Your railway in 10 years?

[Martin_1981]

Exeter area 2023-predictions:-

Hourly St Davids- Waterloo as now, but possibly using cascaded Voyager/ Meridian stock

Half hourly to Paddington, one fast from Plymouth/Penzance calling at Taunton and Reading only and one semi fast St Davids-Paddington calling at most intermediate stations between Exeter and Reading. Some Exeter terminators extended to Paignton. GWML electrification possibly extended from Newbury to Exeter. Electric and BI mode IEP on these services.

Half hourly XC to Bristol and Birmingham, one from Penzance/Plymouth to Leeds/Newcastle/Edinburgh as now and one from Exeter-Manchester all using BI mode IEP. Plymouth-Edinburgh train speeded up between Exeter and Birmingham calling at Taunton, Bristol TM only. Some Exeter terminators extended to Paignton.

Half hourly to Plymouth as now calling at Newton Abbot and Totnes, one XC from the north and one GW from Paddington
Two hourly GW to Penzance extended from Plymouth as now
Three XC to Penzance in the evening as now

Local services as follows:-
Hourly all shacks Exmouth-Paignton as now
Hourly Exmouth-Barnstaple as now
Hourly all shacks Cranbrook-Paignton
Hourly Exeter Central-Plymouth via Okehampton and reinstated line between Oke and Tavistock
Some local services to Plymouth and Penzance as now
Cascaded classes 165/166/170/172 on these services

And maybe, just maybe, one East-West Rail service from Exeter to Cambridge/Norwich via Taunton, Melksham, Swindon, Oxford, Milton Keynes, or if I'm really dreaming, Exeter to Nottingham via Bristol, Bath, Oxford, Milton Keynes, Bedford and Leicester.

Martin

 

[KaPOWitsCHRIS]

Oh I'd like to add, XC trains with more than 4/5 coaches. Pathetic for the distance they travel.

 

[Martin_1981]

I second that. I see many a Voyager at Exeter St Davids on a NE-SW service which is packed to smitherines with people standing in the carriage vestibules. I once stood from Exeter-Bristol Parkway back in 2008 on a Paignton-Newcastle service, which resembled purgatory.

 

[Qwerty133]

narborough in 2023:
same service as now with trains still departing new street at xx:52 and departing leicester at either xx:16 or xx:18!
All services will be formed of 2 coaches due to a decrease in 'recorded' passenger numbers, due to the ticket office closing as soon as the East Midlands franchise is relet.
I hope that I will be proved wrong, however if the TOC running the stations stay separate from the TOC running the trains, this is the only thing I can see happening.

 

[The Ham]

In the area run by SWT's in 2023:
- OHLE will have replaced 3rd rail between Basingstoke and Poole with Poole to Weymouth and Basingstoke to Woking either being worked on or due in the next few years.
- most trains will be 12 coaches long once the international platforms have been brought into use and (some of) platforms 1-4 have been lengthened.
- Either the 5th line will be being built or Crossrail 2 will be just starting to be built. If the latter, drafts of timetables post Crossrail 2 are being drawn up and show the need for further works elesewhere to improve capacity to the levels it is needed (i.e. removing the flat junction at Woking), with options being consirdered to run some 12x23m coach trains on certain routes.
- Hythe will have passenger services to it
- the line to Borden is due to open shortly
- The line to Salisbury and the Salisbury 6 will be (or will be being) electrified freeing up lots of DMU's for use elsewhere on the network. With electrification to Yeovil (or possibly to Exeter) on the cards for the not too distant future.
- With the electrification of Salisbury the semi fast services to Basingstoke have been extended to Salisbury to provide extra capacity and speed up the DMU's west of Basingstoke (although most people change to a fast train at Basingstoke to get to London)
- Reopening the line to Ringwood has just made it past GIRP3
- (technicly just outside of the area stated) DMU's will run serval daily services between Swanage and Wareham as well as on the Watercress Line

 

[Deerfold]

I'd happily pay more for decent trains.

Look at the 333's on the Leeds/Bradford-Ilkley/Skipton, and Leeds-Bradford FS routes. As soon as they were introduced, passenger numbers went up and they had to add a 4th carriage.

Of course the massively improved frequencies helped too.

 

[ed1971]

It depends which pacers, 143/4s are not too bad and look to be refurbished by Porterbrook and re-let, as they will be DDA compliant. As for the 142s...

In view of the fact that the ROSCOs are reluctant to buy new DMUs, it may be worth considering giving a number of the 142s completely new bodies that are DDA compliant, for more lightly used routes that are not being electrified.

 

[D365]

In view of the fact that the ROSCOs are reluctant to buy new DMUs, it may be worth considering giving a number of the 142s completely new bodies that are DDA compliant, for more lightly used routes that are not being electrified.

I'd hope that the 143/144s will be enough
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Of course the massively improved frequencies helped too.

Which can be done with better-performing trains; preferably modern(ised) electric.

 

[jmbill]

Predictions for the Plymouth area:

DDA compliance will result in 143's and 153's being withdrawn from service. 150's are likely to get withdrawn too, due to increasing maintenance costs and poor condition / reliability.

Newer DMU's from elsewhere in the country will be used for branchline services instead. At a minimum 158's would be used, but possibly we might be lucky enough to get 165's 170's or even 172's.

Line to Tavistock will get reinstated, together with a brand new station and park and ride for the town. This might be part of a bigger plan to reinstate the old Southern line via Okehampton, and provide an alternative route to the Dawlish seawall.

Increase in the frequency of trains operating between Penzance / Plymouth and London. Especially more early morning services and a few extra services in the evening. Most likely these services would be using cascaded HST's or 180's and would be routed on the faster line via Westbury, to avoid Bristol.

Cross country services would likely need to be lengthened to meet increased demand. That will probably result in some voyager sets being broken up and reformed into longer sets as part of their mid-life overhaul.

New station on the eastern edge of Plymouth (possibly Plympton) to cater for the Sherford Valley new town development. This would be served by Tamar Valley services and local stopping services to Exeter.

Night Rivera express to get an overhaul, possibly using converted HST sets (the current class 57's are very unreliable). Based on the success of the sleeper, a new route might be introduced to go 'up country'.

Introduction of smart ticketing / swipe cards on all services.

 

[anthony263]

Bristol area:

Half hourly services from Portishead - Bristol - Henbury cityline service with hourly services clockwise via Filton and Clifton Down

Hourly Severn Beach to Bath services with trains continuing to Bathampton junction where a new station will be built as a park & ride development. The station will also be served by services from Portsmouth Hbr & Weymouth.

4tph service between Bristol TM & Cardiff with 2tph continuing to Swansea.

4tph to London Paddington, 2tph via Bath Spa (95 minute journey time) & 2tph via Bristol Parkway (85 minute journey time) Some services on both routes will run to/from Exeter & Weston Super Mare.

Hourly Bristol TM - Portsmouth Harbour service using pairs of class 158's bringing 4 carriage trains to the route which are much needed. The line between Bath and Southampton will eventually be electrified as an alterntive route for freight traffic from Southampton Docks. This will allow a return of direct Cardiff - Portsmouth services possibly starting from Swansea using 3xx emu's

Hourly Great Malvern - Gloucester - Bristol - Westbury - Weymouth service using class 165/166's bringing greater capacity and exttra services to the route.

Hourly semi-fast service from Gloucester to Exeter St Davids/Paignton using class 166's. Finally an hourly local serice between Weston Super Mare to Bristol Parkway along with a Bristol - Bedford crosscountry service which could eventually be extended to Cambridge.

 

[anti-pacer]

Of course the massively improved frequencies helped too.

Hasn't Skipton-Leeds always been half-hourly, with Carlisle/Morecambe services added on top of that?

 

[Deerfold]

Hasn't Skipton-Leeds always been half-hourly, with Carlisle/Morecambe services added on top of that?

Looking at a timetable for 1990 which is what I have to hand - after electrification and with some of the improvements incorporated but before the 333s arrived -

Leeds - Skipton was half hourly. Evening service was hourly until last train at 2230
Bradford FS - Skipton was hourly. Some services (including all Sunday services) did not go Keighley -Skipton. Last train was 2202. 1tph skipped Cononley.

Leeds - Skipton service is now half hourly until last train at 2318. Also runs half an hour earlier in the morning with additional peak services.
Bradford FS - Skipton is half hourly, hourly evenings until last train of 2309 (connection available off 2320).

Bradford - Ilkley daytime service has doubled from hourly to half hourly.

Bradford FS-Leeds is a completely new half-hourly service.

 

[The Ham]

Predictions for the Plymouth area:

DDA compliance will result in 143's and 153's being withdrawn from service. 150's are likely to get withdrawn too, due to increasing maintenance costs and poor condition / reliability.

Newer DMU's from elsewhere in the country will be used for branchline services instead. At a minimum 158's would be used, but possibly we might be lucky enough to get 165's 170's or even 172's.

Line to Tavistock will get reinstated, together with a brand new station and park and ride for the town. This might be part of a bigger plan to reinstate the old Southern line via Okehampton, and provide an alternative route to the Dawlish seawall.

Increase in the frequency of trains operating between Penzance / Plymouth and London. Especially more early morning services and a few extra services in the evening. Most likely these services would be using cascaded HST's or 180's and would be routed on the faster line via Westbury, to avoid Bristol.

Cross country services would likely need to be lengthened to meet increased demand. That will probably result in some voyager sets being broken up and reformed into longer sets as part of their mid-life overhaul.

New station on the eastern edge of Plymouth (possibly Plympton) to cater for the Sherford Valley new town development. This would be served by Tamar Valley services and local stopping services to Exeter.

Night Rivera express to get an overhaul, possibly using converted HST sets (the current class 57's are very unreliable). Based on the success of the sleeper, a new route might be introduced to go 'up country'.

Introduction of smart ticketing / swipe cards on all services.

I would add is that options to remove the existing HST's left running to Cornwall would be started to be being looked at (if they hadn't already been taken up, as the HST's were not viable to update to comply with all the requirements post 2019 and so where being run as an exception). Either 222's or by using bi-modal IEP's (following electrification of the line to Western-Super-Mare and a follow on order of electric IEP's to allow the cascade of these and other bi-modal's which had been running services totally under wires i.e. to Swansea).

 

[irongecko]

Cumbria coast line/Furness line - Trains will run later between Millom and Whitehaven due to the elimination of a few signalboxes, and there will be no TPE service from Barrow.

 

[jmbill]

I would add is that options to remove the existing HST's left running to Cornwall would be started to be being looked at (if they hadn't already been taken up, as the HST's were not viable to update to comply with all the requirements post 2019 and so where being run as an exception). Either 222's or by using bi-modal IEP's (following electrification of the line to Western-Super-Mare and a follow on order of electric IEP's to allow the cascade of these and other bi-modal's which had been running services totally under wires i.e. to Swansea).

Very true.

I was also wondering whether a future TOC might even consider the option of another refurb. of some existing HST sets. In particular, rebuild some of the MK3's to the same spec that Chiltern have got right now. Not sure if these are DDA compliant, but certainly it has been proven that wider powered doors are feasible on the MK3 body shells.

This option might be more desirable for a TOC, rather than running brand new trains to the back corners of Cornwall! Traditionally the 'make do and mend' approach has always prevailed down here!

 

[Class 33]

Half hourly XC to Bristol and Birmingham, one from Penzance/Plymouth to Leeds/Newcastle/Edinburgh as now and one from Exeter-Manchester all using BI mode IEP. Plymouth-Edinburgh train speeded up between Exeter and Birmingham calling at Taunton, Bristol TM only. Some Exeter terminators extended to Paignton.

Yes good idea about XC services to Edinburgh becoming more express/limited stop services. (I'd probably suggest removing the Taunton stop as well) There was some similar services to these as recently as 2004 during the peak Summer period, with some services running non-stop between Exeter and Bristol, and Bristol and Birmingham. But I can't see similar services to these ever coming back now.

Nope, come 2023 I honestly think there will be barely any change atall on the XC services. All services will still be timetabled much the same as they are now using the same stopping patterns including the obligatory Taunton, Bristol Parkway, and Cheltenham stops. I also think the 4 and 5 car Voyagers will still be in on these services by then, and passengers still having to put up with the severe over-crowding. I'll be happy to be proved wrong on this though!

 

[DavidBrown]

One major thing missed from the Exeter area - resignalling. IIRC this is due to happen in 2022? I'm sure that'll have a big impact on infrastructure (even if, like the Exeter to Salisbury resignalling, it's only futureproofing for later work), meaning that beyond 2023 could see things like a half hourly Barnstaple service, a 4tph Exmouth service, more local services on that mainlines etc.

 

[Class 33]

Bristol area:

Half hourly services from Portishead - Bristol - Henbury cityline service with hourly services clockwise via Filton and Clifton Down

Hourly Severn Beach to Bath services with trains continuing to Bathampton junction where a new station will be built as a park & ride development. The station will also be served by services from Portsmouth Hbr & Weymouth.

4tph service between Bristol TM & Cardiff with 2tph continuing to Swansea.

4tph to London Paddington, 2tph via Bath Spa (95 minute journey time) & 2tph via Bristol Parkway (85 minute journey time) Some services on both routes will run to/from Exeter & Weston Super Mare.

Hourly Bristol TM - Portsmouth Harbour service using pairs of class 158's bringing 4 carriage trains to the route which are much needed. The line between Bath and Southampton will eventually be electrified as an alterntive route for freight traffic from Southampton Docks. This will allow a return of direct Cardiff - Portsmouth services possibly starting from Swansea using 3xx emu's

Hourly Great Malvern - Gloucester - Bristol - Westbury - Weymouth service using class 165/166's bringing greater capacity and exttra services to the route.

Hourly semi-fast service from Gloucester to Exeter St Davids/Paignton using class 166's. Finally an hourly local serice between Weston Super Mare to Bristol Parkway along with a Bristol - Bedford crosscountry service which could eventually be extended to Cambridge.

All very possible. Except that is for 4tph between Bristol Temple Meads and Cardiff. Can't really see that happening. How are they going to be able to path in these two extra services per hour along with the existing two Bristol-Cardiff's, the two per hour to/from London Paddington and the Cardiff-Manchesters, etc? Don't really think it can be possible. IF though it could be done then I would like to see one of or both of the Bristol-Swansea services running non-stop between Bristol TM and Cardiff.

 

[anthony263]

There will be paths available as it is planned to switch the ATW Cardiff - Cheltenham Spa services to the relief lines along with the proposed Cardiff - Chepstow local services.

That will free up two paths each hour between Cardiff & Severn Tunnel Junction.
The faster acceleration of the emu's should reduce the Cardiff - Bristol TM journey time down to 46 minutes from 53-55 minutes so trains leaving Cardiff at 15 & 45 minutes past each hour should have crossed off the mainine and joined the line towards Filton by the time the London services reach Patchway.

By running 2tph to Swansea it will allow the Swansea/Cardiff - London services to run non stop between Newport & Swindon

 

[Cherry_Picker]

So London-Amersham-Aylesbury....

I would like

1) Electrified throughout. Ideally OHLE all the way.
2) 4 Track to Rickmansworth, MET line to terminate there. Rickmansworth station rebuilt alongside Waitrose on straight track.
3) All platforms extended to at least 8 Car. (to accomodate 2x 4 Car Electrostar/Desiros etc). If possible to extend to 12 car for future proofing then great )
4) Grade seperate the Chesham branch junction.
5) Rebuild Marylebone to acommodate the above and the main line. Pockets reached into for anyone/businesses affected.
6) Through services to Milton Keynes/Bedford etc via the East-West link.
7) The hysterical local anti HS2 lot will then quieten down when they see a mass of investment to benefit them...

Ah to dream.

Oh sorry, what will actually happen?

Probably not much

The only one of that lot I can see is the through services to MK.

I don't think grade separation of the junction for Chesham is really needed, it's not busy enough to create too many conflicting movements. The biggest cause of delay caused by Chesham trains is when an Aylesbury gets stuck behind one.

I do think we could see a sizable reduction in end to end journey times over the next decade or so, LUL are doing a lot of work on the Met at the moment and they have to start timetabling to S-Stock at some point (they don't at the moment, do they?) so I wouldn't say 45 minutes from Marylebone to Aylesbury would be unrealistic in the medium term.


Dunno about the rest of the Chiltern route. I think a lot of it depends on what happens with the Snow Hill lines when LM comes up for refranchising. If they get amalgamated into the Chiltern franchise or even taken under Arriva management then the prospect of Marylebone - Worcester services comes back, maybe even some off peak services through to Stourbridge and beyond.

I'd like to think 165s are on their way out. I think there are problems of where they can be cascaded too because of clearance issues, but running 75mph trains on a 100mph line creates a bottleneck which doesn't need to be there. I'd like to think the line is ripe for OHLE all the way from Marylebone through to at least Worcester (filling in either side of the electric spine from Oxford through to Leamington Spa) because both ends of the route are intensively worked. I think that is more than ten years away though.

Difficult to guess what impact Oxford and East-West will have on the line. I suspect High Wycombe will have to be given a better northbound service at some point, though stopping the Oxfords and the MK trains there opens up a world of connections.

Maybe we will see passing loops reintroduced at Beaconsfield, or on the up at Denham. There is space in both locations.

 

[anthony263]

I thought the oxford - London Marylebone services would be stopping at High Wycombe?

Anyway I agree a lot of the problems on the Chiltern Mainline is the use of 75mph stock on a 100mph railway. I think it is this reason why local services from Gerrards Cross & West Ruilsip to London Marylebone are not as good as they could be. Ideally I think they would get used more if the service was run half hourly with services timed to be overtaken at say West and South Ruislip etc

Chilterns 165's would be ok for use on the local Bristol Metro services to Portishead, Severn Beach where the linespeeds are no more than 60mph or so unless you are talking about the line up Filton Bank bank and between Parson Street and Bristol TM.

 

[MK Tom]

Yeah the MK trains from Aylesbury continue to Marylebone via High Wycombe. It's not currently planned to send any via Amersham. I think it's felt that High Wycombe needs a direct link to MK and the connections here more than Amersham/Rickmansworth do, which are a lot closer to the WCML anyway. Also the Aylesbury services will only run to MK. For Bedford you'll need to change at Winslow.

How would you electrify the Amersham line? This has been discussed before but you'd either need to take third rail to Aylesbury which will be a bit weird when electrification of the Chiltern main line and Risborough-Claydon comes around which I'm expecting in CP7, or have OHLE running over 4th rail. Your idea of cutting the Met back at Ricky solves that if you remove the Met's ability to skip out stations between Moor Park and Harrow. But then would you have Chiltern run a Marylebone-Chesham service?

Marylebone will probably have to expand at some point once you have Oxford and MK services running. I personally would narrow plats 1 and 2, then whack another platform where the siding on the east side currently lies.

 

[315804]

In SW London in 2023, I'd like to see the 3rd rail ripped up and proper overhead electrification put in on the lines out of Waterloo (following successful trials on the Hounslow Loop in 2021 ), with new EMUs. Perhaps a new TOC (Abellio Greater Middlesex? :roll will look after Metro services in SW London, unless Boris Johnson (in his 15th successful year as London Mayor) has Overground take over local routes out to Windsor & Eton / Woking...

 

[anthony263]

Of course that depends on whether or not Boris decides not to run for mayor and instead is prime ministor.

 

[swcovas]

The Heart of Wales Line in 2023... will be exactly as it is now. Same infrastructure. Same trains. Even the same timetable.

Oh ye of little faith!!! However, I do have a similar feeling although there will probably be at least another 2 or 3 cost benefit surveys or similar costing x thousand pounds each all saying the same thing i.e. that the line/area would benefit from an increase in services!!!

 

[315804]

Of course that depends on whether or not Boris decides not to run for mayor and instead is prime ministor.

Just so long as he and David Cameron don't swap jobs... :eek:

 

[Class172]

Dunno about the rest of the Chiltern route. I think a lot of it depends on what happens with the Snow Hill lines when LM comes up for refranchising. If they get amalgamated into the Chiltern franchise or even taken under Arriva management then the prospect of Marylebone - Worcester services comes back, maybe even some off peak services through to Stourbridge and beyond.

And of course I certainly wouldn't be opposed to a direct London service from Droitwich…

How likely though in all seriousness could this happen? Have Chiltern expressed any views on the situation recently, or what they might plan to do. I can see many benefits to Chiltern taking the line over (not that LM are doing a bad job, it provides an excellent opportunity for improvements on the line).

I'd like to think 165s are on their way out. I think there are problems of where they can be cascaded too because of clearance issues, but running 75mph trains on a 100mph line creates a bottleneck which doesn't need to be there. I'd like to think the line is ripe for OHLE all the way from Marylebone through to at least Worcester (filling in either side of the electric spine from Oxford through to Leamington Spa) because both ends of the route are intensively worked. I think that is more than ten years away though.

I think that when it comes to Chiltern being electrified, I think it's a no-brainer to also do the Worcester-Birmingham via Stourbridge line, freeing up a large number of DMUs.

As an aside, if you wanted to get the 165s onto a slower line, I know 165/166s are cleared on the Snow Hill Lines, and BHM-HFD lines — perhaps could they be used up there (with a refurb), knocking off a few 170s? Or is it possible for the 165s to be re-engineered to run at 90mph like their FGW cousins.

 

[Bevan Price]

For parts of Northern England.
DDA compatibilty deadline extended to 2029. About half the 142s remain in service, pending the introduction of the new bus-based Class 146 railcars. The 142s can still be found on services like Preston to Ormskirk, Blackpool South & Colne, Sheffield to Huddersfield & Lincoln. The new Class 146 will have greater route availability, and will replace Classes 150 or 156 on services like Manchester - Buxton, Cumbrian Coast lines, etc. The displaced 150 /156 will be used to strengthen services in the East Midlands & Lincolnshire....

Enough Class 319 have still not been released from the London area, but a number of Class 313 & 315 are "temporarily" operating local services around Liverpool & Manchester. The arrival of some Class 314 from Scotland is also a possibilty when the new Scottish Class 352 enter service.

Electrification of Bolton - Wigan - Southport, Bolton - Blackburn, Preston - Colne / Hebden Bridge & Calder Valley routes has been approved , but work will not commence before 2028, with a target completion date of 2033.

 

[trainplan1]

The only one of that lot I can see is the through services to MK.

I don't think grade separation of the junction for Chesham is really needed, it's not busy enough to create too many conflicting movements. The biggest cause of delay caused by Chesham trains is when an Aylesbury gets stuck behind one.

I do think we could see a sizable reduction in end to end journey times over the next decade or so, LUL are doing a lot of work on the Met at the moment and they have to start timetabling to S-Stock at some point (they don't at the moment, do they?) so I wouldn't say 45 minutes from Marylebone to Aylesbury would be unrealistic in the medium term.


Dunno about the rest of the Chiltern route. I think a lot of it depends on what happens with the Snow Hill lines when LM comes up for refranchising. If they get amalgamated into the Chiltern franchise or even taken under Arriva management then the prospect of Marylebone - Worcester services comes back, maybe even some off peak services through to Stourbridge and beyond.

I'd like to think 165s are on their way out. I think there are problems of where they can be cascaded too because of clearance issues, but running 75mph trains on a 100mph line creates a bottleneck which doesn't need to be there. I'd like to think the line is ripe for OHLE all the way from Marylebone through to at least Worcester (filling in either side of the electric spine from Oxford through to Leamington Spa) because both ends of the route are intensively worked. I think that is more than ten years away though.

Difficult to guess what impact Oxford and East-West will have on the line. I suspect High Wycombe will have to be given a better northbound service at some point, though stopping the Oxfords and the MK trains there opens up a world of connections.

Maybe we will see passing loops reintroduced at Beaconsfield, or on the up at Denham. There is space in both locations.

It was more a wish than a realistic thought
Grade seperating the Chesham branch is more just wishful future proofing!

Something must be done about with the new S stock though as the all shacks off peak service to/from Amersham/Chesham is exceedingly painful.

I definitely agree that the Chiltern main line is ripe for OHLE, could make all sorts of useful diversions during blockades etc.

As to the future with the East-West rail link, again it's more of a wish but I'd like to hope that more direct travel options are created when it's open.

How would you electrify the Amersham line? This has been discussed before but you'd either need to take third rail to Aylesbury which will be a bit weird when electrification of the Chiltern main line and Risborough-Claydon comes around which I'm expecting in CP7, or have OHLE running over 4th rail. Your idea of cutting the Met back at Ricky solves that if you remove the Met's ability to skip out stations between Moor Park and Harrow. But then would you have Chiltern run a Marylebone-Chesham service?

Well if the MET was removed from the fasts from Harrow-Moor Park-Rickmansworth (if 4 tracked as wished) then the 3rd rail wouldn't be needed. As only peak MET trains use the fasts between Harrow-Moor Park I'd like to hope the inconvenience would be minimal. I would encourage interchange at Harrow (or West Hampstead if that ever happened) for Amersham/Chesham commuters heading to the city. As the MET has 4 tracks south of Harrow these could still be used by Watford/Uxbridge/Rickmansworth trains. Hopefully the inconvenience in changing trains will be offset by faster/longer trains on the Chiltern line.

Should Marylebone be unable to take a substantial rebuild, then the route can become a 2nd western branch for Crossrail There was a proposal for this I believe some time ago in one of the earlier Crossrail bills?

Now of course this is all wishful thinking and musings I've had over many years of travel along the line. Maybe some are impractical in places

 

[Requeststop]

10 Years time? A realization that it's not to the North that connections that need to be improved but also to the West and South West, and not just improvements with connections to London.

Electrification from Birmingham to Bristol and Cardiff Exeter and possibly Plymouth and down to Oxford and Reading, to create a true cross country service.

Berks and Hants electrification down to Taunton to connect with the above.

More freight services to and from the South West

Sleeper services from the South West to Scotland

Plymouth - Tavistock - Okehampton - Exeter fully re-opened

The Royal Albert Bridge guaranteed for another 25 years!

An hourly service to Newquay maybe from St Austell rather than Par

Better signaling west of Truro to enable a shuttle from Truro to Penzance

A pig has just flown past my window.