles.
It would appear that the Uckfield trip will need bigger batteries or some form of charging at Uckfield.
Suppose though the following were to be done.
- Create a third-rail battery-electric multiple unit, with a range of thirty miles.
- These would be ideal for Ashford and Ore and the Hoo Branch.
- Install charging stations at Ashurst on both platforms and at Uckfield on the single platform. These would either work through a pantograph or third rail.
Operation of the service during a round trip between London Bridge and Uckfield would be as follows.
- London Bridge and Hurst Green – Uses electrification and charges batteries
- Hurst Green and Ashurst – Uses batteries for 11 miles
- Ashurst station – Tops up the batteries
- Ashurst and Uckfield – Uses batteries for 14 miles
- Uckfield station – Tops up the batteries
- Uckfield and Ashurst – Uses batteries for 14 miles
- Ashurst station – Tops up the batteries
- Ashurst and Hurst Green – Uses batteries for 11 miles
- Hurst Green and London Bridge – Uses electrification and charges batteries
Network Rail may use a different combination of chargers and battery size.
Green Light For Major Transpennine Improvements
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railnews.
These paragraphs outline the project.
Improvements on the Transpennine route in West Yorkshire have been given the green light, after a Transport and Works Act order was signed by the transport secretary on 27 June, six months earlier than planned.
The cost of the upgrades was described as ‘multi-billion’ by Network Rail, which said it was the ‘biggest milestone’ so far on the Transpennine Route Upgrade programme.
The improvements will be carried out between Huddersfield and Westtown in Dewsbury, and include quadrupling the double line and remodelling track layouts as well as major renovations at Huddersfield, Deighton and Mirfield and a new station at Ravensthorpe. In addition, there will be a flyover near Ravensthorpe to separate the Wakefield and Leeds lines and reduce conflicting movements.
Effectively, Grant Shapps fired the starting gun for this project four days ago.
I have written various posts on the upgrade and they can be read from this link.
The Transpennine Route Upgrade Web Site
The project now has its own comprehensive web site, which is named the Transpennine Route Upgrade.
A Reply To Peter Robins About Electrification
Peter Robins made this very perceptive comment.
The main point of TPU isn’t electrification, though, it’s upgrading the track to remove bottlenecks, improve lines speeds, add capacity. This is mainly what the Hudd-Dew TWA order is about. If you electrify the line while you’re doing that, then you increase the number of connecting places/lines which are within range of current batteries.
I think that Lds-CF will also have to wait for the post-IRP review, meaning the full upgrade will be a long time coming.
This Hitachi infographic shows the specification of their Regional Battery Train.
Note.
- It is a 100 mph train.
- Batteries can be charged when travelling under wires or 10-15 mins static.
- Range on batteries is 90 km. or 56 miles.
- My experience of Hitachi bi-modes is that pantographs on these trains can go up and down, with all the alacrity of a whore’s drawers.
Hitachi have stated that they will be testing a Class 802 train with batteries later this year.
Could Hitachi Battery Trains Be Charged On The Electrification Between Huddersfield And Dewsbury?
Looking at the data from RealTimeTrains for this route it appears that the fastest time I can find between Huddersfield And Dewsbury is eleven minutes.
Would this be enough time to fully-charge the battery? If not the electrification could perhaps be extended for a couple of miles.
How Many Of Transpennine Express (TPE)’s Services Could Be Decarbonised, if Huddersfield And Dewsbury Were To Be Electrified?
I’ll look at each service that uses this route.
Liverpool Lime Street And Newcastle
This is an hourly service that calls at Newton-le-Willows, Manchester Victoria, Huddersfield, Dewsbury, Leeds, York, Northallerton, Darlington and Durham.
- Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Victoria is electrified.
- Colton Junction and Newcastle is electrified.
- Huddersfield and Dewsbury will be electrified by the Transpennine Route Upgrade.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- Manchester Victoria and Huddersfield – 25.8 miles
- Dewsbury and Colton Junction – 29.3 miles
Note.
- There are also stops under the wires, at Dewsbury, Huddersfield and Leeds, which could be used to top up the battery.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 29.3 miles.
It looks to me that Liverpool Lime Street And Newcastle could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
Manchester Airport And Redcar Central
This is an hourly service that calls at Gatley, Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Victoria, Huddersfield, Dewsbury, Leeds, York, Thirsk, Northallerton, Yarm, Thornaby and Middlesbrough.
- Manchester Airport and Manchester Victoria is electrified.
- Colton Junction and Northallerton is electrified.
- Huddersfield and Dewsbury will be electrified by the Transpennine Route Upgrade.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- Manchester Victoria and Huddersfield – 25.8 miles
- Dewsbury and Colton Junction – 29.3 miles
- Northallerton and Redcar Central – 28.8 miles
Note.
- There are also stops under the wires, at Dewsbury, Huddersfield and Leeds, which could be used to top up the battery.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 29.3 miles.
- I suspect that charging could be needed at Redcar end of the route. Middlesbrough would probably be best, as it could also charge the LNER services, if they used battery power from Northallerton.
It looks to me that Manchester Airport And Redcar Central could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
Manchester Piccadilly And Hull
This is an hourly service that calls at Stalybridge, Huddersfield, Leeds, Selby and Brough.
- Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria is electrified.
- Huddersfield and Dewsbury will be electrified by the Transpennine Route Upgrade.
- Leeds and Neville Hill Depot is electrified.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- Manchester Victoria and Huddersfield – 25.8 miles
- Dewsbury and Leeds – 29.3 miles
- Neville Hill Depot and Hull – 50 miles
Note.
- There are also stops under the wires, at Huddersfield and Leeds, which could be used to top up the battery.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 50 miles.
- I am sure that charging would be needed at Hull end of the route. Hull would probably be best, as it could also charge the Hull Trains, LNER and Northern Trains services, if they used battery power from the East Coast Main Line.
- Alternatively, there could be electrification between Hull and Brough. or Neville Hill and Micklefield. The latter would knock eight miles off the unelectrified section and is needed to allow electric trains to access Neville Hill Depot under electric power.
It looks to me that Manchester Piccadilly and Hull could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield
This is an hourly service that calls at Stalybridge, Mossley, Greenfield, Marsden, and Slaithwaite.
- Manchester Piccadilly is electrified.
- Huddersfield is electrified.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield – 25.5 miles
Note.
- There are also stops under the wires, at Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield, which would be used to top up the battery.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 25.5 miles.
- Trains would be charged at both ends of the route.
It looks to me that Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
Huddersfield And Leeds
This is an hourly service that calls at Deighton, Mirfield, Ravensthorpe, Dewsbury, Batley, Morley and Cottingley
- Huddersfield is electrified.
- Leeds is electrified.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- Dewsbury and Leeds – 29.3 miles
Note.
- There are also stops under the wires, at Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield, Deighton, Mirfield, Ravensthorpe, Dewsbury and Leeds, which would be used to top up the battery.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 29.3 miles.
- Trains would be charged at both ends of the route.
It looks to me that Huddersfield and Leeds could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
York And Scarborough
This is an hourly service that calls at Malton and Seamer
- York is electrified.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- York And Scarborough – 42.1 miles
Note.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 42.1 miles.
- Trains would be charged at both ends of the route.
It looks to me that York and Scarborough could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
How Many Of Northern Trains’s Services Could Be Decarbonised, if Huddersfield And Dewsbury Were To Be Electrified?
I’ll look at each service that uses this route.
Wigan North Western And Leeds
This is an hourly service that calls at Daisy Hill, Atherton, Walkden, Salford Crescent, Salford Central, Manchester Victoria, Rochdale, Smithy Bridge, Littleborough, Walsden, Todmorden, Hebden Bridge, Mytholmroyd, Sowerby Bridge, Brighouse, Mirfield, Dewsbury, Morley and Cottingley
- Wigan North Western is electrified.
- Salford Crescent and Manchester Victoria is electrified.
- Heaton Lodge East junction and Dewsbury is electrified.
- Leeds is electrified.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- Wigan North Western and Salford Crescent – 16 miles
- Manchester Victoria and Heaton Lodge East junction – 37.6 miles
- Dewsbury and Leeds – 29.3 miles
Note.
- There are also stops under the wires, at Wigan North Western, Salford Crescent, Salford Central, Manchester Victoria, Mirfield, Dewsbury and Leeds, which would be used to top up the battery.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 37.6 miles.
- Trains would be charged at both ends of the route.
It looks to me that Wigan North Western and Leeds could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
Huddersfield And Castleford
This is an occasional service that calls at Deighton, Mirfield and Wakefield Kirkgate.
As it is run by buses at the moment, I can’t get the data to work out if it could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
But I suspect it can, after looking at a map.
How Many Of Grand Central’s Services Could Be Decarbonised, if Huddersfield And Dewsbury Were To Be Electrified?
I’ll look at each service that uses this route.
London King’s Cross And Bradford Interchange
This is a four trains per day service that calls at Doncaster, Pontefract Monkhill, Wakefield Kirkgate, Mirfield, Brighouse, Halifax and Low Moor.
- King’s Cross and Doncaster is electrified.
- Mirfield is electrified.
This leaves the following sections without electrification.
- Doncaster and Mirfield – 34.8 miles
- Mirfield and Bradford Interchange – 17.3 miles
Note.
- There are also stops under the wires, at Mirfield, which would be used to top up the battery.
- The largest unelectrified section would be 34.8 miles.
- Trains would need to be charged at Bradford Interchange, during the turnround of around an hour.
- It is likely, that some electrification will be erected in the Bradford area, to improve services to Leeds.
It looks to me that London King’s Cross and Bradford Interchange could be served using a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar.
Conclusion
It looks like electrifying between Huddersfield and Dewsbury will enable a Hitachi Regional Battery Train or similar to work all passenger routes, that run on that section of track.
Rail Baltica Electrification Procurement Begins
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
These two paragraphs define the project.
Rail Baltica project promoter RB Rail has begun procurement of the electrification systems for the future standard gauge line between Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, saying it will be the largest railway electrification scheme in Europe to be implemented as a single project.
The energy subsystem contract covers 870 km of double track line from the Polish border to Tallinn including the line from Kaunas to Vilnius, and includes design and construction of substations, connections to the public high voltage grids, control systems and more than 2 000 track-km of overhead equipment.
It looks like the procurement process will be finished by 2023.
Hopefully, Vlad the Mad won’t object to this standard gauge line going too close to lines with his beloved Russian gauge.
Siemens Mobility and Deutsche Bahn Present New Hydrogen Train
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Global Railway Review.
This is the sub-title.
Deutsche Bahn and Siemens Mobility have presented the newly developed Mireo Plus H and a newly designed mobile hydrogen storage trailer.
It seems that Deutsche Bahn and Siemens Mobility have put together a well-thought out plan to use hydrogen on a lot of unelectrified lines.
The Germans have given the project, the catchy name of H2goesRail.
How does that translate into German?
Eridge Station – 3rd May 2022
I documented the work at Eridge station in Eridge Station – 12th July 2021 and it was finished a few days ago.
Note.
- The platforms can take ten-car trains.
- The lift on the National Rail side of the station.
- The restored iron supports for the roof.
- The two waiting rooms; one by the ticket hall and the other on the platform.
- The well-appointed toilets, with quirky signs and the all important coat hook.
- There’s even an Amazon Hub.
It certainly is a quality restoration and upgrading to step-free access.
Possible Future Electrification
In Uckfield Third Rail Is NR Priority, I discussed ways that the Uckfield Branch could be electrified.
This picture shows the platforms from the Spa Heritage Railway.
Note.
- All National Rail services call in the far platform.
- The platform will take a ten-car train.
- There is plenty of space for a single extra third-rail between the tracks.
If the power were only switched on whilst trains were in the platform, surely it would be safe.
Uckfield Third Rail Is NR Priority
The title of this post, is the same as that of an article in the April 2022 Edition of Modern Railways.
This is the first two paragraphs.
Electrification of the line between Hurst Green and Uckfield in East Sussex and the remodelling of East Croydon are the top Network Rail investment priorities south of the river, according to Southern Region Managing Director John Halsall. He told Modern Railways that third rail is now the preferred option for the Uckfield Line, as it would allow the route to use the pool of third-rail EMUs in the area. This is in preference to the plan involving overhead electrification and use of dual-voltage units put forward by then-Network Rail director Chris Gibb in his 2017 report (p66, September 2017 issue).
NR has put forward options for mitigating the safety risk involved with the third-rail system, including switching off the power in station areas when no trains are present and section isolation systems to protect track workers.
The Office of Road and Rail hasn’t given Network Rail’s scheme the OK yet, but as an Electrical Engineer, I believe that a safe system is possible.
Making Charging Safe At Greenford
This article on Ian Visits is entitled Ex-London Underground Trains To Be Tested On The Greenford Branch Line.
The article describes how despite using London Underground’s four-rail electrification, it will be possible with the right interlocks and systems to make such a system safe.
As Vivarail’s system is to be installed, it must already agree with all the Health and Safety rules.
A Safe System On The Uckfield Branch
Consider.
- The unelectrified section of the Uckfield Branch is twenty-five miles long.
- There are seven intermediate stations, with the longest section between any two stations under five miles.
- Trains stop in each station on the route.
- Trains appear to have a dwell time of about a minute in each station.
- A ten-car pair of Class 707 trains would be 203.2 metres long.
- All platforms have been lengthened for ten-car trains.
- A battery-electric train running along unelectrified track, is no more dangerous than a diesel train.
This picture shows some typical third-rail electrification at Kidbrooke station in South East London.
Note.
- The electrified rails are between the tracks.
- Gaps are possible to isolate sections of tracks.
- The third-rail is tapered, so that the third-rail shoes on the train can connect and disconnect easily.
Suppose you have a third-rail electric train with a range of say seven or eight miles on batteries.
Would it be possible to devise a safe electrified railway using this train and standard third-rail electrification with some safety modifications?
- The track in each station would be electrified in the normal way with the third-rail away from the platform.
- The length of electrification in each station would be a few metres shorter than the length of the ten-car pair of Class 707 trains.
- This would mean that the train would completely cover the electrification, when it stopped in the station.
- The third-rail electrification would only be switched on, when a train is stopped in the station and the right interlocks are engaged.
- Even if a passenger fell onto the tracks, they would probably be safe, unless they crawled through the wheels to the centre of the tracks.
- There would be no electrification between the stations, which would protect track workers and trespassers.
I believe that a safe system can be devised.
A train going through a station would do the following.
- Slowing down, the train would use regenerative braking, that helped to charge the batteries
- The train would stop in a station, so that it connected with and covered the third-rail.
- When the charging system recognised that a train was connected, it would start to charge the batteries.
- When all passengers had unloaded and loaded and the train was ready, the driver would stop the charging process.
- The train would move to the next station on battery power.
- Safety interlocks would stop the charging under various unsafe circumstances.
I believe that Siemens could have developed a charging system like this for their Class 707 trains, as some of their other trains of a similar vintage to the Class 707 trains already offer battery options.
A Stepping Stone Approach
On the unelectrified section between Hurst Green Junction and Uckfield, there are the following stations.
- Edenbridge Town – two platforms
- Hever – two platforms
- Cowden – single bi-directional platform – 7.9 miles South of Hurst Green Junction.
- Ashurst – two platforms
- Eridge – single bi-directional platform – 6.3 miles South of Cowden
- Crowborough – two platforms
- Buxted – single bi-directional platform – 4.7 miles South of Eridge
- Uckfield – single platform – 2.3 miles South of Buxted
Suppose the following were to be done.
- Do nothing at the two platform stations.
- Fit an intelligent fast charging system at Cowden, Eridge, Buxted and Uckfield.
- If it was felt to be needed to ensure reliable operation, the power supply to the Southbound platform could be boosted at Hurst Green station.
- Procure some ten-car battery-electric trains, which have regenerative braking and a range of perhaps ten-twelve miles on battery power.
Note.
- A pair of five-car trains could be used instead of ten-car trains.
- Some five-car Class 377 trains fitted with batteries might be ideal.
- This would mean only four platforms would need to be electrified with fast charging systems.
I am sure that Vivarail Fast Charge systems could be used, if they were modified to work with standard third-rail systems and for bi-directional use.
What size of battery would be needed for this approach?
In an article in the October 2017 Edition of Modern Railways, which is entitled Celling England By The Pound, Ian Walmsley says this in relation to trains running on the Uckfield Branch, which is not very challenging.
A modern EMU needs between 3 and 5 kWh per vehicle mile for this sort of service.
So for a ten-car train running for twelve miles, the train would need a battery capacity of between 360 and 600 kWh.
Or if it was two five-car trains between 180 and 300 kWh in each train.
Note that Vivarail find space for 424 kWh in the two-car Class 230 train, I wrote about in Battery Class 230 Train Demonstration At Bo’ness And Kinneil Railway.
I believe that a five-car Class 377 or 707 train could be fitted with a 300 kWh battery and this would give the train a range of 12 miles, which would enable it to provide a battery-electric service on the Uckfield Branch.
HS2 Reveals Dramatic Carbon Saving With Ambitious Modular Design For Thame Valley Viaduct
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release on High Speed Two.
This is the first paragraph.
HS2 today revealed the final designs for the Thame Valley Viaduct and the pioneering pre-fabricated construction methods that will see the 880m long structure slotted together like a giant Lego set, cutting its carbon footprint by an estimated 66%.
This is one of the pictures released in this photoset.
This second picture shows a closer view of a pillar and the catenary.
It does appear in these two views that the catenary and the gantries that support it are more elegant than those that tend to be used on most electrification schemes at the present time.
These paragraphs describe how the design saved carbon emissions.
Applying lessons from recent high speed rail projects in Spain, the design team cut the amount of embedded carbon by simplifying the structure of the viaduct so that every major element can be made off site.
In a major step forward for viaduct design in the UK, the team opted for two wide ‘box girder’ beams per span instead of eight smaller beams – to simplify and speed up assembly.
The production of steel and concrete is a major contributor to carbon emissions, with the new lighter-weight structure expected to save 19,000 tonnes of embedded carbon in comparison to the previous design. That’s the same amount of carbon emitted by one person taking a flight from London to Edinburgh and back 70,000 times.
It would appear that saving weight and using less steel and concrete can save a lot of carbon emissions.
I once got a bonus at ICI because I saved ten metres on the height of a chemical plant. My boss said, I’d saved nearly a million. by using a mathematical model on an analogue computer to show that a vessel in the plant wasn’t needed and this eliminated a complete floor of the plant.
How much concrete and steel has been saved by High Speed Two on this viaduct, by making it more basset than Afghan hound?
Ever since I watched the building of Crossrail’s Custom House station, I have been in favour of off-site construction.
I wrote about it in An Express Station and am pleased to see it being used on High Speed Two.
The Anonymous Widower 