Trenitalia To Buy c2c
There are several several articles like this one in Railway Gazette, which is entitled Trenitalia buys c2c to enter UK rail market.
So what will it mean?
Ultimate Ownership
The ultimate ownership of a train operating company seems to have very little difference to the quality of trains and customer service.
I will look at a recent journey I made from Leipzig to Brussels on Deutche Bahn, that I wrote about in Deutsche Bahn’s Idea Of Customer Service.
It was not a good journey and in the post, I say that eutche Bahn is nowhere as good as Chiltern.
And who owns Chiltern? – Deutsche Bahn.
So I suspect we’ll see very few changes on c2c because of the change of ownership, with perhaps the following provisos.
When successful companies are taken over, the Senior Management Team often depart to pastures or in this case railways, new.
The article also says this.
Mick Cash, General Secretary of pro-nationalisation trade union RMT, was less enthusiastic about the announcement. ‘This is yet another part of Britain’s rail operations being sold off to a European state-owned outfit’, he said. ‘This time it is Trenitalia, an Italian operator, that is being given an open door to plunder passengers and the public purse to subsidise rail services in their own country.’
Looking at the mess, that the RMT and its fellow travellers have got Southern into, this could be omnious.
The Future For c2c’s Services
Look at the route map of most rail franchises and a twelve-year-old with a pencil could suggest obvious places where the network could be expanded.
But there are few places , where c2c could expand.
- Reinstate the Tilbury Riverside Branch.
- Direct access to Crossrail at Stratford.
- A Canvey Island Branch
So much of the growth will come from more frequent and faster services to existing destinations, more and better trains and improvements to stations.
There must be scope for Automatic Train Operation (ATO) at the London end of the route to improve capacity and reduce journey times.
Conclusion
I had to scrape together a scenario for the future and it leads me to the conclusion that c2c is virtually fully developed. So have National Express decided to sell c2c, as it is a mature asset, that is worth more to xomebody else. Especially, a new entrant to the UK rail market, who wants to know how to run a UK train franchise.
In some ways it’s a bit like a bank selling on a long-term loan to a blue-chip company, to another back.
Never Underestimate Scousers With Ambition
I was looking up something at Liverpool University and came across the Liverpool Knowledge Quarter, which is a project to do what it says in the name.
One development is Paddington Village.
This is said.
Paddington Village is a £1bn flagship expansion site sitting at the eastern gateway to the city centre and has been earmarked as 1.8m sq ft of science, technology, education and health space.
In November 2016 a draft masterplan was published, outlining the plans for the site, which will be developed in three phases: Paddington Central, Paddington South and Paddington North, with phase one due to commence in the coming months.
At 30 acres, Paddington is a sizeable urban village, inspired by the sense of community you’d find in the likes of Greenwich Village in New York. Not only will it be a great place to live but a great place to work, discover and socialise, with state-of-the art workspace, labs, cafés, restaurants, shops, accommodation, a hotel and teaching, examination and events space.
The sites first two anchor tenants have already been announce and will see as new Northern Centre of Excellence for the Royal College of Physicians and a new 45,000 sq ft education and learning facilities and 262 residential bed spaces for Liverpool International College. There are also plans in place for a new train station, making this phase two of the Paddington Village development key to the new transport infrastructure for the area.
I also found some more about the Paddington Square station in other places.
This news item in the Liverpool Echo says or implies the following.
- The new station would use some existing tunneling like the Edge Hill Spur.
- The new station would connect to the City, Northern and Wirral Lines.
- The new station would be close to the new Royal Liverpool Hospital.
- The vision is to have in built in five years.
I talked about Merseyrail’s new trains in Thoughts On Merseyrail’s New Trains.
This Google Map shows the area.
Note.
- Lime Street station is at the West and Edge Hill station is in the East.
- The lines into Lime Street are a dark scar between the two stations.
- The Royal Liverpool Hospital is at the top of the map and I think the triangular site to the East will be Paddington Village with Paddington Square station.
Note that there are three abandoned freight tunnels leading from the Docks to Edge Hill station.
On which one will Paddington Square station be built?
I talked about Merseyrail’s new trains in Thoughts On Merseyrail’s New Trains.
This map from Wikipedia, shows the Loop Line under the Centre of Liverpool.
Liverpool Loop Line
Could trains come in from the East and feed into this loop?
At present 12 trains per hour (tph) come in from the Wirral Line and after stopping at James Street, Moorfields, Lime Street, Central and James Street again, they go back under the Mersey to Birkenhead.
So could trains from Edge Hill join the loop and go through Lime Street, Central and Morrfield stations before going back to Edge Hill?
If the loop was running under Automatic Train Operation (ATO) with the new Stadler trains, I suspect that the Loop could probably handle upwards of the current 12 tph. Perhaps even 24 tph, which could give.
- 4 tph to Manchester via Warrington
- 4 tph to Wigan
- 4 tph to Chester via Runcorn and the Halton Curve.
Or whatever Merseyrail thought was the correct service.
Liverpool would have a unique underground railway.
It could be a superb urban railway, with services to the following destinations, from all stations in the Loop.
- Chester
- Ellesmere Port
- Hunts Cross
- Kirkby
- Liverpool Airport
- Manchester
- Manchester Airport
- New Brighton
- Ormskirk
- Preston
- Rock Ferry
- Southport
- Warrington
- Wigan
- West Kirby
- Wrexham
Passengers going between say Chester and Wigan would get off at Moorfields and wait for the next Wigan train.
These tunnels were only built in 1977 and the loop is due for updating in the first half of 2017, so at least the tunnellers will know where everything is buried.
One advantage is putting all the suburban services in the basement, is that this would release platforms for services to Glasgow, across the Pennines and for HS2.
It certainly seems to be a project that can be realised.
It is an ambitious project, but then who can forget four lads from Liverpool in the 1960s, who had ambition and just imagined?
Network Rail Get The Project Management Wrong Again!
This article in Rail Technology Magazine is entitled Kenilworth station opening delayed until December 2017.
This is said.
Warwickshire County Council has announced that the new station in Kenilworth will now not be opened until this December due to track and signalling issues, one year after services were meant to begin running.
The station will now open on 10 December 2017 after a revised deadline of August this year was pushed back further, with the opening already postponed from the initial date of December 2016.
Surely, if Network Rail agreed to the Aufgust 2017 date, they felt they could meet it.
There is some very bad Project Managment going on, if you agree a date of August 2017, which in a short time slips to December.
If say it was a serious problem, like old mine workings, that had not been foreseen, then the cause of the delay would be disclosed.
Strikes, Carnage and Threats
The title of this post is the same as that of an article in Rail Magazine, about the strikes on Southern.
I won’t pass any opinion and urge you to read the article.
Driver Only Operation Problems On The London Overground
This article in the Hackney Gazette is entitled Highbury-bound trains disrupted every day for Overground commuters.
As the East London Line trains share tracks with Southern trains, to the South of the Thames, the delays are caused by the Driver Only Operation dispute on that network.
Perhaps we need a referendum!
TfL Seeks New Procurement Plan For Metropolitan Line Extension
This is the title of an article in Construction News.
With money tight because of several factors, including Brexit and the Mayor’s fare freeze, the article states that Transport for London is looking for ways to save money on the Metropolitan Line Extension or as it was formerly known, the Croxley Rail Link.
I looked at this project recently in Is The Croxley Rail Link To Be Given Lower Priority?, and came to the following conclusion.
I believe that Watford will get a better train service, whether the Croxley Rail Link is built or not.
Politics will decide the priority of the Croxley Rail Link, with the left-leaning South Londoner Sadiq Khan on one side and right-leaning Bucks-raised Chris Grayling on the other. In some ways, Watford is a piggy-in-the-middle.
My feeling is that on a Londonwide basis, that the Bakerloo Line Extension to Watford, solves or enables the solution of a lot of wider problems and the Croxley Rail Link is much more a local solution.
This leads me to the further conclusion, that the Croxley Rail Link should return to its roots and become a more Hertfordshire-centric project.
Objectives Of The Project
The objectives of the project could be something like.
- Provide better links between Watford Junction across Watford to Rickmansworth and/or Amersham, serving the High Street, Watford Hospital and Vicarage Road Stadium.
- Keep the project as simple as possible.
- Build the link very much on existing infrastructure.
A subsidiary objective is that it should enable better links to London, for areas in Watford, where they need improvement.
There are various projects in the pipeline, that could substantially increase capacity to Watford.
- The Metropolitan Line is being upgraded in the Four Lines Modernisation.
- Watford station is a sizeable two-platform station that could probably handle more trains to London on the current route
- The Watford DC Line is receiving new four-car Class 710 trains.
- Will these trains work as eight-car trains to increase capacity?
- The Bakerloo Line is being extended to Lewisham and all those trains will have to go somewhere at the Northen end; Haarow and Wealdstone or Watford Junction?
- Crossrail, the new London Midland Franchise and HS2 will have positive effects on services from Watford Junction station.
Transport for London’s passenger figures will show which is the capacity increase most needed.
Issues And Questions
I will ask a few questions first.
What Are The Current Passenger Numbers At Metropolitan Line Stations?
These are 2015 figures.
- Croxley – 1.06 million
- Moor Park – 0.89 million
- Rickmansworth – 2.44 million
- Watford – 1.85 million
For comparison, I’ll add these nearby Metropolitan Line stations.
- Amersham – 2.29 million
- Chalfont & Latimer – 1.44 million
- Chesham – 0.88 million
- Chorleywood – 1.14 million
- Harrow-on-the-Hill – 10.26 million
- Pinner – 3.08 million
And then there’s Watford High Street station on the Watford DC Line, which managed 1.15 million in 23014/15.
How will Passenger Numbers Change, If The Croxley Rail Link Is Built?
I’ve seen no projections!
Why Shut Watford Station?
There has been considerable protests about the shutting of Watford station. This is an extract from the station’s Wikipedia entry under Future.
The plan to close the station has been the subject of some local opposition, and campaigners have argued for the station to remain open with a reduced shuttle service operating on the branch. In 2012 the transport watchdog London TravelWatch compiled a report on the closure plans which concluded that inconvenience to passengers would be alleviated by the new stations being opened in the area, and that a small number of existing passengers would experience an increase in journey times of more than 15 minutes. It recommended that a shuttle train service should be trialled, and that in the event of closure a bus service should be provided from Cassiobury to one of the new stations to mitigate any inconvenience.
Consider.
- Currently Watford station has a four trains per hour (tph) service to Baker Street station in the Off Peak.
- It handles more trains in the Peak.
- It is also a two-platform terminal station, so it could probably handle at least 5-6 tph, if they were needed.
- Watford services use the four-track London to Aylesbury Line to get to and from London.
- Watford station seems to attract similar levels of traffic to other stations in the area.
On the other hand, closing the station could release a valuable site for development.
At a rough look, there would have to be some very pressing reasons to close Watford station.
Will The Bakerloo Line Be Extended To Watford?
I’m asking this question first, as it does have an affect on both the Watford DC Line and the Croxley Rail Link.
There are some handy platforms at Watford Junction, but is it the best way to increase capacity between Queen’s Park station and Watford?
I think that the platform height issue of mixing deep-level Underground and Overground trains will become increasingly important.
- The rebuilt centre section and the Southern extension of the Bakerloo Line will be substantially step free to modern standards.
- Passengers in wheelchairs and buggy pushers will rightly expect easy roll-across access to the trains.
- The Northern platforms could possibly be rebuilt, but they would probably be operationally complicated and would still need ramps to be used.
The most Northerly station on the Bakerloo Line, where full step-free access is possible is Queen’s Park station.
- The station is a major terminus for Bakerloo Line trains, where 11 tph out of 20 tph in the Off Peak change direction.
- There is step-across access between Bakerloo and Watford DC Line services at the station.
- If Bakerloo Line frequencies were increased to say 25-30 tph, it would probably be easier if extra services were terminated at Queen’s Park.
So could we see the Bakerloo Line cut back to Queen’s Park and services North of the station handled to a greater extent by the London Overground?
- The Watford DC Line service could go to at least the preferred 4 tph all day.
- If more capacity is needed in the Peak , would it be better to run some of the new Class 710 trains as eight-car trains.
- Bakerloo Line trains could still run on the line to access the depot at Stonebridge Park and to provide services for grumpy old die-hards, who won’t change at Queen’s Park.
- Passengers needing step-free access would change to the Overground at Queen’s Park.
North of Stonebridge Park station, the line would be served exclusively by the new Class 710 trains.
- One train type on a line must be more efficient.
- Is a mix of four- and eight-car Class 710 trains better than the current five-car Class 378 trains?
- As there are nine stops between Stonebridge Park and as the Class 710 trains are optimised for fast stops, would a reduction in journey time be possible?
- Staff would only be dealing with one type of train.
- Passengers would have a Turn-Up-And-Go 4 tph service.
It might also make it a lot easier to introduce other services like Barking, New Cross or Stratford to Watford, if such services were needed.
A Personal Note – I regularly change at Willesden Junction stations to go to places on the Watford DC Line. A direct train from Canonbury or one of the Dalston stations would be welcomed by myself and the many others who seem to change at Willesden Junction.
Because of these and other issues, I would be very surprised to see the Bakerloo Line extended to Watford.
A Simpler Proposal
I think it would be possible to design a simpler link with the following characteristics.
- Watford station would remain open.
- A four tph link would run all day between Watford Junction and Amersham stations.
- Stops would be at Watford High Street, Vicarage Road, Cassiobridge, Croxley, Rickmansworth, Chorleywood and Chalfont & Latimer.
No-one would get a worse service than currently and the new stations of Cassiobridge and Vicarage Road, would make rail an alternative for many travellers.
The cross-Watford service would give access to these London services.
- Chiltern at all stations between Croxley and Amersham.
- London Midland at Watford Junction,
- Metropolitan Line at Croxley, Rickmansworth and Amersham.
- Virgin Trains at Watford Junction,
- Watford DC Line at Watford High Street and Watford Junction
The Bakerloo Line at Watford Junction and Watford High Street, could possibly be added, if the line is extended. Which I doubt, it will be!
I will cover issues in the next few sections.
How Long Will A Journey Take From Amersham To Watford Junction?
Consider.
- Amersham to Croxley takes about 30 minutes, but it does involve a change to a bus.
- The Overground takes three minutes between Watford Junction and Watford High Street stations.
- Chiltern Railways achieve a twelve minute time between Amersham and Rickmansworth.
I suspect that a modern train like one of London Overground’s Class 378 trains could do the journey in a few minutes under half-an-hour.
Why Four Trains Per Hour?
Four tph is becoming a standard, as it encourages Turn-Up-And-Go behaviour from travellers.
It also fits well with keeping the four tph service to Watford station, as this could give a same platform interchange at Croxley stastion.
What Class Of Train Could Be Used?
Four-car Class 378 trains or the new Class 710 trains would be ideal.
They could even use the redundant two-car Class 172 trains from the Gospel Oak to Barking Line.
I would suspect that the length of the Metropolitan Line’s S Stock trains, might cause problems at Watford Junction station. The manufacture of these trains has also finished. So could a few more be ordered?
How Many Trains Would Be Needed?
If the trains could do an Out-and-Back journey in an hour, then four trains would be needed to provide a four tph service.
Will The Link Have Any Other Services?
I have seen to plans to use the line for any other passenger or freight services.
Will There Be Infrastructure Issues At Existing Stations?
As all of the trains, I’ve mentioned and the London Underground S Stock trains, share platforms all over North West London, the answer is probably no, with the exception of a few minor adjustments to signs and platforms.
Would The New Track Be Electrified?
The only part of the route that is not electrified is the about three miles of new track between the Watford Branch and the Watford DC Line.
All current electrification is either third-rail or to the London Underground standard. and any future electrification would probably be to the London Underground standard, so that S Stock can work the route.
But if the route were to be worked using Class 172 trains, the new track could be built without electrification.
In addition, I believe that the Class 710 trains will have a limited onboard energy storage capability, which could enable the trains to bridge the cap in the electrification between Watford High Street and Croxley stations.
How much would not electrifying the new track save?
Will The New Stations Have Two Platforms?
I believe that money can be saved by creating simple stations at Cassiobridge and Vicarage Road.
- Only one platform, but probably an island platform with two faces like Watford High Street station.
- No expensive footbridge if possible.
- Only one lift.
Cassiobridge would be more complicated because of the viaduct connecting the line towards Croxley station.
This visualisation shows the viaduct and the location of Cassiobridge station.
Cassiobridge station will be behind the trees towards the top-right of the image.
Would The New Track Be Single Or Double-Track?
There is space for double-track and the two ends of the route are already electrified double-track.
But surely the viaduct shown above would be much more affordable, if it were to be built for only one track!
Trains would need to pass at places East of Croxley station, but then if the line was double-track through and to the East of Cassiobridge station, trains could pass with impunity.
On the other hand, too much single-track is often regretted.
Croxley Station
Croxley station would be unchanged.
But in addition to the 4 tph between Baker Street and Watford, there would be 4 tph between Watford Junction and Amersham.
Platform 1 would handle.
- Baker Street to Watford
- Amersham to Watford Junction
Platform 2 would handle.
- Watford to Baker Street
- Watford Junction to Amersham
This would mean that if the trains alternated, the maximum wait for a connection would be about 7.5 minutes.
What I feel would be the two most common connections, would just involve a wait on the same platform.
I suspect that those, who timetable trains, would come up with a very passenger-friendly solution.
Watford Station
A property developer once told me, that the most profitable developments, are those where a railway station is involved.
The Platforms At Watford Station
So would the development of the extension involve a rebuild of Watford station to provide the following?
- A modern future-proofed station, with all the capacity that might be needed in the next forty years or so.
- Appropriate housing or commercial development on top of the new station.
- Sensible amounts of parking for travellers.
With four tph to and from London in the basement, it would surely be a profitable development.
Watford Junction Station
Watford Junction station has four bay platforms 1-4, that handle the three tph service on the Watford DC Line.
At stations like Clapham Junction, Crystal Palace, Dalston Junction, Highbury and Islington and New Cross, single platforms handle four tph with ease for London Overground services.
This means that handling four tph to Amersham in addition to current services would not be difficult.
The only work, that I think should be done, is make sure that these platforms are long enough to take two of the future Class 710 trains working as an eight-car train.
There could even be two platforms left for Bakerloo Line services, if it were to be decided, that these services would go to Watford Junction.
Elton John Plays Vicarage Road Stadium
This or some football matches at Vicarage Road Stadium, would be the biggest test of the Link.
Note the following.
- Some stations like Watford High Street can already handle longer trains than the hundred metre long, five-car Class 378 trains they currently do.
- Some stations like Croxley can handle the 133 metre long S Stock trains used on the Metropolitan Line.
So to future-proof the Link for massive one-off events would it be sensible to make the platforms long enough for eight-car trains or two Class 710 trains working as a pair?
Benefits
The benefits of this approach are as follows.
- Watford station keeps its current service to London.
- Watford gets a four tph link across the South of the town, serving the Shopping Centre, the Hospital and the Stadium.
- Amersham to Croxley stations get a link to the West Coast Main Line.
- It could be built as a single track line without electrification.
- Trains to run the services could be more easily available.
- Simple island platform-based stations could be built at Cassiobridge and Vicarage Road.
In addition, Chiltern Railways, London Midland, London Overground and Underground, all gain a feeder railway bringing travellers to their services to and from London.
Cost Savings
Note.
- Transport for London needs cost savings on this project.
- Redevelopment of Watford station as a station with oversite development could raise a lot of money.
- The Croxley Link could be built as a single-track link without electrification and run initially run using Class 172 trains.
I also feel, that building the line this way would deliver it earlier, thus improving cash-flow.
The simple link would need at the minimum.
- A single- or double-track railway without electrification between Croxley and Watford High Street stations.
- Two stations with island platforms at Cassiobridge and Vicarage Road
- A viaduct to connect Cassiobridge station to the Watford Branch.
Four Class 172 trains would work the service, after being released by the arrival of Class 710 trains on the Gospel Oak to Barking Line.
If skates were worn, the link could probably open in 2020.
Conclusion
A simpler and more affordable design for the Metropolitan Line Extension is surely possibly.
A Timelapse Video Of Ordsall Bridge Replacement Over Christmas 2016
I have created a post of this video, to make it easy to find.
I was pointed to the video from this page from Place North West.
Mortlake Station With A Level Crossing
I walked West from Barnes station and came to Mortlake station.
It also had the inevitable level crossing.
The only positive thing to be said for the level crossing, is that it is at a station.
This means that train schedules can be arranged, so that trains can go through the station a few minutes apart and utilise the same level crossing closure.
A Level Crossing In White Hart Lane, Barnes
perhaps five hundred metres to the West of the level crossings I wrote about in A Pair Of Level Crossings At Vine Road, Barnes, there another one in White Hart Lane, Barnes.
When this line was built in the 1840s, they certainly left a big problem for Network Rail.
This Google Map shows the area around the crossing.
A Level Crossing In White Hart Lane, Barnes
You can find a lot of news items about this crossing on the Internet.
This article in the Local Guardian is entitled Campaigners claim ‘dangerous’ level crossing in Barnes is putting children’s lives at risk.
This is an extract.
Concerned residents have launched a campaign calling for Network Rail to install a footbridge to cope with the “very high footfall of schoolchildren” using the crossing.
They were also expecting help from the local MP; Zak Goldsmith.
Whatever happening to him?
A footbridge could work, but it wouldn’t be easy.
- Kids being walked to school, as I witness every day outside my house, are often accompanied by scooters, bikes, siblings ion buggies etc.
- How many of the local residents would object to a footbridge outside their house?
- Would the footbridge have lifts for those in wheelchairs?
- There is no station, which makes a solution easier.
- How difficult is an alternative driving route?
An affordable solution will be very difficult.
How Will Crossrail 2 Affect Kingston?
This post was suggested to me, by this page on the Kingston Council web site, which is entitled Crossrail 2 to bring major benefits to the Royal Borough of Kingston.
After a couple of trips to the area in the last week or so, I thought I’d better have a look.
So what have I found already.
Waterloo Station Suburban Services Going To Crossrail 2
In An Analysis Of Waterloo Suburban Services Proposed To Move To Crossrail 2, I looked at services into Waterloo , that could be going to Crossrail 2.
These suburban termini and their routes are due to be connected to Crossrail 2.
Wikipedia says this about Crossrail 2 services to the South West, after surfacing from the tunnel South of Wimbledon station.
- 20 tph at Raynes Park
- 8-10 tph at Motspur Park
- Exclusive use of the Chessington Branch Line to Chessington South (4 tph)
- Mixed use of the Raynes Park – Epsom line to Epsom (Sutton and Mole Valley Lines) (4-6 tph)
- 10-12 trains per hour at New Malden
- Exclusive use of the Hampton Court Branch Line to Hampton Court (4 tph) with interchange at Surbiton
- Shared use of the Shepperton Branch Line with 6-8 tph to Teddington and 4 trains per hour to Shepperton
My analysis shows that this pattern of service can be handled in two ways.
- Using a Crossrail 2 tunnel from Wimbledon.
- Using a dedicated high-capacity two-track line with Crossrail/Thameslink-style Automatic Train Operation (ATO), into an updated Waterloo.
So as far as Kingston is concerned, the Royal Borough will get the same improved levels of service, whether Crossrail 2 is built or not, as the only difference will be North of Wimbledon.
Station And Track Improvements On The Branch Lines
This will be the one major set of works that will effect Kingston.
- Installation of lifts and platform improvements to make the proposed Crossrail 2 stations step-free.
- Removal of level crossings on the Crossrail 2 branches.
I don’t know anything specific, but all stations and level crossings on Crossrail 2 routes will certainly be assessed.
New Trains
A big change will be the trains running on all the South-Western suburban lines out of Waterloo.
- All platforms in Waterloo station are being lengthened to take ten-car trains.
- The Hounslow Loop Line was recently updated with ten-car platforms.
- All the latest trains bought by South West Trains are in sets of five-cars, which can run as pairs to create a ten-car train.
I’ve read somewhere that South West Trains are going for a ten-car railway.
\As the new trains for the Essex suburban services of Greater Anglia, are also a mixture of five- and ten-car trains, there must be some magic in the train length.
What will be the capabilities of these trains?
- 100-mph or more cruising speed.
- Impressive acceleration and braking.
- Wide lobbies for fast loading and unloading of passengers.
- Level access between train and platform.
- Wheelchairs, buggies and heavy cases will just roll across.
- The ability to run under limited ATO.
- Lots of driver assistance systems.
- Driver Only Operation (DOO)
The trains will be truly-revolutionary and because their design coud result in upwards of a minute being saved at every stop.
At present trains are conservatively timetabled, as no-one wants late trains, but if a route is served exclusively by these new breeds of high-performance easy-entry trains, designed for a particular route, jouirney times will shorten.
The first trains of this standard to be introduced will be the Class 345 trains for Crossrail, which will start running between Liverpool Street and Shenfield stations in May 2017. The published timetables show a saving of about five minutes on the journey.
I believe this is just a taster of what can be achieved.
If trains of this type were to be run on the suburban branches from Waterloo, this would do the following.
- Introduce four tph on all routes.
- Introduce ten-car trains on all routes.
- Reduce journey times on all routes.
- I believe total out-and-back times from Waterloo will be reduced to under an hour, as this drammatically reduces the number of trains needed to provide 4 tph.
These trains will be introduced if Crossrail 2 is built or not. The recently-purchased Class 707 trains, will probably offer the same performance improvements as Crossrail’s Class 345 trains.
So what will these trains do for Kingston?
- The fastest journeys between Kingston and London Waterloo stations currently take 28 minutes with seven stops.
- So Kingstonians will probably see times of around twenty minutes on this route, using ten-car trains, that stop at the same stations.
- It won’t be just one train an hour, but every train via Wimbledon, will achieve these timings.
Wikipedia says current hourly Off Peak services is as follows.
- 6 to Waterloo, of which:
- 4 run via Wimbledon
- 2 run via Richmond and Twickenham
- 2 to Shepperton
But with new trains, there could be the following increases in services.
- 4 tph instead of 2 tph to Shepperton
- 4 tph instead of 2 tph on the Kingston Loop
This well mean the services at Kingston could be.
- 10 to Waterloo, of which:
- 8 run via Wimbledon
- 4 run via Richmond and Twickenham
- 4 to Shepperton
This will mean Kingston to Waterloo will see a 67% increase in frequency and every train will be new ten-car trains.
The Anonymous Widower 