Jozhua
Established Member
- Joined
- 6 Jan 2019
- Messages
- 1,856
Woodhead isn't the solution when looked into. It would be a good freight route, but for reducing passenger journey times, not anything gamechanging. It's probably even more windy than the Hope Valley is, only thing it had going before was electrification!It isn't that long so it would seem to be a bit of an extravagance.
I think it was that Hazel Grove chord that was the final nail in the coffin for Woodhead.
With the Hope Valley gaining a fast route into Manchester and linking Stockport to Sheffield too, Woodhead is never going to be needed or be a desirable route.
Everyone forgets about the freight!The pandemic's effect on passenger services may reduce the need for an early 3rd fast passenger service but the fundamental issue is capacity to run slower moving train loads of heavy limestone from the quarries near Buxton and cement from Hope. That also requires paths for light engines going for servicing and and coal to Hope. Because siding capacity is limited at both Buxton quarries and the cement works empty wagons may be held in reserve at Toton or Barrow Hill.
These two pictures show a train of empty wagons back in May, stopped below the Twentywell Lane road bridge at Dore. It had come from the west side but there wasn't space at Buxton so it had come all the way along the Hope Valley and was going to drag through Sheffield and round to Barrow Hill. It was halted in the station platform and stretched almost as far back as Dore West Junction. It stood there for 5-10 minutes during which time a loaded stone train followed and took the Dore curve to head south. At this time a reduced passenger timetable was operating on all routes so this track block wasn't a problem.
Once there was a clear northbound route through Sheffield the train moved off, helped by the downhill gradient. That is a stronger factor for loaded trains that may soon be held in the Bamford loop. The drawback of that is it's on an uphill gradient and it's distance from the MML with the 5-6 minute separation demanded by Totley Tunnel.
That's less of an issue with trains heading south that will be able to shelter in the Dore loop to await an opportunity to cross northbound traffic and slot in to go south. However it is a steep uphill gradient round the tight 90 degree Dore curve and into Bradway Tunnel, currently limited to 15 mph - and produces a lot of squeeling wheels! That limit is supposed to increase to 20 mph.
Others have pointed out that York will have a limited view of trains approaching from the west (but presumably much better than today) in order to decide which may need to be looped. However getting eastbound freight traffic released from Buxton and Earles across the westbound traffic flow will be easier.
It was probably a mistake, but the documentation for the Public Inquiry included a diagram showing an option for bi-directional working between Dore Station and Dore West Junctions. If that were to exist the train shown below could have sat there for some time without totally blocking all other traffic in both directions. It would be in a much better position to take advantage of a gap in MML northbound traffic than if held at Bamford.
It would also make it possible for a Northern stopping service to move forward and across the MML into Dore station to await being overtaken by the often late preceding TPE service! Last but not least it might allow an additional service to run up to Dore and back into Sheffield rather than having to proceed further along the route where loadings are much lower.
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Another bottleneck that isn't currently going to be resolved is entering and leaving the Hope Valley line or the Buxton quarries to head west and south. The route normally used involves a big detour north up to Guide Bridge before heading south through Denton. Relatively few trains go that way. One that currently does is coal bound for Earles from Cwmbargoed Opencast Colliery. To enter Earles Sidings it has to stop and reverse across westbound traffic.
This is the train last Tuesday; https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/H11101/2020-12-21/detailed What exactly went wrong is difficult to follow, but it has been suggested that there wasn't a driver available at some point.
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Whatever, the Northern stopping service was held behind it until the route was cleared; https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/P28844/2020-12-22/detailed#allox_id=0 That particular service has the best punctuality record into Sheffield of any on the line, but this particular coal train has caused delays before. The coal finally arrived at Earles almost 2 hours late, being passed at Edale by the Northern service, by then on its way back to Manchester! Reversing long freight trains across the westbound traffic could be eliminated by a crossover west of Earles, or signalling one track bi-diectionally through Cowburn Tunnel. But these ideas should have been incorporated into the planning 5-10 years ago. It's far too late now.
In a letter to TOCs in October Network Rail said "The Secretary of State finally announced his decision to support the TWAO for this scheme in February 2018. Whilst there are a number of conditions that constrain the construction process, the TWAO does effectively provide planning approval for the works that it covers. It does, however, also introduce a significant limitation on the ability to make changes to the scheme: any changes to the geographic scope, for instance, would very probably require a further TWAO submission, which would introduce a significant delay as well as a substantial cost.
Funding for the scheme was paused in 2016 as part of the Hendy review, but has become available in CP6. Network Rail is now working with the DfT with a view to achieving “Decision to Deliver” by December 2020, enabling a contract for the works to be let in January 2021."
Maybe we'll hear that Decision announced very soon.
The fact of the matter is, especially for large, heavy, bulky, relatively low value stuff like rocks, rail is the only real sensible way to transport it long distance.
Even for other non-rocky stuff, we desperately need more rail freight capacity. HGVs are frankly less efficient, and also we're running out of drivers for them. Unless we want to improve pay and working conditions to get more people into it (fat chance lol), the only way to move stuff long distance going forward, will be rail.