Chiltern Oxford Link completed

[snowball]

A thought just occurred to me - if it's a watertight underpass, it will have to be anchored down or else it will float on the high water-table, rising up out of the water-logged ground. I know what I'm talking about - a swimming pool not far from there did just that when the owner emptied it the better to clean it. Hell of a mess! Piles is the answer.

Or just a lot of heavy concrete to weigh it down. Some underpasses are built like that.

 

[jimm]

Yes, an underpass is the answer - keep it pumped out in normal times, but design it so that it won't be harmed if it does flood. How often will that be? Not very often - say once a year. Reasonable? Well, twice a year then - but not flooded every week! See wotam sayin'? Expensive to build, but similar in cost to an overbridge with those lengthy ramps and so-on, just as effective and far less intrusive.

A thought just occurred to me - if it's a watertight underpass, it will have to be anchored down or else it will float on the high water-table, rising up out of the water-logged ground. I know what I'm talking about - a swimming pool not far from there did just that when the owner emptied it the better to clean it. Hell of a mess! Piles is the answer.

I wasn't aware that Bicester town centre was sitting on a swamp - you make it sound like the Florida Evergaldes. Tipton seems to demonstrate that the engineers know what they are doing in such cases. Though the underpass there would flood big time if the adjacent canal's waterproofing ever fails.

 

[L&Y Robert]

I wasn't aware that Bicester town centre was sitting on a swamp - you make it sound like the Florida Evergaldes.

It's not that it's 'sitting on a swamp', it's that it's very flat around there and water doesn't drain away so quickly. I well remember the work sat Tubbs crossing - not far from this level crossing site - where a sluggish stream passed under the line. The level of the water in the stream was - I guess - about 2m below rail level. Extensive works were carried out to renew the culvert at the same time as the bridge (the "Dinosaur Cage") was being built. The flow in the stream is slow, and if there were to be a thundersorm, say, with torrential rain then it would certainly flood, and might overflow its banks. That's why a dive-under at London Road is vulnerable.

 

[midlandred]

Could anyone confirm the state of construction at Bicester Town Station ? I've seen photos of the new station building on Wikipedia, but has clearance began on the area where the car park will be ?

Revisited yesterday - photos in this set will show the latest situation - includes updates from Islip

 

[brboy]

If that's the worst thing that ever happens in your life you're a lucky person.

Put it in perspective: all round the world people are dying of disease & starvation; people are being bombed or driven from their homes; or suffering the effects of natural disasters and losing all their belongings or even all their close family.

Does that set of points seem quite so bad in comparison?

Drawings of Oxford North

 

[brboy]

Attached are pics of Oxford North and the Station area - The Planner will say they are outdated but thats all I saw

 

[jimm]

It's not that it's 'sitting on a swamp', it's that it's very flat around there and water doesn't drain away so quickly. I well remember the work sat Tubbs crossing - not far from this level crossing site - where a sluggish stream passed under the line. The level of the water in the stream was - I guess - about 2m below rail level. Extensive works were carried out to renew the culvert at the same time as the bridge (the "Dinosaur Cage") was being built. The flow in the stream is slow, and if there were to be a thundersorm, say, with torrential rain then it would certainly flood, and might overflow its banks. That's why a dive-under at London Road is vulnerable.

Mountains and molehills are the words that come to mind here. The road under Botley Road bridge in Oxford stays dry in all but the most extreme circumstances, despite its proximity to the Thames and location in a flood plain - and was presumably designed by the Victorians without a whole lot of thought being given to the local hydrology, so I feel fairly confident that it is not beyond the wit and imagination of modern engineers to come up with an underpass design for Bicester that minimises any flood risk to start with, even before you factor in pumps. And that assumes they don't just sever London Road at the rail line and find an alternative location for a bridge or send traffic the long way round on existing roads.

 

[The Planner]

Attached are pics of Oxford North and the Station area - The Planner will say they are outdated but thats all I saw

They are the latest Ive seen in terms of Form A, I doubt anything has been drawn up for the crossover move yet.

 

[a good off]

Please tell me that the Down side will eventually be bi-di so up trains can also use it?

 

[The Planner]

In a word, yes...

 

[Andyjs247]

Seems not to have been reported on this forum that the permanent way has been restored between Bicester and Oxford earlier this month...

See www.bicestertooxfordcollaboration.com

BREAKING NEWS..
On 6 May 2015, the Down Line permanent way was connected together near to the M40 road bridge and re-established the rail connection between Bicester and Oxford for the first time since we removed the existing single track in June 2014. This is a significant achievement by everyone involved in the Project and a fantastic milestone to deliver.

At Bicester the chord itself appears to be largely complete. Does anyone know when the junction with the Chiltern main line at Bicester South will be completed and signalling installed? I took a trip up to Marylebone on Saturday and could see there is some work here still to be done.

There are various possessions on Sundays on the Chiltern line now until July / August. There is work at Banbury and High Wycombe but this coming Sunday 31 May there is a full closure between Dorridge and Beaconsfield all day. The bus connections for Banbury, Bicester, Leamington, Stratford and Warwick from London are via AVP.

 

[RPM]

The junction between the Bicester chord and the Chiltern Main Line took a step forward during last Sunday's blockade and the trackwork is now largely complete save for a couple of short sections or rail which have presumably been omitted pending the official hook up of the chord.

In addition there are a lot of new signals going in between Princes Risborough and Bicester in preparation for the Oxford service. I've not yet seen details of the signalling - perhaps it is being upgraded from 2 to 3 aspect? To date, the AWS magnets have been installed, plus one or two ATP loops and groundwork is underway preparing the first of the signal bases.

 

[The Planner]

Its not going to 3 aspect completely if I recall, it is still a mixture of 2 and 3, will dig out the plans later.

 

[midlandred]

When Bicester London Road/Town/Village Station opens for business, which platform will be classed as the up platform?

 

[Overload]

The Up platform will be the Station building/car park side I believe.

 

[Andyjs247]

When Bicester London Road/Town/Village Station opens for business, which platform will be classed as the up platform?

IIRC Up will be towards Oxford (and London Paddington) as the line designations will swap. The lines will be the Down Bletchley and Up Bletchley. Up was towards Bletchley (and Euston) originally but towards Bletchley will be Down. Trains for Marylebone will therefore leave Oxford in the Down direction but will join the Chiltern main line in the Up direction.

 

[swt_passenger]

IIRC Up will be towards Oxford (and London Paddington) as the line designations will swap. The lines will be the Down Bletchley and Up Bletchley. Up was towards Bletchley (and Euston) originally but towards Bletchley will be Down. Trains for Marylebone will therefore leave Oxford in the Down direction but will join the Chiltern main line in the Up direction.

That's also the way it's shown on the phase 1 sketches posted on the previous page of the thread, so you get my vote...

 

[HowardGWR]

IIRC Up will be towards Oxford (and London Paddington) as the line designations will swap. The lines will be the Down Bletchley and Up Bletchley. Up was towards Bletchley (and Euston) originally but towards Bletchley will be Down. Trains for Marylebone will therefore leave Oxford in the Down direction but will join the Chiltern main line in the Up direction.

How will the stretch between the two junctions be designated then?

 

[swt_passenger]

How will the stretch between the two junctions be designated then?

It's hardly a unique problem, changes of direction at the end of short connecting sections are commonplace, it just 'happens' - usually at the junction at one end of the section, rather than at some arbitrary half way point.

 

[150219]

How will the stretch between the two junctions be designated then?

The chord line from Gavray Junction to Bicester South Junction (i.e. from Bicester Village to London Marylebone) will be called the Up Bicester South West Chord.

 

[swt_passenger]

The chord line from Gavray Junction to Bicester South Junction (i.e. from Bicester Village to London Marylebone) will be called the Up Bicester South West Chord.

Which is quite a change from the name used in the TWA evidence, which (as we discussed early in the thread - around post #702) was originally to be the "Wretchwick" chord, after a nearby farm.

The Planner had also confirmed back then (May 2014) the change of line direction and re-naming of the main route as up/down Bletchley, down away from Oxford.

 

[CyrusWuff]

From a Sectional Appendix (and related publications) point of view, new line of route names apply from Monday 3rd August, as follows:

• MD735 - Denbigh Hall South Jn to Bicester Town is renamed and renumbered to MD736 - Oxford North Jn (excl.) to Denbigh Hall South Jn
• GW276 - Bicester Eastern Perimeter Road LC (excl.) to Oxford North Jn will be renamed and renumbered to GW277 - Oxford North Junction to Oxford Parkway (excl.)
• The new chord line will be named and numbered MD745 - Bicester South Junction to Gavray Junction

 

[brboy]

hope all can see the attch ok

 

[The Planner]

Which phase is that? it obviously isn't 0, and it looks too far advanced for 1, it doesn't have the new down platform on it though.

 

[brboy]

sorry that was phase 1 here is 2

 

[midlandred]

Photos taken yesterday at
Holts Farm Crossing
Mill Lane, Islip
Langford Lane/Wendlebury Halt
I also went onto the Bicester Village carpark, from where one cannot now see the station building because of the new multi-storey carpark!

 

[Doctor Fegg]

Oxford Mail story about the new timetable: http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/to...rss&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Train timetable for Oxford Parkway released for rail passengers

The timetable for trains which will operate from the new Oxford Parkway station near Kidlington from October has been released.

On October 26, the first train will depart from the station and arrive at London Marylebone just 56 minutes later.

The line is the first new rail link between London and a major British city for over 100 years and is part of a £130m investment from Chiltern Railways.

It is expected that 1,000 more passengers will use the Oxford line every morning.

The new service will see two new fast trains per hour throughout the day between Oxford Parkway and Bicester Village station and the capital.

Three trains will run from Oxford to London between 6am and 7am every morning, with a key commuter train departing at 7.24am.

Graham Cross, director at Chiltern Railways, said: "The new line is an incredibly exciting and important milestone.

"As of October, passengers will have fast and direct services to the capital."

There will also be a 'silver' train service on the 7.24am train, which will be fitted with an espresso bar and a business zone.

The majority of the trains during the day will be geared to business with free Wi-Fi, power sockets and spacious seating for working.

During the off-peak period, the majority of London to Oxford Parkway services will depart at regular half-hourly intervals.

...

and the Chiltern site: http://www.chilternrailways.co.uk/october-timetable

Interesting that the 07.24 up service is going to be "a 'silver' train service... which will be fitted with an espresso bar and a business zone". I think Chiltern are going to lay waste to FGW with that one.

 

[Oxfordblues]

Yes, I see the 07:24 breakfast-car "Club Train" from Oxford Parkway will be Class 68-hauled. This must be the first regular loco-hauled train from Oxford to London since the demise of Cross-Country's service via Kensington Olympia to Brighton. I predict an instant success!

 

[route:oxford]

Yes, I see the 07:24 breakfast-car "Club Train" from Oxford Parkway will be Class 68-hauled. This must be the first regular loco-hauled train from Oxford to London since the demise of Cross-Country's service via Kensington Olympia to Brighton. I predict an instant success!

It will indeed be an instant success.

There are clear failures though.

Oxford County Council for starting significant and long-term road works at both the Cutteslowe and Wolvercote (Peartree) roundabout just as this new station opens.

The Liberal Democrat party for their on-going campaign to have the railway line through Wolvercote closed. Surely it would be better to simply compulsory purchase and demolish the shoddily built homes that are in danger of collapse then rebuild high-density homes to modern standards?

 

[TheKnightWho]

Is there any particular reason this isn't being extended to Oxford itself?