The Anonymous Widower

Merthyr Tydfil Station – 28th November 2023

Yesterday, I went to South Wales to look at the progress of the South Wales Metro.

I took these pictures at the station and in the town.

Note.

  1. It is only a single-platform station.
  2. The platform and track appear to be reasonably flat.
  3. Several bay terminal platforms in the UK like four of those at Dalston Junction and Highbury & Islington stations near me are able to handle four trains per hour (tph).
  4. The Class 150/2 trains in the are 19.74 metres long and have a maximum capacity of 149.
  5. The new electric Class 398 tram-trains are 40.07 metres long and have a capacity of 252.

The platform appears to be long enough for the new trains.

These are my thoughts.

Capacity To And From Merthyr Tydfil

Consider.

  • Currently, there are two Class 150/2 tph.
  • This means current capacity is 298 passengers per hour.
  • After electrification, there will be four Class 398 tph.
  • This means future capacity is 1008 passengers per hour.

That is an increase of 238 % in the capacity.

Where Is The Electrification?

This OpenRailwayMap shows the proposed electrification at Merthyr Tydfil station.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red.
  2. Unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  3. The railway is single-track until past Troed-y-Rhiw, after which it is double track to Merthyr Vale station.
  4. Between Merthyr Vale and Abercynon is single-track, with a short length of unelectrified double-track at Quaker’s Yard station.

It appears that the section of the Merthyr Line at Merthyr Tydfil station will not be electrified.

  • The tram-trains’ batteries must be large enough to climb the unelectrified section .
  • There must also be enough power to nudge the tram-train back down the hill, after the climb has been completed.
  • At least the pictures show, that the track in Merthyr Tydfil station, is reasonably flat.

It looks to be a neat piece of cost-saving design.

Why Did I Feel Better In Merthyr Tydfil?

I have been feeling under the weather lately, but I felt a lot better in Merthyr!

Was it the altitude of 180 metres?

My cardiologist friend, says most people feel worse at altitude. But I seem to be the other way round.

My wife was certainly feeling rough, when I drove a car up to 13,000 feet in the Andes of Ecuador, whereas I was fine.

Incidentally, the car was coughing and wheezing like a good ‘un.

November 29, 2023 Posted by | Design, Transport/Travel | , , , , , | 1 Comment

Climbing The Valley Lines In The South Wales Metro

There are five terminal stations on the Cardiff Valley Lines, of which four will be served by battery-electric trains or tram-trains from Cardiff.

In this post, I will show how they will achieve this feat.

Consider.

  • To get to Aberdare, Merthyr Tydfil or Treherbert, a tram-train must first get to Pontypridd.
  • To get to Rhymney, a train must first get to Caerphilly.

I will now deal with the seven stations in alphabetic order.

Aberdare

This OpenRailwayMap shows the three branches of the Cardiff Valley Lines, that go through Pontypridd.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red and unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  2. The branch to Aberdare is the middle of the three branches.
  3. It is planned that the service on the Aberdare branch will be provided using Class 398 tram-trains, that will be fitted with batteries.
  4. Electrification will be complete between Aberdare and Pontypridd.

It would appear that a tram-train could run between Aberdare and Pontypridd using the complete electrification.

Caerphilly

These two OpenRailwayMaps show the tracks through Caerphilly.

Note.

  1. The map on the left shows infrastructure, with the Rhymney Line shown in yellow.
  2. Caerphilly station is in the top third of the map.
  3. The white section of the Rhymney Line is the Caerphilly tunnel.
  4. The map on the right shows electrification, with the sections of the Rhymney Line that will be electrified are shown in red.
  5. Black sections will not be electrified.
  6. North of Caerphilly, the Rhymney Line is electrified, but through the station and the Caerphilly tunnel, there will be no electrification.

Trains will use battery power, where there is no electrification.

Ebbw Vale Town

This OpenRailwayMap shows the Ebbw Valley Railway.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red and unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  2. Lines where electrification will be installed are shown in red and black.
  3. Newport is marked by the blue arrow.
  4. The North-South Line at the left is the Rhymney Line.
  5. The North-South Line in the middle is the Ebbw Valley Railway.
  6. The North-South Line at the right is the Marches Line to Hereford and Shrewsbury.

Trains will use diesel power on the Ebbw Valley Railway, as there is no electrification and no means of charging battery-electric trains.

It does seem strange that no electrified solution has been proposed for the Ebbw Valley Railway.

Consider.

  • An Abertillery branch has been proposed.
  • A Newport and Ebbw Vale Town service has been proposed and will be implemented.
  • Perhaps the line is difficult to electrify.

It could just be, the electrifying the Ebbw Valley Railway, was a step too far.

Merthyr Tydfil

This OpenRailwayMap shows the three branches of the Cardiff Valley Lines, that go through Pontypridd.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red and unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  2. The branch to Merthyr Tydfil is the rightmost of the three branches.
  3. It is planned that the service on the Merthyr Tydfil branch will be provided using Class 398 tram-trains, that will be fitted with batteries.
  4. Electrification will be complete between Merthyr Tydfil and Pontypridd, except for two short sections.
  5. I would assume that the short unelectrified sections can be handled using the tram-trains battery power.

It would appear that a tram-train could run between Merthyr Tydfil and Pontypridd using the electrification and the tram-trains batteries.

This shows the track layout at Quaker’s Yard station.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red and unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  2. There are only two short length of electrification shown in the corners the map.
  3. Quaker’s Yard station has two platforms.
  4. The track layout appears to have single- and double-track sections.

It looks like it has been decided not to electrify this section. Perhaps, it was just too complicated to electrify easily?

This 3D Google Map shows the terminal station at Merthyr Tydfil.

It looks like the railway runs through the town to the station. So perhaps leaving out the electrification made everything safer?

Pontypridd

This OpenRailwayMap  shows the tracks through Pontypridd.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red and unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  2. Lines where electrification will be installed are shown in red and black.
  3. The line leaving the map in the South-East corner is the line to Cardiff.
  4. The line leaving the map in the North-West corner is the Rhondda Line to Treherbert.
  5. The line leaving the map in the North-East corner is the Merthyr Line to Aberdare and Merthyr.

Pontypridd stations lies at the junction of the three lines.

This OpenRailwayMap  shows the platforms at Pontypridd.

Note.

  1. There are two long through platforms.
  2. There is a bay platform on the North side of the station for extra Cardiff services.
  3. The station is not electrified.

These pictures show Pontypridd station.

The station is Grade II Listed.

How will the tram-trains be powered through Pontypridd station?

Older Welsh railwaymen have told tales of how the coal trains from the mines in the valleys to Cardiff Docks were powered in part using gravity to propel the trains to the Docks. Steam locomotives then hauled the trains up the hills to get another load of coal.

Will Newton’s Friend be used to help the tram-trains return to Cardiff?

As the tram-trains descend, regenerative braking can be used to recharge the batteries.

A sophisticated computer control system, would choose the source of power from that which is available.

Descending from the terminal stations of Aberdare, Merthyr and Treherbert, and through Pontypridd would probably need a small amount of battery power to nudge the train to descend down the hill.

Fully-electrified stations like Aberdare and Treherbert will have the luxury of being able to use power from the electrification to start the descent.

Climbing the hills will be mainly on battery power, with the batteries being charged, where overhead electrification exists.

Rhymney

This OpenRailwayMap shows the Northern part of the Rhymney Line from Caerphilly to Rhymney.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red and unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  2. Lines where electrification will be installed are shown in red and black.
  3. Caerphilly is marked by the blue arrow at the bottom of the map.
  4. Rhymney is at the Northern end of the rail line.
  5. Bargoed, Hengoed, Llanbradach and Caerphilly stations appear not to be electrified.
  6. It is planned that the service on the Rhymney Line will be provided using Class 756 trains, that will be fitted with batteries and diesel engines.

The Class 756 trains appear to have been designed to climb to Rhymney in all conditions, including a complete power cut. They will use batteries on the unelectrified sections of the climb.

Treherbert

This OpenRailwayMap shows the three branches of the Cardiff Valley Lines, that go through Pontypridd.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red and unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  2. Lines where electrification will be installed are shown in red and black.
  3. The branch to Treherbert is the leftmost of the three branches.
  4. It is planned that the service on the Theherbert branch will be provided using Class 398 tram-trains, that will be fitted with batteries.
  5. Electrification will be complete between Treherbert and Pontypridd.

It would appear that a tram-train could run between Treherbert and Pontypridd when the electrification is complete.

Conclusion

Each of the five lines use their own methods of getting trains up the hills.

I suspect we’ll see some of the ideas used here on other stretches of electrification.

November 27, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Crafty Electrification On The Rhymney Line

I was puzzled on Wednesday, when I took the Class 231 train to Caerphilly on the Rhymney Line, when I saw no signs of electrification.

These are pictures I took at Caerphilly station.

These two OpenRailwayMaps show the tracks through Caerphilly.

Note.

  1. The map on the left shows infrastructure, with the Rhymney Line shown in yellow.
  2. Caerphilly station is in the top third of the map.
  3. The white section of the Rhymney Line is the Caerphilly tunnel.
  4. The map on the right shows electrification, with the sections of the Rhymney Line that will be electrified are shown in red.
  5. Black sections will not be electrified.
  6. North of Caerphilly, the Rhymney Line is electrified, but through the station and the Caerphilly tunnel, there will be no electrification.

Trains will use battery power, where there is no electrification.

This article on Modern Railways gives more information.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the electrification around Cardiff Central and Queen Street stations.

Note.

  1. Electrified lines are shown in red.
  2. Unelectrified lines are shown in black.
  3. The four-platform Cardiff Queen Street station is marked by the blue arrow in the North-East corner of the map.
  4. There appears to be no plans for electrification in Cardiff Queen Street station.
  5. The electrified line across the map is the South Wales Main Line.
  6. The nine-platform Cardiff Central station sits on the South Wales Main Line.
  7. The main line platforms at Cardiff Central station are electrified, but it appears that Platforms 6.7 and 8. that will serve the South Wales Metro, will not be electrified.
  8. The line going to the South-East is the branch to Cardiff Bay station.
  9. The Southern part of this branch appears to be planned to be electrified. so that it can charge the tram-trains before they return North.

This article on Modern Railways says this about catenary-free sections (CFS) in the electrification of the South Wales Metro.

Catenary-free sections are concentrated on areas where it is disproportionately expensive to erect overhead wires. These include the area around Cardiff Queen Street station and the adjacent junction, which has complicated switches and crossings. North of Queen Street, the Cathays area adjacent to Cardiff University and the hospital would present a significant electromagnetic compatibility challenge, so a CFS avoids this complication. Other catenary-free areas will include Pontypridd, where the station features listed canopies and the track is curved, and around the new depot at Taff’s Well, where there will be a significant number of new switches and crossings as well as challenges around highway bridges.

I am in touch with two major electrification companies and I am sure we’ll be seeing a lot more crafty electrification and the use of battery-electric trains.

 

November 24, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

May The Maths Be With You!

It was a bit of a surprise, when in the November 2023 Edition of Modern Railways, in an article, which was entitled Extra Luggage Racks For Lumo, I read this closing paragraph.

Lumo celebrated its second birthday in late October and was also set to mark the carriage of its two-millionth passenger. It is understood Lumo is interested in augmenting its fleet, such has been the success of the service; while many operators favour bi-mode units, Lumo is proud of its all-electric credentials so straight EMUs are still preferred, although the possibilities of including batteries which could power the trains may be pursued (the ‘803s’ have on-board batteries, but only to provide power to on-board systems if the electricity supply fails).

I find this development very interesting.

Surely the obvious way to increase capacity would be to acquire some  extra identical trains and run the busiest services as ten-car trains. I talked about Hull Trains running ten-car trains in Ten-Car Hull Trains. Both companies have five trains, so I suspect that this number would allow for occasional ten-car trains.

If not, then add a few identical trains to the fleet, so capacity can be matched to the demand.

  • Some services would be ten-car instead of five-car.
  • Platforms at Edinburgh, King’s Cross and Newcastle already handle nine and ten-car trains, so infrastructure costs would be minimal.
  • No extra paths would be needed, as a ten-car train can run in a path, that normally has five-car trains, as Hull Trains have shown.

A simple spreadsheet should probably predict, when and how many extra trains need to be added to the fleet.

Lumo And Traction Batteries

But why does the Modern Railways’s article talk about traction batteries?

In the two years since Lumo started their service, there have been days, when the East Coast Main Line has been closed for engineering works, bad weather or an incident. I wrote about an incident in Azumas Everywhere!.

Some of these engineering works have been able to be by-passed by using diversions. But not all of these diversion routes are fully-electrified, so are not available for Lumo.

There would appear to be three viable diversions for the East Coast Main Line.

  • Werrington Junction and Doncaster via Lincoln – Not Electrified – 85.4 miles
  • Doncaster and York via Leeds – Being Electrified – 55.5 miles
  • Northallerton and Newcastle – Not Electrified – 56.8 miles

If all or some of Lumo’s five-car trains had a battery-range of a hundred miles, they would be able to divert around some blockades.

Note.

  1. A traction battery could also provide power to on-board systems if the electricity supply fails.
  2. A traction battery would allow the train to skip past some catenary problems.
  3. I would be interested to know how much diversions, bad weather and incidents have cost Lumo in lost sales and refunds.

As an electrical engineer, I believe, that the emergency-only and the traction batteries could be the same design, but with different software and capacity.

The extra cost of the larger capacity traction battery, might deliver a better service and also pay for itself in the long term.

Extending Lumo’s Route

Lumo will want to maximise revenue and profits, so would it be possible to extend the route North of Edinburgh?

Consider.

  • Edinburgh and Aberdeen is 131.4 miles
  • Ladybank is a station to the North of the Forth Bridge, which is under 40 miles from Edinburgh.
  • The line between Edinburgh and Ladybank is being electrified.
  • Ladybank is just 91.4 miles South of Aberdeen.

At some point in the next few years, I believe that one of Lumo’s trains fitted with a hundred mile traction battery could reach Aberdeen on electric power.

The train would need to be charged at Aberdeen before returning South.

How would Aberdonians like that?

Unfortunately, Inverness is 146.1 miles from the nearest electrification at Dunblane, so it is probably too far for a hundred mile traction battery.

It does appear to me that if Lumo’s trains were fitted with a hundred mile traction battery, this would enable them to take some non-electrified diversions and provide a service to Aberdeen.

How Useful Would A Hundred Mile Range Battery-Electric Train Be To Other Operators?

I take each operator in turn.

Hull Trains

Consider.

  • It appears that Hull Trains change between diesel and electric power at Temple Hirst junction, which is between Doncaster and Selby, on their route between King’s Cross and Hull/Beverley.
  • The distance between Temple Hirst junction and Beverley is 44.3 miles.
  • It would appear that an out-and-return journey could be possible on a hundred mile traction battery.
  • The hundred mile traction battery would also allow Hull Trains to use the Lincoln diversion, either when necessary or by design.

To ensure enough range, a short length of overhead electrification could be erected at Hull station to combat range anxiety.

The Modern Railways article also says this.

The co-operation between sister East Coast Main Line open access operators Lumo and Hull Trains continues, with one recent move being the use of Hull Trains ‘802’ on Lumo services to cover for a shortage of the dedicated ‘803s’ while one was out of action for repairs following a fatality. although the two types are similar, there are notable differences, most obviously that the Hull Trains units are bi-modes while the Lumo sets are straight EMUs, and a training conversion course is required for Lumo drivers on the ‘802s’. There are also challenges from a passenger-facing perspective – the Hull trains units have around 20 % fewer seats and a First Class area.

If Hull Trains used traction batteries rather than diesel engines could the trains be identical to Lumo’s trains from the driver’s perspective?

This would surely appeal to First Group, who are the owner of both Hull Trains and Lumo.

TransPennine Express

These are TransPennine Express services.

  • Liverpool Lime Street and Newcastle – Fully Electrified
  • Liverpool Lime Street and Hull – Part Electrified – Hull and Micklefield – 42 miles
  • Manchester Airport and Saltburn – Part Electrified – Saltburn and Northallerton – 33.6 miles
  • Manchester Piccadilly and Newcastle – Fully Electrified
  • Manchester Piccadilly and Scarborough – Part Electrified – York and Scarborough – 42.1 miles
  • York and Scarborough – Not Electrified – 42.1 miles
  • Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield – Fully Electrified
  • Huddersfield and Leeds – Fully Electrified
  • Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes – Part Electrified – Hazel Grove and Cleethorpes – 104.6 miles

Note.

  1. I am assuming that the TransPennine Upgrade has been completed and Manchester and Leeds is electrified.
  2. Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes will need some form of charging at Cleethorpes and a slightly larger battery.

All of these TransPennine  Rxpress routes would be possible with a battery-electric train with a hundred mile traction battery.

LNER

These are distances from the electrification of the East Coast Main Line.

  • Aberdeen via Ladybank – 91.4 miles – Charge before return
  • Bradford Forster Square – Electrified
  • Carlisle via Skipton – 86.8 miles – Charge before return
  • Cleethorpes via Newark and Lincoln – 63.9 miles – Charge before return
  • Harrogate via Leeds – 18.3 miles
  • Huddersfield via Leeds – 17.2 miles
  • Hull via Temple Hirst junction – 36.1 miles
  • Lincoln via Newark – 16.7 miles
  • Middlesbrough via Northallerton – 22.2 miles
  • Scarborough via York – 42.1 miles
  • Skipton – Electrified
  • Sunderland via Northallerton – 47.4 miles

Note.

  1. The first place after the ‘via’ is where the electrification ends.
  2. Carlisle could be a possibility during High Speed Two upgrading of the West Coast Main Line or for an enthusiasts’ special or tourist train.
  3. Cleethorpes is a possible new service for LNER. I wrote about this in LNER To Serve Cleethorpes.
  4. Scarborough must be a possible new service for LNER.
  5. ‘Charge before return’ means the train must be charged before return. Carlisle is electrified, but Cleethorpes is not.
  6. The only new infrastructure would be the charging at Cleethorpes.

All of these LNER routes would be possible with a battery-electric train with a hundred mile traction battery.

The hundred mile traction battery would also allow LNER to use the Lincoln diversion.

Grand Central

These are distances from the electrification of the East Coast Main Line for Grand Central’s services.

  • Bradford Interchange via Shaftholme junction – 47.8 miles
  • Cleethorpes via Doncaster – 52.1 miles – Charge before return
  • Sunderland via Northallerton – 47.4 miles

Note.

  1. The first place after the ‘via’ is where the electrification ends.
  2. Cleethorpes is a possible new service for Grand Central.
  3. ‘Charge before return’ means the train must be charged before return.

All of these routes would be possible with a battery-electric train with a hundred mile traction battery.

The hundred mile traction battery would also allow Grand Central to use the Lincoln diversion.

Avanti West Coast

These are distances from the electrification of the West Coast Main Line for Avanti West Coast’s services.

  • Chester via Crewe – 21.1 miles
  • Gobowen via Wolverhampton – 47.7 miles
  • Holyhead via Crewe – 105.5 miles – Charge before return
  • Shrewsbury via Wolverhampton – 29.7 miles
  • Wrexham via Crewe – 33.3 miles

Note.

  1. The first place after the ‘via’ is where the electrification ends.
  2. Gobowen is a possible new service for Avanti West Coast.
  3. ‘Charge before return’ means the train must be charged before return.

All of these routes would be possible with a battery-electric train with a hundred mile traction battery.

Great Western Railway

These are distances from the electrification of the Great Western Main Line for Great Western Railway’s services.

  • Bristol Temple Meads via Chippenham – 24.4 miles
  • Carmarthen via Cardiff Central – 77.4 miles – Charge before return
  • Cheltenham Spa via Swindon – 43.2 miles
  • Exeter St. Davids via Newbury – 120.4 miles – Charge before return
  • Great Malvern via Didcot East junction – 76.1 miles – Charge before return
  • Hereford via Didcot East junction – 96.9 miles – Charge before return
  • Oxford via Didcot Parkway – 10.3 miles
  • Paignton via Newbury – 148.7 miles – Charge before return
  • Pembroke Dock via Cardiff Central – 121.6 miles – Charge before return
  • Penzance via Newbury – 172.6 miles – Charge before return
  • Plymouth via Newbury – 120.4 miles – Charge before return
  • Swansea via Cardiff Central – 53 miles – Charge before return
  • Weston-super-Mare via Chippenham – 43.8 miles
  • Worcester Foregate Street via Didcot East junction – 68.2 miles – Charge before return
  • Worcester Shrub Hill via Didcot East junction – 67.6 miles – Charge before return

Note.

  1. The first place after the ‘via’ is where the electrification ends.
  2. ‘Charge before return’ means the train must be charged before return.
  3. Partial electrification through Hereford, Great Malvern, Worcester Foregate Street and Worcester Shrub Hill, could possibly be used to charge services from Hereford and Worcester.
  4. Partial electrification through Penzance, Plymouth and Exeter St. Davids, could possibly be used to charge services from the South West.
  5. Partial electrification West of Swansea, could possibly be used to charge services from West Wales.

All routes, except for Hereford and Worcester, the South-West and West Wales, would be possible with a battery-electric train with a hundred mile traction battery.

I’ll now look at the three groups of services in more detail.

Services To Hereford And Worcester

These are distances from the electrification of the Great Western Main Line for Great Western Railway’s Hereford and Worcester services.

  • Great Malvern via Didcot East junction – 76.1 miles
  • Hereford via Didcot East junction – 96.9 miles
  • Worcester Foregate Street via Didcot East junction – 68.2 miles
  • Worcester Shrub Hill via Didcot East junction – 67.6 miles

Note.

  1. All services join the Great Western Main Line at Didcot East junction.
  2. Some services will be probably need to have, their batteries charged at the Hereford and Worcester end.

At the present time, the electrification finishes at Didcot East junction, but if it were to be extended to Charlbury station, these would be the distances without electrification.

  • Great Malvern via Charlbury – 52.3 miles
  • Hereford via Charlbury – 73.1 miles
  • Worcester Foregate Street via Charlbury – 44.4 miles
  • Worcester Shrub Hill via Charlbury – 43.8 miles

Note.

  1. Some of the track between Oxford and Charlbury is only single track, which may give advantages, when it is electrified.
  2. It might be possible with a hundred mile traction battery for all Worcester services to charge their batteries between Charlbury and London Paddington and not need a charge at Worcester to return.
  3. A larger traction battery or extending the electrification to perhaps Morton-in-Marsh could see Great Malvern in range of battery-electric trains from London Paddington without a charge.
  4. Hereford would probably be too far to get away without charging at Hereford.

This OpenRailwayMap shows the layout of Hereford station.

I’m certain that a platform can be found, where there is space for a charger, which could also be used for other trains serving the station.

Services To The South West

In the August 2023 Edition of Modern Railways, there is an article, which is entitled GWR Seeks Opportunities To Grow.

This is the sub-heading.

Managing Director Mark Hopwood tells Philip Sherratt there is plenty of potential to increase rail’s economic contribution.

This is two paragraphs.

The desire to provide electrification to support aggregates traffic from the Mendip quarries could also benefit GWR , says Mr. Hopwood. ‘Having an electric loco would massively help with pathing heavy freight trains through the Thames Valley. If you could electrify from Newbury to East Somerset Junction, a big chunk of the Berks and Hants route would be wired.

Then you can ask how much further you could get on battery power on an IET without running out of juice.’

Newbury to East Somerset Junction would be 53.5 miles of electrification, so I can build this table of services to the South-West

  • Exeter St. Davids via Newbury – 120.4 miles – 66.9 miles
  • Paignton via Newbury – 148.7 miles – 95.2 miles
  • Penzance via Newbury – 251.9 miles – 198.5 miles
  • Plymouth via Newbury – 172.6 miles – 119 miles

Note.

  1. The distance between Penzance and Plymouth is 79.5 miles.
  2. The first figure in the table is the distance to Newbury.
  3. The second figure in the table is the distance to East Somerset junction.

A possible way of running these four services to London on battery power is emerging.

  • Exeter St. Davids via Newbury – Charge before return – Run on battery for 66.9 miles to East Somerset junction.
  • Paignton via Newbury – Charge before return – Run on battery for 95.2 miles to East Somerset junction.
  • Penzance via Newbury- Charge before return – Run on battery for 79.5 miles to Plymouth – Charge at Plymouth – Run on battery for 119 miles to East Somerset junction.
  • Plymouth via Newbury – Charge before return – Run on battery for 119 miles to East Somerset junction.

Once at East Somerset junction, it’s electrification all the way to Paddington.

This is the corresponding way to run services from London.

  • Exeter St. Davids via Newbury – Run on electrification to East Somerset junction, charging the battery on the way – Run on battery for 66.9 miles to Exeter St. Davids.
  • Paignton via Newbury – Run on electrification to East Somerset junction, charging the battery on the way – Run on battery for 95.2 miles to Paignton.
  • Penzance via Newbury – Run on electrification to East Somerset junction, charging the battery on the way – Run on battery for 119 miles to Plymouth – Charge at Plymouth – Run on battery for 79.5 miles to Penzance.
  • Plymouth via Newbury – Run on electrification to East Somerset junction, charging the battery on the way – Run on battery for 119 miles to Plymouth.

More electrification or a larger  than a hundred mile traction battery would be needed, as Plymouth and East Somerset junction is 119 miles.

But if a Stadler Akku can do 139 miles on a charge, why shouldn’t a Hitachi battery-electric train?

Services To West Wales

It seems that the current timetable is already setup for battery-electric trains to run to and beyond Swansea.

  • Carmarthen and Swansea is almost exactly 32 miles.
  • Pembroke Dock and Swansea is 73.4 miles.
  • Swansea and Cardiff Central is 45.7 miles.

Note

  1. All these sections could be run by a battery-electric train, with a fully-charged hundred mile traction battery.
  2. All trains going to or from Carmarthen or Pembroke Dock reverse at Swansea, where a generous time of more than eleven minutes is allowed for the manoeuvre.
  3. During the reverse at Swansea, there is sufficient time to charge the batteries, if overhead wires were present.

Battery-electric services could serve Wales Wales with overhead electrification at Carmarthen, Pembroke Dock and Swansea.

Conclusion

We will go a long way, if we embrace battery-electric trains.

Most routes can be handled with a train with a traction battery range of 100 miles.

Exceptions are.

  • Hazel Grove and Cleethorpes – 104.6 miles
  • Plymouth and East Somerset junction – 119 miles

But if a Stadler Akku can do 139 miles on a charge, why shouldn’t a Hitachi battery-electric train?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 28, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Electrification Of The Hope Valley Line

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

This is said about the Hope Valley Line.

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

The fast trains are currently TransPennine’s service between Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes.

  • Between Platform 13 at Manchester Piccadilly station and Sheffield station is 42.6 miles.
  • At the Manchester end, there will be electrification between Manchester Piccadilly and Hazel Grove stations, which is 8.7 miles and takes typically 17 minutes.
  • After the electrification of the Midland Main Line to Sheffield, there will be electrification between Dore & Totley and Sheffield stations, which is 4.2 miles and takes typically 8 minutes.

The gap in the electrification between Dore & Totley and Hazel Grove stations will be 29.7 miles.

But it will not be an easy route to electrify.

  • At the Western end, there is the Disley Tunnel, which is 3535 metres long.
  • In the middle, there is the Cowburn Tunnel which is 3385 metres long, that is also the deepest tunnel in England.
  • At the Eastern end, there is the Totley Tunnel, which is 5700 metres long.

Yorkshire doesn’t have an Underground railway, but the combined length of these three tunnels is 7.84 miles, which means that over 26 % of the electrification needed between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield will have to be installed in tunnels.

Could The Route Be Run Using Battery-Electric Trains?

Consider.

  • The gap in the electrification between Dore & Totley and Hazel Grove stations will be 29.7 miles.
  • There is electrified sections at Dore & Totley and Hazel Grove stations, which will be able to charge the trains.
  • Merseyrail’s Class 777 trains have demonstrated a battery range of 84 miles.
  • A Stadler Akku train has demonstrated a battery range of 139 miles.
  • Hitachi are developing a battery-electric version of TransPennine’s Class 802 train.
  • If all trains can run on batteries or be self-powered, there would be no need to electrify the long and possibly difficult tunnels.

I believe that it would be possible to electrify all passenger services between Manchester and Sheffield using appropriate battery-electric trains.

Freight would be a problem and I suspect that hydrogen-hybrid and other self-powered locomotives could handle the route.

Could The Complete TransPennine Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes Service Be Run By Battery-Electric Class 802 trains?

These are the various electrified and unelectrified sections.

  • Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway – Electrified – 5.7 miles – 10 minutes
  • Liverpool South Parkway and Trafford Park  – Not Electrified – 25.2 miles – 30 minutes
  • Trafford Park and Hazel Grove  – Electrified – 12.6 miles – 28 minutes
  • Hazel Grove and Dore & Totley  – Not Electrified – 29.7 miles – 35 minutes
  • Dore & Totley and Sheffield  – Electrified – 4.2 miles – 6 minutes
  • Sheffield and Doncaster  – Not Electrified – 18.6 miles – 25 minutes
  • Doncaster and Cleethorpes  – Not Electrified – 52.1 miles – 78 minutes

Note.

  1. This is a total of 125.6 miles without electrification.
  2. The Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield time is 56 minutes.
  3. The distance is 37.8 miles.
  4. That is an average speed on 40.5 mph.
  5. Most of the line between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield has an maximum speed of 70 mph, but there is a short length of track with a 50 mph speed and another longer one with 90 mph.

To achieve 40 minutes between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield would need an average speed of 60.7 mph. Given the improvements being carried out by Network Rail at the current time, I believe that forty minutes between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield should be possible.

I’ll look at a train going East.

  • The train will leave Liverpool Lime Street with a reasonably full battery after charging using the current electrification in the station.
  • The train will leave Liverpool South Parkway with a full battery after charging using the current electrification from Liverpool Lime Street.
  • The train will arrive at Trafford Park with a battery perhaps two-thirds full, but it will be fully charged on the current electrification to Hazel Grove.
  • The train will arrive at Dore & Totley with a battery perhaps two-thirds full, but it will be fully charged on the Midland Main Line electrification to Sheffield.
  • The train will arrive at Doncaster with a battery perhaps two-thirds full and the train would wait until it had enough charge to reach Cleethorpes.

I’ll look at a train going West.

  • The train will leave Cleethorpes with a full battery after charging using the new electrification in the station.
  • The train will arrive at Doncaster with a battery perhaps two-thirds full and the train would wait until it had enough charge to reach Sheffield.
  • The train will arrive at Sheffield with a battery perhaps two-thirds full, but it will be fully charged on the Midland Main Line electrification to Dore & Totley.
  • The train will arrive at Hazel Grove with a battery perhaps two-thirds full, but it will be fully charged on the current electrification to Trafford Park.
  • The train will arrive at Liverpool South Parkway with a battery perhaps two-thirds full, but the route is electrified to Liverpool Lime Street.

Note.

  1. If the battery range on a full battery was over 90 miles, the two most easterly sections could be run without any charging at Doncaster.
  2. If the battery range was over 125.6 miles, the journey could be done by starting with a full battery.
  3. If every time the train decelerated, regenerative braking would recover energy, which could be reused.
  4. The only new electrification needed will be a short length at Cleethorpes station, that would charge the trains.

I certainly believe that Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes services could be run by battery-electric trains.

Could The Complete TransPennine Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes Service Be Run By Battery-Electric Class 802 trains Without The Midland Main Line Electrification?

In this section, I’m assuming, that there is no electrification at Sheffield.

These would be the various electrified and unelectrified sections.

  • Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway – Electrified – 5.7 miles – 10 minutes
  • Liverpool South Parkway and Trafford Park  – Not Electrified – 25.2 miles – 30 minutes
  • Trafford Park and Hazel Grove  – Electrified – 12.6 miles – 28 minutes
  • Hazel Grove and Cleethorpes  – Not Electrified – 104.6 miles – 143 minutes

Note.

  1. This is a total of 129.6 miles without electrification.
  2. The battery range of the train, should probably be around 120 miles to make sure the train could run between Hazel Grove and Cleethorpes.
  3. One diesel power-pack could be installed for emergency use.

I’ll look at a train going East.

  • The train will leave Liverpool Lime Street with a reasonably full battery after charging using the current electrification in the station.
  • The train will leave Liverpool South Parkway with a full battery after charging using the current electrification from Liverpool Lime Street.
  • The train will arrive at Trafford Park with a battery perhaps 80 % full, but it will be fully charged on the current electrification to Hazel Grove.
  • The train would then eek out what power it had left to reach Cleethorpes.

If necessary, the train could stop in the electrified Doncaster station to top up the batteries from the East Coast Main Line electrification for the run to Cleethorpes.

I’ll look at a train going West.

  • The train will leave Cleethorpes with a full battery after charging using new electrification in the station.
  • The train will arrive at Doncaster with a battery perhaps 57 % full and the train would wait if needed, until it had enough charge to reach Hazel Grove.
  • The train will arrive at Hazel Grove with a battery perhaps one-thirds full, but it will be fully charged on the current electrification to Trafford Park.
  • The train will arrive at Liverpool South Parkway with a battery perhaps one-thirds full, but the route is electrified to Liverpool Lime Street.

Note.

  1. If the battery range on a full battery was over 105 miles, the Eastern section could be run without any charging at Doncaster.
  2. If the battery range was over 129.6 miles, the journey could be done by starting with a full battery.
  3. If every time the train decelerated, regenerative braking would recover energy, which could be reused.
  4. The only new electrification needed will be a short length at Cleethorpes station, that would charge the trains.

However, it might be prudent to electrify the through platforms at Sheffield, so that they could be used for emergency charging if required.

Northern Train’s Service Between Sheffield And Manchester Piccadilly Via The Hope Valley Line

There is a one train per hour (tph) Northern service between Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly.

  • The Class 195 diesel train takes 78 minutes.
  • The distance is 42 miles.
  • The first mile or so at the Manchester end is electrified.
  • Trains seem to take about sixteen minutes to turn round at Manchester Piccadilly.
  • Trains seem to take about nine minutes to turn round at Sheffield.
  • The service runs via Reddish North, Brinnington, Bredbury, Romiley, Marple, New Mills Central, Chinley, Edale, Hope, Bamford, Hathersage, Grindleford and Dore & Totley.
  • The max speed is generally 60 mph to the West of New Mills Central and 70 mph to the East, with short lower speed sections.

There would appear to be two ways to run this route withy battery-electric trains.

  • As Manchester Piccadilly station is fully-electrified and trains could be connected to the electrification for upwards of twenty minutes, trains will certainly be able to be fully-charged at Manchester. As the round trip is only 84 miles, could trains run the service without a charge at Sheffield.
  • Alternatively, there could be a dedicated electrified platform at Sheffield. But the problem with this, is that currently this service uses a random platform at Sheffield.

It looks like, if the train has the required range, that charging at the Manchester end would be the better solution.

Liverpool And Norwich Via The Hope Valley Line

This service uses a similar route between Liverpool Lime Street and Sheffield, as the Liverpool and Hull service and then it meanders, through the East Midlands.

  • Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway – Electrified – 5.7 miles – 11 minutes
  • Liverpool South Parkway and Trafford Park  – Not Electrified – 25.2 miles – 33 minutes
  • Trafford Park and Hazel Grove  – Electrified – 12.6 miles – 26 minutes
  • Hazel Grove and Dore & Totley  – Not Electrified – 29.7 miles – 28 minutes
  • Dore & Totley and Sheffield  – Electrified – 4.2 miles – 6 minutes
  • Sheffield and Nottingham – Being Electrified – 40.6 miles – 52 minutes
  • Nottingham and Grantham – Not Electrified – 22.7 miles – 30 minutes
  • Grantham and Peterborough – Electrified – 29.1 miles – 29 minutes
  • Peterborough And Ely – Not Electrified – 30 miles – 31 minutes
  • Ely and Norwich – Not Electrified – 53.7 miles – 56 minutes

This is a total of 161.3 miles without electrification.

But as Sheffield and Nottingham and Grantham and Peterborough will be fully electrified, this route will be possible using a battery-electric train.

Electrifying Sheffield Station

I said earlier in this post, that electrifying Sheffield station would be an option for electrifying the Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly service.

If this were to be done, it would have collateral benefits for other services that terminate at Sheffield, which could be charged whilst they turned around.

I wrote about Sheffield station as a battery-electric train hub in Could Sheffield Station Become A Battery-Electric Train Hub?

Conclusion

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

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

 

 

October 15, 2023 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

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