East West Rail Link Cambridge - Bedford is it worth it?

[joeykins82]

Bedford - Sandy - Hitchin (for Cambridge) - Stevenage -(new connecting line)- Ware -(new chord)- Harlow - Stanstead Airport - Braintree - Witham

Would make Stanstead by rail viable for a big number of new passengers which would drive the revenues. Obviously the Stanstead to Braintree section in particular might be a teensy bit expensive to get off the ground...

 

[Buttsy]

Bedford - Sandy - Hitchin (for Cambridge) - Stevenage -(new connecting line)- Ware -(new chord)- Harlow - Stanstead Airport - Braintree - Witham

Would make Stanstead by rail viable for a big number of new passengers which would drive the revenues. Obviously the Stanstead to Braintree section in particular might be a teensy bit expensive to get off the ground...

Go for the cheap & cheerful options: Bedford - Sandy & Foxton - Shefford curve!

Alternatively, even cheaper: Bedford - Sandy so you can run a service Reading - Oxford - Bicester - Milton Keynes (reverse) - Bletchley (reverse) - Beford Midland (reverse) - Hitchin (reverse) - Cambridge (reverse) - Stansted...

 

[D365]

Bedford - Sandy - Hitchin (for Cambridge) - Stevenage -(new connecting line)- Ware -(new chord)- Harlow - Stanstead Airport - Braintree - Witham

Would make Stanstead by rail viable for a big number of new passengers which would drive the revenues. Obviously the Stanstead to Braintree section in particular might be a teensy bit expensive to get off the ground...

In the Bedford to Sandy section, part of the old trackbed has been dug up at Willington for an Olympic rowing lake. A Hertford Chord (North-East) would be expensive, ditto a Stansted-Braintree extension where a hotel has been built to the east of the terminal building. Would be difficult to get even one track through, and capacity would be limited by the current single tracking between Stansted Airport Junction and Stansted Airport station.

 

[Skimble19]

There's plenty of room around Willington for a new alignment, never mind the (stupid, unwanted) rowing lake.. Also, Part of the trackbed at sandy now has houses on it, but there's plenty of room to the north to go around it. A very large amount remains between Bedford and Sandy, including some bridges! (Although its likely they'd need replacing!)

 

[jopsuk]

There does seem to be a strange attitude that the route MUST follow the old trackbed. Yes, it would have been easier and cheaper had the trackbed been retained by BRB(R) and safeguarded, but the fact that it hasn't shouldn't be seen as a knockout blow.

 

[D365]

Where could it go without the route becoming too long or expensive?

 

[DXMachina]

how long before someone suggests reusing the crossrail TBMs to reopen the EWRL by diving under any obstacles.... ?

 

[DynamicSpirit]

I've just had this great idea, which I thought of all by myself!

How about we reuse the crossrail TBMs to reopen the EWRL by diving under any obstacles?

 

[jopsuk]

Or even better, a single drive, from a new "low level" at Cambridge to a "low level" at oxford. Weather proof!

 

[D365]

Or even better, follow the old trackbed under the MisGuided BusTway, the telescope and though the rowing lake!

*Notes meatball pies falling from above*

 

[The Ham]

... and call it the Oxford Tube!


Alternative as a lot of the rest of the world think that London is most of this country call it the Varsity Line and add it to the tube map in a light blue/dark blue dashed line!

 

[DXMachina]

... And call it the oxford tube!

win !

 

[D365]

Dig up some classic tube stock (and 1967s) and run it as a volunteer franchise for TfL!

 

[MadCommuter]

Alternatively, even cheaper: Bedford - Sandy so you can run a service Reading - Oxford - Bicester - Milton Keynes (reverse) - Bletchley (reverse) - Beford Midland (reverse) - Hitchin (reverse) - Cambridge (reverse) - Stansted...

That might confuse the booking engines when requesting a seat facing forwards

 

[jopsuk]

Oi! No cheapo heritage stock or volunteers in my hyper expensive underground line thankyou very much! It's to have bespoke wide-loading gauge captive high speed stock, with concierges in every (including standard class) carriage. 1st class to be served a full freshly cooked meal on every journey.
£££££££

 

[Ivo]

Oi! No cheapo heritage stock or volunteers in my hyper expensive underground line thankyou very much! It's to have bespoke wide-loading gauge captive high speed stock, with concierges in every (including standard class) carriage. 1st class to be served a full freshly cooked meal on every journey.
£££££££

A new take on the Orient Express then - the Varsity Express?

 

[D365]

Haha, I like this! Oxbridge 'United'

 

[Con]

Oi! No cheapo heritage stock or volunteers in my hyper expensive underground line thankyou very much! It's to have bespoke wide-loading gauge captive high speed stock, with concierges in every (including standard class) carriage. 1st class to be served a full freshly cooked meal on every journey.
£££££££

Build it to 5' 3" gauge, Irish Rail have a few railcars going cheap

http://www.locomotives-for-sale.com/rolling-stock/dmu-for-sale-lease/

 

[eastdyke]

A new take on the Orient Express then - the Varsity Express?

mmmm .... not Varsity, not Intercity, more like Farcity?

 

[twoag]

Build it to 5' 3" gauge, Irish Rail have a few railcars going cheap

http://www.locomotives-for-sale.com/rolling-stock/dmu-for-sale-lease/

But its going to be electrified... there are a few of these stored in field in victoria and I believe they are 5'3"

http://www.theage.com.au/national/overcrowding-but-trains-taken-out-of-system-20080904-49xr.html

 

[HSTEd]

If we had a Varsity Shinkansen the journey time would be under 30 minutes from Cambridge to Oxford...... could link into a South Wales Shinkansen at Oxford and to the East Coast Shinkansen.... possibly even extend to Norwich to connect to the end of the Greater Eastern Shinkansen.

But that would be rather expensive... would think it would do more to encourage modal shift than this project would though, and we should really be aiming high.... say at Japan levels (~28% of modal share compared to ~7% here)

 

[jopsuk]

Extend east to Norwich at the Cambridge end, and south to Swindon to join a Great Western Shinkansen to connect to Bristol, the South West and South Wales. Sorted. Anyone got some £billions spare?

 

[DXMachina]

I think we shouldn't miss this opportunity to build a new channel tunnel to relieve future pressure, and extend from Cambridge via Lowestoft to Amsterdam

Via a gauge change and another tunnel the EWRL could become a vital strategic rail route from the Irish Republic to the Continent.

 

[jopsuk]

I'd send a branch south from Swindon too, through Salisbury and Southampton, crossing under the channel to Cherbourg for onward rail connections to Spain- a major freight axis. With this, we could have a high-speed route from Northern Spain via western France to northern Europe, missing out the congested lines of north eastern France.
Anyone got the €trillions?
Though I'd not bother with guage change- like in Spain (and Japan for that matter) the high spoeed network should be fully standard gauge.

 

[HSTEd]

I'd send a branch south from Swindon too, through Salisbury and Southampton, crossing under the channel to Cherbourg for onward rail connections to Spain- a major freight axis. With this, we could have a high-speed route from Northern Spain via western France to northern Europe, missing out the congested lines of north eastern France.
Anyone got the €trillions?
Though I'd not bother with guage change- like in Spain (and Japan for that matter) the high spoeed network should be fully standard gauge.

Nah, forget going south, go east.

The target is New York!

Seriously though, if, as it appears, much of this section of the route is going to have to be built from scratch anyway, is there any point building ~100-125mph formations compared to ~200mph capable formations?

I thought they didn't cost that much more to build.

 

[Ivo]

Nah, forget going south, go east.

The target is New York!

Either this is the most ambitious plan I have ever read on here (which is saying something ), or you've got your directions wrong.

 

[jopsuk]

Cambridge-New York, via all of Europe, Asia, and North America, completely underground with a 400mph+ line speed?

Does someone have £$€allthemoney spare?

 

[DXMachina]

I think that if we want to get to New York from Cambridge via Oxford it'd be quicker to go the other way ( ^ ah, as said above. that'll teach me to read more carefully)

Oxford - Cambridge - Norwich - Amsterdam - Russia - Kamchatka - Alaska - Ottawa - NY

Not sure the crossrail TBMs are rated deep enough for the atlantic drive and building in tunnels is problematic as all the materiel needed has to come through the principal work-site. Crossing the Steppe allows for use of trucks to deliver rail, gravel and replacement navvies

 

[D365]

I think we shouldn't miss this opportunity to build a new channel tunnel to relieve future pressure, and extend from Cambridge via Lowestoft to Amsterdam.

Channel Tunnel's not even 50% full, if we were being realistic this would probably never come about... But hey!

 

[ainsworth74]

Channel Tunnel's not even 50% full, if we were being realistic this would probably never come about... But hey!

Hmm I'm not so sure if budget flights become slightly less budget helping to encourage a modal shift to rail for journey's to countries in Western Europe we might soon find the tunnel starting to get a bit fuller.