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Blackpool - Manchester Electrification

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wrinkley

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To add a bit of context (and credibility), the company I work for were still producing new designs for Lostock as recently as last week. I've seen an internal video showing the site and why the new designs are required. It's nothing affecting the electrical side, but is one of the reasons for the blockade.
If there are any recent photos of the substation from the car park it may be possible to see what's going on there.

Two transformers at Lostock this morning, photos sent to Dave.
 

wrinkley

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There were teams of orangemen at Farnworth and between Dean Clough and Lostock yesterday doing final fixing of registration arms and swinging them out over the track. There is still a lot of wiring to do between Farnworth and Lostock but I can't see any paths for the wiring train to this area on RTT during the blockade, am I missing something?
 

steverailer

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There were teams of orangemen at Farnworth and between Dean Clough and Lostock yesterday doing final fixing of registration arms and swinging them out over the track. There is still a lot of wiring to do between Farnworth and Lostock but I can't see any paths for the wiring train to this area on RTT during the blockade, am I missing something?

Probably being done by RRV. The new ones are just as quick as the wiring train

https://twitter.com/keltbraygroup/status/745903233638481920
 

Greybeard33

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Salford Central concerns me - unless that is "an absolute must" for the team during the blockade next week. When I return to the states on Tuesday, I will get my daughter to drop me off either at the airport or at Piccadilly so will not get to see anything.
Apologies if this has been mentioned before, but, for the avoidance of doubt, Salford Central and Salford Crescent are only closed today, Monday 27th, not for the rest of the blockade.

From Tuesday 28th to Friday 31st, the normal 3tph service is operating on the Atherton line, except that the Southport to Blackburns are extended to Clitheroe. See Northern's alternative timetables at www.northernrailway.co.uk/travel/improvement-works.

This was not made clear in the advance information on NRE.
 

reg

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Bolton-platform 4 wired from Weston St through Bolton station and onwards to Deane Clough area.Pics to follow.
 

59CosG95

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GSoP Post 17.0 - Blockade Special
Manchester Victoria - Preston; State of Play, week beginning 27th August 2018.

Less than 5 masts still missing.
Bolton Blockade is underway - route closed for 9 days from 25th August to 2nd September.
All mileages from Manchester Victoria. Bridge mileages are approximated where noted.

1. Man Vic Station (West End) - Man Vic West Jct - Deal Street Jct; 0m 0ch to 0m 32ch
Fully wired 2013-15. Platforms 1 & 2 at Man Vic have now been bedanglied.

2. Deal Street Jct - Salford Central (East End); 0m 32ch to 0m 59ch
Fully masted. Limit of electrification is currently at 0m 46ch; SPS is up along the unwired stretch.

3. Salford Central; 0m 59ch
Fully masted, most SPS (Small Part Steelwork e.g. dangly bits) up. No wires. One mast still missing at western end.

4. Salford Central (West End) - Windsor Bridge South Jct; 0m 59ch to 1m 46ch
Two runs of Earth wire are up. Catenary & contact wires are now also up from west of Salford Central to Agecroft; details below.

5. Windsor Bridge South Jct - Windsor Bridge North Jct (inc. Salford Crescent); 1m 46ch to 1m 70ch
Windsor Bridge South Jct now wired (catenary/contact) from the Deal St direction on both the Up & Down Salford Lines; however, the Up Bolton line is fully wired through Salford Crescent, and terminated just north of Windsor Bridge North Jct. Earth wires (+ AT wires) are also in situ here.
All lines through Salford Crescent are wired with the exception of P1 (which is wireless).
Further wiring details:
Up Bolton is wired from Agecroft South Jn, to Windsor Bridge South Jn (via the avoiding line at Crescent), where the wires continue onto the Up Salford, ending just south of Salford Central.
Agecroft South Jct Crossover is now fully wired.
The same length is wired on the Down Salford/Down Bolton, through P2 (Down platform) at Crescent.
In addition, the crossover from the Down Bolton to the Up/Dn Bolton (Crescent P1) is wired, but only this section - the wires do not continue to meet the Up Bolton.
The crossover between the Up and Down Salford at Windsor Bridge South Jn is also wired.
No wires between Windsor Bridge South Jn and the existing limit of electrification at Ordsall Lane, no wires on Platform 1 and nothing on the overrun towards Atherton.


6. Windsor Bridge North Jct - Clifton (South End); 1m 70ch to 4m 57ch
Catenary & contact wires are up from west of Salford Central to Agecroft (Sth Jct, by the bin terminal) over both lines.
Between Frederick Rd & Broughton Rd (2m 26ch) bridges, the Up side earth wire extends south from Broughton Rd as far as the line is visible.
Between Broughton Rd Bridge & Cockrobin Bridge, the Up side earth wire is up (for about 4 masts northwards, thru Pendleton Old).
North of Cockrobin Bridge, an Earth wire and an AT wire have gone up on the Down (northbound) side.
Both lines are wired (C&C) between Agecroft North Jn and a point roughly level with the north end of HMP Forest Bank (aka Strangeways); C&C wires on the Down are now confirmed to start a few hundred yards south of Clifton.
At Park House Rd Bridge, the first earth wire is now up on the Up side.
Lot of masts with SPS up on the southern approach to Clifton.

7. Clifton Station; 4m 57ch
Fully masted. No wires. Drainage manhole modules awaiting installation; temporary covers are over their future homes.

8. Clifton (North End) - Farnworth (South End); 4m 57ch to 8m 31ch
Brackets are fitted to the underside of the M60 overbridge. Bridge MVE1 27B (immediately NW of this) is fully erected, but unopened, and work the walkway is not yet finished.
Earth wires now up between Clifton & Kearsley; the Down side is continuous but it is unknown if the Up side is identically so.
BOTH lines are fully wired from well south of Kearsley, through Kearsley Station and up to Farnworth Tunnel, however it is unknown if the Up Line wiring continues through Farnworth Tunnel to a few hundred yards north of Green Lane Bridge (1st bridge north of Moses Gate).
Earth wire certainly in through Farnworth tunnel too.

9. Farnworth Station; 8m 31ch
Fully masted. Earth wire now in on the Down side through the station.
The Down line is fully wired from well south of Kearsley, through Farnworth Tunnel to a few hundred yards north of Green Lane Bridge (1st bridge north of Moses Gate). The Up line is so far unwired.

10. Farnworth (North End) - Bolton (South End); 8m 31ch to 10m 50ch
The Down Bolton line is fully wired from Farnworth Station, through Moses Gate and terminating approx. a few hundred yards north of Green Lane Bridge (1st bridge north of Moses Gate). The Up line is so far unwired.
North of the Squeeze Belly Entry bridge, the earth wire resumes (on the Down side) from a portal boom, fitted with Tensorex drums.

SPS and Tensorex drums appearing on some masts/cantilevers around Burnden Jct (10m 09ch).
The Platform 5 Line is fully wired (C&C) from the points at Weston St to Orlando St Bridge.
The Platform 4 Line (Down Bolton) is now wired from Weston Street through P4 to the Dean Clough area.

All uprights appear to be up on both sides of Lever St footbridge; a multi-track portal is up immediately to the south of the bridge. To the north (on the east side), a TTC with reduced-height registration arms is up.
Stretching south from Bolton, long stretches of earth wire are now up. Another portal has been erected in 2 replacement bases. South of Lever Street footbridge, the Up Line now has ATF wires installed.
Orlando St Bridge appears to be fully "stovepiped".

11. Bolton Station; 10m 50ch
All masts in the station area are now in place. Earth wires now in.
The Platform 2 Line is fully wired (C&C) from the points at Weston St to the SSA (Self-Supporting Anchor - aka "the wicketkeeper"). Insulators have yet to be installed on the wicketkeeper, and most fixings are still temporary.
The Platform 4 Line (Down Bolton) is now wired from Weston Street through P4 to the Dean Clough area.
The bridge deck of Trinity St over P3/4 has now been stovepiped; an earth wire is now attached to some of the pipes. Additionally, bolts & brackets are now drilled into the glazed brick retaining wall opposite P1.
Platforms 98% open to public; the 2% not open is a fenced-off section of canopy support to the right of signal "MP9239". P2 buffers look finished. Canopies look complete.

12. Bolton (North End) - Lostock (South End); 10m 50ch to 13m 52ch
The Platform 4 Line (Down Bolton) is now wired from Weston Street through P4 to the Dean Clough area.
Newport St bridge has now had studs/brackets of some kind drilled in. The run of masts between Newport St & the NW end of P5 now have their earth wire affixed. Just east of Newport St Bridge, a TTC (unbedanglied) has now gone up on the southbound side.
Both of the wall-bracketed portals have now been erected, and both have now gained their dangly bits.
Between the 2nd & 3rd bridges NW of Newport St (the unknown bridge & Dawes St), the mast in photo A732m has led a chequered life, being assembled, dismantled and then re-assembled!
Immediately NW of Dawes St (3rd bridge west of Newport St), a bracketed mast has gone up, with a registration arm attached (see photo A852m).
Between Newport Street Bridge & Moor Lane (the Bullfield Tunnels area), the tunnels are bedanglied throughout, with Aerial Earth Wire (AEW) brackets up over both tracks' respective tunnels/bridges.


Gt. Moor St. bridge now has a stovepipe in on the Down side. The most recently cured base has had a mast & two dangly assemblies put up (see pic. A300k; between Great Moor St. & Dawes St. bridges).
Of the "3 amigos" (the three closest masts to Great Moor St. Bridge on the East side), 2 now have Tensorex Drums fitted and the other has its dangly bits cabled-tied down(see pic. A320k).
Cable ducting troughs laid in the Down Side Cess between Bolton Station, past Newport Street, under Soho Street, Black Horse St & New St, and through Bullfield Tunnel.
The overrun along the line to Blackburn (as far as Bradshawgate Tunnel) looks nearly ready for SPS & wires.
Earth wire up on the Down side west of Moor St Tunnel.

Between Moor Lane & Lostock, Earth wires have already been strung.
Autotransformer wires now largely up between Moor Lane & Mayor St. Bridges, and between Lostock & Ladybridge (on both lines), but registration arms are still largely folded out of place.
Between Beaumont Rd Bridge & Ladybridge, the catenary wires for a neutral section have been installed.
South of Lostock, what was once a pair of portal uprights awaiting a boom has now been replaced by a pair of TTCs.
More masts around the switchgear box are sprouting dangly bits, switchgear kit etc.
A UTX has been installed in the "vee" in Lostock Jct, for buried service access.
Work currently going on with stacks of cable ducting on the Wigan Line - possibly from the substation?
All masts now up on the Wigan overlap.

13. Lostock Station; 13m 52ch
Switchgear box delivered 6th April '18. Over the August Bank Holiday Weekend, the two Autotransformers (AT1 & AT2) were delivered.
All TTCs now in behind the Down platform; one of them is not like the others (additional bracing member).
Platform extension/resurfacing work still underway.

14. Lostock (North End) - Euxton Jct; 13m 52ch to 25m 31ch
Two more UTXs have been installed in the "vee" between the Preston & Wigan lines, to the north of Lostock station.
Immediately north of Lostock, the closest TTCs to the platforms have now sprouted part of their switchgear kit.
All C&C wires up on both lines from the "Golf Course" Footbridge (approx. 14m 04ch), over Yarrow Viaduct, through Chorley Station, Chorley Tunnel, the Flying Arches & Buckshaw Parkway to the WCML. Temp. fixings still evident at Buckshaw Pkwy & Adlington stns. AT & earth wires not always present, but the C&C appears continuous.
On Yarrow Viaduct, the northern portal has now been installed. The Down side Earth wire is also up, but the Down side AT wire is still absent. (It is assumed this is replicated on the Up side.)
Orangemen at work in droves on the Up (S-bound) platform at Blackrod.
Orangemen at work on the footpath at the foot of the northern steps of Heath Charnock FB.

Through Chorley Station, all wires bar the AT wires are installed.
The Buckshaw Parkway crossover is also wired.
Within Buckshaw Pkwy, the registration arms on the footbridge are not yet in position.

Do let me know if I've missed anything!
 

Howardh

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Apologies if this has already been mentioned (please save me going back through hundreds of posts!!)
1. I take it there are no plans to increase the platforms (ie to serve the Wigan line) at Lostock?
2. When everything's finished, will there be trains coming from the North through Preston, to Wigan, then Bolton onto Manchester? Can't think why there should be other than to connect intermediate stations to the WCML so they don't have to change trains?
 

PN27

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Apologies if this has already been mentioned (please save me going back through hundreds of posts!!)
1. I take it there are no plans to increase the platforms (ie to serve the Wigan line) at Lostock?
2. When everything's finished, will there be trains coming from the North through Preston, to Wigan, then Bolton onto Manchester? Can't think why there should be other than to connect intermediate stations to the WCML so they don't have to change trains?

1. No plans to add platforms at Lostock.
2. TPE services from Scotland will run via Chorley (albeit not stopping there; they'll only call at Bolton). Northern's Windermere and Barrow services will, I believe, operate via Wigan and the Chat Moss route. I'm not aware of any plans for regular services from the WCML crossing onto the Hindley lines at Wigan. However, Northern operate two services an hour from the Hindley lines that terminate at Wigan North Western.

Follow-on question: Is the wiring of Lostock Jn- Wigan North Western officially dead?
 

GRALISTAIR

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OK got a pass out on one condition - the wife came with me. That limited me slightly so I decided to focus focus focus. Did Chorley Addlington and Blackrod only. I thought other members of the forum would cover Bolton Salford and Lostock. Anyway I get to Chorley and wow. Loads of Orangemen and minimum 3 road railers but if you look at the pictures I am sending to Dave it does actually look like 4. Then I went to Addlington. Again orange aplenty. Then to Blackrod and again rewarded with orange. As a picture paints a thousand words I am sending to Dave as fully annotated as I can manage.
 
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wrinkley

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Bolton-platform 4 wired from Weston St through Bolton station and onwards to Deane Clough area.Pics to follow.

I had a look later this afternoon, up and down lines have C&C as far as the auto-tensioners just past the flats at Blackshaw Lane.

The auto-transformer wire is still missing from the up line between Dean Clough and Mayor St.
 

LDECRexile

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I came back from a short break to find very welcome contributions showing several sites' status and work in progress.

Wrinkley sent material mostly on Lostock and Ladybridge, which I've added to his album here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157654034635234

Reg sent material on the Bolton area, which I've added to his album here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157671732263863

Gralistair toured Blackrod, Aggers and Chorley. I've added his material to his album here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157651259517065

I've added the lot to the Combined Volume here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157661069863633

Thank you Graham, Reg and Wrinkley, encouraging stuff. Apologies in advance for errors in captions, which are mine alone.
 

PN27

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Spoke to a guy at Adlington station this evening, they're installing ducting for the Earth connections to the structures on the Up platform (and, presumably, the masts themselves).
 

JMan

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Are they actually extending the platforms at Lostock or just re-surfacing? Searching online suggests the platforms are currently 155m. The only reason I could see to extend would be to accommodate a double (8 car) Class 319 at around 160m - given Northern’s woeful performance recently, I see this eventuality as highly unlikely...
 

LDECRexile

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Wrinkley has been out again this evening and sent another batch of shots of new wiring west of Bolton, he added:

"I saw Reg’s comment to the forum this afternoon, so I went to have a look, starting at Mayor St and working west. The wiring is on up and down lines coming out of Bolton and stopping at the auto-tensioners just past the two big block of flats at the bottom of Blackshaw Lane.

As the lone Orangeman in the earlier shots was checking masts at the Ladybridge and heading towards the station, it looks like a walk along the path tomorrow should be worthwhile. I saw a Keltbray van go into the station later, possible to pick him up, as he would have started at Blackshaw Lane."

I've added these new images to Wrinkley's album here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157654034635234

and to the Combined Volume here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157661069863633

Thank you Wrinkley, fingers crossed for your jaunt tomorrow.
 

wrinkley

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Are they actually extending the platforms at Lostock or just re-surfacing? Searching online suggests the platforms are currently 155m. The only reason I could see to extend would be to accommodate a double (8 car) Class 319 at around 160m - given Northern’s woeful performance recently, I see this eventuality as highly unlikely...

There has been no extension at the west end, which is now completed, they are now up to the east end of the down line platform and have not started any extension so far. They should finish that by Thursday, so we will soon know.
 

Greybeard33

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Are they actually extending the platforms at Lostock or just re-surfacing? Searching online suggests the platforms are currently 155m. The only reason I could see to extend would be to accommodate a double (8 car) Class 319 at around 160m - given Northern’s woeful performance recently, I see this eventuality as highly unlikely...
The longest formations Northern is likely to use on the line are 6-car 323s and 331s, at about 140m. 8-car 319s are a no-no, because there is no room to extend the platforms at Salford Crescent.
 

LDECRexile

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I did a train trip from Southport to Salford Central and Salford Crescent via Atherton this morning.

I couldn't see any evidence of any electrification work at either station or between them or south of Salford Crescent.

Specifically, the missing mast at Salford Central is still missing.
There are no wires over Salford Central.

There is no wire over Salford Crescent Platform 1, with several danglies not yet in place
The only wires visible south of Salford Crescent towards Ordsall Junction are the earth wires which have been present for some time.

A member of platform staff at Crescent said some work had been done on danglies, but it wasn't clear when he was talking about.

I don't know whether any work was planned in the area whilst both stations were closed, so I can form no opinion on whether the lack of evidence is bad news or no news.
 

Geeves

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My thoughts are that the powers that be have decided to focus on wiring where the electrics will actually be running, hence the lack of progress through Salford Central. Its pretty unlikely that anything going that way will be electric in the short term anyway.
 

The_Engineer

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My thoughts are that the powers that be have decided to focus on wiring where the electrics will actually be running, hence the lack of progress through Salford Central. Its pretty unlikely that anything going that way will be electric in the short term anyway.
Blackpool - Preston - Victoria trains are, from January.

Plenty of time to finish it ALL off including Salford Central
 

Geeves

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Hope you are right, there is a lot of very expensive OHLE at Vic seeing little use at the moment!
 

The_Engineer

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Hope you are right, there is a lot of very expensive OHLE at Vic seeing little use at the moment!
Once the Wigan line and Stalybridge are done the Wigan to Stalybridges train should be EMU too, and other Victoria EMU terminators extended to Stalybridge. They might have been Class 769 from January, if they had been delivered!!
 

PN27

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Blackpool - Preston - Victoria trains are, from January.

Plenty of time to finish it ALL off including Salford Central

TOC websites (and, for the most part, RTT) implying a full closure of Deal St Jn and Ordsall Lane Jn on the weekends of the 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th September, including the Ordsall Chord, implying that this is when the southern end of the route will be plugged in to the existing wires.
 
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