GCR Bridge Project

[reddragon]

Hi Railfan
I think there will have to be a second platform at LN, there is already a short stub which could easily be lengthened. There would probably be a central "relief" road to allow locomotives to run round the rake from either platform. It is a long way into the future though.

Its a real pity that the original central platform wasn't retained even if the entrance was as now.

 

[Flying Phil]

Hi reddragon
Despite the original Belgrave and Birstall station being part of the trackbed, the rails had been taken up and the buildings suffered from a lot of vandalism in the 1970's. For safety sake the buildings were demolished, but the platform remained up to the 1980's I believe. However when the line was extended from Rothley to Leicester North (A condition needed to have the Leicester ring road put on a bridge over the trackbed) Leicester City Council would give money for a new station if it was within the city boundary ie a bit further South of the original platform/station. Hence the new station.
Sorry for the thread drift!
To get back I hope the new Urban Viaduct will result in a faster completion of the gap project as it could be a quicker construction(?) if the money is raised as quickly as possible. Exciting times!

 

[Nottingham59]

To get back I hope the new Urban Viaduct will result in a faster completion of the gap project as it could be a quicker construction(?) if the money is raised as quickly as possible. Exciting times!

How much per mile will this viaduct cost?

 

[Flying Phil]

Hi Nottingham59
I have not seen or heard of any costing for the viaduct but it is expected to be slightly less than the cost of a rebuilding of the old embankment( this would have needed to be taller, narrower and steeper - plus moved slightly to the East by 8m at the MML end!).
As they were looking at raising £3M for the factory flyover by itself, I suspect the cost of the urban viaduct will be what £3M? for its 300m length (including the embankment from the canal bridge and the short steel bridge over the combined sewer outflow). So £2M per 200m so £16M per mile??? Which is probably on the cheap side. For reference how much does a mile of HS2 viaduct cost??
I must emphasise that I am not an expert but merely an interested observer/supporter.

 

[Nottingham59]

how much does a mile of HS2 viaduct cost??

Not sure. The civils for HS2 contract C1 was let for around £800M, which comprised 2 miles of Colne Valley viaduct and 10 miles of twin tunnel under the Chilterns. After inflation, that gets to around £1.6bn for 12 miles. I understand that a viaduct costs around half that of a tunnel, so that makes (I'm guessing here) £100/mile for a twin-bore tunnel and £50M/mile for a twin track viaduct.

EDIT:

Align JV to Build C1 Section of HS2 in UK

High Speed Two Ltd., the company responsible for developing high-speed rail between London and the North of England, issued NTP to the Align joint venture.

tunnelingonline.com

"High Speed Two Ltd., the company responsible for developing the high-speed rail line between London and the North of England, has issued a Notice to Proceed to the Align joint venture. This officially launches the execution phase of a major project for Bouygues Construction in the United Kingdom worth €1.8 billion".

 

[zwk500]

For reference how much does a mile of HS2 viaduct cost??

Not really a valid comparison though! Much as we might like it, the GCR's viaduct isn't going to have a 360kph+ speed limit.

 

[Nottingham59]

Not really a valid comparison though! Much as we might like it, the GCR's viaduct isn't going to have a 360kph+ speed limit.

But the HS2 threads all say that the extra cost of providing a high-speed capabilty on HS2 was minimal ....

 

[zwk500]

But the HS2 threads all say that the extra cost of providing a high-speed capabilty on HS2 was minimal ....

Extra cost above 200kph or so is minimal. I think most people would accept quite readily that if HS2 was being built for 80kph it would be rather a lot cheaper!

 

[D365]

I was told today that re-doubling Rothley to Leicester North is an ambition.

 

[satisnek]

I think this is great news! The GCR management clearly appreciates that the correct track layout is essential to maintain the aesthetic of a preserved double-track through station (the other extreme is Bury Bolton Street, where the track has been laid to suit today's operating needs and it just looks crazy!). OK, so there's now the problem of where to locate the shed, but I'm sure that's not insurmountable. North of the canal bridge things are less important - I can't see the GCR(N) ever being double-tracked - and if a concrete viaduct is the cheapest option, that's cool.

I now feel guilty that I didn't contribute a pound or two towards the 'Bridging The Gap' fund at the recent diesel gala, as I've always done when I've visited in the past!

 

[railfan99]

I now feel guilty that I didn't contribute a pound or two towards the 'Bridging The Gap' fund at the recent diesel gala, as I've always done when I've visited in the past!

You can donate online to various GCR causes. Why not do it? Easy-peasy, and extremely helpful for any of your wonderful heritage railways to receive donations.

 

[Flying Phil]

I was told today that re-doubling Rothley to Leicester North is an ambition.

Yes - this has been a longstanding ambition/aim/intent - especially when linked to the Leicester Railway Museum project.
But it is also now linked to the Gap project because when looking at the potential timetabling constraints of running to the North from Loughborough, it turns out that the real constraint is the turnaround time for the Rothley/Leicester North section, hence the need for track doubling.....eventually.
It should be noted that the siding to the South of Rothley station is slowly being remodelled to have a North entry, which will facilitate such a double track layout.
However this discussion should perhaps be continued in the general GCR thread?

 

[satisnek]

You can donate online to various GCR causes. Why not do it? Easy-peasy, and extremely helpful for any of your wonderful heritage railways to receive donations.

I certainly could - and end up broke! Because it would raise the awkward question: "where do I stop?" I'll just double up my contribution next time

 

[Flying Phil]

There is a new video on the GCR Official channel saying that the planning permission documentation has gone to Charnwood Borough Council for approval. This is for the Urban Viaduct and Factory Flyover sections. There will be site investigations etc taking place over the next few months as well.
Good to see that progress is being maintained.

 

[Rover]

Great news, thanks for the update.

 

[duffield]

There is a new video on the GCR Official channel saying that the planning permission documentation has gone to Charnwood Borough Council for approval. This is for the Urban Viaduct and Factory Flyover sections. There will be site investigations etc taking place over the next few months as well.
Good to see that progress is being maintained.

I know it's a bit like asking "how long is a piece of string", but very, very roughly how long would you expect before planning approval for something on this scale? I'm guessing more than a year, but is two years, three years possible? Do you know if the council would have some sort of timescale targets?

 

[Flying Phil]

Well in the video they are talking "a few months" so hoping to get spades in the ground this year....possibly!

 

[duffield]

Well in the video they are talking "a few months" so hoping to get spades in the ground this year....possibly!

That's great, much sooner than I expected. I should have watched the video first before asking.

Although "investigations" can always find something unexpected and maybe unwanted!

 

[Flying Phil]

I believe there were some test drillings done along the former embankment some time ago, so I think it is largely known.

 

[50002Superb]

I must admit, I’m a little naive, I had assumed that the planning aspects had already been sorted.

 

[Belperpete]

I must admit, I’m a little naive, I had assumed that the planning aspects had already been sorted.

Don't planning permissions lapse if nothing is done within a certain time? So no point in applying too early?

 

[Bald Rick]

Don't planning permissions lapse if nothing is done within a certain time? So no point in applying too early?

They do, but that is easily got round by putting one pile in

 

[Flying Phil]

I think there was planning permission for the MML bridge - but it could be argued that this was to take the place of a previous bridge? The Canal bridge was "just" a refurbishment of an existing bridge and the A 60 bridge was replacing an existing bridge so I'm not sure if they needed planning permission. I am sure that the GCR team and CBC are all doing what is necessary when it is necessary. However there must be many aspects which are needed now which were not needed in the past, ie environmental, wildlife, Carbon impact/use etc.

 

[50002Superb]

So what happens to all the cash if permission is denied?

 

[AndyY1951]

Given the support given by the Local Authority to-date, and their awareness of the importance of the GCR to the local economy, I can't imagine for one moment that permission will be denied.

 

[snowball]

So what happens to all the cash if permission is denied?

Presumably there would be reasons for any denial, and indications of how the design might be changed to address the reasons.

 

[Belperpete]

Given the support given by the Local Authority to-date, and their awareness of the importance of the GCR to the local economy, I can't imagine for one moment that permission will be denied.

I think the Bala Lake thought similarly about their extension, but it got rejected.

 

[50002Superb]

^precisely

 

[AndyY1951]

True, although arguably more complex in the sense that at Bala it is for a new railway on a new alignment. I hope the GCR have been involved in discussions with the planners as the scheme has been developed.

 

[eyebrook1961]

The sheer amount of funds and assistance that the council have poured into the GCR over the years is likely to guarantee (as far as you can) a positive result - they don't want to see the biggest tourist attraction for the town fail