The Anonymous Widower

Farage Wants HS2 Scrapped

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

This is the sub-heading.

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

These two paragraphs give NF’s view.

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

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

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

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

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

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

High Speed Two’s Originally Proposed Service Pattern

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

Note.

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

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

High Speed Yorkshire

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

Note.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Onward From Handsacre Junction

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

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

Note.

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

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

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

Note.

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

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

The original proposal in the graphic earlier shows these trains.

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

Note.

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

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

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

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

It would be an impressive sight.

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

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

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

Note.

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

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

I have some other thoughts.

Using Class 390 Trains Is Not My Idea

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

This is the sub-heading.

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

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

The major points of his plan are as follows.

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

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

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

 

 

 

 

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

Preston Station – 23rd May 2025

I finally got to Preston station today, after my failure that I wrote about in An Annoying Day.

I took these pictures.

I shall deal with the features of the station in separate sub-sections.

The Original High Speed Two Schedule Through Preston Station

This diagram shows High Speed Two services, as they were originally envisaged before Phase 2 was discontinued.

Note.

  1. Trains to the left of the vertical black line are Phase 1 and those to the right are Phase 2.
  2. Full-Size trains are shown in blue.
  3. Classic-Compatible trains are shown in yellow.
  4. Blue circles are shown, where trains stop.
  5. The dotted circles are where trains split and join.
  6. In the red boxes routes alternate every hour.

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

If I look at the trains counting from the left of the diagram, I see the following trains passing Preston station.

  1. Train 4 is a pair of classic-compatible trains, that split and join at Crewe, with one train going to Lancaster and the other to Liverpool Lime Street.
  2. Trains 10 and 11 are pairs of classic-compatible trains going between London and Scotland.
  3. Train 12 is a single classic-compatible train going between Birmingham and Scotland.

All four trains stop in Preston station.

The Track Layout

This OpenRailwayMap shows the track layout through the station.

Note.

  1. Tracks shown in red are electrified and tracks in black or not.
  2. Platforms 3 and 4 form a large island platform in the middle of the station.
  3. The platform is 373 metres long so it will almost take a pairs of classic-compatible trains going between London and Scotland.
  4. There are platforms either side of the island platform.

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

How Will High Speed Two Operate At Preston Station?

Four hourly High Speed Two classic-compatible trains on the original plan would have called at Preston.

  • London and Lancaster – Single 200 metre train.
  • London and Scotland – Pair of 200 metre trains, splitting at Carlisle with one going to Edinburgh and one to Glasgow.
  • London and Scotland – Pair of 200 metre trains, splitting at Carlisle with one going to Edinburgh and one to Glasgow.
  • Birmingham and Scotland – Single 200 metre train, going alternately to Edinburgh and Glasgow.

With 27 metres of lengthening, all trains would fit the island platform 3 and 4.

I could see the platforms at Preston station fitted with travelators.

The picture shows the length of the Northbound Platform 3. The camera is looking South.

Footbridges And Subways

I would envisage that a lot of passengers would connect to High Speed Two at Preston station and the crossing from the outside platforms to the central island platform needs to be improved.

As the main trains will be 400 metres long, there will need to be fully step-free access with lifts at both ends of the station.

Judging from my pictures, the current footbridges need refurbishing.

Should Pairs Of High-Speed Trains Split and Join At Preston?

The pairs of High Speed Two classic-compatible trains running between London and Scotland are planned to split and join at Carlisle.

It could be better, if they split and joined at Preston, as it might avoid costly lengthening of the platforms at Carlisle.

 

May 25, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , | Leave a comment

Lancaster Station – 23rd May 2025

I finally got to Lancaster station today, after my failure that I wrote about in An Annoying Day.

I took these pictures.

I shall deal with the features of the station in separate sub-sections.

The Original High Speed Two Schedule Through Lancaster Station

This diagram shows High Speed Two services, as they were originally envisaged before Phase 2 was discontinued.

Note.

  1. Trains to the left of the vertical black line are Phase 1 and those to the right are Phase 2.
  2. Full-Size trains are shown in blue.
  3. Classic-Compatible trains are shown in yellow.
  4. Blue circles are shown, where trains stop.
  5. The dotted circles are where trains split and join.
  6. In the red boxes routes alternate every hour.

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

If I look at the trains counting from the left of the diagram, I see the following trains passing or terminating at Lancaster station.

  1. Train 4 is a pair of classic-compatible trains, that split and join at Crewe, with one train going to Lancaster and the other to Liverpool Lime Street.
  2. Trains 10 and 11 are pairs of classic-compatible trains going between London and Scotland.
  3. Train 12 is a single classic-compatible train going between Birmingham and Scotland.

Only the Lancaster portion of Train 4 stops in Lancaster station.

The Track Layout

This OpenRailwayMap shows the track layout through the station.

Note.

  1. Tracks shown in red are electrified and tracks in black or not.
  2. In the North-West corner of the map the two bay platforms 1 and 2, that are used for local services can be seen.
  3. Platform 3 is a long platform on the Western side of the station, which is generally for Northbound through stopping trains, that can take 265 metre long eleven-car Class 390 trains.
  4. Paired with the track through Platform 3, there is a Northbound avoiding line, that allows faster trains to overtake trains stopped in the station.
  5. Platform 4 is a long platform on the Western side of the island platform on the Eastern side of the station, which is generally for Southbound through stopping trains, that can take 265 metre long eleven-car Class 390 trains.
  6. Paired with the track through Platform 4, there is a Southbound avoiding line, that allows faster trains to overtake trains stopped in the station.
  7. Platform 5 is a long platform on the Eastern side of the island platform on the Eastern side of the station, that is over two hundred metres long.
  8. All through tracks have a 75 mph maximum speed, except for Platform 5, which is just 30 mph.

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

How Will High Speed Two Operate At Lancaster Station?

I would expect that the three High Speed Two services to and from Scotland will go through Lancaster station on the avoiding lines, which will mean that each avoiding line will handle one High Speed Two classic-compatible train every twenty minutes.

The train, that terminates at Lancaster has a few options.

  • It could terminate from London in any of platforms 3, 4 or 5.
  • It could leave for London from any of the platforms 3, 4 or 5.

Note.

  1. All three platforms are long enough to accept a single High Speed Two classic-compatible train, which is only 200 metres long.
  2. There would probably need to be some works to the tracks so that trains could terminate in platforms 4 or 5.
  3. There might need to be some works to the tracks so that trains could leave from London from platform 3.

The logical way to terminate the train would probably for the train to arrive and leave in Platform 5, but then this would need improvements to the tracks and also to the passenger footbridge across the tracks.

Eden Project Morecambe And The Morecambe Branch

In a few years time, both the Eden Project Morecambe and High Speed Two will be open and I suspect, a day out could be to take High Speed Two to Lancaster and the local train to Morecambe for a day at the Eden Project Morecambe.

This paragraph from the Eden Project Morecambe web site, describes the current status of the project.

Eden Project Morecambe, previously known as Eden Project North, has been awarded £50m in the second round of the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund. The funding allows the project to move into its next phase and begin the process of finalising the remaining funds required from private and philanthropic sources identified as part of the bidding process.

I had intended to take a train to Morecambe to have a look round, but the train, that I would have needed to catch to get back to London at a reasonable hour, didn’t run due to lack of train crew.

As High Speed Two will provide connections at Lancaster to Birmingham, Carlisle, Crewe, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Preston, Warrington and Wigan and other trains will provide connections to Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester, the Eden Project Morecambe will be well connected to those who might like to visit by rail.

A day out with the kids, could involve a trip on High Speed One to Lancaster, a trip on a battery-electric shuttle train to Morecambe and a day out at the Eden Project Morecambe.

The Eden Project Morecambe could be a big money earner for High Speed Two and other rail companies.

I would envisage, that you would be able to buy an All-in-One ticket to the Eden Project Morecambe, which included your rail tickets.

The Passenger Footbridge

There is a lift on the Southbound side, but on the Northbound and bay platform side, there are only steps.

If substantial numbers of passengers visit the station and need to cross the tracks on the footbridge, as you would from arriving in Platforms 4 or 5 and wanting to go to Eden Project Morecambe, the footbridge is totally inadequate.

Lancaster Station Architecture

Lancaster station is Grade II Listed and you can see why from the pictures.

Work appears to be ongoing to refurbish the station.

The stonework appeared immaculate and very much High Speed Two-ready.

These picture shows part of the Costa coffee shop.

It was not what I expected.

 

 

May 24, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Bradford Forster Square Station – 20th May 2025

I took these pictures during my visit to Bradford Forster Square station today.

Note.

  1. The platforms are numbers 0-3, with the ten-car LNER train in platform 1.
  2. Platforms 0 and 1 can take ten-car LNER Class 800/801 trains.
  3. Platform 0 is the recently-built new platform.
  4. Poundland is alongside Platform 0.
  5. The Coffee seems to have bolted.
  6. As Bradford is this year’s City of Culture, someone has decorated the station’s benches.

I have some further thoughts.

Station Additions

The station needs a few additions, like a proper coffee shop, a better shop and toilets.

Platform Lengths

It would appear that Platforms 0 and 1 are able to take a pair of Class 800, 801 or 802 trains, which are just under 260 metres long and each can carry 604 passengers.

It would also be able to handle a single nine-car Class 800, 801 or 802 train, which are just under 234 metres long.

This would mean, that at a future date, the station could handle a 200 metres long High Speed Two Classic-Compatible half-train.

Number Of Services

It appears there were seven services to and from London, with about one every two hours.Going to London three were nine-car trains and four were ten-car trains.

I travelled both ways in the same ten-car train.

May 20, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , | 3 Comments

Could High Speed Two Serve Chester And North Wales?

This diagram shows High Speed Two services, as they were originally envisaged before Phase 2 was discontinued.

Note.

  1. Trains to the left of the vertical black line are Phase 1 and those to the right are Phase 2.
  2. Full-Size trains are shown in blue.
  3. Classic-Compatible trains are shown in yellow.
  4. Blue circles are shown, where trains stop.
  5. The dotted circles are where trains split and join.
  6. In the red boxes routes alternate every hour.

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

If I look at the trains counting from the left of the diagram, I see the following.

  1. Train 4 is a pair of Classic-Compatible trains, that split and join at Crewe, with one train going to Lancaster and the other to Liverpool Lime Street.
  2. Train 5 is a single Classic-Compatible train going to Liverpool Lime Street.

This gives Liverpool Lime Street two trains per hour (tph) and Lancaster one tph

Could train 5 be a a pair of Classic-Compatible trains, that split and join at Crewe, with one train going to Holyhead via Chester and the other to Liverpool Lime Street?

Consider.

  • Yesterday, a pair of Class 805 trains, ran between Euston and Holyhead. Each Class 805 train is 130 metres long, so a pair of Class 805 trains is sixty metres longer than a High Speed Two Classic-Compatible train.
  • I am certain, that a single High Speed Two Classic-Compatible train will fit the platforms between Crewe and Holyhead.
  • Crewe and Holyhead is 105.5 miles and the route is not electrified.
  • Crewe and Holyhead is double-track all the way except for the Britannia Bridge over the Menai Strait.
  • With the exception of perhaps 2 to 3 miles, half the route between Crewe and Holyhead has a line speed of 90 mph. with the other half being 75 mph.
  • Given the countryside and the number of important historic sites, electrification might be difficult, as the heritage Taliban will say no!
  • It was promised by the last government that Crewe and Holyhead would be electrified, but I will assume it won’t be!
  • Hitachi, who are part of the consortium building the High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains have developed battery-electric high speed train technology, which is likely to be applied to the Current Class 805 trains, that work the route.
  • Hitachi’s battery-electric high speed train technology can propel the trains at up to 125 mph, provided the track allows it.

I feel that Crewe and Holyhead can be developed into one of the most iconic high speed railways in the world, by using battery-electric high-speed trains. Tourists would come from all over the world, to experience mouse-quiet battery-electric trains.

High Speed Two should go for it!

These are some thoughts.

It Would Be A Green Route To Ireland

Consider.

The fastest direct Avanti service to Holyhead is scheduled to take  three hours and forty-two minutes, with one hour and 46 minutes between Euston and Crewe, and one hour and fifty-seven minutes between Crewe and Holyhead.

  • High Speed Two will knock thirty-four minutes off the time between Euston and Crewe, when the core route between Euston and Crewe is complete, which will reduce the time to three hours eight minutes, with with one hour and 12 minutes between Euston and Crewe, and one hour and fifty-seven minutes between Crewe and Holyhead.
  • The Crewe and Holyhead section of the route would still take one hours and fifty-seven minutes, which is an average speed of just 54 mph, along the North Wales Coast.
  • An overall time of three hours between Euston and Holyhead, would require an average speed along the North Wales coast, which would be an average speed of just 62 mph.
  • The operating speed is an average of around 80 mph between Crewe and Holyhead, and would run the section of the route in 79 minutes, which would mean a Euston and Holyhead time of two hours and 31 minutes.
  • A 100 mph average between Crewe and Holyhead, would run the section of the route in 63 minutes, which would mean a Euston and Holyhead time of of two hours and 15 minutes.

I believe that with track improvements, a more efficient stopping pattern and using Hitachi’s battery technology, that battery-electric High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains could run between Euston and Holyhead in under two hours.

A fast ferry would complete the route between Holyhead and Dun Laoghaire.

Could More Than One Train Per Hour Be Sent To Chester And North Wales?

Consider.

  • Because of the cancellation of Phase 2 of High Speed 2, there are spare paths on High Speed Two between London and the West Midlands.
  • If the core section of High Speed Two is extended Northwards to Crewe, as advocated by Dyan Perry of the High Speed Rail Group, that I wrote about in The Future Of HS2 Could Lie In Its Original Vision, this would create extra paths to Crewe.
  • If the West Midlands and Crewe section of the High Speed Two route has the same capacity as London Euston and the West Midlands it could handle seventeen tph.
  • At present it looks like with the cancellation of Phase 2, the West Midlands and Crewe section will handle just ten tph.

, So there will be seven spare paths between Euston and Crewe!

In fact it will be better than that, as each train could be a pair of Classic-Compatible trains, that split and joined to serve two destinations.

Could A North Wales Service Call At Hawarden Airport?

Hawarden Airport is where Airbus build wings for their aircraft in the UK.This Google Map shows Hawarden Airport.

Note.

  1. The large runway.
  2. The various factory buildings.
  3. The North Wales Coast Line between Chester and Holyhead, runs along the North side of the Airport.

I doubt if Airbus wanted a station, it would be difficult to arrange.

Conclusion

Because of the vacant paths, it would appear that extra services to North Wales and North West England can be fitted in.

 

May 16, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Could High Speed Two Serve Blackpool North?

Consider.

  • Blackpool North station is electrified and will have an electrified route to London Euston HS2 and Birmingham Curzon Street stations, when High Speed Two opens.
  • Yesterday, both 11-car and 9-car Class 390 trains, which are longer than single High Speed Two classic-compatible trains, used Blackpool North station.
  • Blackpool is noted for fresh air and fun.
  • Blackpool needs leveling-up. Surely High Speed Two will help with this?
  • Blackpool has a unique Modern and Ancient tramway to bring residents and visitors to High Speed Two.

I am fairly sure, that single High Speed Two class-compatible trains could use Blackpool North station.

But could another High Speed Two service have a path between London and Preston to serve Blackpool?

Because of the cancellation of Phase 2 of High Speed 2, there are spare paths on High Speed Two between London and the West Midlands.

If the core section of High Speed Two is extended Northwards to Crewe, as advocated by Dyan Perry of the High Speed Rail Group, that I wrote about in The Future Of HS2 Could Lie In Its Original Vision, this would create extra paths to Crewe.

It looks to me, that the tricky part of the route is between Crewe and Preston.

This diagram shows High Speed Two services, as they were originally envisaged before Phase 2 was discontinued.

Note.

  1. Trains to the left of the vertical black line are Phase 1 and those to the right are Phase 2.
  2. Full-Size trains are shown in blue.
  3. Classic-Compatible trains are shown in yellow.
  4. Blue circles are shown, where trains stop.
  5. The dotted circles are where trains split and join.
  6. In the red boxes routes alternate every hour.

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

Note that if Phase 1 were to be completed to Crewe, there would be five full-size and five classic-compatible trains using the West Midlands and Crewe section of the High Speed Two route, of which five trains would terminate at Manchester Piccadilly HS2 station and two classic-compatible trains would terminate at Liverpool Lime Street.

So just three Scottish trains and one to Lancaster would go North of Warrington Bank Quay station, which would be an average of one train every fifteen minutes.

High Speed Two will be fully digitally signalled and I’m sure that trains could run as flights of two or more trains, a couple of minutes apart.

This would mean that a London and Blackpool North service could run say two minutes behind one of the London and Scotland services to Preston

  • Between London and the West Midlands, there would be twelve trains per hour (tph).
  • Between the West Midlands and Crewe, there would be also be twelve tph.
  • Between Crewe and Preston, there would be five tph.

I believe it would be possible for High Speed Two  to run a London and Blackpool North service, provided that the London Euston to Crewe core of High Speed Two is completed soon after Phase 1 is completed.

It should also be noted, that I believe the second Scottish service from London could also have a flight with another service. So could Barrow or Blackburn have a High Speed Two service from London?

May 13, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Is Wigan North Western Station Ready For High Speed Two?

This diagram shows High Speed Two services, as they were originally envisaged before Phase 2 was discontinued.

Note.

  1. Trains to the left of the vertical black line are Phase 1 and those to the right are Phase 2.
  2. Full-Size trains are shown in blue.
  3. Classic-Compatible trains are shown in yellow.
  4. Blue circles are shown, where trains stop.
  5. The dotted circles are where trains split and join.
  6. In the red boxes routes alternate every hour.
  7. Was Lancaster chosen as it’s close to the new Eden Project Morecambe?

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

It would appear if High Speed Two sticks to this original pattern of services, then the following trains will go through Wigan North Western station.

  • 200 metre single train – London Euston and Lancaster, which stops at Old Oak Common, Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western and Preston.
  • 400 metre pair of trains – London Euston and Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley/Glasgow Central, which stops at Old Oak Common, Preston, Carlisle.
  • 400 metre pair of trains – London Euston and Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley/Glasgow Central, which stops at Old Oak Common, Birmingham Interchange, Preston, Carlisle.
  • 200 metre single train – Birmingham Curzon Street and Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley or Motherwell/Glasgow Central, which stops at Wigan North Western, Preston, Lancaster, Carlisle and Lockerby and every two hours at Oxenholme and Penrith.

Note.

  1. Only single High Speed Two classic-compatible trains, stop in Wigan North Western station and they are only two hundred metres long.
  2. One train per hour (tph) terminates at Lancaster and a second tph terminates alternatively at Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley or Glasgow Central.
  3. Four hundred metre long pairs of trains go through North Western station without stopping.

Currently Wigan North Western has 14 trains per day (tpd) stopping at the station, eleven of which go to Scotland and three to Blackpool.

This Google Map shows Wigan North Western station.

Note.

  1. The two long platforms in the middle of the station, where the Avanti trains stop.
  2. A long platform on the Southern side of the station used by local services to and from Liverpool and Blackpool.
  3. Three bay platforms on the Northern side of the station, one of which is unused, that handle local services to Manchester and beyond.

As the 265.3 metre long Class 390 trains can use the central platforms, High Speed Two classic-compatible trains will be able to use these platforms.

On my brief visit to the station yesterday, I took these pictures.

Note.

  1. All Class 390 trains are longer than High Speed Two classic-compatible trains, so the train in the pictures indicates that the High Speed Two trains will be able to stop at Wigan North Western station.
  2. The platforms are long and wide.
  3. The station is well-equipped with lifts, cafes, waiting rooms and some of the best toilets in a station in the North of England.
  4. Wigan Wallgate station is only a short walk away, with a selection of local services to Blackburn, Headbolt Lane, Manchester, Southport and a large proportion of Lancashire.
  5. The last two pictures were taken looking at the two stations from halfway.
  6. The shops between the two stations are a good selection and include a Morrisons Local.

I had been intending to go on to Preston, Lancaster and Morecambe, but a points failure at Preston meant that no trains were running.

Conclusion

The two Wigan stations and the buses that serve them,  could be a good interchange for passengers to catch High Speed Two.

I feel that most of the work needed to be done at Wigan North Western to get the station ready for High Speed Two will mainly be cosmetic or technical upgrades like signalling. I can’t see any expensive or disruptive upgrades like platform lengthening being needed.

May 11, 2025 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Arriving In Liverpool Lime Street Station – 10th May 2025

Liverpool Lime Street station has one of the more spectacular approaches of British railway stations, as these pictures show.

These sections describe the approach.

Crossing The Mersey

You cross the Mersey at Runcorn on the Ethelfreda or Britannia Bridge, which is described in this Wikipedia entry.

It was completed in 1868 and hopefully in a few years, it will be carrying High Speed Two trains between London and Liverpool.

On your right as you cross the Mersey to Liverpool is the Silver Jubilee road bridge, which is a through arch bridge that opened in 1961 to replace a historic transporter bridge. I am just a little bit too young to have seen the transporter bridge.

Further to your right, you can see the Mersey Gateway Bridge, which is a cable-stayed bridge, that opened in 2017 and is described in this Wikipedia entry.

Drax’s Biomass

As you approach Lime Street station, you pass through Edge Hill, where there are the GB Railfreight sidings, where the biomass trains for Drax power station are marshalled for their journey across the Pennines. These Drax trains seem to be one of the few freight trains in the UK, that carry advertising. Tesco trains also do, but their’s is just big letters.

In Do Cummins And Stadler Have a Cunning Plan?, I talked about the possible conversion at some date in the future of GB Railfreight’s new electro-diesel Class 99 locomotives to electro-hydrogen locomotives. These locomotives will surely be ideal for hauling Drax’s biomass trains across the Pennines.

I do believe that these Class 99 locomotives are the future of heavy freight trains in the UK. In Iarnród Éireann Looks At Diesel Loco Replacement Options, I write about speculation, that Stadler may build a version for the Irish.

Through The Edge Hill Cutting

From Edge Hill a deep cutting through the sandstone takes you into Lime Street station.

It looked good in the sun, but the first time I arrived in the city to start my studies at Liverpool University, it was chucking it down and the cutting was very dark and wet.

It was a very different welcome to that, which I got yesterday.

My Train Arrived In Platform 10

Liverpool Lime Street has two cast iron train sheds.

  • The Western shed has platform 1 to 5 and generally handles trains from the East.
  • The Eastern shed has platform 6 to 10 and generally handles trains from the South.

Note.

  1. Changing between trains is just a step-free walk across the station concourse.
  2. Both sections have their own taxi rank and full-size clock.
  3. The Ticket Office is in the Western train shed.

I just walked from my train to the Ticket Office, bought a Lancashire Day Ranger ticket and then walked fifty metres to my next train.

How many stations have such an easy change of trains?

Is Liverpool Lime Street Station Ready For High Speed Two?

Consider.

  • I travelled North in an 11-car Class 390 train, which is 265.3 metres long and can carry 607 passengers.
  • As the last pictures show, the train fitted easily into platform 10.
  • High Speed Two plans to send 200 metre classic-compatible trains to Liverpool Lime Street, with each having a capacity of up to 528.

It looks to me, that these High Speed Two classic-compatible trains will fit into Liverpool Lime Street station, at any platform that currently accepts an eleven-car Class 390 train.

Looking on Real Time trains over the last few days, I’ve found eleven-car Class 390 trains using platforms 9, 10 and 6.

It seems that Network Rail’s engineers have done a superb job to turn the Grade II Listed station, into one of the best operationally.

May 11, 2025 Posted by | Design, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Heathrow: Where Was The Redundancy?

In the early 1970s, I was involved in a small way, in the design of chemical plants for ICI.

When designing a chemical plant, you obviously want a plant that will have a high availability, so output is maximised, even if some parts have to be shut down.

With chemical plants, you might duplicate some reaction vessels, pipework or pumps for example.

But surely, when you are designing large infrastructure, it should be designed to keep going.

This document from Network Rail is entitled £140m Transformation Of Liverpool Lime Street Completed On Time.

These bullet points serve as sub-headings.

  •  Track, platform and signalling improvements
  • Paving the way for bigger, better trains with more seats for more customers in future
  • Part of the wider Great North Rail Project
  • Part of #StationsDay – celebrating the £5.2billion investment to regenerate Britain’s rail stations

But I also believe two other important sub-projects were carried out during the work.

The Station Has Been Substantially Prepared For High Speed Two

Consider.

  • Platforms were lengthened so they can accept 265.3-metre long eleven-car Class 390 trains.
  • Platforms were widened, so they could handle the 607 passengers, that can be carried in an eleven-car train.
  • There appears to be five full-size platforms numbered 6-10.
  • Is there the possibility of a sixth platform, which is currently numbered E (for Emergency (?))?
  • The approaches to the station have been remodeled, so trains can enter the station very efficiently.
  • The Class 390 trains are going between Crewe and Liverpool Lime Street stations, in times that are not far off those expected from High Speed Two trains.

As Liverpool Lime Street will only need to handle half-length 200-metre long classic compatible High Speed Two trains, Liverpool Lime Street station is now ready for High Speed Two.

Liverpool Lime Street Station Is Now Effectively Two Five Platform Stations

This OpenRailwayMap shows the platform layout at Liverpool Lime Street station.

Note.

  1. The platforms indicated by blue dots with numbers are the ten platforms of the station.
  2. The platforms in the Northern-half of the station are numbered 1-5.
  3. The platforms in the Southern-half of the station are numbered 6-10.
  4. All platforms; 1-10 are electrified.
  5. The white line running diagonally across the map, shows the route of the loop of the Wirral Line.

Click the map to show it to a larger scale.

These are some of my pictures of the station.

It is without doubt, one of the best stations aesthetically and operationally in the world.

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

Observing Trains At Stafford Station

I’m fairly certain, that I’ve only been to Stafford once in my life, in the past. That would be in 1968, when I went to English Electric in the town, when I was looking for a job on leaving Liverpool University.

In the end, my first job on leaving was at ICI in Runcorn.

As Stafford station, is on the West Coast Main Line, I’ve been through the station many times, on my way to Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Scotland and other places in the North West of England.

I travelled North to Stafford in one of London Northwestern’s Class 350 trains, which definitely had ironing board seats. Some of these trains are being replaced with new Class 730 trains.

Stafford Station

This OpenRailwayMap shows the layout of platforms at the station.

Note.

  1. Platforms are numbered starting with Platform 1 in the East.
  2. There are five through tracks for passenger trains and a double-track goods loop.
  3. All tracks are electrified and bi-directional.
  4. The platforms are three hundred metres long, but I feel they could be lengthened to take the 400 metre long High Speed Two trains.
  5. The platforms are certainly long enough for pairs of 200 metre long High Speed Two trains, to split and join at the station.

These pictures show Stafford station.

Note.

  1. The station was built of concrete in the early 1960s.
  2. It has a unique feature, in that there is a waiting area above the tracks, so kids of all ages can watch the trains speed through.
  3. It has been improved several times in recent years.
  4. It is step-free with several lifts.

I feel, the station could be converted into a major High Speed Two hub station.

High Speed Two Services

This graphic shows High Speed Two services after Phase 2b is completed.

Note.

  1. Everything to the right of the vertical black line has now been cancelled
  2. Services shown in blue are run by High Speed Two Full Size trains.
  3. Services shown in yellow are run by High Speed Two Classic-Compatible  trains.
  4. Each of these trains will have a frequency of one train per hour (tph).

These High Speed Two trains pass through Stafford.

  1. London and Lancaster/Liverpool Lime Street – Split/Join at Crewe
  2. London and Crewe/Runcorn/Liverpool Lime Street
  3. London and Stafford/Stoke-on-Trent/Macclesfield
  4. London and Manchester Airport/Piccadilly
  5. London and Manchester Airport/Piccadilly
  6. London and Manchester Airport/Piccadilly
  7. London and Edinburgh/Glasgow – Split/Join at Carlisle
  8. London and Edinburgh/Glasgow – Split/Join at Carlisle
  9. Birmingham and Edinburgh/Glasgow
  10. Birmingham and Manchester Airport/Piccadilly
  11. Birmingham and Manchester Airport/Piccadilly

In addition space will need to be found for these other services.

  • Avanti – London and Chester/North Wales
  • Avanti – London and Blackpool
  • Freight – London and Liverpool/Manchester and Scotland

That gives a total of at least fourteen tph through Stafford station or one every 257 seconds.

Between Stafford and Crewe, with the completion of the flyover at Norton Bridge, there is effectively four tracks all the way, so this should give enough capacity to allow fourteen tph between Stafford and Crewe.

Between Stafford and Handsacre junction, where High Speed Two will join the Trent Valley Line about half the route is four-track with the rest being just two-track.

Will the two-track section be able to handle fourteen tph? I suspect it will, especially, as it is sandwiched between two four-track sections.

These are my thoughts about making the most of capacity through Stafford station.

Could Pairs Of High Speed Two Trains, Split And Join At Stafford?

Stafford station has 300 metre long platforms and pairs of High Speed Two Trains are 400 metres long.

Looking at maps and pictures of Stafford station, I suspect that lengthening the platforms at Stafford would be possible.

In the provisional High Speed Two service diagram, that I displayed earlier, these are two services.

  1. London and Crewe/Runcorn/Liverpool Lime Street
  2. London and Stafford/Stoke-on-Trent/Macclesfield

These could be run as a pair of trains between London and Stafford.

One advantage of running the two services as a pair, is that it would reduce the number of trains between Stafford and Handsacre junction by one, which might help the scheduling of trains through the double-track section, of the Trent Valley Line.

Fitting In The London and Chester/North Wales Services

Consider.

  • These important services will soon be run by five-car Class 805 trains.
  • The trains are diesel-electric.
  • A pair would be 260 m long.
  • There are ten trains per day (tpd) on the route.

The service has a few problems.

  • It takes up a path between Crewe and Handsacre junction via Stafford, where train paths are at a premium.
  • It is not zero-carbon.
  • If London and Holyhead times were reduced, it would probably attract more passengers to the route.

As there are plenty of spare paths on High Speed Two, due to the cancellation of the Eastern leg, the easiest way to speed up the service would be to use High Speed Two between Handsacre junction and London.

200 metre long High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains could be used, but this would need one of the following.

Electrification between Crewe and Holyhead. Although this was promised by the last government, I suspect the antis will stop it.

Partial electrification between Crewe and Holyhead. As Crewe and Holyhead is only 105.5 miles, I suspect a creditable scheme to use battery-electric trains could be developed. These trains could be useful in opening up High Speed Two to other destinations.

Could Other Services Piggy-Back On London and Chester/North Wales Services?

The London and Chester/North Wales services would all be run by 200 metre long High Speed Two trains.

There would be no reason, why on the London end of the journey, they could be paired with another High Speed Two train to and from another destination.

  • They could split and join with a Blackpool service at Crewe.
  • They could split and join with a Barrow service at Crewe.
  • They could split and join with a second Stoke-on-Trent/Macclesfield service at Stafford.

Services like these, would improve the coverage of High Speed Two.

As with the joining of the Liverpool Lime Street and Macclesfield services, the pairing of trains reduces the number of paths needed on the double-track section of the Trent Valley Line to the South of Stafford.

Other Splitting And Joining At Stafford

It may be possible to arrange other splitting and joining at Stafford.

By rearranging the Manchester and/or the Scottish services, it might be possible to reduce the number of trains, through the double-track section of the Trent Valley Line.

There are certainly several possibilities.

Conclusion

Stafford station could be crucial, in making High Speed Two Lite feasible.

August 28, 2024 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

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