Manchester Piccadilly Station « The Anonymous Widower

How Many Trains Are Needed To Run A Full Service On High Speed Two?

The latest High Speed Two schedule was published in the June 2020 Edition of Modern Railways.

The Two Train Classes

Two separate train classes have been proposed for High Speed Two.

Full-Size – Wider and taller trains built to a European loading gauge, which would be confined to the high-speed network (including HS1 and HS2) and other lines cleared to their loading gauge.

Classic-Compatible – Conventional trains, capable of high speed but built to a British loading gauge, permitting them to leave the high speed track to join conventional routes such as the West Coast Main Line, Midland Main Line and East Coast Main Line.

The Wikipedia entry for High Speed Two has a section entitled Rolling Stock, where this is said about the design.

Both types of train would have a maximum speed of at least 360 km/h (225 mph) and a length of 200 metres (660 ft); two units could be joined together for a 400-metre (1,300 ft) train. It has been reported that these longer trains would have approximately 1,100 seats.

These are some of my thoughts.

Seating Density

I would assume that this means that a single 200 metre train, will have a capacity of approximately 550 seats or a density of 2.75 seats per metre. How does that compare with other trains?

9-car Class 801 train – 234 metres – 611 seats – 2.61 seats/metre
7-car Class 807 train – 182 metres – 453 seats – 2.49 seats/metre
9-car Class 390 train – 217.5 metres – 469 seats – 2.16 seats/metre
11-car Class 390 train – 265.3 metres – 589 seats – 2.22 seats/metre
12-car Class 745/1 train – 236.6 metres – 767 seats – 3.24 seats/metre
16-car Class 374 train – 390 metres – 902 seats – 2.31 seats/metre

Note.

What I find strange with these figures, is that I feel most crowded and cramped in a Class 390 train. Could this be because the Pendelino trains are eighteen years old and train interior design has moved on?
But I always prefer to travel in a Hitachi Class 80x train or a Stadler Class 745 train.

I very much feel that a seating density of 2.75 seats per metre, designed using some of the best modern practice, could create a train, where travelling is a very pleasant experience.

Step-Free Access

I have travelled in high speed trains all over Europe and have yet to travel in one with step-free access.

Surely, if Stadler can give their trains step-free access everybody can.

The pictures shows step-free access on Stadler Class 745 and Class 755 trains.

If I turned up pushing a friend in a wheelchair, would I be able to push them in easily? Or better still will they be able to wheel themselves in?

A Greater Anglia driver tp;d me recently, that now they never have to wait anymore for wheelchairs to be loaded.

So surely, it is in the train operator’s interest to have step-free access, if it means less train delays.

Double-Deck Trains

In my view double-deck trains only have one only good feature and that is the ability to see everything, if you have a well-designed window seat.

I may be seventy-three, but I am reasonably fit and only ever travel on trains with airline-sized hand baggage. So I don’t find any problem travelling upstairs on a double-deck bus or train!

But it could have been, so very different, if my stroke had been a bit worse and left me blind or in a wheelchair for life.

I have seen incidents on the Continent, which have been caused by double-deck trains.

A lady of about eighteen in trying to get down with a heavy case dropped it. Luckily it only caused the guy she was travelling with, to roll unhurt down the stairs.
Luggage is often a problem on Continental trains because of the step-up into the train and access is worse on double deck trains.
I also remember on a train at Leipzig, when several passengers helped me lift a guy and his wheelchair out of the lower deck of a double-deck train, which was lower than the platform, as they often are with double-deck trains.

I am not totally against double-deck trains, but they must be designed properly.

Consider.

High Speed Two’s Full-Size trains will only use London Euston, Old Oak Common, Birmingham Interchange, Birmingham Curzon Street, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly, East Midlands Hub and Leeds stations.
All stations used by Full-Size trains will be brand-new or substantially rebuilt stations.
Someone sitting in a wheelchair surely has the same right to a view from the top-deck of a double-deck train as anybody else.
Jumbo jets seemed to do very well without a full-length top-deck.
The A 380 Superjumbo has been designed so that entry and exit on both decks is possible.

I feel if High Speed Two want to run double-deck trains, an elegant solution can surely be found.

A Crude Estimate On The Number Of Trains

This is my crude estimate to find out how many trains, High Speed Two will need.

Western Leg

These are the services for the Western Leg between London , Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Train 1 – London Euston and Birmingham Curzon Street – 400 metre Full-Size – 45 minutes – 2 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 2 – London Euston and Birmingham Curzon Street – 400 metre Full-Size – 45 minutes – 2 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 3 – London Euston and Birmingham Curzon Street – 400 metre Full-Size – 45 minutes – 2 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 4 – London Euston and Lancaster – Classic Compatible – 2 hours 3 minutes – 5 hour Round Trip – 5 trains
Train 4 – London Euston and Liverpool – Classic Compatible – 1 hours 34 minutes – 4 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 5 – London Euston and Liverpool – Classic Compatible – 1 hours 34 minutes – 4 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 6 – London Euston and Macclesfield – Classic Compatible – 1 hours 30 minutes – 4 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 7 – London Euston and Manchester – 400 metre Full-Size – 1 hour and 11 minutes – 3 hour Round Trip – 6 trains
Train 8 – London Euston and Manchester – 400 metre Full-Size – 1 hour and 11 minutes – 3 hour Round Trip – 6 trains
Train 9 – London Euston and Manchester – 400 metre Full-Size – 1 hour and 11 minutes – 3 hour Round Trip – 6 trains
Train 10 – London Euston and Edinburgh – Classic Compatible – 3 hours 48 minutes – 8 hour Round Trip – 8 trains
Train 10 – London Euston and Glasgow – Classic Compatible – 3 hours 40 minutes – 8 hour Round Trip – 8 trains
Train 11 – London Euston and Edinburgh – Classic Compatible – 3 hours 48 minutes – 8 hour Round Trip – 8 trains
Train 11 – London Euston and Glasgow – Classic Compatible – 3 hours 40 minutes – 8 hour Round Trip – 8 trains
Train 12 – Birmingham Curzon Street and Edinburgh or Glasgow – Classic Compatible – 3 hours 20 minutes – 7 hour Round Trip – 7 trains
Train 13 – Birmingham Curzon Street and Manchester – 200 metre Full-Size – 41 minutes – 2 hour Round Trip – 2 trains
Train 14 – Birmingham Curzon Street and Manchester – 200 metre Full-Size – 41 minutes – 2 hour Round Trip – 2 trains

Note.

I have assumed 400 metre Full-Size trains will be a pair of 200 metre trains.
Trains 4, 10 and 11 are pairs of 200 metre long Classic-Compatible trains, that split and join at Crewe. Carlisle and Carlisle respectively.
Trains 5 and 6 are single 200 metre long Classic-Compatible trains.
The full schedule will need 34 Full-Size trains and 56 Classic-Compatible trains

According to Wikipedia, the first order will be for 54 Classic-Compatible trains, so I would assume, that more trains will be ordered.

Eastern Leg

These are the services for the Eastern Leg between London , Birmingham, East Midlands Hub, Leeds, Sheffield, York and Newcastle.

Train 15 – Birmingham Curzon Street and Leeds – 200 metre Full-Size – 49 minutes – 2 hour Round Trip – 2 trains
Train 16 – Birmingham Curzon Street and Leeds – 200 metre Full-Size – 49 minutes – 2 hour Round Trip – 2 trains
Train 17 – Birmingham Curzon Street and Newcastle – Classic Compatible – 1 hour 57 minutes – 5 hour Round Trip – 5 trains
Train 18 – London Euston and Sheffield – Classic Compatible – 1 hour 27 minutes – 4 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 18 – London Euston and Leeds – Classic Compatible – 1 hour 21 minutes – 3 hour Round Trip – 3 trains
Train 19 – London Euston and Leeds – 400 metre Full-Size – 1 hour and 21 minutes – 3 hour Round Trip – 6 trains
Train 20 – London Euston and Leeds – 400 metre Full-Size – 1 hour and 21 minutes – 3 hour Round Trip – 6 trains
Train 21 – London Euston and Sheffield – Classic Compatible – 1 hour 27 minutes – 4 hour Round Trip – 4 trains
Train 21 – London Euston and York – Classic Compatible – 1 hour 24 minutes – 3 hour Round Trip – 3 trains
Train 22 – London Euston and Newcastle – Classic Compatible – 2 hour 17 minutes – 5 hour Round Trip – 5 trains
Train 23 – London Euston and Newcastle – Classic Compatible – 2 hour 17 minutes – 5 hour Round Trip – 5 trains

Note.

I have assumed 400 metre Full-Size trains will be a pair of 200 metre trains.
Trains 15 and 16 work as a pair,
Trains 18 and 21 are pairs of 200 metre long Classic-Compatible trains, that split and join at East Midlands Hub.
Trains 22 and 23 are single 200 metre long Classic-Compatible trains
The full schedule will need 16 Full-Size trains and 29 Classic-Compatible trains.

Adding the two legs together and I estimate that 50 Full-Size trains and 85 Classic-Compatible trains, will be needed to run a full schedule.

Trains Per Hour On Each Section

It is possible to make a table of how many trains run on each section of the High Speed Two network in trains per hour (tph)

London Euston (stops) – 1-11, 18-23 – 17 tph
London Euston and Old Oak Common – 1-11, 18-23 – 17 tph
Old Oak Common (stops) – 1-11, 18-23 – 17 tph
Old Oak Common and Birmingham Interchange – 1-11, 18-23 – 17 tph
Birmingham Interchange (stops) – 2, 3, 7, 11, 20 – 5 tph
Birmingham Curzon Street (stops) – 1-3, 12-14, 15-17 – 9 tph
Birmingham and Crewe – 4,5, 7-9, 10-14 – 10 tph
Crewe (stops) – 4,5 – 2 tph
Crewe and Liverpool – 4,5 – 2 tph
Crewe and Lancaster – 4, 10-12 – 4 tph
Crewe and Manchester – 7-9, 13, 14 – 5 tph
Crewe and Wigan via Warrington – 4 – 1 tph
Crewe and Wigan via High Speed Two (new route) – 10-12 – 3 tph
Lancaster (stops) 4 – 1 tph
Lancaster and Carlisle – 10-12 – 3 tph
Carlisle and Edinburgh – 10-12 – 2.5 tph
Carlisle and Glasgow – 10-12 – 2.5 tph
Birmingham and Stoke – 6 – 1 tph
Stoke (stops) – 6 – 1 tph
Stoke and Macclesfield – 6 – 1 tph
Macclesfield (stops) – 6 – 1 tph
Birmingham and East Midlands Hub – 15-17, 18-20, 21-23 – 9 tph
East Midlands Hub (stops) – 15-17, 18-20, 21 – 7 tph
East Midlands Hub and Sheffield – 18, 21 – 2 tph
Sheffield (stops) – 18, 21 – 2 tph
Midlands Hub and Leeds – 15, 16, 18-20 – 5 tph
Leeds (stops) – 15, 16, 18-20 – 5 tph
East Midlands Hub and York – 17, 21-23 – 4 tph
York (stops) – 17, 21-23 – 4 tph
York and Newcastle – 17, 22, 23 – 3 tph
Newcastle (stops) – 17, 22, 23 – 3 tph

These are a few thoughts.

Capacity Of The Southern Leg

The busiest section is between London Euston and Birmingham Interchange, which handles 17 tph.

As the maximum capacity of High Speed Two is laid down in the Phase One Act as 18 tph, this gives a path for recovery, according to the article.

Trains Serving Euston

The following train types serve London Euston station.

Full-Size – 8 tph
400 metre Classic-Compatible – 5 tph
200 metre Classic-Compatible – 4 tph

In the current service proposal, , Trains 5,6, 22 and 23 are just single 200 metre Classic Compatible trains.

This is inefficient and another four tph could be run into Euston station, by the use of appropriate splitting and joining.

Train 5 could run an identical manner to Train 4 to give extra services to Lancaster, Preston, Wigan North Western and Warrington Bank Quay.
Train 6 to Macclesfield is a problem and perhaps should call at Birmingham Interchange, where it could split and join to serve somewhere else like Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury.
Trains 22 and 23 could split and join at East Midlands Hub and serve other places in the East of England like Cleethorpes, Hull, Lincoln, Middlesbrough and Scarborough.

Paths are expensive entities to provide and every path into Euston should support a 400 metre train or a pair of 200 metre trains.

Platform Use At Euston

This page on the High Speed Two web site, gives details of Euston High Speed Two station.

HS2 will deliver eleven new 400m long platforms, a new concourse and improved connections to Euston and Euston Square Underground stations. Our design teams are also looking at the opportunity to create a new northerly entrance facing Camden Town as well as new east-west links across the whole station site.

So how will the eleven platforms be used?

Destinations served from London are planned to be as follows.

Birmingham Curzon Street – Full-Size – 3 tph
Edinburgh/Glasgow – Classic-Compatible – 2 tph
Lancaster – Classic-Compatible – 1 tph
Leeds – Full-Size – 2 tph – Classic-Compatible – 1 tph

Liverpool – Classic-Compatible – 2 tph

Macclesfield – Classic-Compatible – 1 tph
Manchester Piccadilly – Full-Size – 3 tph
Newcastle – Classic-Compatible – 2 tph
Sheffield – Classic-Compatible – 2 tph
York – Classic-Compatible – 1 tph

That is ten destinations and there will be eleven platforms.

I like it! Lack of resources is often the reason systems don’t work well and there are certainly enough platforms.

Could platforms be allocated something like this?

Birmingham Curzon Street – Full-Size
Edinburgh/Glasgow – Classic-Compatible
Leeds – Full-Size
Liverpool – Classic-Compatible – Also serves Lancaster
Macclesfield – Classic-Compatible
Manchester Piccadilly – Full-Size
Newcastle – Classic-Compatible
Sheffield – Classic-Compatible – Also serves Leeds and York

Note.

No platform handles more than three tph.
There are three spare platforms.
Each platform would only be normally used by one train type.
Only Birmingham Interchange, East Midlands Hub, Leeds, Preston and York are not always served from the same platform.

Platform arrangements could be very passenger- and operator-friendly.

Platform Use At Birmingham Curzon Street

Birmingham Curzon Street station has been designed to have seven platforms.

Destinations served from Birmingham Curzon Street station are planned to be as follows.

Edinburgh/Glasgow – Classic-Compatible – 1 tph
Leeds – Full-Size – 2 tph
London Euston – Full-Size – 3 tph
Manchester Piccadilly – Full-Size – 2 tph
Newcastle – Classic-Compatible – 1 tph
Nottingham – Classic-Compatible – 1 tph

Note.

The Nottingham service has been proposed by Midlands Engine Rail, but will be running High Speed Two Classic Compatible trains.
That is six destinations and there will be seven platforms.

I like it! For the same reason as London Euston.

Could platforms be allocated something like this?

Edinburgh/Glasgow – Classic-Compatible
Leeds – Full-Size
London Euston – Full-Size
Manchester Piccadilly – Full-Size
Newcastle/Nottingham – Classic-Compatible

Note.

No platform handles more than three tph.
There are two spare platforms.
Each platform would only be normally used by one train type.
Only East Midlands Hub is not always served from the same platform.

Platform arrangements could be very passenger- and operator-friendly.

Back-to-Back Services via Birmingham Curzon Street

The current plan for High Speed Two envisages the following services between the main terminals served by Full-Size trains.

London Euston and Birmingham Curzon Street – 3 tph – 45 minutes
London Euston and Leeds – 2 tph – 81 minutes
London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly – 3 tph – 71 minutes
Birmingham Curzon Street and Leeds – 2 tph – 40 minutes
Birmingham Curzon Street and Manchester Piccadilly – 2 tph – 41 minutes

Suppose a traveller wanted to go between East Midlands Hub and Manchester Airport stations.

Wouldn’t it be convenient if the Leeds to Birmingham Curzon Street train, stopped in Birmingham Curzon Street alongside the train to Manchester Airport and Piccadilly, so passengers could just walk across?

Or the two services could be run Back-to-Back with a reverse in Birmingham Curzon Street station?

Note.

The current fastest times between Nottingham and Manchester Airport stations are around two-and-a-half hours, with two changes.
With High Speed Two, it looks like the time could be under the hour, even allowing up to eight minutes for the change at Birmingham Curzon Street.

The design of the track and stations for High Speed Two, has some interesting features that will be exploited by the train operator, to provide better services.

Capacity Of The Western Leg Between Birmingham And Crewe

The section is between Birmingham and Crewe, will be running 10 tph.

As the maximum capacity of High Speed Two is laid down in the Phase One Act as 18 tph, this gives plenty of room for more trains.

But where will they come from?

High Speed One copes well with a few interlopers in the shape of Southeastern’s Class 395 trains, which run at 140 mph, between the Eurostars.

High Speed Two is faster, but what is to stop an operator running their own Classic-Compatible trains on the following routes.

Birmingham Curzon Street and Liverpool via Crewe, Runcorn and Liverpool South Parkway.
Birmingham Curzon Street and Holyhead via Crewe, Chester and an electrified North Wales Coast Line.
Birmingham Curzon Street and Blackpool via Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western and Preston.
Birmingham Curzon Street and Blackburn and Burnley via Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western and Preston.

Note.

If these trains were say 130 metres long, they could call at all stations, without any platform lengthening.
I’m sure that the clever engineers at Hitachi and Hyperdrive Innovation could come up with battery electric Classic-Compatible train, that could run at 225 mph on High Speed Two and had a battery range to reach Holyhead, with a small amount of electrification.
A pair of trains, could work the last two services with a Split/Join at Preston.

The advantages of terminating these service in Birmingham Curzon Street would be as follows.

A lot more places get a fast connection to the High Speed Two network.
Passengers can reach London with an easy change at Birmingham Curzon Street station.
They can also walk easily between the three Birmingham stations.

But the big advantage is the trains don’t use valuable paths on High Speed Two between Birmingham Curzon Street and London Euston.

Crewe Station

In the current Avanti West Coast timetable, the following trains pass through Crewe.

London Euston and Blackpool – 4 trains per day (tpd)
London Euston and Chester – 1 tph
London Euston and Edinburgh/Glasgow – 2 tph
London Euston and Liverpool – 1 tph
London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly – 1 tph

Most trains stop at Crewe.

In the proposed High Speed Two timetable, the following trains will pass through Crewe.

London Euston and Edinburgh/Glasgow – 2 tph
London Euston and Lancaster/Liverpool – 2 tph
London Euston and Manchester – 3 tph
Birmingham Curzon Street and Edinburgh/Glasgow -1 tph
Birmingham Curzon Street and Manchester – 2 tph

Note.

Only the Lancaster and Liverpool trains stop at Crewe station.
North of Crewe there will be a three-way split of High Speed Two routes to Liverpool, Wigan and the North and Manchester Airport and Piccadilly.
High Speed Two will loop to the East and then join the West Coast Main Line to the South of Wigan.
High Speed Two trains will use the West Coast Main Line to the North of Wigan North Western station.

This map of High Speed Two in North West England was captured from the interactive map on the High Speed Two web site.

Note.

The current West Coast Main Line (WCML) and Phase 2a of High Speed Two are shown in blue.
Phase 2b of High Speed Two is shown in orange.
The main North-South route, which is shown in blue, is the WCML passing through Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay and Wigan North Western as it goes North.
The Western Branch, which is shown in blue, is the Liverpool Branch of the WCML, which serves Runcorn and Liverpool.
High Speed Two, which is shown in orange, takes a faster route between Crewe and Wigan North Western.
The Eastern Branch, which is shown in orange, is the Manchester Branch of High Speed Two, which serves Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly.
The route in the East, which is shown in blue, is the Macclesfield Branch of High Speed Two, which serves Stafford, Stoke-on-Trent and Macclesfield.

The route of Northern Powerhouse Rail between Manchester Airport and Liverpool has still to be finalised.

Liverpool Branch

Consider.

The Liverpool Branch will take two tph between London Euston and Liverpool.
In the future it could take up to 6 tph on Northern Powerhouse Rail between Liverpool and Manchester Piccadilly via Manchester Airport.

I believe that Liverpool Lime Street station, after the recent updating can handle all these trains.

Manchester Branch

This document on the Government web site is entitled HS2 Phase 2b Western Leg Design Refinement Consultation.

It indicates two important recently-made changes to the design of the Manchester Branch of High Speed Two.

Manchester Airport station will have four High Speed platforms instead of two.
Manchester Piccadilly station will have six High Speed platforms instead of four.

These changes will help the use of these stations by Northern Powerhouse Rail..

Consider.

The Manchester Branch will be new high speed track, which will probably be built in a tunnel serving Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly stations.
The Manchester Branch will terminate in new platforms.
The Manchester Branch will take five tph between Birmingham Curzon Street or London Euston and Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly.
In the future it could take up to six tph on Northern Powerhouse Rail between Liverpool and Manchester Piccadilly via Manchester Airport.
London Euston and Old Oak Common will be new stations on a tunnelled approach to London and will handle 18 tph.

If London Euston and Old Oak Common can handle 18 tph, I can’t see why Manchester Airport and Piccadilly stations can’t handle somewhere near a similar number of trains.

At the moment eleven tph have been allocated to the Manchester Branch.

I believe that if infrastructure for Northern Powerhouse Rail was designed so that as well as connecting to Manchester and Liverpool, it connected Manchester and the West Coast Main Line running North to Preston, Carlisle and Scotland, services to the following destinations would be possible.

Barrow
Blackburn
Blackpool
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Windermere

Note.

Edinburgh and Glasgow would probably be a service that would alternate the destination, as it is proposed for High Speed Two’s Birmingham and Scotland service.
There would probably be a need for a North Wales and Manchester service via Chester.
All trains would be Classic-Compatible.

If the Manchester Branch were to be built to handle 18 tph, there would be more than enough capacity.

Crewe, Wigan And Manchester

My summing up earlier gave the number of trains between Crewe, Wigan and Manchester as follows.

Crewe and Manchester – 5 tph
Crewe and Wigan via Warrington – 1 tph
Crewe and Wigan via High Speed Two (new route) – 3 tph

This map of High Speed Two where the Manchester Branch leaves the new High Speed Two route between Crewe and Wigan was captured from the interactive map on the High Speed Two web site.

Note.

The Manchester Branch runs to the South of the M56,
The large blue dot indicates Manchester Airport station.
Wigan is to the North.
Crewe is to the South.
Manchester Piccadilly is to the North East.

I believe this junction will be turned into a full triangular junction, to connect Wigan directly to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly.

Barrow, Blackburn, Blackpool, Preston and Windermere could all have high speed connections to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly. Trains could be shorter Classic-Compatible trains.
A Manchester and Scotland service would take the same route.

Another pair of tracks could leave the junction to the West to create a direct route between Manchester Airport and Liverpool for Northern Powerhouse Rail, by sneaking along the M56.

Suppose extra services were as follows.

Manchester and Barrow – 1 tph
Manchester and Blackburn – 1 tph
Manchester and Blackpool – 1 tph
Manchester and Liverpool – 6 tph
Manchester and Scotland – 1 tph
Manchester and Windermere – 1 tph

The frequencies from the junction would be as follows.

To and from Crewe – High Speed Two (Manchester) – 5 tph – High Speed Two (North) – 3 tph = 8 tph
To and from Liverpool – Northern Powerhouse Rail – 6 tph = 6 tph
To and from Manchester – High Speed Two – 5 tph – Northern Powerhouse Rail – 6 tph – Local – 4 tph – Scotland – 1 tph = 16 tph
To and from Wigan – High Speed Two – 3 tph – Local – 4 tph – Scotland – 1 tph = 8 tph.

Only the Manchester Branch would be working hard.

The Liverpool Connection

I indicated that another pair of tracks would need to extend the Manchester Branch towards Liverpool in the West for Northern Powerhouse Rail.

Would these tracks have a station at Warrington?
Would there be a connection to allow services between Liverpool and the North and Scotland?

It might even be possible to design a Liverpool connection, that avoided using the current Liverpool Branch and increased the capacity and efficiency of all trains to Liverpool.

Capacity Of The Western Leg Between Wigan And Scotland

The sections between Crewe and Carlisle, will be running at the following frequencies.

Wigan and Lancaster – 4 tph
Lancaster and Carlisle – 3 tph
Carlisle and Edinburgh – 2.5 tph
Carlisle and Glasgow – 2.5 tph

Note.

The unusual Scottish frequencies are caused by splitting and joining at Carlisle and alternate services to Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Any local high speed services and a Scotland service from Manchester, will increase the frequencies.

Over this section the services will be running on an improved West Coast Main Line.

But in some cases the trains will be replacing current services, so the increase in total frequencies will be less than it first appears.

Avanti West Coast currently run the following Scottish services.

One tph – London Euston and Glasgow via the most direct route.
One tph – London Euston and alternately Edinburgh and Glasgow via Birmingham.

This means that effectively Glasgow has 1.5 tph and Edinburgh 0.5 tph from London Euston.

The capacity of the current eleven-car Class 390 trains is 145 First and 444 Standard Class seats, which compares closely with the 500-600 seats given in Wikipedia for High Speed Two trains. So the capacity of the two trains is not that different.

But High Speed Two will be running 2.5 tph Between London Euston and both Edinburgh and Glasgow.

I would expect, that Class 390 services to Scotland will be discontinued and replaced by High Speed Two services.

Capacity Of The Eastern Leg Between Birmingham And East Midlands Hub

The section is between Birmingham and East Midlands Hub, will be running 9 tph

As the maximum capacity of High Speed Two is laid down in the Phase One Act as 18 tph, this gives plenty of room for more trains.

But where will they come from?

Midlands Engine Rail is proposing a service between Birmingham Curzon Street and Nottingham.

It will have a frequency of one tph.
It will be run by High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains.
The journey will take 33 minutes.
It will run on High Speed Two infrastructure between Birmingham Curzon Street and East Midlands Hub.

If High Speed Two has been designed with this service in mind, I doubt it will be a difficult service to setup.

There might be enough capacity on High Speed Two for two tph on the route,
It could possibly be extended to Lincoln.

It will also depend on the service timing being consistent with an efficient use of trains and platforms.

Thirty-three minutes is not a good timing, as it means twenty-seven minutes wait in a platform to get a round trip time, that suits clock-face time-tabling.
The current Lincoln and Nottingham service takes 56 minutes for 34 miles.
LNER’s London Kings Cross and Lincoln service travels the 16 miles between Lincoln and Newark in 25 minutes.
I estimate that after track improvements, with a single stop at Newark Castle station, that Nottingham and Lincoln could be achieved in several minutes under fifty minutes.
This would enable a sub-ninety minute journey time between Birmingham Curzon Street and Lincoln, with enough time to properly turn the trains at both ends of the route.
The three hour round trip would mean that an hourly service would need three trains.

This is probably just one of several efficient time-tabling possibilities.

Are there any other similar services?

The obvious one is surely Cambridge and Birmingham

It would run via Peterborough, Grantham, Nottingham and East Midlands Hub.
It would connect the three big science, engineering and medical centres in the Midlands and the East.
It could be run by High Speed Two Classic-Compatible trains.

It might even be a replacement for CrossCountry’s Stansted Airport and Birmingham service.

Capacity Of The Eastern Leg Between East Midlands Hub And Sheffield

The section between East Midlands Hub and Sheffield, will be running 2 tph

As the maximum capacity of High Speed Two is laid down in the Phase One Act as 18 tph, this gives plenty of room for more trains.

But where will they come from?

This map of High Speed Two where the Sheffield Branch leaves the new High Speed Two route between East Midlands Hub and Leeds was captured from the interactive map on the High Speed Two web site.

Note.

The main route of High Speed Two between East Midlands Hub, is shown in orange and follows the route of the M1 Motorway, towards the East of the map.
The Sheffield Branch is new track to Clay Cross North Junction, where is takes over the Midland Main Line to Sheffield, which is shown in blue.
The line going South in the middle of the map is the Erewash Valley Line, which goes through Langley Mill and Ilkeston stations.

I suspect Clay Cross to Sheffield will be an electrified high speed line, with a maximum speed of at least 140 mph.

Could the Erewash Valley Line have been used as an alternative route to Sheffield?

This map of High Speed Two captured from their interactive map, shows the connection of High Speed Two and the Erewash Valley Line to East Midlands Hub.

Note.

East Midlands Hub is shown by the big blue dot.
High Speed Two is shown in orange.
The route to Leeds vaguely follows the M1 Motorway.
The Erewash Valley Line goes North to the East of Ilkeston.

Would have been quicker and easier to electrify the Erewash Valley Line, as the High Speed Two route to Chesterfield and Sheffield?

Network Rail updated the route a few years ago.
It does not have the problems of electrification, through a World Heritage Site, as does the route through Derby.
It could surely handle two tph, even if they were High Speed Two Classic Compatible trains.
Sheffield will be just under ninety minutes from London by High Speed Two, as opposed to two hours now.

I suspect that it all comes down to saving a few minutes to Sheffield and the civic pride of having a High Speed Two connection.

So it looks like we’ll have the following capacity between East Midlands Hub and Sheffield.

Between East Midlands Hub and Clay Cross North Junction, there will be the High Speed Two capacity of 18 tph.
Between Clay Cross and Sheffield, there will probably be an upgraded capacity of perhaps 8-10 tph.

It seems a lot of capacity for just two tph.

Consider.

High Speed Two is planning to run three tph between Birmingham Curzon Street and East Midlands Hub
Midlands Rail Engine is planning to run one tph between Birmingham Curzon Street and East Midlands Hub
Four tph is considered a Turn-Up-And-Go service, and could exist between Birmingham Curzon Street and East Midlands Hub.
Sheffield and Leeds, both probably need a Turn-Up-And-Go service, to and from East Midlands Hub.
Semi-fast services between Sheffield and East Midlands Hub, calling at Chesterfield, Alfreton, Langley Mill and Ilkeston would be possible, by using the Erewash Valley Line.
The Maid Marian Line will join the Robin Hood Line in adding extra connectivity to East Midlands Hub Station.
Leeds and East Midlands Hub could have a six tph service courtesy of High Speed Two and Midlands Rail Engine.

Using High Speed Two’s web site, the following times should be possible.

Sheffield and East Midlands Hub – 27 minutes
Sheffield and Birmingham Curzon Street – 47 minutes.

Both services allow time for an efficient service.

There are certainly many options to create a Turn-Up-And-Go service between Sheffield and East Midlands Hub and also improve connections to other locations across the area.

Capacity Of The Eastern Leg Between East Midlands Hub And Leeds

The section is between East Midlands Hub and Leeds, will be running 5 tph

High Speed Two between Midlands Hub and Leeds is a totally new high speed line.

As the maximum capacity of High Speed Two is laid down in the Phase One Act as 18 tph, this gives plenty of room for more trains.
The Southern section of the leg closely follows the M1 Motorway.
Leeds, York and Newcastle will be 27, 36 and 93 minutes from East Midlands Hub, respectively.

This map of High Speed Two, which shows the route of the line in Yorkshire, was captured from the interactive map on the High Speed Two web site.

Note.

Sheffield is marked by the blue dot in the South.
Leeds is marked by the blue dot in the North West.
York is marked by the blue dot in the North East.
New routes are shown in orange.
Upgraded routes are shown in blue.

The route seems to open up several possibilities for extra routes.

Leeds and Sheffield will be used by Northern Powerhouse Rail and there will be four tph, taking 28 minutes.
Leeds and Bedford via East Midlands Hub has been proposed by Midlands Rail Engine.
Services between Sheffield and the North via York must be a possibility.

This map of High Speed Two, which shows the routes to the East of Leeds, was captured from High Speed Two’s interactive map.

I think that two things might be missing.

A full triangular junction would surely allow services between Leeds and the North via York.
A high speed connection to Hull.

We shall see in the future.

Capacity Of The Eastern Leg Between York And Newcastle

The section between York and Newcastle, will be running at a frequency of 3 tph.

Over this section the services will be running on an improved East Coast Main Line.

Conclusion

I shall split the conclusions into various sections.

Route And Track Layout

I think there may be places, where the route and track layout might need to be improved.

The Manchester Branch probably needs a triangular junction with the Western Leg of High Speed Two.
How Liverpool is served by Northern Powerhouse Rail needs to be decided.
The approach to Leeds probably needs a triangular junction with the Eastern Leg of High Speed Two.
It is not clear how services will reach Hull.

Hopefully, these issues will become clear in the next year or so.

Capacity

The sections with the highest levels of capacity would appear to be the following.

London Euston and Birmingham Interchange.
The Manchester Branch
The section shared with the East Coast Main Line between York and Newcastle.
The section shared with the West Coast Main Line between Wigan and Scotland.

But on these sections extra trains can be run.

Birmingham and North West England
Birmingham and East Midlands Hub
East Midlands Hub and Leeds
East Midlands Hub and Sheffield
East Midlands Hub and York

I can see, this capacity being filled by high speed local services, like those proposed by Midlands Rail Engine.

Rolling Stock

The only comment, I will make, is that there could be a need for a shorter Classic-Compatible train to work local services.

October 22, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Design, Transport/Travel | Avanti West Coast, Clay Cross North Junction, Clay Cross North Junction And Sheffield Electrification, Double-Deck Trains, East Coast Main Line, East Midlands Hub Station, High Speed Two, High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Trains, Hitachi, HS3/Northern Powerhouse Rail, Hyperdrive Innovation, Leeds Station, Liverpool Lime Street Station, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Midlands Engine Rail, Sheffield Station, Step-Free, West Coast Main Line, York Station | 6 Comments

CrossCountry’s Bournemouth And Manchester Piccadilly Service

Whilst I was at Basingstoke station yesterday one of CrossCountry‘s services between Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly came through, so I took these pictures.

It was a long formation of Class 220 trains.

Could This Service Be Replaced By Hitachi Regional Battery Trains?

This Hitachi infographic gives the specification of the Hitachi Regional Battery Train.

I feel that in most condition, the range on battery power can be up to 56 miles.

I can break the Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly route into a series of legs.

Bournemouth and Basingstoke – 60 miles – 750 VDC third-rail electrification
Basingstoke and Reading – 15.5 miles – No electrification
Reading and Didcot North Junction – 18 miles – 25 KVAC overhead electrification
Didcot North Junction and Oxford – 10 miles – No electrification
Oxford and Banbury – 22 miles – No electrification
Banbury and Leamington Spa – 20 miles – No electrification
Leamington Spa and Coventry – 10 miles – No electrification
Coventry and Manchester Piccadilly – 101 miles – 25 KVAC overhead electrification

Note.

63 % of the route is electrified.
The short 15.5 mile gap in the electrification between Basingstoke and Reading should be an easy route for running on battery power.
But the 62 mile gap between Didcot North Junction and Coventry might well be too far.

The train would also need to be able to work with both types of UK electrification.

If some way could be found to bridge the 62 mile gap reliably, Hitachi’s Regional Battery Trains could work CrossCountry’s service between Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly.

Bridging The Gap

These methods could possibly be used to bridge the gap.

A Larger Battery On The Train

If you look at images of MTU’s Hybrid PowerPack, they appear to show a basic engine module with extra battery modules connected to it.

Will Hitachi and their battery-partner; Hyperdrive Innovation use a similar approach, where extra batteries can be plugged in as required?

This modular approach must offer advantages.

Battery size can be tailored to routes.
Batteries can be changed quickly.

The train’s software would know what batteries were fitted and could manage them efficiently.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train able to handle a gap only six miles longer than the specification.

Battery And Train Development

As Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train develops, the following should happen.

Useable battery capacity will increase.
The train will use less electricity.
Actions like regenerative braking will improve and recover more electricity.
Driving and train operating strategies will improve.

These and other factors will improve the range of the train on batteries.

A Charging Station At Banbury Station

If some form of Fast Charge system were to be installed at Banbury station, this would enable a train stopping at Banbury to take on enough power to reliably reach Oxford or Coventry depending, on their final destination.

This method may add a few minutes to the trip, but it should work well.

Electrification Of A Section Of The Chiltern Main Line

This could be an elegant solution.

I have just flown my helicopter between Bicester North and Warwick Parkway stations and these are my observations.

The Chiltern Main Line appears to be fairly straight and has received a top class Network Rail makeover in the last couple of decades.
There are a couple of tunnels, but most of the bridges are new.
Network Rail have done a lot of work on this route to create a hundred mph main line.
It might be possible to increase the operating speed, by a few mph.
The signalling also appears modern.

My untrained eye, says that it won’t be too challenging to electrify between say Bicester North station or Aynho Junction in the South and Leamington Spa or Warwick Parkway stations in the North. I would think, that the degree of difficulty would be about the same, as the recently electrified section of the Midland Main Line between Bedford and Corby stations.

The thirty-eight miles of electrification between Bicester North and Warwick Parkway stations would mean.

The electrification is only eight-and-a-half miles longer than Bedford and Corby.
There could be journey time savings.
As all trains stop at two stations out of Banbury, Leamington Spa, Warwick and Warwick Parkway, all pantograph actions could be performed in stations, if that was thought to be preferable.
Trains would be able to leave the electrification with full batteries.
The electrification may enable some freight trains to be hauled between Didcot and Coventry or Birmingham using battery electric locomotives.

Distances of relevance from the ends of the electrification include.

London Marylebone and Bicester North stations – 55 miles
London Marylebone and Aynho junction – 64 miles
Didcot North and Aynho junctions – 28 miles
Leamington Spa and Coventry stations – 10 miles
Leamington Spa and Birmingham Snow Hill stations – 23 miles
Leamington Spa and Stratford-upon-Avon stations – 15 miles
Warwick Parkway and Birmingham New Street stations – 20 miles
Warwick Parkway and Birmingham Snow Hill stations – 20 miles
Warwick Parkway and Kidderminster – 40 miles
Warwick Parkway and Stratford-upon-Avon stations – 12 miles

These figures mean that the following services would be possible using Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train.

Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street
Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Birmingham Snow Hill
Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Kidderminster
Chiltern Railways – London Marylebone and Stratford-upon-Avon
CrossCountry – Bournemouth and Manchester Piccadilly
CrossCountry – Southampton Central and Newcastle
Midlands Connect – Oxford and Birmingham More Street – See Birmingham Airport Connectivity.

Other services like Leicester and Oxford via Coventry may also be possible.

As I see it, the great advantage of this electrification on the Chiltern Main Line is that is decarbonises two routes with the same thirty-eight miles of electrification.

Conclusion

CrossCountry’s Bournemouth And Manchester Piccadilly service could be run very efficiently with Hitachi’s proposed Regional Battery Train.

My preferred method to cross the electrification gap between Didcot North junction and Coventry station would be to electrify a section of the Chiltern Main Line.

The electrification would be less than forty miles.
I doubt it would be a challenging project.
It would also allow Hitachi’s proposed trains to work Chiltern Main Line routes between London Marylebone and Birmingham.

I am fairly certain, that all passenger services through Banbury would be fully electric.

August 15, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Banbury Station, Basingstoke Station, Birmingham Moor Street Station, Birmingham Snow Hill Station, Bournemouth, Chiltern Railways, Class 220 Train, CrossCountry Trains, Discontinuous Electrification, Hitachi Regional Battery Train, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Midlands Connect, Vivarail/GWR Fast Charge | Leave a comment

Beeching Reversal – East Didsbury – Stockport

This is one of the Beeching Reversal projects that the Government and Network Rail are proposing to reverse some of the Beeching cuts.

This project has been puzzling me.

Search Google for “East Didsbury and Stockport Rail Link” and all you find is grandiose plans for billion pound extensions to the Manchester Metrolink.

Having researched a lot of the proposed Beeching Reversal projects, it appears to me, that the ones likely to be built, will give a lot of benefit for millions, not billions of pounds.

I just wonder, if in this project, Manchester is stealing an idea from Birmingham – the four-poster station!

This Google Map shows Smethwick Galton Bridge station.

This extract from the Wikipedia entry, describes the station.

The station was opened in September 1995 as part of the Jewellery Line scheme to reopen the line between Smethwick and Birmingham Snow Hill station. It was built as an interchange station between two lines, and the platforms on both lines opened at the same time.

Note.

The four lift towers with stairs, that connect the four platforms, have pyramid roofs.
The station is fully step-free.
The rail lines are at different levels.

These pictures show the station.

It is a very practical architectural idea and the world needs more four-poster stations to connect rail lines where they cross at different levels.

Could A Four-Poster Station Link East Didsbury And Stockport?

These are my thoughts.

The Location

This Google Map shows the general area, where the station could be built.

It is a spaghetti of motorways and rail lines with a lumpy sauce of new housing called Barnes Village in the middle.

Note, where the two rail lines cross in the South-West corner of the map.

This second Google Map, shows an enlarged image of the location, where the two rail lines cross.

Note.

The Styal Line runs North-South.
The line running East-West is the Mid-Cheshire Line between Altrincham and Stockport stations.

I suspect most travellers joining the rail network at this point, would walk or cycle in from nearby locations or turn up in a taxi.

The Styal Line

The Styal Line has the following characteristics.

It is an electrified double-track line.
It connects Manchester Piccadilly and Wilmslow stations.
There is a spur that serves Manchester Airport station.
East Didsbury station, is the station North of where the two lines cross.
Gatley station, is the station South of where the two lines cross.
It is the route of trains to and from Manchester Airport.

These trains go through East Didsbury and Gatley stations in trains per hour (tph)

1 tph – Northern – Liverpool Lime Street and Crewe
1 tph – Northern – Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Airport
1 tph – Northern – Manchester Airport and Blackpool North
1 tph – Northern – Manchester Airport and Cumbria
1 tph – Trains for Wales – Manchester Airport and Chester
1 tph – TransPennine Express – Manchester Airport and Redcar Central
1 tph – TransPennine Express – Manchester Airport and Newcastle
1 tph – TransPennine Express – Manchester Airport and Glasgow Central or Edinburgh

Freight trains also use the route.

This means that currently, there are eight tph between the Castlefield Corridor (Deansgate, Manchester Oxford Road and Manchester Piccadilly) and Manchester Airport, all of which go through the location, where the four-poster station could possibly be built.

So could the new station, be used to take pressure off the overloaded Castlefield Corridor?

The Mid-Cheshire Line

The Mid-Cheshire Line has the following characteristics.

At this point it is a single-track without electrification.
It connects Stockport and Altrincham stations.

Re-Doubling Of The Mid Cheshire Line Between Stockport and Altrincham And Associated Station Reopenings is another of the Beeching Reversal projects and envisages the following.

Re-doubling the route.
Possible electrification
Reopening some stations.

This is the only passenger service that uses the route.

1 tph – Northern – Manchester Piccadilly and Chester

Up to two-three freight tph, also use the route.

In the related post, I said this about the desired frequency of services between Manchester and Chester stations.

It could be argued that two tph between Manchester Piccadilly and Chester are needed now and that four tph should be the preferred frequency.

There certainly needs to be four tph going through the proposed four-poster station.

Conclusion

I am being drawn to the conclusion, that this station if it were to be built, would help a lot of problems with Manchester’s railways.

It would allow a sort out of train services to Manchester Airport.
It would connect Stockport and Manchester Airport.
It would connect Stockport and East Didsbury.
It could help a solution to the problem of the Castlefield Corridor.

The station should be built.

August 5, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Altrincham Station, Beeching Reversal, Castlefield Corridor, Chester Station, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Smethwick Galton Bridge Station, Stockport Station, Styal Line | 7 Comments

Beeching Reversal – Re-Doubling Of The Mid Cheshire Line Between Stockport and Altrincham And Associated Station Reopenings

This is one of the Beeching Reversal projects that the Government and Network Rail are proposing to reverse some of the Beeching cuts.

Much of this project appears to be about bringing the former Stockport, Timperley and Altrincham Junction Railway, back up to somewhere near its original state.

This map clipped from Wikipedia shows the railway.

Note.

Stockport Edgeley is now just Stockport station.
Altrincham station is on the Mid-Cheshire Line.
Baguley, Northenden and both Cheadle stations are now closed.

I have just flown my virtual helicopter between Stockport and Altrincham stations and much of the route is already double-track.

At Cheadle Village Junction, which appears to be behind Cheadle Heath Police Station, the track becomes single.
Just before Sharston Junction, which appears to be to the North-East of Sharston, the track becomes double again.

I estimate, that the single-track section is just over two miles long.

I was also able to ascertain, that there appeared to be plenty of space, where British Rail singled the track.

There is also a second section of single-track, through Navigation Road station, which is shown in this Google Map.

Note.

Both tracks through Navigation Road station are bi-directional.
The Metrolink track is on the West.
The National Rail track is on the East.
South of Navigation Road station, both Metrolink and National Rail get two tracks.

In the twenty-four hours to 0600 this morning, a total of seventeen freight movements, went through this section.

Some were biomass trains between Liverpool and Drax power station, up to 6400 tonnes.
Some were stone trains from the quarries in the Peak District.
Some were Network Rail engineering trains.

I suspect this abort section of single track for both Metrolink and Network Rail is an absolute pain.

The single track must cause a lot of problems as the route is sometimes used by two or three trains per hour (tph) in both directions.

As some of the trains are some of the UK’s longest freight trains, it could also be very challenging for the signalling and the signallers.

Work That Could Be Done

These sub-projects could be performed.

Elimination of Single Track At Cheadle

I think this is essential and could greatly increase the capacity of the route.

This Youtube video from Don Coffey, shows the view from the cab, which travelling from Manchester to Chester. If you watch from about thirteen minutes, you’ll see the single-track section.

Sorting Out Navigation Road

As with the single-track section at Cheadle, I think this is essential and could greatly increase the capacity of the route.

Watch the same Youtube video from about twenty-two minutes, and you’ll see the single-track section, through Navigation Road station.

In Tram-Trains To Hale Station, I talked about the possibilities of using a variant of Class 399 tram-trains, similar to those running on the Sheffield Supertram.

Signalling

It could be there are minor adjustments or major work to get the most out of a double-track railway.

Electrification

This is an excerpt from the Wikipedia entry for the Mid-Cheshire Line.

In March 2015, the Electrification Task Force said that the Mid-Cheshire line was a tier 1 priority for being electrified in the CP6 period (2019-2024)

Would electrification be installed to perhaps run electric trains between Manchester Piccadilly and Chester?

Baguley Station

I covered Baguley station in Glazebrook Junction And Skelton Junction, where I said this.

Baguley station could be an interesting station, as it would be possible to create an interchange with the Manchester Metrolink. Wikipedia says this.

Proposals were made in the early 2000s to reopen a station in the Baguley area when the extension of the Metrolink out to Wythenshawe and Manchester Airport is actioned. In May 2011 re-opening of the station on the Stockport-Altrincham line was included in Transport for Greater Manchester’s Passenger Plan. The station would be on Southmoor Road and would be a tram/train interchange with the Baguley tram stop, which opened in 2014.

This Google Map shows the possible Baguley Interchange.

Note.

1. The North-South road is Southmoor Road.
2. The Metrolink branch to the Airport runs alongside.
3. The Stockport and Altrincham Line crosses East-West towards the North of the map.

If you take a train between Manchester Piccadilly and Chester via Stockport, Navigation Road, Altrincham and Knutsford, you cross on the railway through here.

So perhaps a Baguley Interchange station, would help some people get to and from Manchester Airport?

Baguley station certainly has possibilities.

Cheadle North Station

Could Cheadle North station be replaced?

This article on the Manchester Evening News is entitled Cheadle ‘On Cusp’ Of Having Own Railway Station For First Time Since Mid-1960s, where this is said.

If ministers back the proposals, the railway station is likely to be built next to the Alexandra Hospital along the mid-Cheshire line – close to where the original Cheadle (later Cheadle North) station was.

This Google Map shows the Cheadle Alexandra Hospital and the Mid-Cheshire Line.

Note.

The hospital is the largest private hospital in the UK, outside London.
The railway, which is single-track at this point, runs along the South side of the site.

If the line is double-tracked, as seems likely, adding a small station would not be a challenging addition.

Northenden Station

Could Northenden station be replaced?

Future Train Services

The train service between Manchester Piccadilly and Chester is as follows.

The service is 45 miles.
It takes 90 minutes.
There are stops at Stockport, Navigation Road, Altrincham, Hale, Ashley, Mobberley, Knutsford, Plumley, Lostock Gtalam, Northwich, Greenbank, Cuddington, Delamere and Mouldsworth.

It could be argued that two tph between Manchester Piccadilly and Chester are needed now and that four tph should be the preferred frequency.

There are other services.

Conclusion

After restoring the double-track on this route, there are possibilities to spend, as much money as you want.

In Tram-Trains To Hale Station, these were my conclusions.

Tram-trains can deliver a capacity improvement through Navigation Road station.
Tram-trains could be extensively tested on the existing Manchester Metrolink network.
Tram-trains could be used to build a simple extension to Hale station from Altrincham.
The Manchester and Chester service via Stockport, Navigation Road and Altrincham stations could be run by tram-trains.

A comprehensive network of tram-trains could be developed between, through and beyond Altrincham, Crewe and Chester.

Cheshire would have a quality commuter and local train network into Manchester.

After all in the next couple of years, Merseyrail’s Cheshire network will be getting a major upgrade with new trains and perhaps another new route.

August 3, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Altrincham Station, Baguley Station, Beeching Reversal, Chester Station, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Stockport Station | 6 Comments

Should High Speed Two’s Macclesfield And London Service Call At Birmingham Interchange?

Connecting Manchester City Centre to the High Speed Two network will be a major undertaking.

It looks increasingly likely that High Speed Two and Northern Powerhouse Rail will have a shared line running from the main High Speed Two route through Crewe to Manchester Piccadilly via Manchester Airport.
Between Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly will be in a high speed tunnel.
Northern Powerhouse Rail will connect Liverpool Lime Street and Warrington to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly.
There will be a major problem keeping train services running between Manchester and Birmingham, London and the South.

But just at Project Rio kept Manchester connected during the rebuilding of the West Coast Main Line in the early years of this century, I believe that a similar creditable alternative route may be starting to evolve.

Avanti’s Additional Class 807 Trains Will Be Delivered

These trains will allow additional services and release some Class 390 trains to reinforce other services.

Avanti West Coast’s Future West Coast Main Line Service

The small fleet of Class 807 trains are needed to provide extra services on the West Coast Main Line.

But if these trains are successful, will more be used as replacements for the nearly twenty-years-old Class 390 trains?
Will they also be given more traction power to double as the classic-compatible trains for High Speed Two.
Other operators might also like to purchase a high capacity 200 metre long high speed train, which would share routes used by High Speed Two.

In Thoughts On Class 807 Trains And High Speed Two’s Classic-Compatible Trains, I discuss the design of extra trains for High Speed Two and the West Coast Main Line.

Surely, though having similar trains handling both roles on the West Coast Main Line and High Speed Two, would be an advantage to Avanti West Coast?

London And Manchester Services

Currently, there are these services between London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly stations.

Via Milton Keynes Central, Stoke-on-Trent and Stockport
Via Stoke-on-Trent, Macclesfield and Stockport
Via Stafford, Crewe, Wilmslow and Stockport

All services have a frequency of one train per hour (tph)

High Speed Two plans to run these services between the South and the Manchester area.

1 tph – 200 metres – London Euston and Wigan North Western via Old Oak Common, Crewe and Warrington Bank Quay
1 tph – 200 metres – London Euston and Macclesfield via Old Oak Common, Stafford and Stoke.
1 tph – 400 metres – London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common, Birmingham Interchange and Manchester Airport
2 tph – 400 metres – London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common and Manchester Airport
2 tph – 200 metres – Birmingham Curzon Street and Manchester Piccadilly via Manchester Airport
1 tph – 200 metres – Birmingham Curzon Street and Wigan North |Western

Note.

I have included Wigan North Western, as it has good connections to North Manchester.
Services can’t go via Manchester Airport until the tunnel is completed.
The 400 metre services will need to use dedicated High Speed Two tracks, so will need to use the tunnel via Manchester Airport.

Wigan and Macclesfield stations will not be requiring major rebuilding, during the construction of High Speed Two. That should mean the stations will not need to be closed for long periods.

Macclesfield station could probably handle up to three tph from the South.
Wigan North Western station could probably handle two tph from the South.
Work in the Manchester Piccadilly area, may well close the station at times.

I suspect Macclesfield and Wigan North Western could be very useful alternative stations for travelling to and from the South.

Manchester And Birmingham Via Macclesfield

I can see that there could be difficulties for some passengers, if they found themselves at Macclesfield wanting to go to the Birmingham area.

A solution would be for the Macclesfield and London service to stop at Birmingham Interchange, which will be extremely well-connected.

Birmingham Interchange

This map from High Speed Two, shows Birmingham Interchange and Birmingham International stations.

Note.

Birmingham Interchange station is marked by the blue dot.
Birmingham International station is to the West of the M42.

The two stations will be connected by an automatic people mover.

Destinations and their frequencies available from Birmingham Interchange, when High Speed Two is complete will include.

2 tph – Birmingham Curzon Street
1 tph – Carlisle
1 tph – East Midlands Hub
1 tph – Edinburgh Haymarket
1 tph – Edinburgh Waverley
1 tph – Glasgow Central
1 tph – Leeds
5 tph – London Euston
1 tph – Manchester Airport
1 tph – Manchester Piccadilly
5 tph – Old Oak Common
1 tph – Preston

It looks like if you miss your train to many important cities at Birmingham Interchange, it will be an hour to wait for the next train.

Destinations and their frequencies available from Birmingham International are currently.

8 tph – Birmingham New Street
1 tph – Bournemouth
1 tph – Crewe
0.5 tph to Edinburgh Waverley
0.5 tph to Glasgow Central
7 tph – London Euston
1 tph – Macclesfield
1 tph – Manchester Piccadilly
1 tph – Reading
1 tph – Shrewsbury
1 tph – Southampton
1 tph – Stafford
1 tph – Stoke-on-Trent
2 tph – Wolverhampton

Note that 0.5 tph is one train per two hours.

These two lists can be combined.

10 tph – Birmingham Curzon Street/New Street
1 tph – Bournemouth
2 tph – Carlisle
1 tph – Crewe
1 tph – East Midlands Hub
1.5 tph – Edinburgh Haymarket
1.5 tph – Edinburgh Waverley
1.5 tph – Glasgow Central
1 tph – Leeds
12 tph – London Euston
1 tph – Macclesfield
1 tph – Manchester Airport
2 tph – Manchester Piccadilly
5 tph – Old Oak Common
1 tph – Preston
1 tph – Reading
1 tph – Shrewsbury
1 tph – Southampton
1 tph – Stafford
1 tph – Stoke-on-Trent
2 tph – Wolverhampton

This list is surely missing Bristol, Cardiff, Liverpool, Sheffield and Newcastle.

Conclusion

We should not underestimate the importance of Macclesfield and Wigan North Western stations in getting to and from Manchester during the building of High Speed Two.

July 15, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Avanti West Coast, Birmingham Interchange Station, Class 390 Train, Class 807 Train, High Speed Two, High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Trains, HS3/Northern Powerhouse Rail, Macclesfield Station, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Wigan North Western Station | Leave a comment

Along The Hope Valley Line – 13th July 2020

These pictures show my return trip between Manchester Piccadilly and Dore & Totley stations.

There are an assorted set of stations.

Some stations appear to have new platforms.
Marple station has a impressive step-free bridge.
Some stations may be Listed or should be.
There are walking routes from some stations.
Some stations need improvements to the access.

I also have some thoughts on the service.

The Class 150 Trains

The Class 150 trains have these characteristics.

Installed Power – 426 kW
Weight – 35.8 tonnes
Operating Speed – 75 mph.

This compares with these for a Class 195 train.

Installed Power – 780 kW
Weight – 40 tonnes
Operating Speed – 100 mph.
Acceleration – 0.83 m/sec/sec

Unfortunately, I can’t find the acceleration for a Class 150 train, but I suspect that it’s not as good as the Class 195 train.

I was in a Class 150 train, for both journeys.
IThe train was on time both ways.
The engine under my carriage wasn’t working that hard.
The train was trundling around at around 60 mph.
The operating speed of the line is 90 mph.

So I suspect, that a well-driven Class 195 train will shave a few minutes from the journey time.

Transport For The North’s Plan For Manchester And Sheffield

Transportbfor the North objective for Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield stations can be summed up as follows.

Four tph in forty minutes.

As current trains take over anhour, it could be a tough ask!

The Timetable

The timetable isn’t very passenger-friendly with no easy-to-remember clock-face timetable.

This must be sorted.

Hopefully, it will increase the number of passengers riding on the route.

Battery Electric Trains

Consider.

Sheffield station will be electrified for High Speed Two.
It is likely that the route between Dore & Totley and Sheffield station will be electrified.
There is electrification at the Manchester end of the route.
The distance without electrification in the middle is probably about thirty-six miles.
Fifty-sixty miles seems a typical range quoted for a battery electric train by train manufacturers.

As electric trains generally accelerate faster than their diesel equivalent, these could run the route reliably and save time on the journey.

Conclusion

I’m coming round to the opinion, that Transport for the North’s objectives for the route can be met without electrification.

July 14, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Battery-Electric Trains, Class 150 Train, Class 195 Train, Dore and Totley Station, Electrification, High Speed Two, Hope Valley Line, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Sheffield Station, Transport for the North | 2 Comments

Macclesfield Station And High Speed Two

Today, I went to Macclesfield station.

In the latest iteration of High Speed Two, two new destinations were added to the High Speed Two Network; Macclesfield and Lancaster.

These pictures show Macclesfield station.

It is a modern station, with three through platforms, two bridges and some Modernist architecture from the 1970s, that could be improved.

This Google Map shows the layout of the station.

Note.

Platform 1 is in the West and is used by trains to Stockport and Manchester Piccadilly.
Platform 2 is in the middle and is used by trains going to Stoke, London and the South.
Platform 3 is in the East and appears to be used a couple of times per day.
It also appears there might have been a fourth platform.

All platforms appear capable of handling an eleven-car Class 390 train, which are over two hundred and sixty metres in length.

Is the plan to use Macclesfield as a High Speed Two terminal feasible?

Which Trains Will High Speed Two Use On Macclesfield Services?

It appears that High Speed Two will have two types of trains.

Trains built to the European loading gauge, that will only be able to work on high lines like High Speed One and High Speed Two. Examples would be Eurostar’s Class 373 and Class 374 trains.
Trains built to the UK loading gauge, that could also work on existing UK 125 mph routes like the East Coast, Great Western, Midland and West Coast Main Lines. Examples would be Class 800. Class 801, Class 802, Class 390 and Class 745 trains.

The second type, which are referred to, as class-compatible trains will be used to Macclesfield, as these services will share track with Class 390 and other trains, that have been or will be built to the smaller UK loading gauge.

Will Classic-Compatible High Speed Two Trains Fit Into Macclesfield Station?

Currently, every hour, one eleven-car Class 390 train calls in Macclesfield station in both directions, as they provide one of Avanti \west Coast’s three trains per hour (tph) between London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly stations.

The current trains are sixty metres longer than the proposed classic-compatible High Speed Two trains, that could be terminating in Macclesfield station.

How Would Passengers Who Started And Finished Their Journeys In Macclesfield, Connect to Manchester?

Currently, these hourly services connect Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke stations.

Avanti West Cost – Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston.
CrossCountry – Manchester Piccadilly and Bournemouth
CrossCountry – Manchester Piccadilly and Bristol
Northern – Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke, which stops at all stations.

The characteristics would be common to all these four trains.

Services call at Stockport, Macclesfield and Stoke stations.
As services share tracks with a High Speed Two service, they must be reasonably fast.
All except the Northern service are 125 mph trains.
The Northern service is run by a 90 mph Class 323 electric train.
As Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke via Stockport is a fully-electrified route, the trains should probably be able to take advantage.

In an ideal world should the frequency be six tph or one train every ten minutes in each direction?

Which Platforms Would Be Used To Terminate High Speed Two Services?

Trains built to the UK loading gauge could probably terminate in any of the three platforms.

But it might be advantageous to terminate all services in the same platform.

Platform 3 would be the obvious choice.

It shares an island platform with classic services going South between Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke.
Passengers starting their journeys in Manchester Piccadilly or Stockport could just walk across from their connecting train to the High Speed Two train.

It must surely be a possibility to make Platform 2 able to operate bi-directionally, so that all trains between Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke stations in both directions, stop in Platform 2, alongside the High Speed Two train for London and the South, that is waiting in Platform 3. The combined frequency would be eight tph. All passengers would just walk across the island platform to change trains.

Could A North-Facing Bay Platform Be Fitted Into The Northern End Of The Island Platform 2/3?

If you are going to provide a High Speed Two service to and from Macclesfield station, it needs to have superb and comprehensive connections to as many places as possible.

The station currently has four tph to Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport and Stoke, but would a North-facing bay platform with level access to the High Speed Two platform make any of the following feasible?

Run a second local stopping service between Manchester Piccadilly and Macclesfield to give all intermediate stations two tph to High Speed Two.
Run hourly services to places that don’t have good connections to high speed services to London and the South.
The Stockport and Stalybridge Line could be used to connect Stalybridge and Huddersfield to High Speed Two.
There might even be a way of creating a link between Macclesfield and Manchester Airport.

Note.

Looking at the platform layout at Macclesfield station, fitting in a bay platform would appear to be feasible.
The important Stockport station, which seems to have been forgotten by High Speed Two would probably have at least six tph to High Speed Two at Macclesfield station.
The local train could be timed to arrive at Macclesfield station, a convenient time before the High Speed Two train is scheduled to depart.

The bay platform could even be part of Platform 3, if it was decided that trains stopping in Platform 3, never used the platform as a through platform. It would be Macclesfield’s version of the Clapham Kiss.

I suspect more space could be found, by moving the signal box at the end of the station.

\remember that these days most signalling is controlled from centralised Rail Operation Centres.

Could High Speed Two Trains Run Between Macclesfield And Manchester Piccadilly?

As I said earlier, High Speed Two’s classic-compatible trains will be the same cross-section and shorter, than an eleven-car Class 390 train.

So the answer to my question must be yes!

This would enable a stop at Stockport station.
No platform lengthening would be required at Manchester Piccadilly and Stockport stations.

High Speed Two must have good reasons for using Macclesfield as a terminal.

There are capacity issues between Macclesfield and Manchester Piccadilly stations.
Macclesfield offers opportunities to connect to places, that are difficult to reach from Manchester Piccadilly station.

But these problems could probably be overcome by digital signalling or extension of the Manchester Metrolink.

Could More High Speed Two Services Run Between Macclesfield Station and The South?

Consider.

I believe that Macclesfield station could handle more than an hourly High Speed Two train.
It is a general principle, that on a metro like the London Overground or Merseyrail, that a single platform can handle up to four or even six tph.
Four tph would surely be too high, but Macclesfield could easily handle a second classic-compatible train to and from Birmingham Curzon Street via Stoke and Stafford.
During the inevitable works at Manchester Piccadilly station to sccomodate High Speed Two, Macclesfield could offer an alternative route, between London and Manchester.

Using Macclesfield station, as an alternative terminal for Manchester Piccadilly, builds in extra capacity for the future and offers a valuable alternative route during construction and upgrade works.

Rationalisation Between Cross Country And High Speed Two

Consider.

In a lot of locations North of Birmingham, CrossCountry and High Speed Two seem to provide similar services between the same stations.
Using currently proposed connections between High Speed Two and the classic network, CrossCountry’s services could run faster.
CrossCountry’s new fleet of trains will probably be multi-mode trains, that will be very similar to the classic-compatible High Speed Two trains.
Some of the routes used by CrossCountry’s services will have a substantial upgrade to allow higher speeds and more trains, to speed up High Speed Two services.

There must be a case for rationalisation of services.

Conclusion

The more I look at High Speed Two terminating at Macclesfield station, the more I like it.

I can see these services running from the station in the future.

High Speed Two – Macclesfield and London Euston – One tph – This service would additionally call at Birmingham Interchange to link up with CrossCountry to the South.
High Speed Two – Macclesfield and Birmingham Curzon Street – One tph
CrossCountry – Macclesfield and Bournemouth, Plymouth or Reading – One tph.
Northern and others – Macclesfield and Manchester Piccadilly via Stockport – Four-six tph
Northern – Macclesfield and Huddersfield via Stockport and Stalybridge – Two tph
Northern – Macclesfield and Manchester Airport – Two tph.

Obviously, this is all speculation, but Macclesfield will develop into an important rail hub to the South-East of Manchester.

July 14, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Avanti West Coast, Class 390 Train, CrossCountry Trains, Euston Station, High Speed Two, High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Trains, Macclesfield Station, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Stockport Station | 4 Comments

Beeching Reversal – Sheaf Valley Stations

This is one of the Beeching Reversal projects that the Government and Network Rail are proposing to reverse some of the Beeching cuts.

Stations To Be Rebuilt

As you approach Sheffield station, you pass four station sites, three of which are demolished and the fourth is just a shadow of its former self.

Dore & Totley

Dean & Totley station used to have four platforms and this Google Map, shows what is left after British Rail’s vandalism in the mid-1980s.

Note.

The station has only one platform.
The single track in the platform handles all trains to and from the Hope Valley Line.
At present it appears to be two trains per hour (tph) in both directions.
The two tracks at the right are the Midland Main Line.

Transport for the North wants to run four tph between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield through here, that will take forty minutes between the two cities.

Updates planned for the station include.

A second platform for Manchester-bound trains.
A new bridge with lifts.
Platforms long enough to take a pair of Class 185 trains or a five-car Class 802 train.
A full hourly service.

There certainly seems to be enough space for another platform and track through the middle of the station.

At some point in the near future, the two Midland Main Line tracks will be electrified, as part of the upgrade for High Speed Two.

Between Dore & Totley And Beauchief

This Google Map shows a typical section of the line between Dore & Totley and Beauchief stations.

Note the two Midland Main Line tracks on the right and single-track to the Hope Valley Line on the left.

It would appear that the fourth track can be squeezed in between the single track and the Midland Main Line.

Beauchief

Beauchief station used to have four platforms before it was demolished.

This Google Map shows the station’s former location.

Note.

The building with the red dot is the former Beauchief Hotel. which was by the station.
On a larger screen you can see three tracks going into Sheffield.

I’m fairly certain that four tracks and two platforms for a station can be fitted into this narrow trackbed.

Millhouses & Eccleshall

Millhouses and Eccleshall station used to have four platforms before it was demolished.

This Google Map shows the station’s former location.

Note.

Wikipedia says the station was accessed from the Archer Road bridge, which is in the South East corner of the map.
It looks like there are three tracks with space for four.
The road to the North-West of the railway is called Old Station Road.

As at Beauchief, it will be tight.

Heeley

Heeley station used to have four platforms before it was demolished.

This Google Map shows the station’s former location.

Note.

The red arrow indicates Heeley Bridge, which Wikipedia says is near the station site.
There appears to be only two tracks through here.

It is easy to follow the tracks from here to Sheffield station.

Could A Four Track Railway Be Rebuilt Between Dore & Totley And Sheffield Stations?

I’ve not seen anything that says that building a four-track railway through here is not possible.

In a few years, there could be the following tracks and platforms, on this section.

Two fast tracks for High Speed Two, Midland Main Line and CrossCountry trains, that will be electrified with 25 KVAC overhead electrification, between Clay Cross North Junction and Sheffield station.
The High Speed Two trains will be classic-compatible and up to 200 metres long.
The two fast tracks will not have any platforms.
Two slow tracks for local services, that will be appropriately electrified.
The slow tracks will have step-free platforms, that will be long enough to take a five-car Class 802 train or a pair of Class 185 trains.

I can’t for the life of me understand, why this stretch of four-track main line between Dore & Totley and Sheffield stations was ever simplified, as at other places on the UK network, extra tracks were being added to the main lines, at the same time.

Future Services On The Fast Lines

Currently, the following services take the fast lines between Sheffield and Chesterfield stations via Dore & Totley station.

East Midlands Railway – Sheffield and London St. Pancras – 2 tph
East Midlands Railway – Sheffield and Norwich via Nottingham – 1 tph
CrossCountry – Edinburgh/Newcastle and Derby/Birmingham and the South – 2 tph
Northern – Sheffield and Nottingham – 1 tph

That is a very modest six tph.

High Speed Two are currently planning to run two tph between Sheffield and London Euston.

There may or may not be other changes.

As Birmingham Curzon Street and Sheffield will be just forty-seven minutes by High Speed Two all the way, will these destinations have a direct high speed classic-compatible service? There’s plenty of space capacity on High Speed Two.
I don’t think the Sheffield and St. Pancras services will be dropped, but they might be.
CrossCountry will probably be running intelligent multi-mode trains capable of 125 mph running and up to 140 mph in places.
Northern’s service between Sheffield and Nottingham might go via a reopened Barrow Hill Line.

But the biggest change will be that these two fast lines will be to High Speed Two standards.

Sheffield and Chesterfield will be electrified.
There will in-cab digital signalling, which theoretically could probably allow eighteen tph on the route.
High Speed Two Trains between Sheffield and Chesterfield will take twelve minutes.
Sheffield station will have been modified as required, to be able to handle all trains very efficiently.

But it would still be carrying a modest eight tph.

If required Sheffield would have the capacity to accept more trains from the South.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see, the following trains added.

An extra tph to and from London Euston via High Speed Two.
Two tph to and from Birmingham Curzon Street via High Speed Two.

I also wouldn’t be surprised to see CrossCountry using classic-compatible High Speed Two trains and switching to High Speed Two between Birmingham New Street and Sheffield. But these trains would still use the same tracks to access Sheffield station.

But I am led to the conclusion, that Sheffield will have more than enough capacity linking the City to Chesterfield and the South.

Future Services On The Slow Lines

Or should I use lines connecting to the Hope Valley Line rather than slow lines?

Currently, the following services take the slow lines between Sheffield and Dore & Totley stations.

East Midlands Railway – Liverpool Lime Street and Sheffield – via Manchester Piccadilly – 1 tph
TransPennine Express – Manchester Airport and Cleethorpes via Manchester Piccadilly – 1 tph
Northern – Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly – 1 tph

Transport for the North aims to run a four tph service with a forty minute journey time between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield.

Consider.

100 mph TransPennine Express trains take fifty-three minutes between Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly without a stop.
Classic-compatible trains with a battery capability could easily handle the route.
Northern’s services on the Hope Valley Line are timed for 75 mph trains.
Dore & Totley and Hazel Grove stations are twenty-nine miles apart.

If between Dore & Totley and Sheffield stations were to be electrified and track improvements like passing loops were to be made to the Hope Valley Line, I believe that to achieve a forty minute all-stops timing between Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly, would need a train with the following specification.

Electric train with batteries.
Four cars
100 mph or faster operating speed.
Step-free access between platform and train.
Sparkling acceleration and deceleration.
Ability to run under in-cab digital signalling to keep out of the way of freight services.

Looking at Crossrail between London Paddington and Maidenhead stations, the London route is probably as difficult as the Hope Valley Line and it has been designed as a forty minute service with ten stops, using a modern electric train.

If TransPennine fitted batteries to their Class 802 trains, these trains would fit the Northern Powerhouse Rail requirements.

East Midlands Railway and Northern would find that the following trains could be used.

Bombardier – Aventra with batteries
Bombardier – Class 377 train with batteries
Bombardier – Class 379 train with batteries
CAF – Class 331 train with batteries
Hitachi – Class 385 train with batteries
Porterbrook – Battery/FLEX train based on Class 350 train
Stadler – Flirt with batteries

All would need that between Dore & Totley and Sheffield stations be electrified.

After the upgrades and the new or refurbished trains are running, this would mean that between Dean & Totley and Sheffield would be handling four tph, which would be semi-fast trains between Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly. Although to current passengers on the line, they would seem to be fast services of a much higher standard.

It would not be very different to how the slow lines into Paddington also handle about four tph of other services, including GWR services and freight.

I believe that to provide an adequate service to the reopened and rebuilt stations of Dore & Totley, Beauchief, Millhouses & Eccleshall and Heeley, that a Turn-Up-And-Go service of at least four tph should be run between Dore & Totley and Sheffield stations.

A Turnback At Dore & Totley

This Google Map shows Dore & Totley station and the area to the South.

Note.

There would appear to be a lot of space between the Midland Main Line and the single track, that leads between Dore & Totley station and the Hope Valley Line.
Flying my helicopter, as low as I dare, it looks like the area is either a rubbish dump or very low grade businesses.
Crossrail has designed turnbacks at Abbey Wood and Paddington stations, that will handle twelve tph.

I believe that it would be possible to design a turnback at Dore & Totley station, that would handle eight trains per hour, if not twelve tph.

It might even be possible to squeeze in some overnight stabling.

Trains Or Tram-Trains Between Dore & Totley And Sheffield Stations

In my view, it doesn’t matter.

Crossrail’s 12 tph turnbacks can handle a 205 metre long Class 345 train, so I’m sure a well-designed turnback at Dore & Totley could handle a mixture of any trams or tram-trains below a defined maximum length of say 140 metres, which would be defined by a pair of Class 185 trains, which might have to be turned back during service disruption.

Where Would The Services Terminate in The East?

It is my view that cross-city services like Birmingham’s Cross-City Line, Liverpool’s Northern Line, London’s Crossrail and Thameslink, Newcastle’s Metro and Paris’s RER are efficient for both passengers and train operators.

So Dore & Totley station could be one end of a Sheffield cross-city line, with a frequency of at least eight tph through Beauchief, Millhouses & Eccleshall, Heeley and Sheffield stations.

So where would services go on the other side of Sheffield? Wikipedia gives these as services to the East of Sheffield.

Leeds via Barnsley and Wakefield (fast) – 2 tph
Leeds via Meadowhall, Barnsley, Wakefield and Castleford (stopping). – 1 tph
Leeds via Meadowhall, Moorthorpe and Wakefield. – 1 tph
Scarborough via Meadowhall, Doncaster, Hull and Bridlington. – 1 tph
Lincoln Central via Worksop and Retford – 1 tph
Gainsborough Central via Worksop, three trains per week continue to Cleethorpes via Brigg. – 1 tph
Huddersfield via Meadowhall, Barnsley and Penistone – 1 tph
Doncaster via Meadowhall and Rotherham, with one train per hour continuing to Adwick – 2 tph
York via Moorthorpe and Sherburn-in-Elmet. – 3 trains per day (tpd)

For much of the day, that is a frequency of 10 tph, with 5 tph calling at Meadowhall, 2 tph calling at Worksop and two fast tph passing Meadowhall without stopping.

But there are other rail projects under development.

High Speed Two will enable a new fast service between Sheffield and Leeds via Meadowhall and a new station in the Dearne Valley.
The Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 envisages a new station at Barnsley Dearne Valley. See Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 – A New Station At Barnsley Dearne Valley.
The Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 envisages tram-trains running between Sheffield and Doncaster-Sheffield Airport See Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 – Tram-Trains Between Sheffield And Doncaster-Sheffield Airport.
The Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 envisages a new Station at Waverley. See Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019 – A New Tram-Train Route To A New station At Waverley.
High Speed Two might enable a fast classic-compatible service between Sheffield and Scarborough via York.
The possible opening of the South Yorkshire Joint Railway to passenger traffic, may open up further opportunities. See Beeching Reversal – South Yorkshire Joint Railway.
The possible reinstatement of the Barrow Hill Line. See Reinstatement Of The Barrow Hill Line Between Sheffield And Chesterfield.
The development of the Stocksbridge Railway for passenger services.

I can see classic-compatible High Speed Two trains serving the following places to the East of Sheffield.

Leeds
Hull via Doncaster
Scarborough via York
Cleethorpes via Doncaster, Scunthorpe and Grimsby.

A train like a five-car Class 802 train would probably be enough for most routes except Leeds.

I can see the following terminals for tram-trains to the East of Sheffield.

Doncaster and Doncaster-Sheffield Airport
Waverley station, which could be on a loop from the Sheffield and Lincoln Line.
Barnsley Dearne Valley

There may well be others.

If Sheffield were Karlsruhe in Germany, the tram-trains would probably serve the following routes.

Huddersfield via Penistone.
Lincoln via Worksop and Gainsborough.
Manchester via the Hope Valley Line.

But the Germans have a much larger electrified core, than Sheffield will have, even if High Speed Two electrifies between Dore & Totley and Thurnscoe stations via Sheffield.

I can make a table of destinations and distances and how they could be served.

Barnsley – 16 miles – Possible return trip from Sheffield for a battery electric train.
Barnsley Dearne Valley – 8 miles from Rotherham Parkgate – Possible return trip from Sheffield via Rotherham Parkgate for a battery electric tram-train.
Doncaster – 11 miles from Rotherham Parkgate – Possible return trip from Sheffield via Rotherham Parkgate for a battery electric tram-train.
Chesterfield via Barrow Hill – 17 miles – Possible return trip from Sheffield for a battery electric tram-train.
Doncaster Sheffield Airport – 10 miles from Doncaster – Possible return trip from Sheffield via Rotherham Parkgate and Doncaster for a battery electric tram-train.
Gainsborough Lea Road. – 32 miles – See Lincoln Central.
Huddersfield – 36 miles – Possible battery electric train with charging at Huddersfield.
Hull – 59 miles – Possible battery electric train with charging at Doncaster and Hull.
Lincoln Central – 48 miles – Possible battery electric train with charging at Lincoln and/or Gainsborough Lea Road. Otherwise diesel.
Penistone – 23 miles – Possible return trip from Sheffield for a battery electric train, using Newton’s friend on the way back.
Retford – 23 miles – Possible return trip from Sheffield for a battery electric train.
Waverley – About 6 miles – Possible return trip from Sheffield for a battery electric tram-train.
Worksop – 16 miles – Possible return trip from Sheffield for a battery electric train.

It looks to me like a mix of battery electric trains and tram-trains could run most of the services from Sheffield, if services that used new High Speed Two infrastructure used classic-compatible trains or trains like the existing Class 802 trains, that have been converted to battery electric operation.

Note.

I am assuming, that a battery electric train has a range of 56 miles on a single charge.
Rotherham Parkgate station is changed to a through station.
Tram-trains passing through Doncaster can recharge on the station’s 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
Charging can be provided as required at other stations.

There are lots of possibilities.

Consider, this for tram-train extensions to Barnsley Dearne Valley, Doncaster and Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

Extend the tram-train service at Rotherham Parkgate to either Doncaster and Doncaster Airport or Barnsley Dearne Valley stations.
Run tram-trains between Dore & Totley and Rotherham Parkgate via Sheffield, Meadowhall and Rotherham Central.

This would give a double-ended route across Sheffield and Rotherham between Dore & Totley and the existing Supertram network in the West and Barnsley Dearne Valley, Doncaster and Doncaster Sheffield Airport in the East.

Consider how to connect the branch to Waverley station to the Supertram network.

Waverley station will be either on or on a loop from the Sheffield and Lincoln Line.
The Sheffield and Lincoln Line has no obvious connection with the Supertram network.
The Sheffield and Lincoln Line goes straight in to Sheffield station.
Trains to Lincoln always appear to use Platform 4 in Sheffield station.
Sheffield station has four through platforms.

This Google Map shows where the Sheffield and Lincoln Line passes behind the Supertram Depot at Nunnery.

Note.

The Nunnery Square Park and Ride is in the South West corner of the map.
The Supertram depot is to the East of the Park-and-Ride, with the Nunnery Square tram stop to the South.
The Woodbourn Road tram stop is in the North East corner of the map.

This second Google Map shows the lines around the Park-and-Ride.

I suspect that a connection between the Supertram system and the Sheffield and Lincoln Line, could be built to the North of the Nunnery Depot.

But would it be easier to continue to Sheffield station or pass through the station and terminate at Dore & Totley station?

I can’t be sure looking at the maps, but it could be logical that trains to and from Lincoln use the Southern pair of tracks past the Nunnery Depot, as they would be on the right side of the tracks for Lincoln.

This would make it easier to do the following.

Create a connection between the Nunnery Depot and the Sheffield and Lincoln Line, which would surely be needed for efficient maintenance and operation of tram-trains running to and from Waverley.
Allow tram-trains used to serve the proposed Waverley station to return to the Depot every night.
Allow tram-trains working between Sheffield and Meadowhall to use the Lincoln and Sheffield Line to enter the Nunnery Depot.
Build a tram stop/station by the Park-and-Ride.

There would also be less need to build another depot.

Looking at the maps, could there be space to extend the Nunnery Depot?

Conclusion

This could be a very good project.

It fits in well with the plans and needs of High Speed Two.
It connects the new Waverley station to Sheffield station.
It fits well with the Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019.
It connects Sheffield, Rotherham and Doncaster to Doncaster Sheffield Airport.
It opens up the Hope Valley Line to improve services between Manchester and Sheffield.

I also don’t think, there’s any great risk!

July 12, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Barnsley Dearne Valley Station, Beauchief Station, Beeching Reversal, Clay Cross North Junction And Sheffield Electrification, Dore and Totley Station, Heeley Station, High Speed Two, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Midland Main Line, Millhouses & Eccleshall Station, Sheaf Valley Stations, Sheffield, Sheffield Region Transport Plan 2019, Sheffield Station, Sheffield Supertram, Sheffield Tram-Train, Sheffield Waverley Station, South Yorkshire Joint Railway, Transport for the North | 3 Comments

Electrifying Wales

I would not be surprised to learn that Wales wants to decarbonise their railways.

At present, Wales only has the following electrified railways either in operation or under construction.

The South Wales Main Line between the Severn Tunnel and Cardiff.
The South Wales Metro based on local railways around Cardiff and Newport is being created and will be run by electric trains.

There is no more electrification planned in the future.

Hitachi’s Specification For Battery Electric Trains

Recently, Hitachi have released this infographic for their Regional Battery Train.

This gives all the information about the train and a definitive range of 90 km or 56 miles.

The Welsh Rail Network

If you look at the network of services that are run by Transport for Wales Rail Services, they connect a series of hub stations.

Major hubs include the following stations.

Cardiff Central – Electrified
Chester
Hereford
Shrewsbury
Swansea

Smaller hubs and termini include the following stations.

Aberystwyth
Birmingham International – Electrified
Birmingham New Street – Electrified
Blaenau Ffestiniog
Carmarthen
Crewe – Electrified
Fishguard Harbour
Hereford
Holyhead
Llandudno Junction
Manchester Airport – Electrified
Manchester Piccadilly – Electrified
Machynlleth
Milford Haven
Newport – Electrified
Pembroke Dock

Running Welsh Routes With Electric Trains

These routes make up the Welsh rail network.

Chester And Crewe

Consider.

The route between Chester and Crewe is without electrification.
Crewe and Chester are 21 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Chester and Crewe with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Chester and Crewe stations.

Chester And Holyhead via Llandudno Junction

Consider.

All services between Llandudno Junction and England call at Chester.
All services running to and from Holyhead call at Llandudno Junction.
The route between Chester and Holyhead is without electrification.
Chester and Llandudno Junction are 54 miles apart.
Llandudno Junction and Holyhead are 40 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train with a range of 56 miles can leave Chester, Llandudno Junction and Holyhead with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Chester and Holyhead stations.

Chester And Liverpool Lime Street

Consider.

The route between Runcorn and Liverpool Lime Street is electrified.
The route between Chester and Runcorn is without electrification.
Chester and Runcorn are 14 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Chester and Runcorn with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Chester and Liverpool Lime Street stations.

Chester And Manchester Airport

Consider.

The route between Warrington Bank Quay and Manchester Airport is electrified.
The route between Chester and Warrington Bank Quay is without electrification.
Chester and Warrington Bank Quay are 18 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Chester and Warrington Bank Quay with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Chester and Manchester Airport stations.

Chester And Shrewsbury

Consider.

The route between Chester and Shrewsbury is without electrification.
Chester and Shrewsbury are 42 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train with a range of 56 miles, can leave Shrewsbury and Chester with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Chester and Shrewsbury stations.

Llandudno And Blaenau Ffestiniog

Consider.

The route between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog is without electrification.
Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog are 31 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train with a range of 56 miles, can leave Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog stations.

Machynlleth And Aberystwyth

Consider.

The route between Machynlleth and Aberystwyth is without electrification.
Machynlleth and Aberystwyth are 21 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train with a range of 56 miles, can leave Machynlleth and Aberystwyth with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Machynlleth and Aberystwyth stations.

Machynlleth And Pwllheli

Consider.

The route between Machynlleth and Pwllheli is without electrification.
Machynlleth and Pwllheli are 58 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train with a range of upwards of 58 miles, can leave Machynlleth and Pwllheli with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Machynlleth and Pwllheli stations.

Machynlleth And Shrewsbury

Consider.

The route between Machynlleth and Shrewsbury is without electrification.
Machynlleth and Shrewsbury are 61 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train with a range of upwards of 61 miles, can leave Machynlleth and Shrewsbury with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Machynlleth and Shrewsbury stations.

Shrewsbury and Birmingham International

Consider.

The route between Birmingham International and Wolverhampton is electrified.
The route between Shrewsbury and Wolverhampton is without electrification.
Shrewsbury and Wolverhampton are 30 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Shrewsbury and Wolverhampton with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Shrewsbury and Birmingham International stations.

Shrewsbury And Cardiff Central via Hereford

Consider.

All services between Cardiff Central and Shrewsbury call at Hereford.
The route between Cardiff Central and Newport is electrified.
The route between Newport and Shrewsbury is without electrification.
Shrewsbury and Hereford are 51 miles apart.
Hereford and Newport are 44 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Shrewsbury, Hereford and Newport with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Shrewsbury and Cardiff Central stations.

Shrewsbury And Crewe

The route between Shrewsbury and Crewe is without electrification.
Shrewsbury and Crewe are 33 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train with a range of upwards of 61 miles, can leave Shrewsbury and Crewe with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Shrewsbury and Crewe stations.

Shrewsbury and Swansea

Consider.

The Heart of Wales Line between Shrewsbury and Swansea is without electrification.
Shrewsbury and Swansea are 122 miles apart.
Trains cross at Llandrindod and wait for up to eleven minutes, so there could be time for a charge.
Shrewsbury and Llandrindod are 52 miles apart.
Swansea and Llandrindod are 70 miles apart.

It appears that another charging station between Swansea and Llandrindod is needed

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Shrewsbury, Swansea and the other charging station, with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Shrewsbury and Swansea stations.

Swansea And Cardiff Central

Consider.

The route between Swansea and Cardiff Central is without electrification.
Swansea and Cardiff Central are 46 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Swansea and Cardiff Central with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Swansea and Cardiff Central stations.

Swansea And Carmarthen

Consider.

The route between Swansea and Carmarthen is without electrification.
Swansea and Carmarthen are 31 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Swansea and Carmarthen with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Swansea and Carmarthen stations.

Swansea And Fishguard Harbour

Consider.

The route between Swansea and Fishguard Harbour is without electrification.
Swansea and Fishguard Harbour are 73 miles apart.
Tramins could top up the batteries during the reverse at Carmathen.
Swansea and Carmarthen are 31 miles apart.
Carmarthen and Fishguard Harbour are 42 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Swansea, Carmathen and Fishguard Harbour with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Swansea and Fishguard Harbour stations.

Swansea And Milford Haven

Consider.

The route between Swansea and Milford Haven is without electrification.
Swansea and Milford Haven are 72 miles apart.
Tramins could top up the batteries during the reverse at Carmathen.
Swansea and Carmarthen are 31 miles apart.
Carmarthen and Milford Haven are 41 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Swansea, Carmathen and Milford Haven with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Swansea and Milford Haven stations.

Swansea And Pembroke Dock

Consider.

The route between Swansea and Pembroke Dock is without electrification.
Swansea and Pembroke Dock are 73 miles apart.
Tramins could top up the batteries during the reverse at Carmathen.
Swansea and Carmarthen are 31 miles apart.
Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock are 42 miles apart.

I believe that if a battery-electric train, with a range of 56 miles, can leave Swansea, Carmathen and Pembroke Dock with full batteries, that it will be possible to run between Swansea and Pembroke Dock stations.

Other Routes

I have not covered these routes.

Borderlands Line
Cardiff Valley Lines, that will be part of the South Wales Metro
Routes on the electrified South Wales Main Line, that are to the East of Cardiff.

The first will run between Chester and the electrified Merseyrail system and the others will be electrified, except for short stretches.

Stations Where Trains Would Be Charged

These stations will need charging facilities.

Aberystwyth

Aberystwyth station only has a single terminal platform.

I’ve not been to the station, but looking at pictures on the Internet, I suspect that fitting a charging facility into the station, wouldn’t be the most difficult of engineering problems.

Birmingham International

Birmingham International station is fully-electrified and ready for battery-electric trains.

Blaenau Fflestiniog

Blaenau Ffestiniog station has a single terminal platform.

My comments would be similar to what, I said for Aberystwyth station. I would hope a standard solution can be developed.

Cardiff

Cardiff station is fully-electrified and ready for battery-electric trains.

Chester

Chester station has two through platforms and one bay platform, that are used by Trains for Wales.

The through platforms are bi-directional.
The bay platform is used by services from Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Airport and Piccadilly.
The station is a terminus for Merseyrail’s electric trains, which use 750 VDC third-rail electrification.
Some through services stop for up to seven minutes in the station.

This Google Map shows the station.

There is plenty of space.

The simplest way to charge trains at Chester would be to electrify the two through platforms 3 and 4 and the bay platform 1.

I would use 750 VDC third-rail, rather than 25 KVAC overhead electrification.

I’m an engineer, who deals in scientifically-correct solutions, not politically-correct ones, devised by jobsworths.
Maintenance staff at the station will be familiar with the technology.
Station staff and passengers will know about the dangers of third-rail electrification.
Trains connect and disconnect automatically to third-rail electrification.
Trains don’t have to stop to connect and disconnect, so passing trains can be topped-up.
Hitachi with the Class 395 train and Alstom with the Class 373 train, have shown even trains capable of 140 mph can be fitted with third-rail shoes to work safely at slower speeds on lines electrified using third-rail.
Modern control systems can control the electricity to the third-rail, so it is only switched on, when the train completes the circuit.

I have a vague recollection, that there is an avoiding line at Chester station, so trains can go straight through. Perhaps that should be electrified too.

Carmarthen

Carmarthen station is a two platform station, with a rather unusual layout, that I wrote about in Changing Trains At Carmarthen Station.

I took these pictures when I passed through in 2016.

Note the unusual step-free crossing of the tracks.

This Google Map shows the layout at the station.

I believe it is another station, where third-rail electrification could be the solution.

Most trains seem to reverse at the station, which gives time for a full charge.
Others terminate here.

but would they still allow passengers to cross the line as they do now, whilst trains are being charged?

Crewe

Crewe station is fully-electrified.

Trains for Wales seem to use Platform 6 for through trains and the bay Platform 9 for terminating trains.
Both platforms appear to be electrified.
Terminating trains appear to wait at least 9-11 minutes before leaving.

It does appear that Crewe station is ready for battery-electric trains.

Fishguard Harbour

Fishguard Harbour station only has a single terminal platform.

My comments would be similar to what, I said for Aberystwyth station. I would hope a standard solution can be developed.

Hereford

Hereford station has four through platforms.

This Google Map shows the station.

There is plenty of space.

As with Chester, I would electrify this station with 750 VDC third-rail equipment.

But the electrification wouldn’t be just for train services in Wales.

West Midlands Trains, run an hourly service to Birmingham New Street and there is only a forty-one mile gap in the electrification between Hereford and Bromsgrove.
Great Western Railway’s service to London, has a massive ninety-six mile run to the electrification at Didcot Junction, which could be bridged by installing charging facilities at Worcestershire Parkway and/or Honeybourne stations.

Both services have generous turnround times at Hereford, so would be able to leave fully-charged.

Distances from Hereford station are as follows.

Abergavenny – 24 miles
Bromsgrove – 41 miles
Great Malvern – 21 miles
Honeybourne – 48 miles
Ludlow – 13 miles
Newport – 44 miles
Shrewsbury – 51 miles
Worcester Parkway – 33 miles

Hereford station could be a serious battery-electric train hub.

Holyhead

Holyhead station has three terminals platforms.

My comments would be similar to what, I said for Aberystwyth station. I would hope a standard solution can be developed.

Liverpool Lime Street

Liverpool Lime Street station is fully-electrified and ready for battery-electric trains.

Llandrindod

Llandrindod station has two through platforms.

I took these pictures at the station as I passed through in 2016.

The Heart of Wales Line is certainly a route, that would benefit from larger trains. Zero-carbon battery-electric trains would surely fit well in the area.

This Google Map shows the station.

It would appear that, it is another station, that could be fitted with third-rail electrification to charge the trains.

Distances from Llandrindod station are as follows.

Shrewsbury – 52 miles
Llandovery – 27 miles
Llanelli – 59 miles
Swansea – 70 miles

It would appear that a second station with charging facilities or bigger batteries are needed.

Llandudno Junction

Llandudno Junction station has four platforms.

This Google Map shows the station.

There is plenty of space.

As at Chester, the simple solution would be to electrify the platforms used by trains, that will need charging.

Butb there may also be a wider plan.

Llandudno Junction station is at the Western end of a string of five closely-spaced stations with Prestatyn station in the East.

Llandudno Junction and Prestatyn are eight miles apart.
Trains take twenty-three minutes to pass through this section.
Some trains do a detour to Llandudno station before continuing.
For part of the route, the railway lies between the dual-carriageway A55 road and the sea.

So why not electrify this section of railway between Llandudno Junction and Prestatyn stations?

Either 750 VDC this-rail or 25 KVAC overhead electrification could be used.
Prestatyn and Chester are 46 miles apart.
Llandudno Junction and Holyhead are 40 miles apart.

If third-rail electrification were to be used, it might be advantageous to electrify to Llandudno station.

It would be less intrusive.
It would be quieter in an urban area.
It would give the trains to Blaenau Ffestiniog trains a good charge.

But above all third-rail electrification might cost a bit less and cause less disruption to install.

Machynlleth

Machynlleth station is where the Aberystwyth and Pwllheli services split and join.

This Google Map shows the station.

Consider.

There is a train depot by the station.
Will there be a good power supply at the station to charge the trains?
Machnylleth and Pwllhelli are 58 miles apart.
Machynlleth and Shrewsbury are 61 miles apart.

I think that Machynlleth might be pushing things too far, without extra stations with charging facilities.

One solution might be to develop the Riding Sunbeams concept and electrify the route between Newtown and Dovey Junction via Machynlleth, using third-rail technology powered-by solar or wind power.

Another solution would be batteries with a larger capacity.

Manchester Airport

Manchester Airport station is fully-electrified and ready for battery-electric trains.

Manchester Piccadilly

Manchester Piccadilly station is fully-electrified and ready for battery-electric trains.

Milford Haven

Milford Haven station only has a single terminal platform.

My comments would be similar to what, I said for Aberystwyth station. I would hope a standard solution can be developed.

Pembroke Dock

Pembroke Dock station only has a single terminal platform.

My comments would be similar to what, I said for Aberystwyth station. I would hope a standard solution can be developed.

Pwllheli

Pwhelli station is a only has a single terminal platform.

This Google Map shows the location of the station.

The stsation is at the North West corner of the bay.

My first reaction, when I saw this was that I have to go.

So I took a closer look at the station instead.

I suspect that fitting a charging facility into the station, wouldn’t be the most difficult of engineering problems. Although, there might be a problem getting a good enough connection to the National Grid.

Shewsbury

Shrewsbury station is a five-platform station.

This Google Map shows the station’s unusual location over the River Severn.

It must be one of few stations in the world, where trains enter the station from three different directions.

From Crewe and Chester to the North.
From Hereford and Wales to the South.
From Birmingham and Wolverhampton in the East.

Adding electrification to all or selected platforms should allow trains to recharge and be on their way.

Under current timetables, dwell times in Shrewsbury are up to eight minutes.
I would suspect the train times could be adjusted, so that trains left the station with full batteries.

With battery-electric services to Aberystwyth, Birmingham International, Birmingham New Street, Cardiff Central, Chester, Crewe, Hereford, Holyhead, London Euston, Manchester, Pwllheli and Swansea, it will be a very important station.

Swansea

Swansea station has four terminal platforms.

A charging facility could be added to an appropriate number of platforms.

Or perhaps, the last few miles of track into the station should be electrified, so trains could charge on the way in, charge in the station and charge on the way out.

Third Rail Electrification

I have suggested in this post, that 750 VDC third-rail electrification could be used in several places.

I will repeat what I said earlier, when discussing Chester station.

I’m an engineer, who deals in scientifically-correct solutions, not politically-correct ones, devised by jobsworths.
Maintenance staff at the station will be familiar with the technology.
Station staff and passengers will know about the dangers of third-rail electrification.
Trains connect and disconnect automatically to third-rail electrification.
Trains don’t have to stop to connect and disconnect, so passing trains can be topped-up.
Hitachi with the Class 395 train and Alstom with the Class 373 train, have shown even trains capable of 140 mph can be fitted with third-rail shoes to work safely at slower speeds on lines electrified using third-rail.
Modern control systems can control the electricity to the third-rail, so it is only switched on, when the train completes the circuit.

Third-rail electrification should be seriously considered.

A Standardised Terminal Solution

In this post, I mentioned that the following stations could be powered by a scandalised solution, as they are all one platform, terminal stations.

Aberystwyth
Blaenau Ffestiniog
Fishguard Harbour
Holyhead
Milford Haven
Pembroke Dock
Pwllheli

The system might also be applicable at Carmarthen and Swansea.

My view is that Vivarail’s Fast Track charging based on third-rail technology would be ideal. I discussed this technology in Vivarail Unveils Fast Charging System For Class 230 Battery Trains.

Conclusion

With a bit of ingenuity, all train services run by Transport for Wales, can be run with battery-electric trains.

July 9, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Battery-Electric Trains, Birmingham International Station, Cardiff Central Station, Carmarthen Station, Charging Battery Trains, Chester Station, Discontinuous Electrification, Electrification, Hitachi, Hitachi Regional Battery Train, Liverpool Lime Street Station, Machynlleth Station, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Milford Haven Station, Pembroke Dock Station, Pwllheli Station, Riding Sunbeams, Shrewsbury Station, Swansea Station, Transport for Wales, Vivarail, Wales | 5 Comments

The Rival Plans For Piccadilly Station, That Architects Say Will ‘Save Millions’

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Manchester Evening News.

This subtitle introduces the idea.

The speculative proposal includes a new underground HS2 station and an ‘s-shaped tunnel’ under the city centre.

The architects are Weston Williamson and I have felt for years that this was the best way and I put my ideas and some fragments from the press and Northern Powerhouse Rail in Manchester Piccadilly ‘Super Hub’ Proposed.

This picture from Weston Williamson, shows their proposed station.

Note.

In the visualisation, you are observing the station from the East.
The existing railway lines into Piccadilly station are shown in red.
Stockport and Manchester Airport are to the left, which is to the South.
Note the dreaded Castlefield Corridor in red going off into the distance to Oxford Road and Deansgate stations.
The new high speed lines are shown in blue.
To the left they go to Manchester Airport and then on to London, Birmingham and the South, Warrington and Liverpool and Wigan, Preston, Blackpool, Barroe-in-Furness, the North and Scotland.
To the right, they go to Huddersfield, Bradford, Leeds, Hull and the North East, and Sheffield, Doncaster and the East.
Between it looks like a low-level High Speed station with at least four tracks and six platforms.
The Manchester Mretrolink is shown in yellow.
The potential for over-site development is immense. If the Station Square Tower was residential, the penthouses would be some of the most desirable places to live in the North.

This Google Map shows the current station.

Unfortunately, the map is round the other way to the visualisation, but I hope you can see how the shape of the current station is intact and can be picked out in both.

If you’ve ever used London Paddington station in the last few years, you will know that Crossrail is being built underneath. But the massive construction project of building the Crossrail platforms has not inconvenienced the normal business of the station.

Weston Williamson’s proposed station can be built in the same way.

It could be truly transformational

Manchester Piccadilly station would have at least 43 percent more platforms.
Classic-compatible High Speed commuter trains would run to Barrow, Blackpool, Chester, Derby, Nottingham and Shrewsbury from the low-level High Speed station.
The Northern Powerhouse Rail for all TransPennine Express services would use the low-level High Speed station.
Glasgow services would use the low-level High Speed station.
Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport would have up to 18 high speed trains per hour and would be the finest airport service in the world.
Some or all of the low-level High Speed platforms, would be able to take 400 metre long trains.
400 metre long platforms could handle one 200 metre long train from Manchester Airport and one 200 metre long train from Yorkshire.
The Castlefield Corridor would only have local trains, limited to a number, with which it could cope.
The use of the existing platforms would be reorganised.

It would be a massive increase in the capacity of the station and as been shown at Paddington with Crossrail, I am sure, that it could be built without massive disruption to existing services.

The Ultimate Train To The North

Imagine a pair of 200 metre long classic-compatible trains running between London Euston and Leeds.

They would travel via Birmingham Interchange, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly, Huddersfield and Bradford.
The trains would divide at Leeds.
One train would go to Hull.
The second train would go to York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle. It could be extended to Edinburgh.
It could even run with a Turn-Up-And-Go frequency of four tph.

Why not?

June 30, 2020 Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Castlefield Corridor, High Speed Two, High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Trains, HS3/Northern Powerhouse Rail, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly Station, Paddington Station | 5 Comments

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About This Blog

What this blog will eventually be about I do not know.

But it will be about how I’m coping with the loss of my wife and son to cancer in recent years and how I manage with being a coeliac and recovering from a stroke. It will be about travel, sport, engineering, food, art, computers, large projects and London, that are some of the passions that fill my life.

And hopefully, it will get rid of the lonely times, from which I still suffer.

Why Anonymous? That’s how you feel at times.

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The Anonymous Widower

How Many Trains Are Needed To Run A Full Service On High Speed Two?

CrossCountry’s Bournemouth And Manchester Piccadilly Service

Beeching Reversal – East Didsbury – Stockport

Beeching Reversal – Re-Doubling Of The Mid Cheshire Line Between Stockport and Altrincham And Associated Station Reopenings

Should High Speed Two’s Macclesfield And London Service Call At Birmingham Interchange?

Along The Hope Valley Line – 13th July 2020

Macclesfield Station And High Speed Two

Beeching Reversal – Sheaf Valley Stations

Electrifying Wales

The Rival Plans For Piccadilly Station, That Architects Say Will ‘Save Millions’

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