Great Western Electrification Progress

jazzy said:

Forgive me if this question is answered in one of the previous 281 pages of this thread but when is it likely to be known when / if Chippenham to Bristol Temple Meads via Bath will be electrified?

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JN114 said:

No, the project is indefinitely paused.

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• All main line tracks wired as far as Wootton Bassett Jct, and are to be considered "live" as such. The envelope of "live" wires continues along the South Wales Main Line to Filton Jct (inc. Bristol Parkway), and to the Limits of Wiring on the Berks & Hants line and Reading-Basingstoke Line; details are given below.
• TTCs have replaced/been replacing headspans at various locations within London - locations include Westway (beneath the A40), Acton Main Line, Ealing Broadway, and between Southall & H&H. These are part of the works for the Elizabeth Line.
• Everything wired at Reading (bar P4-6 which were never in the plan). Includes the TCD & the curves, down to Reading West (see B&H section).
• West of Didcot Parkway, all lines are wired & live heading towards Swindon.
• Everything wired at Swindon (bar the goods lines north of P1, where provision is provided).

• ATF wires in operation from Maidenhead to Wootton Bassett; Kensal Green to Maidenhead currently only using return conductors but will be AT-ready in the near future. Some AT wires up along this stretch now; whether they are live remains to be seen.
• Parapet Work extended upwards at Southbury Lane Bridge, Ruscombe; the wing walls remain unfinished. Original Coping stones have now been replaced.
• Platforms are being extended at Cholsey (country end), Goring & Streatley (London end), Pangbourne (country end), & Tilehurst (1 & 4 country end; 2 & 3 London end).
• Few masts and cantilevers now up on the Didcot Avoiding Line, which finish at Appleford; Appleford LC being the limit of structures for the time being.
• Oxford Lines west of Didcot Pkwy wired as far as the loco fuelling sdg; Down Oxford as far as 53m 31ch, Up Oxford as far as 53m 42ch. Didcot avoiding lines have sprouted masts (4 portals, 2 TTCs), with a wire pair over the Down Didcot Avoider.
• A note on Steventon: Wires up under the High St Bridge (aka the "Brunel Bridge"); however, the bridge may well be demolished in CP6. "Temporary" parapet work to protect passers-by from stray currents now complete. Wires west of Causeway Crossing are only authorised for passenger service on 80x trains in both directions, however, 387s are allowed to run empty to/from Cocklebury sidings under AC. The discussion continues.
• Overruns through Swindon Jct (77m 36ch) onto the Golden Valley Line have also been wired.
• Swindon Cocklebury Sidings in operation for Class 387 stabling as of 2/1/19.

• Both lines were due to be considered LIVE (but not signed off for passenger use) from Wootton Bassett Jct to Christian Malford (93m 31ch) as of 10/2/2019; following the bad weather in SW England, this has been pushed back to a later date (TBC).
• Catenary, contact & Earth wires are up over/adj. to both lines from Cocklebury Lane to Wootton Bassett Jct.
• Limit of AT Feeding: the Auto-Transformer at Christian Malford.

• No piles in Chippenham station, nor any masts affixed to the viaduct.
• All piles in and majority of masts (and cantilevers) up from the western end of the viaduct to Thingley Junction (where the feeder station will be). Most TTCs have booms from beyond the viaduct to Thingley East Junction. About 14 masts are up in the vicinity of Thingley Feeder Stn, 2 of which have TTC booms affixed. Another has an STC boom.
• Piles continue westwards to the next bridge.

• No wiring for the foreseeable future, but overbridges between Thingley Jct & Box Tunnel have all been rebuilt. Corsham Main Road Bridge needs its parapets raising. New aqueduct & footbridge at Corsham complete.
• Both Box & Middle Hill Tunnels have had track lowered.
• A new footbridge has been built at Ashley Box.
• Piles also in (and have been for over a year) at Ashley (beyond Box Tunnel) - these might well be trial piles.
• Bathampton Jct to beyond Sydney Gardens has had track lowered. A new signal gantry at Bathampton Jct was installed over Xmas 2017 but is not yet in use.
• Bath Spa platforms realigned & raised, with track also slewed.
• Track through Oldfield Park & Keynsham now lowered.
• A lot of piles are in along the embankment around Saltford and Keynsham in readiness for future wiring.

• Wires from Wootton Bassett Jct to Bristol Parkway in passenger service since 30/12/18.
• All 6 through Lines at Bristol Parkway have been wired and are live.
• Live wires continue to Filton Jct & Stoke Gifford IEP Depot; Chipping Sodbury Goods Loop and the Cheltenham Curve overrun (as far as the limit of wiring) are also fully wired and live.
  • Limit of Live Wires on the Filton Lines (+ Down Bristol Parkway Relief): 112m 23ch.
  • Limit of Live Wires on the Charfield Lines (from Westerleigh Jct): 120m 59ch.
• Filton Bank bridge works (mileages all from Temple Meads):
  • Easton Rd Overbridge (1m 18ch) completely rebuilt.
  • Narroways FB (2m 12ch) & Ashley Hill FB (3m 11ch) replaced.
  • Bonnington Walk Overbridge (3m 62ch) - parapets raised.
  • FB south of Filton Abbey Wood (4m 18ch) will need work if wiring is to occur.

• Stoke Gifford IET Depot all wired - only the arrival road & sidings are energised. Some roads may also be energised, however the wheel lathe road is dead from the lathe shed to the buffer stops.
• Patchway Tunnels conductor rail installed.
• Wires extend westwards from Filton Jct through Patchway and Pilning (across all lines) to Ableton Lane Tunnel (10m 51ch to 10m 55ch; from Bristol Temple Meads); this carries the A403 over the line and is the last tunnel before the Severn Tunnel.
• Cattybrook Brickworks Bridge closed since 18/3/18.

• Severn Tunnel Conductor rail in place. A number of masts on both sides of the Tunnel line (perhaps all of them?) are now up at Caldicot, just before the Western tunnel mouth; these now extend westwards towards the eastern end of the platforms at STJ.
• All large steelwork now appears to be in position at Severn Tunnel Junction; roughly 85-90% of the cantilevers/SPS/Tensorex is also up. (NB: This includes the overruns towards Caldicot on the lines to Chepstow.)
• Feeder cables now hang from both the eastern set and western set of Switchgear Masts.
• Masts going up between the M4 Bridge & Bishton Flyover. These include:
  • Between Undy (Church Rd Bridge) and the M4 viaduct; these are mainly TTCs but also include an MPA Portal. Looks pretty much wire-ready.
  • Two opposing pairs of TTC masts have gone up between Church Rd Bridge & the Playing Fields Footbridge.
  • Two large uprights have gone up between Undy Playing Fields footbridge & "the ramp" bridge at Magor on opposite sides of the line; these may well take a portal boom.
  • Another 3 masts (two for a portal boom, one a TTC with boom up) have appeared east of "the ramp" bridge at Magor; these join the sole TTC on the Up side by the bridge.
  • 3 of the 4 TTCs west of "the ramp" bridge (2 on the Down side, 1 on the Up side) bear SPS; a 4th TTC has been boomed on the up, opposite the more western boom on the Down side.
  • West of the 4 Magor TTCs, a Portal (due to take mid-point anchor terminations) has gone up.
  • The signal gantry at Magor (west of the West End Footbridge) has been replaced by 4 signals on posts; this should mean its removal prior to electrification is imminent. A TTC with SPS is up over the Mains there too.
  • Around the aforementioned doomed signal gantry, another MPA Portal and a 3-track portal have gone up, as well as more 4-track Portals & TTCs - the gap is closing!
  • 1 mast is up to the west of Redwick Rd Bridge (by the Down Relief), and a mast due to bear a portal is up to the east of Whitewall Footbridge (by the Up Main). A "Slim" TTC is up over the centre pair of lines just east of Redwick Rd bridge. OTP is in place for a masting operation by Redwick Rd compound.
  • Plenty of TTCs (all of them, perhaps?) and a 4-track portal are up between the A4810 and the bridge over the eastern end of Bishton Flyover. Steelwork (mainly TTCs) continues to a large Tensorex Anchor Portal at the eastern end of Bishton Flyover.
  • Masts (with SPS fitted) up between Bishton Flyover (including over it) and Llanwern West Jct (156m 20ch). 5 masts are currently up on the curve down from the flyover at its eastern end.
  • Plenty single masts (with SPS fitted & folded) up along the Mains between the Flyover and Bishton LC. A run of Earth wire is now up on the Up side at Bishton; the Down Side Earth Wire (adj. to the Down Relief) now extends eastwards from Bishton LC.
  • On the Down incline on the west of the Bishton Flyover, Earth & ATF wires are now up.
• Between Bishton LC (153m 01ch) and East Usk Yard, masts are over 95% up (all bar a few have booms and SPS), with the main gap at Llanwern Works East Connection (153m 05ch), and even that seems finished now. This continues west towards Llanwern Works West Connection/Llanwern West Junction (156m 03ch to 156m 20ch). 4 masts (3 over the Mains, 1 over the Reliefs) also have booms & SPS immediately west of the LC.
• A run of Earth Wires & ATF wires have been strung up on the Relief side (adjacent to the DR) between Llanwern Works East Connection & Llanwern West Jct.
• All 4 lines are now wired past Llanwern Steelworks. On the Mains, this continues westwards over Llanwern West Jct, to the area just west of the A48 bridge.
• 6-track portals, probably TGBUs (aka Thumpin' Great Big-Uns) going up aroung East Usk Yard (approx. MP157 1/2); this area currently constitutes the biggest gap in steelwork east of Newport.
• Between the Maindee Jcts (157m 74ch to 158m 16ch), a cluster of piles is in beside the Down Relief; these are complemented by masted piles on the Main side (adjacent to the Up Main).
• Caerleon Rd Overbridge to be refurbished in 2 phases - 20/7 to 30/11, and then January ‘19 to March ‘19. Not sure what impact on wiring this will have.
• Some SPS has now gone up between Maindee West & Maindee East; between Maindee West Maindee North Jct (41m 03ch from the former Rotherwas Jct, just south of Hereford; the ELR for the southern part of the Marches Line), masts with TTCs on are also going up (as overruns) over the Marches Line; the termination mast & associated TTC are just north of signal "NT 1559".
• Fixings for masts have now been installed on the Usk Bridge; the first masts and booms for 4 track portals are now going in as of 17/2/19. A Tensorex portal is up immediately east of the bridge..

• All canopies now cut back.
• About 3 portal masts have now gone up over the eastern throat of the station; to join the 2 "square-section" portal booms and single Tensorex "TGBU" boom already in the offing. SPS and Tensorex drums are now starting to go up on these 3 structures. Another gaggle of un-boomed masts are up near them - they are awaiting the alterations to the retaining wall on the northern side to be complete before masts can go in.
• The northern pair of tracks and the southern 4 tracks now have all their steelwork up in the central part of the station; about 90% of the SPS is up too.
• Two six-track portals are up over the western throat of the station, just short of a 4-track portal (uprights of) & a TTC (with SPS) adjacent to Clytha Park Rd.

• Plenty masts up around Gaer Jct (159m 32ch) north of Cardiff Rd Bridge (the B4237):
  • one by the Down Relief;
  • two by the Up Main (one of which is a boomed TTC with SPS);
  • three by the Gaer Jct - Park Jct Chord.
• Around 6 piles are in adjacent to the Up Main between Gaer Jct and Ebbw Jct (160m 07ch); these will probably take masts for portal booms. One such boom appears to have gone in! Currently unknown if Alexandra Dock Jct Yard will be electrified.
• Lots of steelwork up immediately behind the signal gantry adjacent to the Up Main at Ebbw Jct; this includes a full portal boom and a TTC acting as an overrun mast on the Ebbw Vale branch.
• Almost all steelwork up from Ebbw Jct to Long Dyke Jct (169m 35ch) east of Cardiff Central; most SPS is now up too.
• ATF wire installed on the Up Main between Lighthouse Rd & New Dairy Farm bridges. In the Up direction, the Earth Wire is in place until just before the bridge over the Ebbw River.
• Wires up across all 4 tracks between Pengam Jct (168m 40ch) & Wentloog FLT (in the Rumney area) - lengths of these are all unknown.
• About 4 or 5 portals have been erected just west of Pengam Jct; 5 masts are up on the Up side east of Rover Lane bridge, complemented by 2 on the Down side.
• 1 run of C&C has gone up between Moorland Road Jct (168m 65ch) and Long Dyke Jct (169m 35ch) over the Reliefs; this is assumed to be a crossover as it crosses from one Relief line to the other.
• In the Pellet St area, a Mid Point Anchor Portal Boom has now gone up.
• Just east of St. Mary's St Bridge, 2 hexagonal Tensorex Portals have been erected over all tracks.
• Over the bridge over St. Mary's Street in Cardiff (just east of Central), and immediately to the west of the bridge, 5 portal booms spanning all tracks have gone up.
• Similar bespoke mast foundations are going in just east of Bute St Bridge, near the junction with the line from Queen Street.
• Splott Rd Bridge upgrade work now complete.

• Re-signalling completed. Platform 0 now open. 3 masts now up over P0/1 with TTC booms.
• Piling underway at the extreme ends of P1/2 & P3/4 for future masts.
• An Anchor Portal (of the hexagonal "TGBU" variety) has gone up over P2/3, just east of the canopies. This is the first portal over the Through Lines.
• Adjacent to that, a TTC for the P4 line has also been erected. Another TTC mast for P4 appears to have gone up at the country end.
• Canopy cut-back work now underway (complete?) on P2.
• Brackets appear to be in place on the coping stones on the Taff Viaduct (at the western end of the station).
• Plenty piles up adjacent to Cardiff Canton. A number of these now appear to have masts on them, as seen from a westward-facing shot from Central. Portals next?
• Brickwork Sidings to be increased in length (and electrified) to accommodate GWR Class 387s; the first masts and cantilevers have now gone up, with around 2 boomed TTCs and 2 STCs in position.
• Proposed Limit of Wiring: Leckwith Loop North Jct (171m 55ch) at a guess.

• New IEP Depot at Maliphant Sidings, Swansea now complete; all steelwork up. SPS, such as Insulators, Switchgear and Cantilevers have all been taken down, leaving only bare masts/booms in situ.

• 6/7 to 3/12: Reduced capacity (2 lines only) for wiring work between Newport & Cardiff Ctl.
• 15/9 to 6/10, and 13/10 to 14/10: Bristol Parkway electrified.
• 27/10 to 18/11, 24-25/11, 1-2/12: Filton Bank 4-tracked.
• 11/11: Bristol TM to Bath Spa resignalled.
• December blockades at Bristol Parkway & Didcot Parkway done.
• Christmas-New Year Blockade at Severn Tunnel Jct done.

• 20/1/19, and 10/2/19: Newport to Bridgend blockaded (inc. Cardiff Central) for electrification work AT Cardiff Central; both done.
• 17/2/19: Bristol Parkway to Newport blockaded for electrification work over the Usk Bridge at Newport; done.
• 31/3/19: Newport to Bridgend blockaded (inc. Cardiff Central) for electrification work AT Cardiff Central.
• 19/4/19 to 22/4/19: Bristol Parkway to Newport blockaded for electrification work in the Severn Tunnel.
• 27/4/19 to 28/4/19: Bristol Parkway to Newport blockaded for electrification work in the Severn Tunnel.
• More Blockades will follow; details as they become available.

• Wires from Oxford Rd Jct are LIVE to the limits of electrification (53m 42ch on the Newbury Lines, 38m 07ch on the Basingstoke Lines) since 0650 on 21/10/18.
• Class 387s are now in service on Reading-Newbury services as of 31/12/18.
• Within Reading West, piles for the new footbridge (under Murphy's remit) are in, but have been "decapitated" (i.e. shortened) and capped until a new footbridge solution is found.
• Foot access from Reading West's Down platform to Oxford Rd has been repositioned - work might be soon beginning on a permanent footbridge replacement.
• Parapet work on Tilehurst Rd Overbridge has been completed, on the southern side. Completion of the northern side continues.
• Platforms extended at Reading West, Theale, Aldermaston and Thatcham.
• Newbury's new footbridge is now open - the lifts are not yet working, causing much local amusement/bemusement.
• Immunised signalling continues to about MP55 1/2. Bedwyn Turnback Siding now extended to accommodate 5-car IETs.

• Thames Valley Branches: Windsor & Henley deferred to CP6. Marlow removed from scope of current programme. The first few yards of each branch (bar the Henley Branch) have been wired as an overrun.
• Southcote Jct to Basingstoke has also been deferred to CP6.
• Appleford LC to Oxford paused; if CP6 accounts allow for wiring to be extended to Oxford, it would be very likely to happen now that Oxford has been remodelled.
• Catenary & Contact wires between Chippenham (Cocklebury Lane Overbridge) & Thingley Jct have been deferred until (presumably) CP6. All Large steelwork to remain, unless required elsewhere.
• Bristol Temple Meads to Bath & Bristol Parkway paused, dependent on Bristol resignalling (Taunton-Parkway over Easter 2018, Temple Meads to Bath in November 2018 - both done; the WSM stretch from Flax Bourton Tunnel to Cogload Jct remains outstanding), track remodelling and Filton Bank 4-tracking (done).
• Bristol Temple Meads' "Midland Shed" to be reopened in CP6, after Bristol resignalling is complete and the PSB is demolished.

oglord said:

A run of catenary and contact wires has now been installed on the down relief from the Bishton flyover across the Llanwern East junction to join the existing wires there.

Also the gap between the A403 tunnel and the Severn tunnel has been closed, at least in the down direction.

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59CosG95 said:

Both lines were due to be considered LIVE (but not signed off for passenger use) from Wootton Bassett Jct to Christian Malford (93m 31ch) as of 10/2/2019; following the bad weather in SW England, this has been pushed back to a later date (TBC).

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ArchieWoodbine said:

The new date for switch-on towards Chippenham is 0800 7th April. Authorisation for service-use will probably follow a few weeks later, but I've not seen an exact date yet.

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oglord said:

A run of catenary and contact wires has now been installed on the down relief from the Bishton flyover across the Llanwern East junction to join the existing wires there.

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LNW-GW Joint said:

Can you see 140mph being allowed through platforms (eg Slough, Twyford etc)?
If not that wipes out many stretches east of Didcot...

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Mintona said:

I was impressed by how many people were working on the lines between Severn Tunnel Jn and Cardiff last night when I passed on 1C36. It’s hard to see how much progress has actually been made in the dark but there must have been a few hundred out working. Obviously a priority to get it finished as soon as possible now I guess.

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Richard Scott said:

Noticed a lorry leaving Severn Tunnel Friday looking like had delivered more masts (there was one left on the trailer), this morning saw more wire supports (sorry, don't know correct term) had been added to masts overnight in Magor.
Heard a rumour that too many masts and wire have been manufactured and these will end up as scrap - hope this is untrue as still many other projects that could go ahead using this equipment?

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59CosG95 said:

"Cantilevers" is probably the term you're after. Good to hear that more masts have gone up this weekend though! Many thanks to you, and @Linda.smith for your observations this weekend - I hope the Welsh members of Saturday's workforce were spurred on to greater productivity after that Grand Slam win!

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Richard Scott said:

Thanks. Was also the 'droppers' (parts where wire is actually attached) on some masts as assume cantilevers are the main arm from the mast that supports these? I'll have to learn the correct terminology!

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Richard Scott said:

Thanks. Was also the 'droppers' (parts where wire is actually attached) on some masts as assume cantilevers are the main arm from the mast that supports these? I'll have to learn the correct terminology!

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• Cantilever Assembly: The bit of SPS that holds the OLE (C&C) up.
• Dropper: The short lengths of wire linking the Catenary (top) wire with the Contact (bottom) wire.
• Registration/Steady Arm: The 'hinged' part of the Cantilever assembly that supports the Contact wire.
• Cantilever: The 'fixed' part of the Cantilever assembly, which supports the Catenary wire.

59CosG95 said:

No matter Richard, the jargon is complex!
Terminology is as follows

• Cantilever Assembly: The bit of SPS that holds the OLE (C&C) up.
• Dropper: The short lengths of wire linking the Catenary (top) wire with the Contact (bottom) wire.
• Registration/Steady Arm: The 'hinged' part of the Cantilever assembly that supports the Contact wire.
• Cantilever: The 'fixed' part of the Cantilever assembly, which supports the Catenary wire.

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hwl said:

Droppers are the vertical wires between the top catenary wire and the contact wire and between 6-18" long in most cases.

Some useful background reading is Garry Keenor's excellent guide to electrification:
http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/oc...-Electrification-for-Railways-4th-edition.pdf

He's also doing a kickstarter drive to get a print version published.

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Richard Scott said:

Excavator with quite chunky attachment (possibly for piling or placing masts) on the back of a lorry that turned down towards Severn Tunnel this morning so more activity imminent or was it for some other plan?

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