Did BR plan to electrify any further routes before privatisation stopped them?

[NoMorePacers]

Hello again,

I was just wondering if BR had any plans to electrify any non-electrified routes in the mid-late 1990s before privatisation occured? Just out of curiosity.

That is all.

 

[Ianno87]

Yes.

Islands like the North Downs and Uckfield routes were down to be done in what turned out to be the early privatisation years.

Not sure about Main Lines though. Altgough the GWML and MML had been started (to Airport Jn and Bedford), no firm plans to finish them off.

 

[Dr Hoo]

It depends where you draw the line between ‘sectoral hubris’ and proper ‘plans’.

Worth noting that the early 1990s economic slump had taken quite a bit of steam out of both demand pressure and funding availability.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Privatisation started (in planning terms) after the election in April 1992.
BR had only just finished the ECML electrification in 1991, and the Edinburgh-Carstairs line (linking ECML/WCML) was added late in the project.
The Longbridge-Redditch extension to the Birmingham Cross-City line was electrified also in 1992.
The Channel Tunnel schemes were still in progress at that time (West/North London Lines).
The Heathrow branch and its electrification began in 1993, and triggered electrification of the GW main line from Paddington to Airport Jn, completed 1998.
Trafford Park freight terminal, with electrified connection at Cornbrook, was opened in 1993, allowing EMUs to reach Manchester United Football Ground station.
The WCRM project triggered electrification of Crewe-Kidsgrove as a diversionary route, completed in 2000.
The WCML fast lines were rewired during WCRM, with new 4-track construction in the Trent Valley (2002-8).

Railtrack declared against further electrification early on in its existence.
Privatised freight operators have not shown much interest in electric haulage, with diesels under the wires still the norm.
"Just another interface to go wrong" was the view of John Armitt when he was in charge at Network Rail.

 

[ChiefPlanner]

One could argue that the failure of Crossrail (1) , which would have wired Hayes Airport Junction to Reading (Country End) , Old Oak to Aylesbury via Neasden South , and the Acton East to Willesden SW sidings was a cancelled scheme.

Railtrack did complete Camden Road to Acton Central for EPS in 1996 (6 months late) and Willesden HL to "near" Kensington Olympia in the same year - about 2 weeks early !

 

[Revaulx]

BR, or its government masters, was capable of stopping planned electrification long before privatisation was ever thought of.

Blackpool was certainly intended to be included in the WCML Crewe to Glasgow project. I think other branches/feeder lines also, though I can’t remember which.

 

[geoffk]

BR, or its government masters, was capable of stopping planned electrification long before privatisation was ever thought of.

Blackpool was certainly intended to be included in the WCML Crewe to Glasgow project. I think other branches/feeder lines also, though I can’t remember which.

Shrewsbury?

 

[randyrippley]

There was an ongoing 1970s masterplan to electrify all the main intercity routes one by one, the plan being the savings/revenue generated from one project would pay for the next. So the WCML electrification was supposed to pay for the ECML, which would pay for the Midland, which would pay for the GW, which would pay for what at the time was called NE-SW (i.e. XC).
It was all nicely documented and reported on several times in "Modern Railways" and elsewhere as the great BR intercity rail plan, but in reality was incredibly naive. Would the ECML really have generated the capital to finance the Midland? Could it really have been done through natural savings and growth due to the "sparks effect"? BR management clearly thought so.
Sectorisation knocked the idea on its head, with the banning of cross subsidising of routes, and privatisation was its death knell.
Would it have worked? I suspect the costs were way underestimated

 

[Helvellyn]

NSE would have looked at:

• Uckfield line
• Marsh link line
• Gospel Oak - Barking
• Sudbury branch

This is because the first two operated with Thumper units and the second two with first generation DMUs. Small builds of DMUs wouldn't make sense but infill electrification might.

The North Downs route might have been considered but only if NSE felt it could justify cascading the Turbos used their to strengthen Paddington or Matylebone services as part of the business case.

Not sure if InterCity had any major schemes planned but the IC250 plan (Class 93s and Mark 5 LHCS) did include straightening out some sections of the WCML (possibly including a Stafford avoiding line) so that would have needed some electrification.

 

[Ianigsy]

I seem to recall Salisbury being talked about as an aspiration around that time - if the Networker concept had been allowed to run its course then there was an ambition to fill in those pesky unelectrified branches.

 

[edwin_m]

NSE would have looked at:

• Uckfield line
• Marsh link line
• Gospel Oak - Barking
• Sudbury branch

This is because the first two operated with Thumper units and the second two with first generation DMUs. Small builds of DMUs wouldn't make sense but infill electrification might.

I don't think it was so much small builds of DMUs - they could have piggybacked on an order for Regional Railways. More a case that with all the surrounding routes electrified it wasn't very efficient to have to provide and maintain a small fleet of diesels, either bringing them in from a distant depot or creating fueling and maintenance facilities that wouldn't be used very efficiently.

 

[JonathanH]

The North Downs route might have been considered but only if NSE felt it could justify cascading the Turbos used their to strengthen Paddington or Matylebone services as part of the business case.

It was definitely planned according to contemporary railway magazines - rolling stock would initially have been class 411s released from Kent routes.

No Turbos were built specifically for the North Downs Line - operation was only possible by releasing 7 2-car 165/0s off the Chiltern Line (which were available as some growth had been allowed for in the fleet procured of 39 units) and then reorganisation of the Thames Line fleet to free up 166s for Gatwick services

 

[Alfie1014]

NSE would have looked at:

• Uckfield line
• Marsh link line
• Gospel Oak - Barking
• Sudbury branch

This is because the first two operated with Thumper units and the second two with first generation DMUs. Small builds of DMUs wouldn't make sense but infill electrification might.

The North Downs route might have been considered but only if NSE felt it could justify cascading the Turbos used their to strengthen Paddington or Matylebone services as part of the business case.

One of the first projects I worked on when joining NSE in 1990 was electrification of the Bedford - Bletchley Line which would have been operated using marginal time in the 319/321 fleets. It came to nowt as we now know.

 

[ChiefPlanner]

Around 1981 there was an incredibly basic scheme to extend the wires from Bedford to Corby to serve "Wonderland" or some such name , to be built on ex steelworks sites.

Remember - BR got rid of odd isolated and awkward rump DMU services - Upminster to Romford , the Wickford - Southminster branch , - the latter two served from Stratford MPD.

Slightly later on - St Albans Abbey - removing the provision of DMU's from BY.

 

[A0wen]

Around 1981 there was an incredibly basic scheme to extend the wires from Bedford to Corby to serve "Wonderland" or some such name , to be built on ex steelworks sites.

Remember - BR got rid of odd isolated and awkward rump DMU services - Upminster to Romford , the Wickford - Southminster branch , - the latter two served from Stratford MPD.

Slightly later on - St Albans Abbey - removing the provision of DMU's from BY.

The Bedford Corby one would have made things so much easier now, not least it would have stopped the ridiculous fare inflation which means Wellingborough or Kettering to London is vastly more expensive than Northampton or St Neots.

The other bits of BR era electrification you could add would be Dalston - North Woolwich - again getting rid of DMU working from Stratford and getting both routes to Cambridge wired that had illogically terminated short at Bishop's Stortford and Royston - the latter being particularly odd and it killed through Cambridge to KX services for about 10 years.

 

[Malcmal]

Not quite what the original poster asked but I remember hearing the demise of Railtrack meant the planned refurbishment and electrification of the Leamside line was scrapped. This came from a friend I had working in Railtrack at the time.