Electrification Refresh

[quantinghome]

Network Rail were due to produce a 'refreshed' electrification plan sometime this autumn, partly to bring the plan in line with all the schemes that have been announced in the past two years, but also to provide a long term plan. Has anyone heard anything more about this?

 

[Bald Rick]

Work in progress. Not far away now.

 

[59CosG95]

Any updates on that, Bald Rick? Want to see if Basingstoke-So'ton makes the cut.

 

[IKBrunel]

there is this in Railnews:

http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2013/12/13-new-boost-for-railway-electrification.html

THE railway linking Bolton and Wigan is to be electrified by 2017 at a cost of £37 million, the Department for Transport said today.

In addition, a task force is to be set up to explore the next steps for railway electrification in the north of England. The routes to be investigated in detail include Sheffield to Leeds and Doncaster, Crewe/Warrington--Chester, Selby--Hull and Leeds--Harrogate--York. The task force will be made up of representatives from train operators, local authorities including the Rail North consortium, the supply chain and local Members of Parliament.

This group will provide the transport secretary with an interim report within 12 months setting out how schemes can be brought forward and their development accelerated.

The DfT said electrification between Lostock Junction, west of Bolton, and Wigan North Western station would allow diesel Pacers to be withdrawn in favour of electric trains on the services between Wigan and Manchester Victoria and also Wigan and Manchester Airport.

The schemes form part of a wider phase of new transport funding, which also includes many road improvements.

Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "Whether it’s unblocking bottlenecks on local roads, improving trouble spots on our motorways and trunk roads, or working to deliver better railways through electrification, these projects will benefit communities up and down the country and help keep Britain moving. By investing in our local and regional transport infrastructure we can help support new jobs and boost our overall competitiveness in the global economic race."

FULL LIST OF POTENTIAL ELECTRIFICATION SCHEMES:

Leeds – Harrogate – York
Selby – Hull
Sheffield – Leeds
Sheffield – Doncaster
East Coast Main Line – Middlesbrough
Sheffield – Manchester
Warrington– Chester
Crewe – Chester

sorry no mention of So'ton

 

[Andyjs247]

Did I also read in Modern Railways this month that NR had been asked to investigate electrification from Nuneaton to Ipswich? (Sorry don't have the magazine available to check). Seems sensible, but thinking about it, why mention Ipswich (and not Felixstowe) and why not to Birmingham?

 

[swt_passenger]

Any updates on that, Bald Rick? Want to see if Basingstoke-So'ton makes the cut.

The electrification RUS refresh is not really a mechanism for projects to 'make the cut'. Like any RUS it will be a set of future proposals, and will deal with priorities and comparisons, and broad BCRs. Detailed costs only come with detailed design following approval. In my opinion it will be very like the previous RUS, but with all those projects already funded either left out, or shown as 'decision made'.

Like any of the other RUSs, it is not the place where the final decisions are made about funding - Southampton to Basingstoke is funded in the CP5 HLOS/SOFA - and it and the rest of the electric spine, (which includes the MML), was approved in ORR's final determination, published in October.

--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

there is this in Railnews:

http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2013/12/13-new-boost-for-railway-electrification.html

sorry no mention of So'ton

You wouldn't expect Southampton to be mentioned in the report you are quoting. Basingstoke to Southampton is a fundamental part of the 'electric spine', which is already funded under the HLOS procedures for CP5.

It you must point out that Southampton Basingstoke isn't mentioned there, then neither are the MML and North TPE.

The list is purely a set of additional infill schemes on top of what is already planned...

 

[joeykins82]

As far as I understand it, the refresh will be a case of taking the 2009 RUS, recalculating the BCRs based on the committed schemes and the aspirations for the post-HS2 network and coming up with a revised set of priorities. Some of them will likely be infill schemes that "jump the queue" and others will be longer term strategic goals to take place after MML electrification is done.

I'm hoping that the refresh packages up everything that's been signed off with respective timescales alongside any aspirational infills that they want to do.

 

[tadhatter]

there is this in Railnews:

http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2013/12/13-new-boost-for-railway-electrification.html



sorry no mention of So'ton

possibly becuase it's discussing routes in the north of England?????

It also mentions nothing about bicester to bletchley or the MML!

 

[Holly]

Crewe-Chester has so many difficult (expensive to modernise) low bridges that they should price out building a totally new right of way to modern (HS) standards and abandoning the old.

The price may not be that much different buying rural land net of selling off the land of the old right of way, some of which is prime real estate. New construction could be cheaper and less disruptive than working weekends on an existing line. It's not like there are any intermediate stations to close.

 

[route:oxford]

Crewe-Chester has so many difficult (expensive to modernise) low bridges that they should price out building a totally new right of way to modern (HS) standards and abandoning the old.

The price may not be that much different buying rural land net of selling off the land of the old right of way, some of which is prime real estate. New construction could be cheaper and less disruptive than working weekends on an existing line. It's not like there are any intermediate stations to close.

If the Cheshire faction of the notorious CPRE are anywhere near as vocal as the Oxfordshire faction - there is no way they'd consent to a high speed (design) line on virgin soil.

 

[Holly]

If the Cheshire faction of the notorious CPRE are anywhere near as vocal as the Oxfordshire faction - there is no way they'd consent to a high speed (design) line on virgin soil.

They would be getting the land of the old right of way back in exchange.

There is probably a lot more biodiversity and wildlife there than on the new land, much of which is relatively barren due to intensive farming (a lot of it dairy).
It's really a case of the farmland owners versus the people.

And no, it's hard to imagine anyone as vocal and unfriendly as the Oxfordshire faction.

 

[quantinghome]

Crewe-Chester has so many difficult (expensive to modernise) low bridges that they should price out building a totally new right of way to modern (HS) standards and abandoning the old.

The price may not be that much different buying rural land net of selling off the land of the old right of way, some of which is prime real estate. New construction could be cheaper and less disruptive than working weekends on an existing line. It's not like there are any intermediate stations to close.

Other than one or two realigned stretches on the original WCML electrification in the sixties, I don't think there are any examples of it being more cost-effective to re-route than electrify the existing line. New civil engineering products such as Flexiarch can help provide clearances more economically. Generally if bridges can't be raised, the track is lowered.

 

[snowball]

Other than one or two realigned stretches on the original WCML electrification in the sixties,

The one I've heard of is Harecastle but that was a tunnel.

I wonder, would the original Harecastle tunnel have been electrifiable if they were doing it today?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

The one I've heard of is Harecastle but that was a tunnel.
I wonder, would the original Harecastle tunnel have been electrifiable if they were doing it today?

I think it was the basic condition of Harecastle Tunnel that was the problem, not clearance. It was wet and crumbling.
The new route was not trouble free though (mining subsidence was a problem).

The other big WCML route work at the time was the opening up of the tunnels at Stockport rather than wire them underground.