St. Pancras And Leicester Via Corby
This OpenRailwayMap shows the route between Kettering and Leicester via Corby.
Note.
- Kettering station is in the bottom right corner of the map.
- Kettering is on the Midland Main Line from St. Pancras.
- North of Kettering the route splits into two.
- The Midland Main Line goes North-West through Market Harborough to Wigston junction and Leicester.
- The Midland Main Line is electrified to Wigston junction.
- The Corby branch goes North-East to Corby, which is indicated by a blue arrow.
- The Corby branch is electrified to Corby.
On Saturday, I went to Leicester and because there were engineering works at Market Harborough, the train went via Corby.
Over The Welland Viaduct
After Corby, the train went over the Welland Viaduct and I took these pictures.
It is an impressive viaduct and is the longest viaduct across a valley in the United Kingdom.
I have some further thoughts.
Could The Corby Service Be Extended to Leicester?
Consider.
- Between Corby and Leicester is 40.8 miles of track without electrification.
- Trains could call at Oakham, Melton Mowbray and Syston stations.
- Oakham, Melton Mowbray and Syston stations, could be given an appropriate number of trains every day to Leicester, Corby, Kettering, Wellingborough, Bedford, Luton, Luton Airport Parkway and London St. Pancras International stations.
- No new infrastrructure would be needed.
- I suspect an hourly service would be sufficient.
I am fairly sure that a Class 810 train fitted with batteries could work the route.
Leicester, Oakham, Melton Mowbray And Syston Stations Would Get A Direct Connection To Luton Airport
Some travellers might find this very useful.
Leicester Station Would Have A Neat Passenger Drop-Off For Luton Airport
I wrote about this in Busiest UK Airports Raise Kiss-and-Fly Fees, Says RAC.
Every rail station needs a passenger drop-off as good and affordable as the one at Leicester station.
Could East Midlands Railway Run A St. Pancras And Leeds Service?
East Midlands Railway’s new Class 810 trains have been designed, so that a pair will fit into one platform at St. Pancras.
If we assume one platform at St. Pancras is used for the Corby and Luton Airport Express services, that leaves three platforms for pairs of Class 810 trains to run expresses to the East Midlands.
This could be as many as twelve pairs of five-car trains per hour.
Where wioll they all terminate in the North?
Leeds station must be the obvious new destination.
- Leeds has the largest population and is the largest commercial and finance centre in Yorkshire and the North-East.
- Leeds would have gained three trains per hour (tph) from London, two tph from Birmingham and four tph from the East Midlands Hub at Nottinham.
- Leeds is getting a brand new metro.
- Leeds is a fully-electrified station, so it could charge the trains before they return to Sheffield, Leicester, Wigston junction and St. Pancras.
- Leeds and Wigston junction is 107.8 miles, which should be within the range of a battery-electric Class 810 train. If it is too far, an extended stop could be taken at Sheffield to top up the batteries.
- Note that Stadler hold the Guinness World Record for the greatest distance covered on one charge at 139 miles. Hitachi Rail, who are partnered with JCB’s battery-maker in Sunderland, should be able to smash that.
The Rail Minister; Lord Peter Hendy went to Leeds University.
Which Route Would The Trains Take Between Sheffield And Leeds?
Consider.
- The fastest trains between Sheffield and Leeds, go via Meadowhall, Barnsley and Wakefield Kirkgate stations.
- Trains take about an hour.
- The current frequency is two tph.
- The distance is 41.1 miles with no electrification.
A frequency of two additional tph between St. Pancras and Leeds would give the following.
- A nice round four tph between Yorkshire’s two most important cities.
- Four fast tph between Meadowhall, Barnsley and Wakefield Kirkgate stations, and Leeds and Sheffield.
- Two direct trains between Meadowhall, Barnsley and Wakefield Kirkgate, and Chesterfield, Derby, Long Eaton, East Midlands Parkway, Loughborough, Leicester and St. Pancras.
It would be complimentary to any Leeds Metro.
Could East Midlands Railways Also Serve Huddersfield?
Consider.
- Huddersfield is 36.4 miles further than Sheffield on the Penistone Line, which is not electrified.
- Wigston junctionand Huddersfield station is 105.3 miles.
- Huddersfield is a Grade I Listed station with two pubs in the middle of the town.
- Huddersfield station is being fully-electrified in connection with the TransPennine Upgrade.
- All trains from Sheffield, that use the Penistone Line terminate in Platform 2 at Huddersfield station.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the position of Platform 2 in the station.
Note.
- The red-and-black dotted tracks are being electrified.
- The black tracks are not going to be electrified.
- Platform 2 is marked 2 in the top-right corner of the map.
- Platform 2 looks to be about 90 metres long.
- Five-car Class 810 trains are 120 metres long.
- From the map, it looks like the platform could be lengthened by the required thirty metres.
I suspect that some form of charger can be squeezed into the available space. After all, you don’t often get the chance to put charging into one of the most grand stations in Europe. Power supply would not be a problem, because of the electrification.
A frequency of twotph between St. Pancras and Huddersfield would give the following.
- Two fast tph between Meadowhall, and Barnsley, and Huddersfield and Sheffield.
- Two extra direct trains between Meadowhall and Barnsley, and Chesterfield, Derby, Long Eaton, East Midlands Parkway, Loughborough, Leicester and St. Pancras.
It would connect many stations to the TransPennine Route at Huddersfield station.
What Could The Sheffield and St. Pancras Look Like?
Consider that currently.
- There are two tph.
- Trains stop at Leicester, Loughborough (1tph), East Midlands Parkway (1tph), Long Eaton (1tph), Derby and Chesterfield.
- Trains are five- or seven-cars.
The simplest solution would probably be.
- A pair of five-car trains run all services.
- Trains split and join at Sheffield with one train going to Leeds and one going to Huddersfield.
I estimate that the Class 810 trains will offer about thirty more seats in every hour.
The Problem Of Electrifying Leicester Station
This post is my attempt to try and explain the problem of electrifying the Midland Main Line through Leicester station.
This Google map shows the Southern end of the station.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the station.
Note.
- There appear to be five tunnels under the station buildings and London Road.
- What is the tunnel going underneath the tracks used for?
Leicester station has a Grade II Listed frontage.
Note.
- It is an impressive Victorian station.
- The station building is on a bridge over the tracks.
- The station is also on one of the main roads through Leicester.
- The road layout is very complicated.
This 3D Google Map, shows an aerial view of the station.
Note.
- There four platforms, which are numbered 1-4 from the left.
- The expresses between London and Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield use the two middle tracks.
- Other main line and East-West services use the outside platforms.
- There is an avoiding line for freight services.
- 5. The step-free footbridge is clearly visible.
This second 3D Google Map, shows an enlargement of the frontage of the station.
These pictures show what is inside the building at the front of the station.
The building would appear to be a Grade II Listed taxi rank and free twenty-minute car park.
There are plans to increase the capacity of the station.
- A fifth platform will be added.
- Three miles of quadruple track will be be built South of the station.
- The Midland Main Line was also to be electrified.
Real Time Trains indicates that the distance between Leicester and Wigston North junction is 3.1 miles.
This OpenRailMap shows that section of track.
Note.
- Leiester station is at the top of the map.
- Wigston junction is the triangular junction at the bottom of the map.
- Wigston North Junction is indicated by the blue arrow.
- OpenRailwayMap only shows a 100 mph Northbound track and a 90 mph Southbound track on the route.
It looks to me, that four tracks between Leicester and Wigston North junction would mean that trains could expedite arrivals to and departures from Leicester to and from the South.
South From Wigston Junction
Consider.
- London St. Pancras and Kettering is a four-track railway as far as the Corby Branch.
- North of Luton the slowest maximum speed is 100 mph, with much of the line rated at 110 mph plus.
- Wigston North junction and Luton station is 65.8 miles.
- Current Class 222 diesel trains typically take 40 minutes.
- This is an average speed of 98.7 mph.
- An average speed of 110 mph between Wigston North junction and Luton station would take 36 minutes.
- An average speed of 125 mph between Wigston North junction and Luton station would take 31.6 minutes.
- An average speed of 130 mph between Wigston North junction and Luton station would take 30.4 minutes.
I believe with track improvements and digital signalling, there are time savings to be gained between St. Pancras and Leicester stations.
Ultimately, if the 140 mph design speed of the Class 810 trains under digital signalling could be maintained, this would do the following.
- Push the St. Pancras and Leicester times under an hour.
- Push the St. Pancras and Nottingham times under ninety minutes.
- Push the St. Pancras and Sheffield times under two hours.
Batteries would only be used on the three miles between Wigston North junction and Leicester station.
Could Bi-Mode Trains Be Used?
They could be used initially and to prove if the partial electrification works.
But each train has four diesel engines and sometimes they will be working in pairs through the stations between Leicester and Sheffield.
Passengers will take a dim view of being covered in lots of diesel smoke, when they have been promised clean, zero-carbon electric trains.
But the battery-electric trains will be much quieter and pollution-free.
This page on the Hitachi Rail web site is entitled Intercity Battery Trains.
New Infrastructure Needed
The only infrastructure needed will be that which will support the new trains.
The Class 810 trains will be maintained at Etches Park at Derby.
If they are battery-electric trains, there may be some strategically-placed chargers, which typically would be a short length of overhead wire.
Wigston Junction – 10th July 2025
It now appears that Wigston Junction, is as far North, as electrification will get on the Midland Main Line for some time.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the maximum speeds through the junction.
Note.
- Leicester station is to the North.
- London is to the South.
- Nuneaton is to the West.
- South Wigston station is indicated by a blue arrow.
- The Midland Main Line goes between the North and South points of the junction.
- Trains going North have a maximum speed of 100 mph.
- Trains going South have a maximum speed of 80 mph.
- Trains going along the North-West leg of the junction have a maximum speed of 40 mph.
- Trains going along the South-West leg of the junction have a maximum speed of 30 mph.
It would also appear that trains going North on the Midland Main Line can have a maximum speed of 100 mph or even 110 mph for most of the way between Market Harborough and just before Leicester, whilst going South is perhaps a couple of minutes slower.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the original plan for electrification through the junction.
Note.
- Red tracks are electrified.
- Black tracks are not electrified.
- Black/red dashed tracked were being electrified, but most are now paused.
- As before South Wigston station is indicated by a blue arrow.
Only the South point of the junction is electrified.
These pictures were taken from the train, as I passed Southwards from the North point of the junction to Market Harborough station.
Note.
- The first three pictures show the chord connecting to South Wigston station and on to Nuneaton.
- The next six pictures show the extra single track on the East side of the junction.
- There is a third track South of Wigston junction, that is about two miles long and electrified.
- All tracks South of Wigston junction are electrified.
It looks like a train could wait in the loop and be passed by a Northbound express.
Could the loop be used to charge trains in an emergency?
Conclusion
It would appear that Wigston junction could be a suitable place for the electrification to be paused.
All services to the North of Wigston junction would be on battery power, unless there is electrification.
The Anonymous Widower 