The Hook Landslip
This page on the South Western Railway web site is called Landslip Near Hook.
This is the operator’s explanation about what happened and their solution.
Over the weekend of Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 January, heavy rain caused part of a railway embankment to collapse between Hook and Winchfield stations on the South West Main Line, which connects London Waterloo with Basingstoke.
The landslip took place on a very busy part of our route. On a normal weekday morning, around 13 trains per hour run through this section, with services between London Waterloo and Basingstoke, Exeter St Davids, Portsmouth Harbour (via Eastleigh), Salisbury, Southampton Central, Winchester and Weymouth.
The landslip left a 44-metre stretch of track suspended in mid-air and only one of the four tracks available for trains to run on. This severely restricted the number of services we could run between Basingstoke and Woking.
Initial repairs by Network Rail on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 increased the number of trains that we could run to six per hour, however they were still unable to call at Hook from the direction of London.
Network Rail intend to fully complete their repairs by Friday 24 February, and restore services to Hook in the direction of Basingstoke from Monday 13 February.
To do this, engineers will require more access to the railway between Farnborough and Basingstoke overnight. Normally the last service to run between these stations is at around 0100, but to give engineers the time they need, services will now have to end by 2220.
I passes the site today and took these pictures.
Note.
- Network Rail had to build quite a long roadway to access the site.
- Judging by the site full of portacabins, there were a lot of people working on the site.
- There was even someone working on a Sunday.
- The information board was in the subway at Basingstoke station.
- The pictures would have better, if the sun had been in a different direction.
Network Rail have to manage a lot of embankments like this.
GWR Takes Over Battery Train Project
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail News.
This paragraph outlines the takeover.
Great Western Railway has bought equipment from battery train manufacturer Vivarail, which went into administration in December. The purchase has included rolling stock, FastCharge systems and other items. Nine former Vivarail staff have also joined GWR, as it continues to prepare for using a battery unit on the West Ealing to Greenford branch. GWR engineering director Simon Green said: ‘There have clearly been some setbacks that mean we will need to review the existing plans and timescales, but we will continue to work with Network Rail and the Department for Transport to get the project back on track.’
This sounds a very sensible action to me.
- GWR take control of the West Ealing project.
- GWR’s sister company; South Western Railway, probably will get the support they need for the Vivarail trains on the Island Line.
- It may lead to First Group companies using more Vivarail trains on other lines.
I also suspect the deal will mean that the remains of Vivarail has more of a future and someone will buy it, to continue development.
The original press release is on the First Group web site and it is entitled Fast-Charging Battery Trial To Resume After GWR Agrees Deal To Purchase Vivarail Assets.
Thoughts On Extending The Northern Line To Clapham Junction
As I wrote in Northern Line Could Be Extended To Clapham Junction In Regeneration Plans, the extension of the newly-built extension to Battersea Power Station station could be further extended to Clapham Junction station.
Railways Between Battersea And Clapham
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows the tracks that run between the two stations.
Note.
- Battersea Power Station station is in the North-East corner of the map.
- The orange and yellow lines going North from that corner go to Victoria station.
- The orange and yellow lines going North-East from that corner go to Waterloo station.
- The yellow line going West is the West London Line to Shepherds Bush and Willesden Junction stations.
- Clapham Junction station is in the South-West corner of the map.
I estimate that the distance between Battersea Power Station and Clapham Junction stations is about three kilometres.
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows an enlargement of the tracks around Battersea.
Note.
- The tracks going North over the River to Victoria station.
- The tracks going East to Waterloo station.
- The tracks going South West to Clapham Junction station.
- The tracks from Victoria pass over and then join the tracks from Waterloo to continue to Clapham Junction station.
Battersea Power Station station can be seen to the North-East of the junction.
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows an enlargement of the tracks around Battersea Power Station station.
Note how the tracks go through Battersea Power Station station and terminate just before the lines into Victoria station.
It should also be noted that the platforms at Battersea Power Station station are reached using two sets of escalators, so they could be over forty metres below the surface. This would surely make the construction of tower blocks with deep foundations easier over the Northern Line.
But the depth would also enable an extended Northern Line to be below any existing or future construction.
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows the approaches to Clapham Junction station.
There are certainly a lot of tracks through Clapham Junction station.
Reasons For The Extension Of The Northern Line To Clapham Junction
These reasons come to mind.
To Enable Development In The Area
This is always a good reason.
In Network Rail To Outline Business Case For Clapham Junction Redevelopment, I said this.
The Rail Technology Magazine article talks of decking over the whole station and putting two million square feet of development on top. But it also cautions, it would be very expensive.
With that amount of development, there would be a need for as many transport links as possible.
To Improve Access To The Elizabeth Line For Passengers On Trains To And From Victoria
Victoria station does not have an Underground Line, that connects to easily the Elizabeth Line.
The best route to use is described in The Lizzie Line And Circle/District Line Interchange At Paddington – 1st July 2022, where you use the Circle to Paddington.
- To go to the West on the Elizabeth Line, take the Circle/District Line to Paddington.
- To go to the East on the Elizabeth Line, take the District Line to Whitechapel.
- To go to Liverpool Street take the Circle Line all the way.
Getting to the stations between Paddington and Liverpool Street means a change at either of those stations.
At Waterloo, you can use the Northern Line, which has a direct connection to Tottenham Court Road on the Elizabeth Line.
Connecting to the Northern Line at Clapham Junction will give Victoria-bound passengers, the advantages of those going to Waterloo.
An Alternative Way Of Connecting Victoria To The Elizabeth Line
The lack of an easy connection between the Victoria and the Elizabeth Line is a pain and I believe that it was a major omission in the design of the Elizabeth Line.
- Dear Old Vicky has a frequency of upwards of thirty trains per hour (tph)
- With some improvements at stations like Oxford Circus, Highbury & Islington and Walthamstow Central, the line could handle some more passengers.
- More step-free access would also help increase capacity.
- Engineers are a competitive bunch and I could see the day, when Vicky is running at 40 tph.
If Vicky was running at forty full tph, it would be moving 45120 passengers per hour.
This would mean that to match the passenger capacity of the older line, the Elizabeth Line would have to be running at a frequency of thirty tph.
As passengers at the ends of the line have difficulty getting to places like Paddington and Heathrow, a connection between the two Queens would really help.
Vicky was universe-class in the 1960s and now she needs updating to the 21st Century.
This map from cartometro shows the Lines through Bond Street and Oxford Circus stations.
Note.
- The Bakerloo Line is shown in brown.
- The Central Line is shown in red.
- The Elizabeth Line is shown in purple.
- The Victoria Line is shown in light blue.
- The Elizabeth Line is the deepest line.
In addition, consider.
The Eastern exit of the Elizabeth Line at Bond Street station has three escalators and lifts. It also opens onto Hanover Square, so it won’t suffer from overcrowding problems outside.
- Hanover Square is just a garden, with no car park underneath, so pedestrian tunnels could pass under it
- I also suspect there are no existing or planned buildings between the two stations with deep foundations that would block a pedestrian tunnel.
- With the capability and ingenuity of three-D design software, I can see wide tunnels being created that would link Oxford Circus and the two Bond Street stations.
- The new wide tunnels at Bank station have opened up the station’s capacity and all the tunnels were dug traditionally.
- If it was felt to be needed, moving walkways could be added, just as they have been at Bank station.
I am absolutely sure, that by using the ideas and methods, that have worked so well in the upgrade of Bank station, that Oxford Circus and Bond Street stations could be turned into a London Superhub Station, that connects all the Underground lines together and has entrances all over the area.
The benefits of such a station would be.
- It would provide a high-capacity link between London’s two highest-capacity Underground Lines; Elizabeth and Victoria.
- It would provide a high-capacity link between the Elizabeth Line and Euston, St. Pancras and King’s Cross.
- It would provide a high-capacity link between the Elizabeth Line and Victoria.
- It would provide a high-capacity link between the Elizabeth Line and High Speed Two.
- Areas like Brixton, Haringey and Walthamstow would gain a much needed link to the Elizabeth Line for Heathrow and Paddington.
Wikipedia says this about the building of the Bank Station Upgrade.
As part of the development of the scheme, TfL worked with potential bidders to improve the design of the station from TfL’s original design. The design proposed in the winning bid by Dragados was 9.7% cheaper than the original design (saving TfL £60m), took 10 months less time to construct than the original design (the proposed closure of the Northern line was also 5 weeks shorter), and the layout of the station was more efficient. This substantially improved the benefit–cost ratio by 45% to 3.5:1.
The Mayor should be knocking on the door of Dragados and asking them for a price for a design and build for a West End Superhub station.
A Possible Route For The Extension Of The Northern Line To Clapham Junction
I suspect that the simplest route for the extension of the Northern Line would be to bore or dig a twin-track railway underneath the numerous other railways in the area.
It could terminate in two underground platforms at Clapham Junction station.
This is the first map of this post and it shows the tracks that run between the two stations.
Note.
- Battersea Power Station station is in the North-East corner of the map.
- Clapham Junction station is in the South-West corner of the map.
The Western of the pair of orange Lines going off the map in the North-East corner of the map is the Brighton Main Line.
It passes through Battersea Park station.
It passes over the South Western Main Line out of Waterloo.
It then loops to the West and joins the lines to Clapham Junction on the Southern side.
It serves four platforms at Clapham Junction; 12 and 14 are up platforms and 13 and 15 are down platforms.
This Google Map shows an overview of Clapham Junction station.
Note.
- Platforms 1 and 2 at the top of the map, handle London Overground services.
- Platforms 3 to 11 handle South Western Train services.
- Platforms 12 to 17 handle Southern services.
- Platforms 9 and 10 have a Delice de France cafe.
- Platforms 11 and 12 have a Cuppacino cafe.
- Platforms 13 and 14 have the logos.
- All platforms have full step-free access with lifts to the wide footbridge that connects all platforms.
The platforms don’t seem to be very wide and putting stairs and escalators down to underground platforms could be a difficult proposition.
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows shows the platforms at Clapham Junction station and the track layout to the West of the footbridge.
Note.
- The tracks through the platforms are shown in orange.
- The blue dots are platform numbers.
- The bridge connecting all the platforms is shown shaded in the middle of the map.
- To the West of the bridge are Clapham Junction Sidings and Clapham Traincare Depot.
These pictures were taken from the bridge.
Note.
- The top row of pictures were taken looking West.
- The bottom row of pictures were taken looking East.
- Many of the tracks are electrified.
- There is a lot of space to park trains.
Will all the space be needed now, that a new depot has been built at Feltham.
Could Two New Surface Platforms Be Built For The Extension Of The Northern Line To Clapham Junction?
Consider.
- The step-free bridge across all the platforms at Clapham Junction station works well.
- It is connected to the streets around the station at both ends.
- Clapham Junction station will be redeveloped and surplus depot land could be used for housing.
- As the maps show, there is a large gap in the platforms between the South Western Railway and the Southern sides of the station.
- As Battersea Power Station station can turn services on the Northern Line with only two platforms, there would only need to be the same number of Northern Line platforms at Clapham Junction.
So could an extra pair of platforms be built under the bridge, with stairs and a lift similar to the existing platforms?
- The platform would have full step-free access.
- The platforms could be long enough for any future trains.
- There could be sidings for a few trains.
- The tunnels from Battersea Power Station would surface just outside the station.
- There would need to be a crossover or a turnback siding for operational reasons.
I also think, that once the depot and sidings at Clapham Junction have released the space, the new platforms and tracks could be installed without interrupting main line services through the station.
Would The Extension Of The Northern Line Be Electrified?
Consider.
- Merseyrail were not allowed to use third-rail electrification to Headbolt Lane station and had to use batteries.
- The Northern Line was extended to Battersea Power Station station using London’s four-rail electrified system.
- Clapham Junction station has third-rail electrification everywhere.
I think that the authorities would be very churlish not to allow electrification to Clapham Junction.
Conclusion
I believe it is possible to extend the Northern Line to two new surface platforms at Clapham Junction station.
But I also believe that using similar methods to those used in the Bank Station Upgrade, that a full interchange between the Elizabeth and Victoria Lines can be built at Oxford Circus and Bond Street.
.
TransPennine Express Explores Further Fleet And Capacity Expansion Options
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
This is the first paragraph.
First TransPennine Express is hopeful that it will be able to issue a call for expressions of interest in the provision of additional bi-mode trains before the end of March. This follows ‘a healthy level of interest’ in its existing call for expressions of interest in the supply of bi-mode locomotives to replace the Class 68s which work with its MkVa coaches.
I wrote about the expressions of interest to replace the Class 68 locomotives with new bi-mode locomotives in Suppliers Sought For New Bi-Mode Locomotives For TransPennine Express And Great Western Railway.
This was my conclusion in the related post.
When I saw First Group’s proposals, I thought that they were over ambitious.
But after doing a few simple calculations, I think they can decarbonise some, but not all of the TransPennine Express services and the Night Riviera.
So do First Group want to complete the decarbonisation of TransPennine Express services?
These are my thoughts.
The Train Fleet Specification
The Railway Gazette article makes these points about the new bi-mode trains.
- The trains could be existing or new bi-modes.
- It would be desirable for the trains to have a long-term electric-only option.
- Options for this would include removing the diesel engines or converting the trains to battery-electric operation.
- Hydrogen is not mentioned.
- A fleet size of twenty-five trains is mentioned.
- The possibility of electric-only trains in the future is mentioned..
- Five-cars, with the ability to lengthen to six- or seven-cars.
- 200 km/h operation.
There is nothing unusual in the specification.
Will They Be Existing Or New Trains?
I doubt that there are any existing 200 km/h bi-modes in the UK, that are not wanted by their current operators.
I am very certain they will be new trains.
Could The Trains Be Hitachi Class 802 Trains?
The trains sound very much like Hitachi Class 802 trains, that are in service with TransPennine Express, Great Western Railway and Hull Trains, all of whom are First Group companies.
- Long-term, the diesel engines can be removed or replaced with batteries.
- The battery option is under development and should be on test this year.
- The trains can be lengthened to as long as twelve cars, so six- and seven-car trains would be possible.
Hitachi will obviously show interest in this possible order.
Will These Trains Replace the Class 185 Trains?
Consider.
- TransPennine Express have 51 three-car Class 185 trains.
- This is a total of 153 cars.
- On some routes they work singly and on others they work in pairs.
- A three-car Class 185 train has 167 Standard Class and 15 First Class seats or 60.7 seats per car.
- A pair of Class 185 trains have 334 Standard Class and 30 First Class seats.
- A five-car TransPennine Express Class 802 train has 318 Standard Class and 24 First Class seats or 68.4 seats per car.
- It would appear that a Class 802 train is not that far short of the capacity of a pair of Class 185 trains.
- Some of the TransPennine services are very crowded.
I suspect that twenty-five five-car trains be able to handle the the workload of the Class 185 trains.
If a small amount of extra capacity were needed, some of the new trains could be six-cars.
In this section, I have assumed the new trains will be Class 802 trains, but any train manufacturer pitching for this order would adjust the capacity to the needs of TransPennine Express.
The Railway Gazette article says this.
TPE continues to explore opportunities for new services in the north of England, and the move could also feed into government plans for the removal of older and more costly to operate diesel trains elsewhere on the network, should any rolling stock become surplus to requirements at TPE.
So where could the Class 185 trains be used in the future?
Recently, MTU Hybrid PowerPacks have replaced the transmission on a Class 168 train, which reduces carbon emissions and fuel consumption and makes the train quieter and more passenger-friendly, as it doesn’t use diesel in stations.
The Class 185 trains are only fifteen years old and I suspect that MTU have designed the Hybrid PowerPack, so that it can replace the Cummins engine in trains like these.
The conversion could be done as a rolling program, so that any future operator would start with diesel and go hybrid a train at a time.
There has been speculation, that the trains may end up on the East West Railway and I wrote about this in East West Railway Company To Start Second Phase Of Rolling Stock Procurement.
But the East West Railway may prefer to use zero-carbon trains on a route, where there is electrification in places on the route.
Alternatively, South Western Railway run 10 two-car Class 158 trains and 30 three-car Class 159 trains between London Waterloo and Exeter.
- South Western Railway is another First Group company.
- The Class 185 trains could provide a capacity increase.
- The Class 185 trains are 100 mph trains, whereas the Class 158/159 trains are only capable of 90 mph.
The London Waterloo and Exeter Route could be electrified in the future and I am pretty sure, that the Class 185 trains with a hybrid transmission could be a good stand-in until this happens.
Other Train Manufacturers
I believe that Hitachi are in pole position for this order, just because they are an established supplier to both TransPennine Express and First Group.
But twenty-five five-car trains would be a very worthwhile order, so I suspect that companies like Alstom, CAF, Siemens, Stadler and Talgo will also express interest.
Conclusion
Buying extra bi-mode trains will take TransPennine Express further along the route to full decarbonisation.
SWR Says Farewell To ‘456’s
The title of this post, is the same as a section heading in the February 2022 Edition of Modern Railways.
South Western Railways are reducing services because of the pandemic and they are retiring their Class 456 trains, which have been returned to their leasing company; Porterbrook.
- The Class 456 trains are thirty-years old.
- They are two-car third-rail electric trains.
- They have an operating speed of 75 mph.
- They are due to be replaced by new Class 701 trains.
According to the Modern Railways article, they have been put in store by Porterbrook.
But they are not trains in bad condition, as these pictures show.
The trains had a high-class refurbishment in 2014.
In Special Train Offers A Strong Case For Reopening Fawley Line, I discussed the reopening of the Fawley Line.
This is an extract from that post about the rolling stock to use on the line.
South Western Railway’s Innovative Train Plan
This is another quote from the original Rail Magazine article.
However, SWR’s Mark Hopwood favours a much bolder plan. “We’d have to take a decision, once we knew the line was going ahead. But my personal belief is that we should be looking for a modern environmentally-friendly train that can use third-rail electricity between Southampton and Totton and maybe operate on batteries down the branch line.”
Pressed on whether that would mean Vivarail-converted former-London Underground stock, Hopwood adds. “It could be. Or it could be a conversion of our own Class 456, which will be replaced by new rolling stock very shortly. But I don’t think this is the time to use old diesels.
Note.
- Mark Hopwood is now Managing Director of Great Western Railway.
- Great Western Railway and South Western Railway are both First Group companies.
- There are twenty-four Class 456 trains.
I wonder, if the plan that Mark Hopwood hinted at a couple of years ago, is being carried out.
Two dozen, two-car zero-carbon battery-electric trains would do nicely for some of the routes of GWR and SWR.
Converting Class 456 Trains Into Two-Car Battery Electric Trains discusses this possible conversion in detail.
Are First Group Moving Towards Zero-Carbon?
My post, which was entitled Suppliers Sought For New Bi-Mode Locomotives For TransPennine Express And Great Western Railway, prompted me to ask the question in the title of this post.
This factsheet for First Bus says that all their buses will be zero-carbon by 2035.
This factsheet for First Rail says this about Decarbonising Rail Travel.
FirstGroup’s ambition is to be the partner of choice for low or zero emission transport. We recently became the first UK rail and bus operator to formally commit to setting an ambitious science-based target for reaching net zero emissions by 2050 or earlier.
First Rail leads the sector in decarbonisation, including the introduction of bi-mode diesel and electric powered trains which allow us to make best use of electrified networks. We have signed up to the Government’s challenge to take all diesel-only trains out of service by 2040.
GWR has recently taken delivery of the UK’s first tri-mode train which can use overhead wires, third rail or diesel power. Sustainability is at the heart of the NRCs and both SWR and TPE will develop a decarbonisation policy and roadmap towards net zero emissions in accordance with this goal. New all-electric and bi-mode trains will be introduced by Avanti to replace diesel only trains in the current fleet.
Both these factsheets appear to have been written in 2021.
The zero-carbon status of each of First Group’s rail companies is as follows.
Avanti West Coast
The mainstay of Avanti West Coast are fifty-six Class 390 electric trains.
Twenty Class 221 diesel trains are being replaced by ten new Class 807 electric trains and thirteen new Class 805 bi-mode trains.
Great Western Railway
The mainstay of Great Western Railway are a mixture of ninety-three Class 800 and Class 802 bi-mode trains.
They also have thirty-three Class 387 electric trains working London commuter routes.
There are a large assortment of ninety-four diesel trains of various classes working rural routes and local services in Bristol, Exeter, Oxford and Plymouth. There are a lot of these trains in the UK and I suspect that a nationwide solution will be developed.
There are thirty-five Class 43 diesel locomotives, that power the shortened InterCity 125 trains in the South-West. I wrote about converting these to hydrogen in Will We See Class 43 Power Cars Converted To Hydrogen?
Four Class 57 diesel locomotives that haul the Night Riviera are covered by the request for suppliers, that prompted me to write this post.
South Western Railway
The mainstay of South Western Railway are a mixture of around three hundred electric trains.
There are also ten Class 158 diesel trains and thirty Class 159 diesel trains. There are a lot of these trains in the UK and I suspect that a nationwide solution will be developed.
TransPennine Express
The mainstay of TransPennine Express are nineteen Class 802 bi-mode trains and twelve Class 397 electric trains.
There are also fifty-one Class 185 diesel trains.
Fourteen Class 68 diesel locomotives that haul coaches are covered by the request for suppliers, that prompted me to write this post.
Hull Trains
Hull Trains have a fleet of five Class 802 bi-mode trains.
Lumo
Lumo have a fleet of five Class 803 electric trains.
The service is also sold on the basis of its low-carbon footprint.
Conclusion
First Group would appear top have a fair way to go towards full decarbonisation.
- They have around a hundred-and-thirty Hitachi bi-mode trains. Research is ongoing to replace some diesel engines with batteries.
- They have a lot of diesel trains and locomotives, that are still in front-line service.
- They have the tricky problem of the Class 43 locomotives, which I suspect will result in a nationwide solution.
But at least they have started by requesting proposals to replace the other diesel locomotives.
What Happened To The Class 158/159 Bi-Mode Study?
In Class 158/159 Bi-Modes?, I discussed the possibility of turning South Western Railway‘s Class 158 and Class 159 trains into bi-modes.
I said this.
In the March 2018 Edition of Modern Railways, there is a short news item, which is entitled Bi-Mode Study For SWR DMUs.
The Class 158 and Class 159 diesel multiple units used by South Western Railway are diesel-hydraulic units.
Under their franchise agreement, South Western Railway, agreed to perform a study, to see if the multiple units could be converted from diesel-hydraulic to diesel-electric transmission.
If this is successful, then the plan would be to fit a third-rail capability to the trains, so they could use the electrification between Basingstoke and Waterloo on services to Salisbury and Exeter.
Could the conversion also raise the operating speed of the trains from their current 90 mph to a more timetable-friendly 100 mph?
It looks like it could be a feasible , especially as the article states they might re-use redundant modern traction equipment from Class 455 trains, which are due for replacement.
It sounded a sensible plan to do a study.
But we’ve heard nothing since.
- Has the late delivery of the Class 701 trains, pushed the availability of the Class 455 trains, that wioll donate the traction system, too far into the future?
- Has the Covids delayed another project?
- Would First Group prefer more Hitachi trains as five of their companies use them or have them on order?
- Is the 90 mph speed of the diesel trains, too slow for the busy London Waterloo and Basingstoke route?
Or could it be that Alstom, CAF, Hitachi, Stadler or another manufacturer have a much better zero-carbon plan?
GWR To Test Battery Train On Branch Line
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Business UK.
This is the first paragraph.
Great Western Railway has invited expressions of interest in trialling a battery powered train on the 4 km non-electrified branch line from West Ealing to Greenford in west London.
The article says that Vivarail have made a previous proposal, but other companies are also likely to declare their interest.
I feel some unexpected proposals could turn up.
The reason would be commercial,.
This is the last paragraph of the article, which says this.
The challenge on Great Western is we’ve got branches like Greenford, Windsor, Marlow and Henley along the Thames valley, and then in the West Country we’ve got St Ives, Falmouth, Newquay, Looe, Gunnislake and so on’, said Hopwood. ‘If we don’t electrify those could we fit the trains with a battery?’ The ideal solution may be a train that fast charges either at one end of the route or possibly at both ends, or on a route like Marlow, Gunnislake or Looe, where the trains reverse during their journey, could the charge point even be on that part of the branch?’
Note.
- Mark Hopwood is now the Managing Director of GWR.
- Nine branches are mentioned, so with spare trains and maintenance, it could be a good-sized order.
But this project could be even bigger.
South Western Railway are a sister company of Great Western Railway and in August 2020, I wrote Special Train Offers A Strong Case For Reopening Fawley Line about the plans to open the Fawley Line.
This was a section, I wrote about trains that might work the line.
South Western Railway’s Innovative Train Plan
This is another quote from the article.
However, SWR’s Mark Hopwood favours a much bolder plan. “We’d have to take a decision, once we knew the line was going ahead. But my personal belief is that we should be looking for a modern environmentally-friendly train that can use third-rail electricity between Southampton and Totton and maybe operate on batteries down the branch line.”
Pressed on whether that would mean Vivarail-converted former-London Underground stock, Hopwood ads. “It could be. Or it could be a conversion of our own Class 456, which will be replaced by new rolling stock very shortly. But I don’t think this is the time to use old diesels.
This is the same Mark Hopwood, who is now Managing Director of GWR.
These pictures show the current status of one of the twenty-four Class 456 train.
In Converting Class 456 Trains Into Two-Car Battery Electric Trains I discuss this conversion in detail.
Conclusion
Twenty-four battery-electric Class 456 trains would probably go a long way to satisfy GWR’s needs.
The Proposal For Stonehenge And Wilton Junction Station
This article on the Salisbury Journal is entitled Wilton Railway Project On Track As Bid Submitted.
It starts with this paragraph.
An application to reopen the railway station in Wilton has reached the third round of the Restoring Your Railway Ideas Fund.
There are also more details in the February 2021 Edition of Modern Railways.
The following sections give more information and some of my thoughts.
Station Name
The station appears to be called Stonehenge and Wilton Junction in all the articles and reports.
Station Location
This page on the TransWilts web site, says this about the station.
Wilton is at the junction between the Salisbury to Bristol line and the Salisbury to Exeter line.
It is 7 miles to Stonehenge Visitor Centre. A consultants report by Atkins shows an economic case and a developer for housing at the site has been identified. Station cost is in the order of £15m.
This Google Map shows the area.
Note.
- The Wilton Park-and-Ride site at the top of the Map.
- The railway going South-East and North-West across the map is the Wessex Main Line, that links Salisbury and Bristol.
- The railway going South-East and West across the map is the West of England Main Line, that links Salisbury and Exeter.
- Both routes are double track.
It would appear that the new station would have platforms on both rail lines through the station.
Station Design
If Atkins reckon the station can be built for £15 million as I quoted earlier, it can’t be a very grand station.
The Modern Railways article says this about the station.
A park-and-ride facility at the station would reduce congestion in the centre of Salisbury. Improving London services in the proposal improves the cost-benefit ratio, so what is now envisaged is a four-platform station, with platforms on both the TransWilts and the Yeovil to London lines. The thinking is that the new station could work in tandem with the lengthening of the Tisbury loop and other proposals for possible expansion on the South Western route to Exeter that was floated in the latest Network Rail Continuous Modular Strategy.
My feelings are that a radical approach could yield an efficient station with a smaller number of platforms.
Train services through the station could include.
- GWR – Cardiff Central and Portsmouth Harbour – Hourly – Transwilts Lines – Also calls at Salisbury
- GWR – Great Malvern and Brighton or Southampton – Hourly – Transwilts Lines – Also calls at Salisbury
- SWR – London Wareloo and Exeter – Hourly – Yeovil and London Lines – Also calls at Salisbury
There is also talk of extending the Transwilts hourly service between Swindon and Westbury to Salisbury and then on to Southampton via Romsey.
This would do the following.
- Create a link to Southampton Airport.
- Give the new station a Turn-Up-And-Go service to Salisbury.
- The fourth service would mean that three services called on the Transwilts platforms and one service called on the Yeovil and London platforms.
So why not have one large platform between the two pairs of lines?
- It would have a tunnel connecting it to the buses and the car parking.
- One large lift would take passengers with limited mobility to the platform.
- The Southern face of the platform, would handle all trains running on the Yeovil and London line. A single platform can easily handle an hourly fast service in both directions.
- The Northern face of the platform, would handle all trains running on the Transwilts.
- Three trains per hour (tph) in both directions, could probably be handled with some innovation and a long platform.
Why complicate everything with four platforms?
Link To Stonehenge
I haven’t been to Stonehenge since the 1950s, although I have observed it from traffic jams on nearby roads many times.
Surely, there is a chance here to connect the new station and the World Heritage Site with a zero-carbon battery or hydrogen bus.
As the distance between the station and Stonehenge is only about seven miles, it would probably be the easiest way to get large number of visitors to the unique site.
We probably need more well-planned zero-carbon bus links to historic, tourist and other important sites.
Shooter Urges Caution On Hydrogen Hubris
The title of this post is the same as that of an article in the January 2021 Edition of Modern Railways.
This is the first paragraph.
Vivarail Chairman Adrian Shooter has urges caution about the widespread enthusiasm for hydrogen technology. In his keynote speech to the Golden Spanner Awards on 27 November, Mr. Shooter said the process to create ‘green hydrogen’ by electrolysis is ‘a wasteful use of electricity’ and was skeptical about using electricity to create hydrogen to then use a fuel cell to power a train, rather than charging batteries to power a train. ‘What you will discover is that a hydrogen train uses 3.5 times as much electricity because of inefficiencies in the electrolysis process and also in the fuel cells’ said Mr. Shooter. He also noted the energy density of hydrogen at 350 bar is only one-tenth of a similar quantity of diesel fuel, severely limiting the range of a hydrogen-powered train between refuelling.
Mr. Shooter then made the following points.
- The complexity of delivering hydrogen to the railway depots.
- The shorter range available from the amount of hydrogen that can be stored on a train compared to the range of a diesel train.
- He points out limitations with the design of the Alstom Breeze train.
This is the last paragraph.
Whilst this may have seemed like a challenge designed purely to promote the battery alternatives that Vivarail is developing, and which he believes to be more efficient, Mr. Shooter explained: ‘I think that hydrogen fuel cell trains could work in this country, but people just need to remember that there are downsides. I’m sure we’ll see some, and in fact we should because competition improves the breed.’
i think Mr. Shooter may have made several good points.
These are my thoughts.
Creating Green Hydrogen
I haven’t done an analysis of the costs of creating green hydrogen from electrolysis, but I have a feeling, that electrolysis won’t be the only way to create large amounts of carbon-free hydrogen, in a few years.
These methods are currently available or under development or construction.
- The hydrogen tram-buses in Pau have a personal electrolyser, that provides hydrogen at 350 bar.
- London’s hydrogen buses will be provided with hydrogen from an electrolyser at Herne Bay by truck. Will the trucks be hydrogen-powered?
Some industrial processes like the Castner-Kellner process create hydrogen as a by-product.
In Shell Process To Make Blue Hydrogen Production Affordable, I describe the Shell Blue Hydrogen Process, which appears to be a way of making massive amounts of carbon-free hydrogen for processes like steel-making and cement production. Surely some could be piped or transported by truck to the rail depot.
In ITM Power and Ørsted: Wind Turbine Electrolyser Integration, I describe how ITM Power and Ørsted plan to create the hydrogen off shore and bring it by pipeline to the shore.
Note.
- The last two methods could offer savings in the cost of production of carbon-free hydrogen.
- Surely, the delivery trucks if used, must be hydrogen-powered.
- The Shell Blue Hydrogen Process uses natural gas as a feedstock and converts it to hydrogen using a newly-developed catalyst. The carbon-dioxide is captured and used or stored.
- If the local gas network has been converted to hydrogen, the hydrogen can be delivered to the depot or filling station through that gas network.
I very much feel that affordable hydrogen can be supplied to bus, train, tram or transport depot. For remote or difficult locations. personal electrolysers, powered by renewable electricity, can be used, as at Pau.
Hydrogen Storage On Trains
Liquid hydrogen could be the answer and Airbus are developing methods of storing large quantities on aircraft.
In What Size Of Hydrogen Tank Will Be Needed On A ZEROe Turbofan?, I calculated how much liquid hydrogen would be needed for this ZEROe Turbofan.
I calculate that to carry the equivalent amount of fuel to an Airbus A320neo would need a liquid hydrogen tank with a near 100 cubic metre capacity. This sized tank would fit in the rear fuselage.
I feel that in a few years, a hydrogen train will be able to carry enough liquid hydrogen in a fuel tank, but the fuel tank will be large.
In The Mathematics Of A Hydrogen-Powered Freight Locomotive, I calculated how much liquid hydrogen would be needed to provide the same amount of energy as that carried in a full diesel tank on a Class 68 locomotive.
The locomotive would need 19,147 litres or 19.15 cubic metres of liquid hydrogen, which could be contained in a cylindrical tank with a diameter of 2 metres and a length of 6 metres.
Hydrogen Locomotives Or Multiple Units?
We have only seen first generation hydrogen trains so far.
This picture shows the Alstom Coradia iLint, which is a conversion of a Coradia Lint.
It is a so-so train and works reasonably well, but the design means there is a lot of transmission noise.
This is a visualisation of an Alstom Breeze or Class 600 train.
Note that the front half of the first car of the train, is taken up with a large hydrogen tank. It will be the same at the other end of the train.
As Mr. Shooter said, Alstom are converting a three-car train into a two-car train. Not all conversions live up to the hype of their proposers.
I would hope that the next generation of a hydrogen train designed from scratch, will be a better design.
I haven’t done any calculations, but I wonder if a lighter weight vehicle may be better.
Hydrogen Locomotives
I do wonder, if hydrogen locomotives are a better bet and easier to design!
- There is a great need all over the world for zero-carbon locomotives to haul freight trains.
- Powerful small gas-turbine engines, that can run on liquid hydrogen are becoming available.
- Rolls-Royce have developed a 2.5 MW gas-turbine generator, that is the size of a beer-keg.
In The Mathematics Of A Hydrogen-Powered Freight Locomotive, I wondered if the Rolls-Royce generator could power a locomotive, the size of a Class 68 locomotive.
This was my conclusion.
I feel that there are several routes to a hydrogen-powered railway locomotive and all the components could be fitted into the body of a diesel locomotive the size of a Class 68 locomotive.
Consider.
- Decarbonising railway locomotives and ships could be a large market.
- It offers the opportunities of substantial carbon reductions.
- The small size of the Rolls-Royce 2.5 MW generator must offer advantages.
- Some current diesel-electric locomotives might be convertible to hydrogen power.
I very much feel that companies like Rolls-Royce and Cummins (and Caterpillar!), will move in and attempt to claim this lucrative worldwide market.
In the UK, it might be possible to convert some existing locomotives to zero-carbon, using either liquid hydrogen, biodiesel or aviation biofuel.
Perhaps, hydrogen locomotives could replace Chiltern Railways eight Class 68 locomotives.
- A refuelling strategy would need to be developed.
- Emissions and noise, would be reduced in Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street stations.
- The rakes of carriages would not need any modifications to use existing stations.
It could be a way to decarbonise Chiltern Railways without full electrification.
It looks to me that a hydrogen-powered locomotive has several advantages over a hydrogen-powered multiple unit.
- It can carry more fuel.
- It can be as powerful as required.
- Locomotives could work in pairs for more power.
- It is probably easier to accommodate the hydrogen tank.
- Passenger capacity can be increased, if required by adding more coaches.
It should also be noted that both hydrogen locomotives and multiple units can build heavily on technology being developed for zero-carbon aviation.
The Upward Curve Of Battery Power
Sparking A Revolution is the title an article in Issue 898 of Rail Magazine, which is mainly an interview with Andrew Barr of Hitachi Rail.
The article contains a box, called Costs And Power, where this is said.
The costs of batteries are expected to halve in the next years, before dropping further again by 2030.
Hitachi cites research by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) which expects costs to fall from £135/kWh at the pack level today to £67/kWh in 2030 and £47/kWh in 3030.
United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI) are predicting that battery energy density will double in the next 15 years, from 700 Wh/l to 1400 Wh/l in 2-35, while power density (fast charging) is likely to increase four times in the same period from 3 kW/kg to 12 kW/kg in 2035.
These are impressive improvements that can only increase the performance and reduce the cost of batteries in all applications.
Hitachi’s Regional Battery Train
This infographic gives the specification of Hitachi Regional Battery Train, which they are creating in partnership with Hyperdrive Innovation.
Note that Hitachi are promising a battery life of 8-10 years.
Financing Batteries
This paragraph is from this page on BuyaCar, which is entitled Electric Car Battery Leasing: Should I Lease Or Buy The Batteries?
When you finance or buy a petrol or diesel car it’s pretty simple; the car will be fitted with an engine. However, with some electric cars you have the choice to finance or buy the whole car, or to pay for the car and lease the batteries separately.
I suspect that battery train manufacturers, will offer similar finance models for their products.
This paragraph is from this page on the Hyperdrive Innovation web site.
With a standardised design, our modular product range provides a flexible and scalable battery energy storage solution. Combining a high-performance lithium-ion NMC battery pack with a built in Battery Management System (BMS) our intelligent systems are designed for rapid deployment and volume manufacture, supplying you with class leading energy density and performance.
I can envisage that as a battery train ages, every few years or so, the batteries will get bigger electrically, but still be the same physical size, due to the improvements in battery technology, design and manufacture.
I have been involved in the finance industry both as a part-owner of a small finance company and as a modeller of the dynamics of their lending. It looks to me, that train batteries could be a very suitable asset for financing by a fund. But given the success of energy storage funds like Gore Street and Gresham House, this is not surprising.
I can envisage that battery electric trains will be very operator friendly, as they are likely to get better with age and they will be very finance-friendly.
Charging Battery Trains
I must say something about the charging of battery trains.
Battery trains will need to be charged and various methods are emerging.
Using Existing Electrification
This will probably be one of the most common methods used, as many battery electric services will be run on partly on electrified routes.
Take a typical route for a battery electric train like London Paddington and Oxford.
- The route is electrified between London Paddington and Didcot Junction.
- There is no electrification on the 10.4 miles of track between Didcot Junction and Oxford.
If a full battery on the train has sufficient charge to take the train from Didcot Junction to Oxford and back, charging on the main line between London Paddington and Didcot Junction, will be all that will be needed to run the service.
I would expect that in the UK, we’ll be seeing battery trains using both 25 KVAC overhead and 750 VDC third rail electrification.
Short Lengths Of New Strategic Electrification
I think that Great Western Railway would like to run either of Hitachi’s two proposed battery electric trains to Swansea.
As there is 45.7 miles pf track without .electrification, some form of charging in Swansea station, will probably be necessary.
The easiest way would probably be to electrify Swansea station and perhaps for a short distance to the North.
This Google Map shows Swansea station and the railway leading North.
Note.
- There is a Hitachi Rail Depot at the Northern edge of the map.
- Swansea station is in South-West corner of the map.
- Swansea station has four platforms.
Swansea station would probably make an excellent battery train hub, as trains typically spend enough time in the station to fully charge the batteries before continuing.
There are other tracks and stations of the UK, that I would electrify to enable the running of battery electric trains.
- Leeds and York, which would enable carbon-free London and Edinburgh services via Leeds and help TransPennine services. This is partially underway.
- Leicester and East Midlands Parkway and Clay Cross North Junction and Sheffield – These two sections would enable EMR InterCity services to go battery electric.
- Sheffield and Leeds via Meadowhall, Barnsley Dearne Valley and the Wakefield Line, which would enable four trains per hour (tph) between Sheffield and Leeds and an extension of EMR InterCity services to Leeds.
- Hull and Brough, would enable battery electric services to Hull and Beverley.
- Scarborough and Seamer, would enable electric services services to Scarborough and between Hull and Scarborough.
- Middlesbrough and Redcar, would enable electric services services to Teesside.
- Crewe and Chester and around Llandudno Junction station – These two sections would enable Avanti West Coast service to Holyhead to go battery electric.
- Shrewsbury station – This could become a battery train hub, as I talked about for Swansea.
- Taunton and Exeter and around Penzance, Plymouth and Westbury stations – These three sections would enable Great Western Railway to cut a substantial amount of carbon emissions.
- Exeter, Yeovil Junction and Salisbury stations. – Electrifying these three stations would enable South Western Railway to run between London and Exeter using Hitachi Regional Battery Trains, as I wrote in Bi-Modes Offered To Solve Waterloo-Exeter Constraints.
We will also need fast chargers for intermediate stations, so that a train can charge the batteries on a long route.
I know of two fast chargers under development.
- Opbrid at Furrer + Frey
- Vivarail’s Fast Charge, which I wrote about in Vivarail’s Plans For Zero-Emission Trains.
I believe it should be possible to battery-electrify a route by doing the following.
- Add short lengths of electrification and fast charging systems as required.
- Improve the track, so that trains can use their full performance.
- Add ERTMS signalling.
- Add some suitable trains.
Note.
- I feel ERTMS signalling with a degree of automatic train control could be used with automatic charging systems, to make station stops more efficient.
- In my view, there is no point in installing better modern trains, unless the track is up to their performance.
The Anonymous Widower 