Northern Powerhouse Rail – Significant Upgrades And Electrification Of The Rail Lines From Leeds And Sheffield To Hull
In this article on Transport for the North, which is entitled Northern Powerhouse Rail Progress As Recommendations Made To Government, one of the recommendations proposed for Northern Powerhouse Rail is significant upgrades and electrification of the rail lines from Leeds and Sheffield to Hull.
Northern Powerhouse Rail’s Objective For The Leeds and Hull Route
Wikipedia, other sources and my calculations say this about the trains between Leeds and Hull.
- The distance between the two stations is 51.7 miles
- The current service takes around 57 minutes and has a frequency of one train per hour (tph)
- This gives an average speed of 54.4 mph for the fastest journey.
- The proposed service with Northern Powerhouse Rail will take 38 minutes and have a frequency of two tph.
- This gives an average speed of 81.6 mph for the journey.
This last figure of nearly 82 mph, indicates to me that a 100 mph train will be able to meet Northern Powerhouse Rail’s objective.
Northern Powerhouse Rail’s Objective For The Sheffield and Hull Route
Wikipedia, other sources and my calculations say this about the trains between Sheffield and Hull.
- The distance between the two stations is 59.4 miles
- The current service takes around 80 minutes and has a frequency of one tph.
- This gives an average speed of 44.6 mph for the fastest journey.
- The proposed service with Northern Powerhouse Rail will take 50 minutes and have a frequency of two tph.
- This gives an average speed of 71,3 mph for the journey.
This last figure of over 70 mph, indicates to me that a 90 mph train will be able to meet Northern Powerhouse Rail’s objective.
Services From Hull Station
Hull station is a full interchange, which includes a large bus station.
- Currently, the station has seven platforms.
- There appears to be space for more platforms.
- Some platforms are long enough to take nine-car Class 800 trains, which are 234 metres long.
- There are some good architectural features.
If ever there was a station, that had basic infrastructure, that with appropriate care and refurbishment, could still be handling the needs of its passengers in a hundred years, it is Hull.
- It would be able to handle a 200 metre long High Speed Two Classic-Compatible train, tomorrow.
- It would probably be as no more difficult to electrify than Kings Cross, Liverpool Lime Street, Manchester Piccadilly or Paddington.
- It would not be difficult to install charging facilities for battery electric trains.
These are some pictures of the station.
Currently, these are the services at the station, that go between Hull and Leeds, Selby or Sheffield.
- Hull Trains – 7 trains per day (tpd) – Hull and London via Brough, Selby and Doncaster.
- LNER – 1 tpd – Hull and London via Brough, Selby and Doncaster.
- Northern Trains – 1 tph – Hull and Halifax via Brough, Selby, Leeds and Bradford Interchange.
- Northern Trains – 1 tph – Hull and Sheffield via Brough, Gilberdyke, Goole, Doncaster, Rotherham Central and Meadowhall.
- Northern Trains – 1 tph – Hull and York via Brough and Selby.
- Northern Trains – 1 tph – Bridlington and Sheffield via Hull, Brough, Goole, Doncaster and Meadowhall.
- TransPennine Express – 1 tph – Hull and Manchester Piccadilly or Manchester Airport via Brough, Selby, Leeds, Huddersfield and Stalybridge.
Note.
- I have included services through Selby, as the station is on the way to Leeds and is a notorious bottleneck.
- All services go through Brough.
- All trains work on diesel power to and from Hull.
- Hull Trains and LNER use Hitachi bi-mode trains, that work most of the route to and from London, using the 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- Northern use a variety of diesel trains only some of which have a 100 mph operating speed.
There would also appear to be freight trains working some of the route between Hull and Brough stations.
Upgrading The Tracks
I very much believe that to meet Northern Powerhouse Rail’s objectives as to time, that the lines to Hull from Leeds and Sheffield must have a 100 mph operating speed.
Hull And Leeds And On To London
This Google Map shows a typical section of track.
Note.
- Broomfleet station is in the North-West corner of the map.
- Brough station is just to the East of the middle of the map.
- Ferriby station is in the South-East corner of the map.
The Hull and Selby Line is fairly straight for most of its route.
The Selby Swing Bridge
The main problem is the Selby swing bridge, which is shown in this Google Map.
Note.
- The bridge was opened in 1891.
- It is a Grade II Listed structure.
- It is a double-track bridge.
- It swings through ninety degrees to allow ships to pass through.
- It has a low speed limit of 25 mph.
- The bridge regularly carries the biomass trains to Drax power station.
This page on the Fairfield Control Systems web site, describes the major refurbishment of the bridge.
- The bridge structure has been fully refurbished.
- A modern control system has been installed.
- The page says the bridge glides to an exact stop.
Network Rail are claiming, it will be several decades before any more work needs to be done on parts of the bridge.
It looks to me, that Network Rail have decided to live with the problems caused by the bridge and automate their way round it, if possible.
Level Crossings
One general problem with the route between Hull and Selby is that it has around a dozen level crossing, some of which are just simple farm crossings.
The main route West from Selby goes to Leeds and it is double track, fairly straight with around a dozen level crossings.
West from Selby, the route to the East Coast Main Line to and from London is also double track and reasonably straight.
But it does have level crossings at Common Lane and Burn Lane.
The Google Map show Burn Lane level crossing, which is typical of many in the area.
Hull And Sheffield
The other route West from Hull goes via Goole and Doncaster.
This Google Map shows the Hull and Doncaster Branch between Goole and Saltmarshe stations.
Note.
- The Hull and Doncaster Branch runs diagonally across the map.
- Goole and its station is in the South West corner of the map.
- The Hull and Doncaster Branch goes leaves the map at the North-East corner and then joins the Selby Line to the West of Gilberdyke station.
This Google Map shows that where the railway crosses the River Ouse there is another swing bridge.
This is the Goole Railway Swing Bridge.
- The bridge was opened in 1869.
- The maximum speed for any train is 60 mph, but some are slower.
- It is a Grade II* Listed structure.
- In the first decade of this century the bridge was strengthened.
- It appears to carry a lesser number of freight trains than the Selby bridge
As with the Selby bridge, it appears to be working at a reasonable operational standard.
I’ve followed the line as far as Doncaster and it is fairly straight, mostly double-track with about a half-a-dozen level crossings.
Updating To 100 mph
It looks to my naïve eyes, that updating the lines to an operating speed of 100 mph, should be possible.
But possibly a much larger problem is the up to thirty level crossings on the triangle of lines between Hull, Leeds and Sheffield.
Full ERTMS In-Cab Digital Signalling
This is currently, being installed between London and Doncaster and will allow 140 mph running, which could save several minutes on the route.
The next phase could logically extend the digital signalling as far as York and Leeds.
Extending this signalling to Hull and Sheffield, and all the lines connecting the cities and towns of East Yorkshire could be a sensible development.
It might even help with swing bridges by controlling the speed of approaching trains, so that they arrive at the optimal times to cross.
Electrification
Eventually, all of these routes will be fully electrified.
- Hull and Leeds via Brough, Selby and Garforth.
- Hull and Scarborough via Beverley and Seamer.
- Hull and Sheffield via Brough, Goole, Doncaster and Rotherham.
- Hull and York via Brough and Selby.
- York and Scarborough via Seamer.
But there are two problems which make the electrification of the routes to Hull challenging.
- The Grade II Listed Selby swing bridge.
- The Grade II* Listed Goole Railway swing bridge.
There will be diehard members of the Heritage Lobby, who will resist electrification of these bridges.
Consider.
- Both bridges appear to work reliably.
- Adding the complication of electrification may compromise this reliability.
- Train manufacturers have developed alternative zero-carbon traction systems that don’t need continuous electrification.
- Hitachi have developed battery electric versions of the Class 800 and Class 802 trains, that regularly run to and from Hull.
- Other manufacturers are developing hydrogen-powered trains, that can use both hydrogen and overhead electrification for traction power.
My Project Management experience tells me, that electrification of these two bridges could be the major cost and the most likely cause of delay to the completion of the electrification.
It should also be noted that Network Rail are already planning to electrify these routes.
- Huddersfield and Dewsbury on the TransPennine Route, which might be extended to between Huddersfield and Leeds.
- York and Church Fenton
There is also electrification at Doncaster, Leeds and York on the East Coast Main Line, which would probably have enough power to feed the extra electrification.
Hitachi’s Regional Battery Trains
Hitachi and Hyperdrive Innovation are developing a Regional Battery Train.
This Hitachi infographic gives the specification.
Note.
- The train has a range of 90 kilometres or 56 miles on battery power.
- It has an operating speed of 100 mph on battery power.
- Class 800 and Class 802 trains can be converted to Hitachi Regional Battery Trains, by swapping the diesel engines for battery packs.
When running on electrification, they retain the performance of the train, that was converted.
Discontinuous Electrification
I would propose using discontinuous electrification. by electrifying these sections.
- Hull and Brough – 10.5 miles
- Hull and Beverley – 13 miles
- Doncaster and Sheffield – 20 miles
- Selby and Leeds – 21 miles
- Selby and Temple Hirst Junction – 5 miles
- Seamer and Scarborough – 3 miles
This would leave these gaps in the electrification in East Yorkshire.
- Brough and Doncaster – 30 miles
- Brough and Selby – 21 miles
- Brough and Church Fenton – 31 miles
- Seamer and Beverley – 42 miles
- Seamer and York – 39 miles
A battery electric train with a range of fifty miles would bridge these gaps easily.
This approach would have some advantages.
- There would only need to be 72.5 miles of double-track electrification.
- The swing bridges would be untouched.
- TransPennine services terminating in Hull and Scarborough would be zero-carbon, once Huddersfield and Dewsbury is electrified.
- LNER and Hull Trains services to London Kings Cross would be zero-carbon and a few minutes faster.
- LNER could run a zero-carbon service between London Kings Cross and Scarborough.
But above all, it would cost less and could be delivered quicker.
Collateral Benefits Of Doncaster and Sheffield Electrication
The extra electrification between Doncaster and Sheffield, would enable other services.
- A zero-carbon service between London Kings Cross and Sheffield.
- Extension of Sheffield’s tram-train to Doncaster and Doncaster Sheffield Airport.
- A possible electric service along the Dearne Valley.
As plans for Sheffield’s rail and tram system develop, this electrification could have a substantial enabling effect.
Hydrogen
This map shows the Zero Carbon Humber pipeline layout.
Note.
- The orange line is a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline
- The black line alongside it, is a proposed hydrogen pipeline.
- Drax, Keadby and Saltend are power stations.
- Easington gas terminal is connected to gas fields in the North Sea and also imports natural gas from Norway using the Langeled pipeline.
- There are fourteen gas feels connected to Easington terminal. Some have been converted to gas storage.
I can see hydrogen being used to power trains and buses around the Humber.
Conclusion
Discontinuous electrification could be the key to fast provision of electric train services between Leeds and Sheffield and Hull.
If long journeys from Hull were run using battery electric trains, like the Hitachi Regional Battery Train, perhaps hydrogen trains could be used for the local services all over the area.
Project Management Recommendations
I have proposed six sections of electrification, to create a network to allow all services that serve Hull and Scarborough to be run by battery electric trains.
Obviously with discontinuous electrification each section or group of sections to be electrified is an independent project.
I proposed that these sections would need to be electrified.
- Hull and Brough – 10.5 miles
- Hull and Beverley – 13 miles
- Doncaster and Sheffield – 20 miles
- Selby and Leeds – 21 miles
- Selby and Temple Hirst Junction – 5 miles
- Seamer and Scarborough – 3 miles
They could be broken down down into four sections.
- Hull station, Hull and Brough and Hull and Beverley
- Doncaster and Sheffield
- Selby station, Selby and Leeds and Selby and Temple Hirst Junction.
- Scarborough station and Scarborough and Seamer.
I have split the electrification, so that hopefully none is challenging.
Northern Powerhouse Rail – Significant Upgrades And Journey Time Improvements To The Hope Valley Route Between Manchester And Sheffield
In this article on Transport for the North, which is entitled Northern Powerhouse Rail Progress As Recommendations Made To Government, one of the recommendations proposed for Northern Powerhouse Rail is significant upgrades and journey time improvements to the Hope Valley Line between Manchester and Sheffield.
I shall look at a few of the possibilities for the route.
Northern Powerhouse Rail’s Objective For The Route
Wikipedia, other sources and my calculations say this about the trains between Manchester and Sheffield.
- The distance between the two stations is 42.6 miles
- The current service takes 49 to 57 minutes and has a frequency of two trains per hour (tph)
- This gives an average speed of 52.2 mph for the fastest journey.
- The proposed service with Northern Powerhouse Rail will take 40 minutes and have a frequency of four tph.
- This gives an average speed of 63.9 mph for the journey.
This last figure of 63.9 mph, indicates to me that a 100 mph train will be able to meet Northern Powerhouse Rail’s objective.
Current Trains On The Hope Valley Line
In July this year, I went along the Hope Valley Line between Manchester Piccadilly and Dore and Totley stations, which I wrote about in Along The Hope Valley Line – 13th July 2020.
My train was a pair of refurbished Class 150 trains.
These trains can handled the current timetable but they have an operating speed of only 75 mph.
Looking at Real Time Trains for last week, it now appears that Northern are using new three-car Class 195 trains.
These are much better.
- They are 100 mph trains with much better acceleration.
- The train was still running the timetable for the slower trains.
With thirteen stops, I suspect that these new trains could be under fifty minutes between Manchester and Sheffield.
Will The Hope Valley Line Be Electrified?
Consider.
- Currently, the Hope Valley Line is electrified between Manchester Piccadilly and Hazel Grove stations.
- In the future, the line is likely to be electrified between Sheffield and Dore & Totley stations, in conjunction with rebuilding the Midland Main Line, to the North of Clay Cross North junction for High Speed Two.
- After the electrification at the Eastern end, just over thirty miles will be without electrification.
- The Hope Valley Line has an operating speed of 90 mph.
This Hitachi infographic shows the specification of the Hitachi Regional Battery train.
As these are a 100 mph train with a range of 90 km or 56 miles on battery power, these trains could work Manchester and Sheffield in the required time of forty minutes. provided they could be charged at the Sheffield end of the route.
TransPennine’s Class 802 trains can be fitted with batteries to become Regional Battery Trains, so it would appear that TransPennine’s services on this route could go zero-carbon.
In addition Northern, who are the other passenger operator on the route are working with CAF on battery electric trains, as I wrote about in Northern’s Battery Plans,
I don’t believe there are pressing reasons to electrify the Hope Valley Line to allow passenger trains to meet Northern Powerhouse Rail’s objective.
Will Operating Speed On The Hope Valley Line Be Increased?
Under Plans in the Wikipedia entry for the Hope Valley Line, this is said.
Network Rail, in partnership with South Yorkshire ITA, will redouble the track between Dore Station Junction and Dore West Junction, at an estimated cost of £15 million. This costing is based on four additional vehicles in traffic to deliver the option, however, this will depend on vehicle allocation through the DfT rolling stock plan. This work will be programmed, subject to funding, in conjunction with signalling renewals in the Dore/Totley Tunnel area.
Other proposals include a 3,600 feet (1,100 m) loop in the Bamford area, in order to fit in an all-day (07:00–19:00) hourly Manchester–Sheffield via New Mills Central stopping service, by extending an existing Manchester–New Mills Central service. Planning permission for this was granted in February 2018, but delays mean that this will now not be completed until 2023.
These changes to allow three fast trains, a stopping train and freight trains each hour were also supported in a Transport for the North investment report in 2019, together with “further interventions” for the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme.
It would also probably be a good idea, to increase the operating speed of the line to 100 mph where possible.
Effect On Passenger Services
100 mph trains on a track with an operating speed of 100 mph, could show some impressive timings.
On the Great Eastern Main Line, which is a very busy 100 mph double-track railway, 100 mph trains, achieve a 77 mph average for 90 minutes over the 115 miles, between London Liverpool Street and Norwich with a single stop.
A one-stop Manchester and Sheffield service at this speed would take just 33.2 minutes.
The stopping trains would be more of a challenge to get under forty minutes, but at least if they were battery electric trains, they’d have the better acceleration and deceleration of the electric trains.
- Fifty minutes would be a realistic time.
- Ten minutes turnround time at each end, would be ideal for charging the batteries and give an efficient two hour round trip.
Efficient timetabling could create a very comprehensive service for the Hope Valley Line.
Freight Trains On The Hope Valley Line
Under Freight in the Wikipedia entry for the Hope Valley Line, this is said.
Over a million tons of cement a year is taken away by rail from Earle’s Sidings at Hope.
That is a very large number of freight trains, all of which are currently hauled by diesel locomotives.
- Looking at Real Time Trains, there are nearly always two freight trains in every hour of the day.
- If you look at the routes, they go to a myriad number of destinations.
- Following the routes between Dore Junction and the quarries to the South of the Hope Valley Line, there are several tunnels.
- There are numerous quarries in a cluster, all served by their own rail lines.
Electrifying the delivery of the cement and limestone from the quarries would be a large and very expensive operation.
This Google Map shows Earle’s Sidings at Hope.
Perhaps a half-way house solution would be to use diesel to haul trains between the quarries and Earle’s sidings, where the locomotive is changed for an electric one?
- But that would then mean that all routes from between the Peak District quarries and their destinations would need to be fully-electrified.
- It should be noted that that the problem of zero-carbon trains, also exists at port and rail freight interchanges, where safe operation with 25 KVAC overhead wires everywhere can be a nightmare.
- Rail freight companies are unlikely to change their old diesel locomotives for new expensive electric locomotives, until all possible routes are fully electrified.
- It is also a big problem, all over the world.
Perhaps, what is needed is a self-powered zero-carbon locomotive with sufficient power to haul the heaviest trains?
I believe such a locomotive is possible and in The Mathematics Of A Hydrogen-Powered Freight Locomotive, I explored the feasibility of such a locomotive, which was based on a Stadler Class 68 locomotive.
The zero-carbon locomotive, that is eventually developed, may be very different to my proposal, but the commercial opportunities for such a locomotive are so large, that I’m sure the world’s best locomotive designers are working on developing powerful locomotives for all applications.
Conclusion
Northern Powerhouse Rail’s ambition for Manchester and Sheffield via the Hope Valley Line is simply stated as four tph in forty minutes. But this may be something like.
- Three fast tph in forty minutes.
- One stopping tph in perhaps fifty minutes.
- One freight tph in each direction to and from the quarries that lie to the South of the line.
I didn’t realise how close that the line is to that objective, once the following is done.
- Introduce 100 mph passenger trains on the route.
- Improve the track as has been planned for some years.
Note that all the passenger trains, that now run the route; Class 185, 195 and 802 trains, are all 100 mph trains, although they are diesel-powered.
With a length of just under 43 miles, the route is also ideal for battery electric trains to work the passenger services, be the trains be from Hitachi, CAF or another manufacturer, after High Speed Two electrifies the Midland Main Line to the North of Clay Cross North Junction, in preparation for high speed services between London and Sheffield.
I would recommend, that one of High Speed Two’s first Northern projects, should be to upgrade the Midland Main Line between Clay Cross North junction and Sheffield station to the standard that will be required for High Speed Two.
I would also recommend, that the Government sponsor the development of a hydrogen electric locomotive with this specification.
- Ability to use 25 KVAC overhead or 750 VDC electrification
- 110 mph operating speed on electrification.
- Ability to use hydrogen.
- 100 mph operating speed on hydrogen.
- 200 mile range on hydrogen.
A locomotive with this specification would go a long way to decarbonise rail freight in the UK and would have a big worldwide market.
Project Management Recommendations
This project divides neatly into three.
- Perform the upgrades at Dore Junction and add the loop in the Bamford area, as detailed in Wikipedia, which will increase the capacity of the Hope Valley Line.
- Electrify the Midland Main Line between Clay Cross North junction and Sheffield, as will be needed for High Speed Two. This electrification will allow battery electric trains to run between Manchester and Sheffield and between Sheffield and London.
- Procurement of the trains. CAF and Hitachi are currently finalising suitable designs for this type of operation.
It would also be helpful, if the freight trains could be hauled by zero-carbon hydrogen electric locomotives, to create a much-improved zero-carbon route between Manchester and Sheffield.
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
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 once said to me, that 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.
- I think that trains 4 and 5 work an intricate dance with appropriate splitting and joining at Crewe.
- 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
- I think that trains 18 and 21 work an intricate dance with appropriate splitting and joining at East Midlands Hub.
- 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
As a 200 metre long train needs the same track and platform resources as a 400 metre long train, by splitting and joining, it would appear that extra destinations could be served.
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.
Hopes Rekindled Of Full Midland Main Line Electrification
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Magazine.
This is the key section of the article.
During a House of Commons debate on transport on September 17, HS2 Minister Andrew Stephenson said in response to a question from Alex Norris (Labour/Co-op, Nottingham North): “We are currently delivering the Midland Main Line upgrade, which includes electrification from London to Kettering, with additional electrification to Market Harborough being developed.
“Further electrification of the MML is currently at an early stage, but it is being examined by Network Rail.”
Stephenson said the DfT will continue to work closely with NR on the development of a proposal that would include approaches to advancing the delivery of electrification across the route.
The title of the article, probably sums it up well.
Electrification Of The Midland Main Line
Having read lots of stories about electrification of Midland Main Line, I think the following must be born in mind.
- Electrification on the line will reach as far North as Market Harborough station.
- The route between Sheffield station and Clay Cross North Junction will be shared with High Speed Two. It will obviously need to be electrified for High Speed Two.
- The section of the Midland Main Line between Derby and Clay Cross North Junction, runs through the World Heritage Site of the Derwent Valley Mills. The Heritage Taliban will love the electrification, with a vengeance.
- Electrification through Leicester station could be tricky, as the station building and the A6 road are over the tracks and there is limited clearance. Electrification could involve major disruption to the trains for some time.
These are some of the distances involved of sections of the route that are not electrified.
- Market Harborough and Derby are 54 miles apart.
- Market Harborough and Clay Cross North Junction are 67 miles apart.
- Market Harborough and Chesterfield are 70 miles apart.
- Market Harborough and Nottingham are 44 miles apart
- Market Harborough and Leicester are 16 miles apart.
- Derby and Clay Cross North Junction are 21 miles apart.
Since 2017, when electrification for the full route was originally abandoned, there have been big changes in rolling stock technology.
The biggest change has been the development of battery trains.
Hitachi’s Regional Battery Trains
This infographic from Hitachi gives the specification for their Regional Battery Train.
Note.
- The trains have a range of 56 miles on battery power.
- The trains can cruise at 100 mph on battery power.
- Hitachi have said that all of their AT-300 trains can be converted into Regional Battery Trains.
- Trains are converted by removing the diesel engines and replacing them with battery packs.
- I suspect these battery packs look like a diesel engine in terms of control inputs and performance to the driver and the train’s computer.
It is extremely likely, that the bi-mode Class 810 trains, which are a version of the AT-300 train, that have been ordered for the Midland Main Line can be converted into Regional Battery Trains.
These trains have four diesel engines, as opposed to the Class 800 and Class 802 trains, which only have three.
These are reasons, why the trains could need four engines.
- The trains need more power to work the Midland Main Line. I think this is unlikely.
- Four engine positions gives ,more flexibility when converting to Regional Battery Trains.
- Four battery packs could give a longer range of up to 120 kilometres or 75 miles.
It could just be, that Hitachi are just being conservative, as engines can easily be removed or replaced. The fifth-car might even be fitted with all the wiring and other gubbins, so that a fifth-engine or battery pack can be added.
I suspect the train’s computer works on a Plug-And-Play principle, so when the train is started, it looks round each car to see how many diesel engines and battery packs are available and it then controls the train according to what power is available.
London St. Pancras And Sheffield By Battery Electric Train
Any battery electric train going between London St. Pancras and Sheffield will need to be charged, at both ends of the route.
- At the London end, it will use the electrification currently being erected as far as Market Harborough station.
- At the Sheffield end, the easiest way to charge the trains, would be to bring forward the electrification and updating between Sheffield station and Clay Cross North Junction, that is needed for High Speed Two.
This will leave a 67 mile gap in the electrification between Market Harborough station and Clay Cross North junction.
It looks to me, the Class 810 trains should be able to run between London St. Pancras and Sheffield, after the following projects are undertaken.
- Class 810 trains are given four battery packs and a battery range of 75 miles.
- Electrification is installed between Sheffield station and Clay Cross North Junction.
Trains would need to leave Market Harborough station going North and Clay Cross Junction going South with full batteries.
Note.
- Trains currently take over an hour to go between Chesterfield to Sheffield and then back to Chesterfield, which would be more than enough to fully charge the batteries.
- Trains currently take around an hour to go between London St. Pancras and Market Harborough, which would be more than enough to fully charge the batteries.
- Chesterfield station is only three miles further, so if power changeover, needed to be in a station, it could be performed there.
- Leeds and Sheffield are under fifty miles apart and as both stations would be electrified, London St. Pancras and Sheffield services could be extended to start and finish at Leeds.
London St. Pancras and Sheffield can be run by battery electric trains.
London St. Pancras And Nottingham By Battery Electric Train
Could a battery electric train go from Market Harborough to Nottingham and back, after being fully-charged on the hour-long trip from London?
- The trip is 44 miles each way or 88 miles for a round trip.
- Services have either three or eight stops, of which two or three respectively are at stations without electrification.
- Trains seem to take over thirty minutes to turnback at Nottingham station.
Extra power North of Market Harborough will also be needed.
- To provide hotel power for the train, during turnback at Nottingham station.
- To compensate for power losses at station stops.
If 75 miles is the maximum battery range, I doubt that a round trip is possible.
I also believe, that Hitachi must be developing a practical solution to charging a train during turnback, at a station like Nottingham, where trains take nearly thirty minutes to turnback.
If the Class 810 trains have a battery range of 75 miles, they would be able to handle the London St. Pancras and Nottingham service, with charging at Nottingham.
Conclusion
It appears that both the Nottingham and Sheffield services can be run using battery electric Class 810 trains.
- All four diesel engines in the Class 810 trains would need to be replaced with batteries.
- The route between Clay Cross North Junction and Sheffield station, which will be shared with High Speed Two, will need to be electrified.
- Charging facilities for the battery electric trains will need to be provided at Nottingham.
On the other hand using battery electric trains mean the two tricky sections of the Derwent Valley Mills and Leicester station and possibly others, won’t need to be electrified to enable electric trains to run on the East Midlands Railway network.
Will it be the first main line service in the world, run by battery electric trains?
Hull Issues New Plea For Electrification
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Magazine.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Residents and businesses in Hull are being urged to support electrification of the railway to Selby and Sheffield.
This paragraph is about the difficulty of electrifying the route.
“Unlike elsewhere on the trans-Pennine routes, work here can start straightaway and would be a quick win. Our plans involve few extra land purchases, no tunnel widening, and no re-routing,” said Daren Hale, Hull City Council and Hull’s representative on the Transport for the North board.
Services to Hull station are as follows.
- Hull Trains – London Kings Cross and Hull via Selby, Howden and Brough.
- Hull Trains – Beverley and Hull via Cuttingham
- LNER – London Kings Cross and Hull via Selby and Brough
- Northern Trains – Halifax and Hull via Bradford Interchange, New Pudsey, Bramley, Leeds, Cross Gates, Garforth, East Garforth, Micklefield, South Milford, Selby and Brough
- Northern Trains – Sheffield and Hull via Meadowhall, Rotherham Central, Swinton, Mexborough, Conisbrough, Doncaster, Kirk Sandall, Hatfield & Stainforth, Thorne North, Goole, Saltmarshe, Gilberdyke, Broomfleet, Brough, Ferriby and Hessle,
- Northern Trains – Bridlington and Hull via Nafferton, Driffield, Hutton Cranswick, Arram, Beverley and Cottingham.
- Northern Trains – Scarborough and Hull via Seamer, Filey, Hunmanby, Bempton, Bridlington, Nafferton, Driffield, Hutton Cranswick, Arram, Beverley and Cottingham.
- Northern Trains – York and Hull via Selby, Howden, Gilberdyke and Brough.
- TransPennine Express – Manchester Piccadilly and Hull via Stalybridge, Huddersfield, Leeds, Selby, Brough
Note.
- Some services are joined back-to-back with a reverse at Hull station.
- I have simplified some of the lists of intermediate stations.
- Services run by Hull Trains, LNER or TransPennine Express use bi-mode Class 800 or Class 802 trains.
- All routes to Hull station and the platforms are not electrified.
Trains approach Hull by three routes.
- Selby and Brough
- Goole and Brough
- Beverley and Cottingham
Could these three routes be electrified?
I have just flown my helicopter along all of them.
I’ve also had a lift in the cab of a Class 185 train between Hull and Leeds, courtesy of Don Coffey.
Hull And Selby via Brough
There is the following infrastructure.
- Several major road overbridges, which all seem to have been built with clearance for overhead wires.
- There are also some lower stone arch bridges, which may need to be given increased clearance.
- No tunnels
- The historic Selby Swing Bridge.
- Four farm crossings.
- Fourteen level crossings.
Hull And Goole via Brough
There is the following infrastructure.
- Several major road overbridges, which all seem to have been built with clearance for overhead wires.
- No tunnels
- A swing bridge over the River Ouse.
- A couple of farm crossings
- Six level crossings
Hull And Beverley via Cottingham
There is the following infrastructure.
- A couple of major road overbridges, which all seem to have been built with clearance for overhead wires.
- No tunnels
- A couple of farm crossings
- Six level crossings
All of the routes would appear to be.
- At least double track.
- Not in deep cuttings.
- Mainly in open countryside.
- Built with lots of level crossings
I feel that compared to some routes, they would be easy to electrify, but could cause a lot of disruption, whilst the level crossings and the two swing bridges were electrified.
Speeding Up Services To And From Hull
What Are The Desired Timings?
The Rail Magazine article says this about the desired timings.
Should the plans be approved, it is expected that Hull-Leeds journey times would be cut from 57 minutes to 38, while Hull-Sheffield would drop from 86 minutes to 50 minutes.
These timings are in line with those given in this report on the Transport for the North web site, which is entitled At A Glance – Northern Powerhouse Rail,
The frequency of both routes is given in the report as two trains per hour (tph)
The Performance Of An Electric Class 802 Train
As Hull Trains, LNER and TransPennine Express will be using these trains or similar to serve Hull, I will use these trains for my calculations.
The maximum speed of a Class 802 train is 125 mph or 140 mph with digital in-cab signalling.
This page on the Eversholt Rail web site, has a data sheet for a Class 802 train.
The data sheet shows the following for a five-car Class 802 train.
It can accelerate to 100 mph and then decelerate to a stop in 200 seconds in electric mode.
The time to 125 mph and back is 350 seconds.
Thoughts On Hull And Leeds
Consider.
- The Hull and Leeds route is 52 miles long, is timed for a 75 mph train and has an average speed of 55 mph
- There are three intermediate stops for fast services, which means that in a Hull and Leeds journey, there are four accelerate-decelerate cycles.
- A 38 minute journey between Hull and Leeds would be an average speed of 82 mph
- A train travelling at 100 mph would take 31 minutes to go between Hull and Leeds.
- A train travelling at 125 mph would take 25 minutes to go between Hull and Leeds.
I also have one question.
What is the speed limit on the Selby Swing Bridge?
I have just been told it’s 25 mph. As it is close to Selby station, it could probably be considered that the stop at Selby is a little bit longer.
These could be rough timings.
- A train travelling at 100 mph would take 31 minutes to go between Hull and Leeds plus what it takes for the four stops. at 200 seconds a stop, which adds up to 43 minutes.
- A train travelling at 125 mph would take 25 minutes to go between Hull and Leeds plus what it takes for the four stops. at 350 seconds a stop, which adds up to 48 minutes.
Note how the longer stopping time of the faster train slows the service.
I think it would be possible to attain the required 38 minute journey, running at 100 mph.
Thoughts On Hull And Sheffield
Consider.
- The Hull and Sheffield route is 61 miles long, is timed for a 90 mph train and has an average speed of 43 mph
- There are five intermediate stops, which means that in a Hull and Sheffield journey, there are six accelerate-decelerate cycles.
- A 50 minute journey between Hull and Leeds would be an average speed of 73 mph.
- A train travelling at 100 mph would take 36 minutes to go between Hull and Sheffield.
- A train travelling at 125 mph would take 29 minutes to go between Hull and Sheffield.
I also have one question.
What is the speed limit on the swing bridge over the River Ouse?
As there is no nearby station, I suspect it counts as another stop, if it only has a 25 mph limit.
These could be rough timings.
- A train travelling at 100 mph would take 36 minutes to go between Hull and Sheffield plus what it takes for the six stops. at 200 seconds a stop, which adds up to 56 minutes.
- A train travelling at 125 mph would take 29 minutes to go between Hull and Sheffield plus what it takes for the six stops. at 350 seconds a stop, which adds up to 64 minutes.
Note how the longer stopping time of the faster train slows the service.
I think it would be possible to attain the required 50 minute journey, running at 100 mph.
Conclusions From My Rough Timings
Looking at my rough timings, I can conclude the following.
- The trains will have to have the ability to make a station stop in a very short time. Trains using electric traction are faster at station stops.
- The trains will need to cruise at a minimum of 100 mph on both routes.
- The operating speed of both routes must be at least 100 mph, with perhaps 125 mph allowed in places.
- I feel the Hull and Leeds route is the more difficult.
I also think, that having a line running at 100 mph or over, with the large number of level crossings, there are at present, would not be a good idea.
What Does Hull Want?
Hull wants what Northern Powerhouse Rail is promising.
- Two tph between Hull and Leeds in 38 minutes and Hull and Sheffield in 50 minutes.
They’d probably also like faster electric services between Hull and Bridlington, London Kings Cross, Manchester, Scarborough and York.
When Do They Want It?
They want it now!
Is There An Alternative Solution, That Can Be Delivered Early?
This may seem to be the impossible, as electrifying between Hull and Leeds and Hull and Sheffield is not an instant project, although full electrification could be an ultimate objective.
Consider.
- Hull and Brough are 10.5 miles apart.
- Brough and Leeds are 41 miles apart.
- Brough and Doncaster are 30 miles apart and Doncaster and Sheffield are 20 miles apart.
- Brough and Temple Hirst Junction are 26 miles apart.
- Brough and York are 42 miles apart.
- Hull and Beverley are 8 miles apart.
- Beverley and Bridlington are 23 miles apart.
- Beverley and Seamer are 42 miles apart.
Note that Doncaster, Leeds and Temple Hirst Junction are all electrified.
Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train
Hitachi have just launched the Regional Battery Train, which is described in this Hitachi infograpic.
It has a range of 56 miles and an operating speed of 100 mph.
Class 800 and Class 802 trains could be converted into Regional Battery Trains.
- The three diesel engines would be exchanged for battery packs.
- The trains would still be capable of 125 mph on fully-electrified routes like the East Coast Main Line.
- They would be capable of 100 mph on routes like the 100 mph routes from Hull.
- The trains would have full regenerative braking to batteries, which saves energy.
- Below 125 mph, their acceleration and deceleration on battery power would probably be the same as when using electrification. It could even be better due to the simplicity and low impedance of batteries.
But they would need some means of charging the batteries at Hull.
A Start To Electrification
If the ultimate aim is to electrify all the lines, then why not start by electrifying.
- Hull station.
- Hull and Brough
- Hull and Beverley
It would only be 18.5 miles of electrification and it doesn’t go anywhere near the swing bridges or about six level crossings.
Battery Electric Services From Hull
I will now look at how the various services could operate.
Note in the following.
- When I say Regional Battery Train, I mean Hitachi’s proposed train or any other battery electric train with a similar performance.
- I have tried to arrange all power changeovers in a station.
- Pantograph operation can happen at line-speed or when the train is stationary.
I have assumed a range of 56 miles on a full battery and an operating speed of 100 mph on a track that allows it.
Hull And London Kings Cross
The legs of the service are as follows.
- Hull and Brough – 10.5 miles – Electrified
- Brough and Temple Hirst Junction – 26 miles – Not Electrified
- Temple Hirst Junction and London Kings Cross – 169 miles – Electrified
Note.
- Hull and Brough takes about 11 minutes, so added to the time spent in Hull station, this must be enough time to fully-charge the batteries.
- Regional Battery Trains will be able to do 56 miles on a full battery so 26 miles should be easy.
- One changeover between power sources will be done in Brough station.
- The other changeover will be done at line speed at Temple Hirst Junction, as it is now!
Hull Trains and LNER would be able to offer an all-electric service to London.
A few minutes might be saved, but they would be small compared to time savings, that will be made because of the introduction of full ERTMS in-cab signalling South of Doncaster, which will allow 140 mph running.
Hull And Leeds
The legs of the service are as follows.
- Hull and Brough – 10.5 miles – Electrified
- Brough and Leeds – 41 miles – Not Electrified.
Note.
- Hull and Brough takes about 11 minutes, so added to the time spent in Hull station, this must be enough time to fully-charge the batteries.
- Regional Battery Trains will be able to do 56 miles on a full battery so 41 miles should be easy.
- One changeover between power sources will be done in Brough station, with the other in Leeds station.
If Leeds and Huddersfield were to be electrified, TransPennine Express will be able to run an all-electric service between Manchester and Hull, using battery power in the gaps.
Hull And Sheffield
The legs of the service are as follows.
- Hull and Brough – 10.5 miles – Electrified
- Brough and Doncaster – 30 miles – Not Electrified
- Doncaster and Sheffield – 20 miles – Not Electrified
Note.
- Hull and Brough takes about 11 minutes, so added to the time spent in Hull station, this must be enough time to fully-charge the battery.
- Regional Battery Trains will be able to do 56 miles on a full battery so 30 miles should be easy.
- Trains would charge using the electrification at Doncaster.
- Doncaster and Sheffield both ways should be possible after a full charge at Doncaster station.
- One changeover between power sources will be done in Brough station, with the others in Doncaster station.
An easier alternative for the Doncaster and Sheffield part of the route, might be to electrify between the two stations.
Hull And York
The legs of the service are as follows.
- Hull and Brough – 10.5 miles – Electrified
- Brough and York- 42 miles – Not electrified
Note.
- Hull and Brough takes about 11 minutes, so added to the time spent in Hull station, this must be enough time to fully-charge the batteries.
- Regional Battery Trains will be able to do 56 miles on a full battery so 42 miles should be easy.
- One changeover between power sources will be done in Brough station, with the other in York station.
- Trains would be fully charged for the return in York station.
This journey will also be effected by the York to Church Fenton Improvement Scheme, which is described on this page on the Network Rail web site. According to the web page this involves.
- Replace old track, sleepers, and ballast (The stones which support the track)
- Install new signalling gantries, lights, and cabling
- Fully electrify the route from York to Church Fenton – extending the already electrified railway from York.
There will be another five miles of electrification., which will mean the legs of the Hull and York service will be as follows.
- Hull and Brough – 10.5 miles – Electrified
- Brough and Church Fenton – 31.5 miles – Not Electrified
- Church Fenton and York – 10.5 miles – Electrified
It is a classic route for a battery electric train.
Note.
- Church Fenton and York takes about 19 minutes, so added to the time spent in York station, this must be enough time to fully-charge the batteries.
- There will be a changeover between power sources in Church Fenton station.
This appears to me to be a very sensible addition to the electrification.
If you look at a Leeds and York, after the electrification it will have two legs.
- Leeds and Church Fenton – 13 miles – Not Electrified
- Church Fenton and York – 10.5 miles – Electrified
It is another classic route for a battery electric train.
Hull And Bridlington
The legs of the service are as follows.
- Hull and Beverley – 13 miles – Electrified
- Beverley and Bridlington – 23 miles – Not Electrified
Note.
- Hull and Beverley takes about 13 minutes, so added to the time spent in Hull station, this must be enough time to fully-charge the batteries.
- Regional Battery Trains will be able to do 56 miles on a full battery so 46 miles to Bridlington and back to Beverley, should be possible.
- The changeovers between power sources would be in Beverley station.
If necessary, there is a bay platform at Bridlington, that could be fitted with simple electrification to charge the trains before returning.
Hull And Scarborough
The legs of the service are as follows.
- Hull and Beverley – 13 miles – Electrified
- Beverley and Seamer- 42 miles – Not Electrified
- Seamer and Scarborough – 3 miles – Not Electrified
Note.
- Hull and Beverley takes about 13 minutes, so added to the time spent in Hull station, this must be enough time to fully-charge the batteries.
- Regional Battery Trains will be able to do 56 miles on a full battery so 45 miles to Scarborough should be easy.
- The changeovers between power sources would be in Beverley station.
There would need to be charging at Scarborough, so why not electrify between Scarborough and Seamer?
- Power changeover would be in Seamer station.
- The electrification could also charge battery electric trains running between York and Scarborough.
- Seamer and York are 39 miles apart.
- All Northern Trains and TransPennine Express services appear to stop in Seamer station.
This could be three very useful miles of electrification.
Could This Plan Based On Battery Trains Be Delivered Early?
The project could be divided into sub-projects.
Necessary Electrification
Only these double-track routes would need to electrified.
- Hull and Brough
- Hull and Beverley
- Seamer and Scarborough
- Doncaster and Sheffield might be sensible but optional.
This also install electrification at Hull and Scarborough stations to charge terminating trains.
In total it would be under twenty-five double-track miles of electrification.
Note.
- There are no swing bridges on the routes to be electrified.
- There are no tunnels
- Many of the overbridges appear to be modern with adequate clearance for electrification.
- I don’t suspect that providing adequate power will be difficult.
- Hull and Scarborough are larger stations and I believe a full service can be provided, whilst the stations are being electrified.
It would not be a large and complicated electrification project.
Conversion Of Class 800 And Class 802 Trains To Regional Battery Trains
Whilst the electrification was being installed, the existing Class 800 and Class 802 trains needed by Hull Trains, LNER and TransPennine Express could be converted to Regional Battery Trains, by the replacement of some or all of the diesel engines with battery power-packs.
I suspect LNER or GWR could be the lead customer for Hitachi’s proposed conversion of existing trains.
- Both train companies have routes, where these trains could be deployed without any electrification or charging systems. Think London Kings Cross and Harrogate for LNER and Paddington and Oxford for GWR.
- Both train companies have large fleets of five-car trains, that would be suitable for conversion.
- Both train companies have lots of experience with Hitachi’s trains.
It should be noted that GWR, Hull Trains and TransPennine Express are all part of the same company.
What About Northern Trains?
Northern Trains will need some battery electric trains, if this plan goes ahead, to run routes like.
- Hull and Bridlington – 46 miles
- Hull and Leeds – 41 miles
- Hull and Scarborough – 42 miles
- Hull and Sheffield – 40 miles
- Hull and York – 42 miles
- Scarborough and York – 31.5 miles
- The distances are the lengths of the route without electrification.
I suspect they will need a train with this specification.
- Four cars
- Ability to use 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- Battery range of perhaps 50 miles.
- 100 mph operating speed.
There are already some possibilities.
- CAF are talking about a four-car battery electric version of the Class 331 train.
- Hitachi have mentioned a battery electric Class 385 train.
- Porterbrook have talked about converting Class 350 trains to battery electric operation.
- Bombardier have talked about battery electric Aventras.
There are also numerous four-car electric trains, that are coming off lease that could be converted to battery electric operation.
When Could The Project Be Completed?
There are three parts to the project.
- Under twenty-five double-track miles of electrification.
- Adding batteries to Class 800 and Class 802 trains.
- Battery electric trains for Northern.
As the sub-projects can be progressed independently, I can see the project being completely by the end of 2024.
Across The Pennines In A Regional Battery Train
By providing the ability to run Class 802 trains on battery power to Hull and Scarborough, the ability to run Regional Battery Trains from Liverpool in the West to Hull, Middlesbrough and Scarborough in the East under electric power, could become possible.
Looking at Liverpool and Scarborough, there are these legs.
- Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Victoria – 32 miles – Electrified
- Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge – 8 miles – Not Electrified
- Stalybridge and Huddersfield – 18 miles – Not Electrified
- Huddersfield and Leeds – 17 miles – Not Electrified
- Leeds and York – 26 miles – Not Electrified
- York and Scarborough – 42 miles – Not Electrified
Note.
- East of Manchester Victoria, there is electrification in Leeds and York stations, which could charge the train fully if it were in the station for perhaps ten minutes.
- Currently, stops at Leeds and York are around 4-5 minutes.
- Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge is being electrified.
- In this post, I have suggested that between Seamer and Scarborough should be electrified to charge the trains.
- I have also noted that between Church Fenton and York is being fully electrified.
This could mean power across the Pennines between Liverpool and Scarborough could be as follows.
- Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Victoria – 32 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge – 8 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- Stalybridge and Huddersfield – 18 miles – Battery Power
- Huddersfield and Leeds – 17 miles – Battery Power
- Leeds station – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- Leeds and Church Fenton – 13 miles – Battery Power
- Church Fenton and York – 10.5 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- York and Seamer – 39 miles – Battery Power
- Seamer and Scarborough – 3 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
There are three stretches of the route, where the train will be run on battery power.
- Stalybridge and Leeds – 35 miles
- Leeds and Church Fenton – 13 miles
- York and Seamer – 39 miles
There will be charging at these locations.
- West of Stalybridge
- Through Leeds Station
- Through York Station
- East of Seamer Station
I feel it could be arranged that trains left the charging sections and stations with a full battery, which would enable the train to cover the next section on battery power.
To make things even easier, Network Rail are developing the Huddersfield And Westtown Upgrade, which will add extra tracks and eight miles of new electrification between Huddersfield and Dewsbury.
This would change the power schedule across the Pennines between Liverpool and Scarborough to this.
- Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Victoria – 32 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge – 8 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- Stalybridge and Huddersfield – 18 miles – Battery Power
- Huddersfield and Dewsbury – 8 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- Fewsbury and Leeds – 9 miles – Battery Power
- Leeds station – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- Leeds and Church Fenton – 13 miles – Battery Power
- Church Fenton and York – 10.5 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
- York and Seamer – 39 miles – Battery Power
- Seamer and Scarborough – 3 miles – Electrification Power and Charging Battery
There are now four stretches of the route, where the train will be run on battery power.
- Stalybridge and Huddersfield – 18 miles
- Dewsbury and Leeds – 9 miles
- Leeds and Church Fenton – 13 miles
- York and Seamer – 39 miles
I can envisage the electrification being extended.
But battery power on this route gives all the advantages of electric trains, with none of the costs and installation problems of electrification.
Conclusion
I believe a limited electrification of lines for a few miles from the coastal terminals at Hull and Scarborough and battery electric trains can deliver zero-carbon and much faster electric trains to the railways of Yorkshire to the East of Leeds, Sheffield and York.
If this approach is used, the electrification will be much less challenging and if skates were to be worn, the scheme could be fully-implemented in around four years.
The scheme would also deliver the following.
- Faster, all-electric TransPennine services.
- An all-electric Hull and London service.
- A substantial move towards decarbonisation of passenger train services in East Yorkshire.
It is also a scheme, that could be extended South into Lincolnshire, across the Pennines to Lancashire and North to Teesside and Tyneside.
Dore And Totley Station – 13th July 2020
These pictures show Dore and Totley station.
These are my thoughts on the station and the tracks through it.
The Midland Main Line And High Speed Two
The two tracks, that are furthest away from the station platform are the Midland Main Line between Sheffield and Chesterfield, Derby and the South.
- These tracks will be taken over by High Speed Two.
- They will be electrified with 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- The trains on the Midland Main Line will continue to use the electrified tracks.
- East Midlands Railway have ordered bi-mode Class 810 trains, which will each be 120 metres long or 240 metres long, when running as a pair.
- CrossCountry’s Class 220 trains are 187 metres long running as a pair.
- I estimate that the faster trains were doing around 100 mph, as they passed Dore and Totley station. I shall measure it properly next time, I go to Sheffield on a train.
Note.
- High Speed Two’s trains will probably be going through at the same speed as East Midlands Railway’s Class 810 trains.
- High Speed Two will be running their 200 metre long classic-compatible trains to and from Sheffield, so except that there will be two more trains in every hour, there will be little difference.
- Both the High Speed Two and the East Midlands Railway trains will be running on electric power between Sheffield and Chesterfield stations.
- It is likely that other services will use electric power on the Midland Main Line.
- There will be no platforms on the High Speed tracks at Dore and Totley station.
I would suspect that there will be little disruption to train services through the area, whilst the electrification is installed, judging by the disruption caused during electrification between Bedford and Corby.
Dore Junction
Dore Junction is a triangular junction, that connects the Hope Valley Line and the Midland Main Line to the South of Dore and Totley station.
This Google Map shows Dore Junction.
Note.
- Dore and Junction station is at the North of the Map.
- Dore West Junction is in the South West corner of the map and leads to the Hope Valley Line.
- Dore South Junction is in the South East corner of the map and leads to Chesterfield on the Midland Main Line.
This second Google Map shows Dore South Junction.
Could this junction be improved to increase capacity and efficiency?
- The Southern track of the triangular junction is only single track.
- It is a major route for stone trains between Derbyshire and London and the South.
If Network Rail have any ideas for Dore Junction, then surely, when the works in the area are being carried out, is the time for them to be performed.
Platform Length At Dore And Totley Station
I took these two pictures when I arrived at Dore and Totley station.
As the train was formed of two two-car Class 150 trains and the train fits the platform, it would appear that the platform is about eighty metres long.
An Extra Platform At Dore And Totley Station
There may be no plans to put platforms on the Midland Main Line, but plans exist for an extra track through the station, that will connect to the Hope Valley Line.
This Google Map shows Dore and Totley station and the Midland Main Line.
The second platform wouldn’t be the widest platform,. but I’m sure a second track and a safe platform could be squeezed in.
- A bridge with lifts would be needed.
- The current single platform at the station is around eighty metres long, but as I said in Beeching Reversal – Sheaf Valley Stations, the platforms must be long enough to take a pair of Class 185 trains or a five-car Class 802 train, which is probably around 140 metres.
I wonder if more space is needed, the Midland Main Line could be realigned to give more space and better performance.
A Turnback At Dore And Totley Station
In Beeching Reversal – Sheaf Valley Stations, I said this about a possible turnback at Dore and Totley station.
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.
Whilst I was at Dore and Totley station, I met a couple, who were perhaps a few years older than me, who had grown up in the area.
He could remember local steam services between Sheffield and Dore and Totley stations, where there had been a turntable to the South of the station to reverse the locomotive.
Conclusion
After what I saw on my visit to Dore and Totley station, I would suspect that the station can be updated to the standard required to allow four tph between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield stations.
It could also be a station that will attract passengers.
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.