Ely West Curve - EMT 13.57 ex Norwich today (10-10-2012)

13.57 Norwich (NRW) - Liverpool Lime Steet (LIV) today (10-10-2012) omitted Ely and travelled via Ely West Curve.

It enabled my first trip that way (these days not quite as rare as hens teeth but ... )

It has been suggested by Bald Rick and others that the curve may not survive the Ely North Junction remodelling proposed in HLOS 5.

But I am sure that NR will find a way because after North Junction, Ely Station itself becomes the pinch point and that could ultimately be even more difficult to resolve.

Securing Ely West Curve as part of the HLOS 5 implementation would surely be the least cost long term solution.

Oh nearly forgot, the reason for the EMT service re-routing was (so I am told) a cab fault in car 52852, part of unit 158 852.

The only booked service around it is on Sundays with the 1550ish off Norwich.

As Bald Rick has posted previously when Ely North Junction is doubled the curve may need to go in order to keep the current linespeeds over the newly doubled junction in the land available.

Thank you!

Whilst a long term aspiration (and I mean long term) might be for passenger services to need the curve, I am actually more concerned with freight.

The removal of the west curve would place further, but different, constraints on the operations at Ely.

I am sure that with some ingenious engineering that you will find a way.

Ely curve is to be upgraded for bi-directional signalling to increase capacity, this will remove the need for some Nuneaton-Felixstowe freight to reverse at Ely as is current practice.

Some freight does indeed currently reverse at Ely (not much though!), but anything on the Nuneaton - Felixstowe corridor has no need to reverse.

West Curve is currently signalled for west bound traffic only. If/when it goes bi-directional the sand to/from Middleton Towers and the (nearly) daily stone to/from Norwich would use it. Add in the odd light engine or ECS and that's only about 6 trains a day.

The benefits of re doubling Ely North Junction massively outweigh the benefits of making the West Curve bi-directional though in an ideal world you'd have both.