Great Western Electrification Progress

ANP1990 said:

I would have thought that pans must be able to go up/down at 140 mph due to neutral sections. I'm sure I've read else where on here that neutral sections are preceeded by magnets that automatically drop and raise the pan. Couldn' they put the magnets in and keep the wires in case something goes wrong? Wouldn't need a speed restriction then!

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ANP1990 said:

My mistake! Clearly need ETCS implemented so that the pans can be dropped automatically then

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Peter Sarf said:

Regarding Steventon. The paranoid in me says having lowered the track it would be best to carefully monitor the bridge foundations as the bridge might demolish itself .

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Peter Sarf said:

Regarding Steventon. The paranoid in me says having lowered the track it would be best to carefully monitor the bridge foundations as the bridge might demolish itself . Failing that I wonder how many pans accidentally hitting the bridge would render it uneconomic to repair . Perhaps I should get my coat ?.

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Peter Sarf said:

Regarding Steventon. The paranoid in me says having lowered the track it would be best to carefully monitor the bridge foundations as the bridge might demolish itself . Failing that I wonder how many pans accidentally hitting the bridge would render it uneconomic to repair . Perhaps I should get my coat ?.

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steverailer said:

Am I missing something? Do people on here thing the gap at Steventon will not be wired?

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snowball said:

No, the fact that it will be wired has been clarified numerous times and I have not seen any recent claims to the contrary.

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• All platforms at Paddington & approach tracks from Westbourne Park are live.
• TTCs near Ealing Broadway over the Down Main to replace headspans.
• Mains & Reliefs all done to Reading, where all through lines and western bays are wired.
• Current live wires end East of the A34 bridge MP55 3/4 (just short of Milton Jct).
• Paddington-Didcot signed off for Class 387 operation since 28/12/17, IETs running on AC as far as Moreton Cutting from 8th Jan. Up IETs are allowed to pan up in Didcot if stopping there.
• Reading TCD 99.9% live (Underframe clean road not yet wired); Reading Curve now fully wired (not yet live I suspect). B&H not yet complete; see below.

• First few yards of Windsor and Marlow branches wired.
• AT wires in operation from Maidenhead to Didcot; Kensal Green to Maidenhead currently only using return conductors but will be AT-ready in the near future.
  • Hayes & Harlington to Maidenhead closed off over the May Bank Holiday; to prepare for the Elizabeth Line running to Maidenhead. Paddington to H&H will also be closed on May 6th, presumably for the ATF installation and finishing of Platform Extensions.
• On May 20th, all lines between Paddington and H&H will be closed until 0800.
• Twyford platform, canopy and bridge parapet works in progress.
• Few masts and cantilevers now up on the Didcot Avoiding Line, which finish at Appleford; Appleford LC being the limit of wires for the time being.
• Oxford Lines west of Didcot Pkwy wired as far as the loco fuelling sdg; Down Oxford as far as 53m31ch, Up Oxford as far as 53m42ch. Didcot avoiding lines have sprouted masts (4 portals, 2 TTCs), with a wire pair over the Down Didcot Avoider.

• In the Steventon area (between MP55 3/4 and MP57 1/4), all masts are up, with just a few last bits of SPS to go up west of *ahem* that bridge.
• Wires resume after MP57 1/4 (400m west of Causeway Crossing), with a break on the Up line just east of Uffington X-overs.
• West of Uffington, after MP67 1/2, the wires continue to approx MP72 1/4, with a small gap just east of Bourton X-overs.
• West of Bourton the wires resume and continue, almost to Swindon:
  • as far as Highworth Jct (76m 32ch) on the Down and
  • as far as the western end of Swindon Dn Yard (76m 64ch) on the Up.
  • The USGL at Stratton (Swindon Up Goods Loop) is also wired.

• All masts and portal booms are up, and SPS is starting to be installed; from east to west as far as the old Swindon B signal box.
• Only one cantilever boom/portal boom needs to be put up at the western end; this may well have gone up over the 17/3-18/3 Blockade at Swindon. Can anyone confirm?
• Three bare tall masts (one at London end of P4, 2 at Bristol end of P4); presumably for power supply feed.

• Rushey Platt (MP 78 1/2) has a single wire run from the UM (Up Main) onto the loop, while the DM (Down Main) through it has 2 wire runs finishing further west.
• The UM has another two wire runs, from MP79 to MP79 3/4 and from MP 81 3/4 to MP82 1/2.
• Wootton Bassett's steelwork, mainly portals, isn't complete but still looking quite near complete.

• Track lowering and drainage work at Dauntsey completed.
• Nr Tockenham Wick, pretty much all the masts are up, TTCs, STCs and portals alike; most have SPS fitted now.
• First few headspans (?) erected over 25/6th of Feb '17 at Dauntsey Bank (87m ish), and some (not all) of the missing masts have gone up too, plus brackets for fittings.
• East of Chippenham, in the Langley Burrell (Crossing Rd) area, all masts appear to be up, fully dressed with SPS; works compound established at Langley Green L.C.
  • Masts also up south of Langley Burrell to Cocklebury Lane Bridge (last bridge east of Chippenham), but no SPS up on them yet.
  • As yet, no masts west of the bridge but piles are in.

• 11 odd miles worth of wires up from Wootton Bassett (MP 83 1/2) to just west of (and including) Hullavington loops.
• O/H Conductor rail installed in Chipping Sodbury Tunnel.
• Progress as well around Chipping Sodbury/Old Sodbury:
  • many masts up, some with booms attached.
  • SPS now appearing too.
• From Westerleigh Jct to Bristol Parkway; fewer than 20 bases are mastless now. Most SPS is concentrated at the Westerleigh end.
  • A run of masts (all boomed) has sprouted on the curve towards Cheltenham Spa.
• The "Blue Viaduct" over the M4 just east of BPW now has SPS up on the masts along it.
• BPW Platforms extensions underway.
  • TTCs up over P1.
  • TTCs are likely to go up over P2/P3, as space is available on the existing masts on the P1/P2 island for them.
  • P4 has piles opposite the track, but all are currently bare of masts.

• Stoke Gifford IEP Depot all wired.
  
• Patchway Tunnel conductor rail to be installed, 18/6/18 to 8/7/18.
• Masts, booms and SPS up through Patchway.
• Cattybrook Brickworks Bridge closed as of 18/3/18.
• At Pilning, piling and masts appearing towards both Cattybrook & Severn Tunnel, Platform 2 now closed. SPS going up on some portals and masts too.

• Severn Tunnel Conductor rail in place .
• All bridge rebuilding complete from Severn Tunnel Jct (149m 14ch) to Bishton Flyover (152m 30ch).
• No masts until 1 mile east of Llanwern.
  • Masts (with SPS fitted) up between Bishton Flyover (including over it) and Llanwern West Jct (156m 20ch). https://flic.kr/p/23NSDKD and https://flic.kr/p/23NSCRp.
• Cluster of piles in opposite the Down Relief between the Maindee Jcts (157m 74ch to 158m 16ch).

• Canopies cut back pending wires; being done in 30ft sections. (Are they done? Confirmation on that would be gratefully received).
• Masts and portals now appearing at the western end of the station, some with SPS attached.
• Some concrete bases in between stn & tunnels, perhaps for portals.
• Old stn footbridge and another bridge further east gone.

• Approx. 97 masts from Ebbw Jct (160m 7ch) to Marshfield (163m 60ch).
  • Some of them, near Duffryn, have SPS affixed.
• Two TTCs, one on each side of the tracks, have been erected by the bridge at Rhymney River Bridge Jct (167m 61ch).
• About 4 or 5 portals have been erected just west of Pengam Jct (168m 40ch).

• Re-signalling completed. Platform 0 now open. 3 masts now up over P0/1 with TTC booms.

• New IEP Depot at Maliphant Sidings, Swansea now complete; all steelwork up but no wires.

• Through Reading West to Southcote Jct, perhaps 50% of masts at best up; these appear in patches at the western end of Reading West.
  • Some additional masts on the Up (Reading) side at Southcote Jct (37m 62ch).

• From Southcote Jct past Calcot Mill FP crossing to Theale, most masts are now up (less than 10% left to erect). Still some portals and cantilevers to go up.
  • First SPS up in this area at around MP 38 1/2; SPS work is about 50% complete, continuing sporadically to Wigmore Lane, at the western end of Theale Goods Loop (42m 8ch).
• Masts have gone up on the Loop Platform at Theale; only bases so far on the Down side platform. These should be taking TTCs in that case.
• From Theale Goods Loop to Ufton Lane Bridge, steelwork looks pretty complete; only 3 booms are missing - which should all be installed in the April Blockade (see below).
• At Ufton (Towney) Loop (42m08ch to 44m11ch), all the missing masts over the Up Line opposite and over the western end of the loop are now in place.
  • SPS continues part way down the loop, with a gap at the Aldermaston end.
• The gap on the loop excepted, the majority of SPS is now up between Wigmore Rd & Aldermaston.

• The Down platform extension at Aldermaston is mostly in, unlike at Thatcham.
• From Aldermaston to east of Midgham LC, all steelwork appears to be up;
  • masts and SPS have gone up in Aldermaston Station alongside the platform extensions.
• Both lines are fully wired from east of Midgham LC, through Thatcham, to just east of Kennet Viaduct (nr Newbury Racecourse).
  • All 3 level crossings (Midgham, Colthrop, Thatcham) are now wired.
  • A short wire run from just east of Racecourse to just east of the overbridge linking the RC to Hambridge Lane has appeared on the Up line;
  • there is still a gap between this section and the main wired "Thatcham Section" over Kennet Viaduct.
• RC east X-overs still need wiring. Piles for the Loop line at Newbury RC are in through the platform.

• Piles almost all in, masts down to single figures.
• At Newbury, the new footbridge is now up; piling also taking place within the station, on the platforms. Old footbridge not yet removed.
• The electrical substation/PSU at Boundary Rd is now under construction; @Unclepete captured the concrete bases curing on the Up side. Thanks very much Pete!

1. 12/3 to 15/3; done.
2. 23/4 to 26/4,
3. 4/6 to 7/6,
4. 9/7 to 12/7,
5. 16/7 to 5/8,
6. 28/8 to 30/8,
7. 8/10 to 11/10,
8. 19/11 to 22/11.

• Appleford LC to Oxford paused, pending Oxford's rebuild
• Bristol Temple Meads to Bath & Bristol Parkway paused, dependent on Bristol track remodelling and Filton Bank 4-tracking (now underway).

59CosG95 said:

GWML Electrification: State of Play, week beginning 19/3/2018

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• Appleford LC to Oxford paused, pending Oxford's rebuild
• Bristol Temple Meads to Bath & Bristol Parkway paused, dependent on Bristol track remodelling and Filton Bank 4-tracking (now underway).

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jimm said:

Thanks for the impressive update, but can I point out a few things about this bit:



In both cases you have forgotten to mention the area resignalling schemes, which are a more fundamental consideration when it comes to delayed electrification than the actual track layouts in both cases. The existing power signalling at Bristol and Oxford is not immunised against interference from 25kv overhead cables. In both cases, renewal of the signalling and associated alterations to track layouts are running way late, compared with the initial timescales planned.

And in the case of Oxford, I've said it before, so I'll say it again - electrification is not dependent on the development of a new station.

Design work has been done for the electrification of the track layout that will be completed this summer when the new Oxford area signalling is switched on and control moves to the Thames Valley Signalling Centre at Didcot - it was done a long time ago, as this track layout is the one on which the new station will be based, right down to the alignments of the two bays at the north end, which were deliberately positioned so they can form new extended platforms for a rebuild scheme.

I have posted this link previously but here it is again - see the electrification layout on slide 9 of this presentation given in Oxford in 2016 by Network Rail and try to spot any extra tracks or platforms on it. An earlier version had the 25kv yellow area extending all the way to Wolvercot junction.

https://www.slideshare.net/Construc...etwork-rail-eng-presentation-14-0116-py-final

If Oxford electrification has to wait for the money to pay for a new station and associated developments to be found, then it will be a very long wait, given the snail's pace at which any major developments happen in Oxford.

If the CP6 settlement allows for Oxford wiring and it passes the numbers test, I'd expect it to happen as soon as possible, for sheer operational practicality.

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The existing power signalling at Bristol and Oxford is not immunised against interference from 25kv overhead cables. In both cases, renewal of the signalling and associated alterations to track layouts are running way late, compared with the initial timescales planned.

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59CosG95 said:

Newport

• Canopies cut back pending wires; being done in 30ft sections. (Are they done? Confirmation on that would be gratefully received).
• Old stn footbridge and another bridge further east gone.

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HowardGWR said:

Are there any known difficulties with this task, does anyone know? I mean, it must have been carried out lost of times before, or is there something different about Bristol's and Oxford's signalling?

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oglord said:

Canopies are cut back except for the section either side of the original footbridge -- which is still in situ!

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jimm said:

The signalling equipment at Oxford and Bristol is basically life-expired, so in both cases they need to replace the lot anyway, not just immunise it.

Oxford was supposed to have been finished in about 2015 but has been affected by a series of delays - which is why the point at Wolvercote to connect the extended down loop line into the Oxford-Banbury line was installed in December 2013 but has yet to be put to use. Someone else may know what the original timescale for Bristol was.

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• P0/P1 in the old Midland Shed may still be on the cards for restoration/IET use
• The old Post Office building will become a university campus, along with new homes and a new access route into Temple Meads; more routes into the station will also be restored
• The station's roof & canopies will be renewed during CP6
• At the same time as the redevelopment of Temple Meads takes place, the Temple Quarter will also be regenerated
• Bristol East Jct remodelling still not finalised - remodelling will be key for the Midland Shed and the MetroWest Schemes

59CosG95 said:

So, nitpicking from the #ffcwest hashtag on Twitter today, I managed to glean the following information about modernising the Western Region:
Electrification
At the current rate of progress, wires are due to go live in Swindon by August and in Bristol Parkway by September - who can say what's planned for Cardiff??

Resignalling
Phase 3 of the Bristol Resignalling (the most complex one) is due to take place over Easter 2018; the final 4th Phase will occur in October, when Temple Meads to Bath Spa is transferred to Didcot (TVSC).

Temple Meads Regeneration

• P0/P1 in the old Midland Shed may still be on the cards for restoration/IET use
• The old Post Office building will become a university campus, along with new homes and a new access route into Temple Meads; more routes into the station will also be restored
• The station's roof & canopies will be renewed during CP6
• At the same time as the redevelopment of Temple Meads takes place, the Temple Quarter will also be regenerated
• Bristol East Jct remodelling still not finalised - remodelling will be key for the Midland Shed and the MetroWest Schemes

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59CosG95 said:

BPW Platforms extensions underway.

• TTCs up over P1.
• TTCs are likely to go up over P2/P3, as space is available on the existing masts on the P1/P2 island for them.
• P4 has piles opposite the track, but all are currently bare of masts.

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oglord said:

TTCs now up over all platforms!

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59CosG95 said:

Fantastic news; have you got any pictures? I would've thought that STCs would make more sense for P4, given that it's only 1 track.

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oglord said:

I'll try and get some this evening. The masts for P4 are on the car park side, so need to stretch across two tracks.

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59CosG95 said:

Temple Meads Regeneration

• P0/P1 in the old Midland Shed may still be on the cards for restoration/IET use
• The old Post Office building will become a university campus, along with new homes and a new access route into Temple Meads; more routes into the station will also be restored
• The station's roof & canopies will be renewed during CP6
• At the same time as the redevelopment of Temple Meads takes place, the Temple Quarter will also be regenerated
• Bristol East Jct remodelling still not finalised - remodelling will be key for the Midland Shed and the MetroWest Schemes

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59CosG95 said:

Oh I see; are they due to hold up the SPS (and hence wires) for P4 and P3?
I did originally think that the "north side" TTCs on the P1/2 island were due to hold the wires for P2/P3 on their own...shows how little I know!

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