Haymarket to Dalmeny electrification

[GRALISTAIR]

Grid feeders aren’t something that are easily put on hold

 

[68000]

Does anyone know what kind of work is going on when the line as well as part of fife closes for the next 5 weekends (not including this weekend)

I am aware of track renewal near Almond viaduct (not the more famous one) and then Dalmeny

 

[EastFifer]

Took this photo on a bridge between Dalmeny Station and Edinburgh airport.

You can see either side of the track, the steel foundations ready for the OHLE masts to be fitted on-top of. I presume that’s the work that’s been carried out these past few weekends - including today.

 

[snowball]

Took this photo on a bridge between Dalmeny Station and Edinburgh airport.

You can see either side of the track, the steel foundations ready for the OHLE masts to be fitted on-top of. I presume that’s the work that’s been carried out these past few weekends - including today.

That's surprising, with the emptying of the compound I assumed work had stopped completely.

 

[Waverleystu]

Took this photo on a bridge between Dalmeny Station and Edinburgh airport.

You can see either side of the track, the steel foundations ready for the OHLE masts to be fitted on-top of. I presume that’s the work that’s been carried out these past few weekends - including today.

Wasn’t that the work carried out before? Noticed that there was a lot of foundations in place back in October from the work earlier this year

 

[mcmad]

The works the last few weekend have been track renewals, there has been no progress on the electrification since works were paused and the compound cleared as noted above although I have heard it may be starting up again next year.

 

[Waverleystu]

Is that track lowering for clearance too or just renewal?

 

[chuff chuff]

Those piles have been in for quite some time now and as in a few posts above the compound has been empty for months.

 

[A330Alex]

More than a year for some of the foundations This is from from August 2022:

 

[EastFifer]

Does anybody know if they’ll close the line during the festive period for works, like they said they’d do last year?

 

[chuff chuff]

Dunno but I did see numbers/letters chalked on to the station steelwork at gateway possibly stanchion numbers for the overheads, don't know how long that has been there.

 

[InOban]

There's

Does anybody know if they’ll close the line during the festive period for works, like they said they’d do last year?

No, judging by the scotrail and lner timetables. Work in the vicinity of haymarket over new year

 

[Siemens Trains]

Dunno but I did see numbers/letters chalked on to the station steelwork at gateway possibly stanchion numbers for the overheads, don't know how long that has been there.

ScotRail are advertising passenger services using this line on Boxing Day this year so lengthy closures supporting electrification seem unlikely.
However they may be able to make progress using closures on Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

 

[takno]

ScotRail are advertising passenger services using this line on Boxing Day this year so lengthy closures supporting electrification seem unlikely.
However they may be able to make progress using closures on Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

Presumably anybody who would be able to do any work just on Christmas Day is likely to instead be pulled into working on another project somewhere which can get a longer possession

 

[chuff chuff]

ScotRail are advertising passenger services using this line on Boxing Day this year so lengthy closures supporting electrification seem unlikely.
However they may be able to make progress using closures on Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

Ah yeah forgot there will be more trains running boxing day this year.

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

Scottish Govt setting out there spending plans next week. The press release is a bit foreboding that priorities are changing and i suspect this along with many other schemes will now have elongated delivery which wont help on delivering efficiency

“The Autumn Statement was devastating for Scottish finances. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has acknowledged that it will lead to planned real terms cuts in public service spending. Scotland is facing a 9.8% cut to our capital budget for infrastructure between this year and 2027-28.

https://www.gov.scot/news/reaffirming-scotlands-social-contract

 

[clc]

Scottish Govt setting out there spending plans next week. The press release is a bit foreboding that priorities are changing and i suspect this along with many other schemes will now have elongated delivery which wont help on delivering efficiency



https://www.gov.scot/news/reaffirming-scotlands-social-contract

Yes there’s a £700m shortfall on the capital budget next year which is bound to be bad news for the decarbonisation programme.

 

[92002]

Does anybody know if they’ll close the line during the festive period for works, like they said they’d do last year?

Think they have slipped the Dalmeny electrification down the pecking order. They are not getting enough from the London Government to complete the schemes in their list on current timescales

Big thing this Festive Period is replacement of Greenhill Junction, with electrification continuing to East Kilbride.

 

[EastFifer]

Honestly, what a disaster this whole electrification project has turned out to be. I thought they already had the money to be able to carry out the work. After all, they’ve piled a whole load of still cylinders for the masts. And let’s be honest, it’s not exactly a difficult route with many obstacles to contend with.

It’s a shame how the west of Scotland seems to get electrification priority most of the time.

 

[Starmill]

Honestly, what a disaster this whole electrification project has turned out to be. I thought they already had the money to be able to carry out the work. After all, they’ve piled a whole load of still cylinders for the masts. And let’s be honest, it’s not exactly a difficult route with many obstacles to contend with.

It’s a shame how the west of Scotland seems to get electrification priority most of the time.

Given how long it will take to get a battery fleet into service to actually make the benefits worthwhile, it's unfortunately inevitable it would be delayed. Until then literally a handful of services per day only would benefit.

 

[92002]

Honestly, what a disaster this whole electrification project has turned out to be. I thought they already had the money to be able to carry out the work. After all, they’ve piled a whole load of still cylinders for the masts. And let’s be honest, it’s not exactly a difficult route with many obstacles to contend with.

It’s a shame how the west of Scotland seems to get electrification priority most of the time.

The installation of mast piles was only a means of keeping their contractors doing something useful. So as not to allow staff being paid off and disbanded.

Aberdeen to the Central Belt Is a large Project that willl last many years it's not been funded qnd will be funded over many budget years.

The Dalmeny scheme is only one of many that will create the full scheme. One of which will be Fife Circle electrification. Then onwards to Dundee and Aberdeen. Also from Dundee to Perth and Dunblane. Depending on funding it could last for Ten or more years.

 

[InOban]

The Westminster budget changes including HS2 has reduced the Barnett Consequntials in capital funding to Holyrood. Not saying that ScoGov hasn't made some stupid decisions, but in comparison with Westminster....

 

[EastFifer]

Given how long it will take to get a battery fleet into service to actually make the benefits worthwhile, it's unfortunately inevitable it would be delayed. Until then literally a handful of services per day only would

Given how long it will take to get a battery fleet into service to actually make the benefits worthwhile, it's unfortunately inevitable it would be delayed. Until then literally a handful of services per day only would benefit.

I reckon it’ll be diesel for the next 30+ years!!

The Westminster budget changes including HS2 has reduced the Barnett Consequntials in capital funding to Holyrood. Not saying that ScoGov hasn't made some stupid decisions, but in comparison with Westminster....

The Westminster budget changes including HS2 has reduced the Barnett Consequntials in capital funding to Holyrood. Not saying that ScoGov hasn't made some stupid decisions, but in comparison with Westminster....

You seem obsessed with Westminster? I’m so glad we aren’t run by the SNP… they’re the main reason this simple project is all but over.
Anyway, it won’t be long until they are a thing of the past and us Scots go back to voting Labour!!

 

[najaB]

You seem obsessed with Westminster? I’m so glad we aren’t run by the SNP… they’re the main reason this simple project is all but over.

If the funding is reduced it's been reduced, regardless of the party in power at Holyrood.

 

[clc]

If the funding is reduced it's been reduced, regardless of the party in power at Holyrood.

Yes some people don’t realise that when overall funding goes down in England the Scottish Government’s funding also goes down thanks to the Barnett Formula.

 

[68000]

You seem obsessed with Westminster? I’m so glad we aren’t run by the SNP… they’re the main reason this simple project is all but over.
Anyway, it won’t be long until they are a thing of the past and us Scots go back to voting Labour!!

It does not matter who is in Holyrood if the UK govt cuts capital expenditure then it cuts it for the devolved areas as well

 

[JamesT]

It does not matter who is in Holyrood if the UK govt cuts capital expenditure then it cuts it for the devolved areas as well

My understanding is that although the overall block grant from Westminster depends on the level of spending set in the UK budget, how the devolved governments spend is up to them. If Holyrood wants to maintain capital spending on the railways they can cut something else.

 

[92002]

My understanding is that although the overall block grant from Westminster depends on the level of spending set in the UK budget, how the devolved governments spend is up to them. If Holyrood wants to maintain capital spending on the railways they can cut something else.

No doubt all will be revealed in the Hollyrood budget tomorrow. However they do not seem to be getting any Barnett consequentials from The cutting of HS2, which would naturally go on similar schemes for Scotland .

Perhaps they should cut funding of the Health Service, local Government or the Police, Fire and ambulance service to fund electrification.

Doubtful that would go down well.

What they could of course do is use their tax raising powered to raise taxes to fund it.

Life is full of choices.

 

[takno]

My understanding is that although the overall block grant from Westminster depends on the level of spending set in the UK budget, how the devolved governments spend is up to them. If Holyrood wants to maintain capital spending on the railways they can cut something else.

I suspect the point is more that the Westminster government is going about making arbitrary unplanned decisions at short notice like cancelling HS2, and as a result the devolved nations are left scrabbling around to cope with sudden changes to their budgets. The SNP hace made quite a mess on their own, but dealing with a hapless bunch of reactionaries making Westminster policy on the hoof isn't exactly helping.

 

[68000]

My understanding is that although the overall block grant from Westminster depends on the level of spending set in the UK budget, how the devolved governments spend is up to them. If Holyrood wants to maintain capital spending on the railways they can cut something else.

Yes they can altough it totally messes up planned expenditure in a host of areas, imagine the uproar if the Scottish govt cut spending in health to divert the cash to Fife electrification. None of this changes the fundamental fact that UK govt cutting capital investment will also cut the money available to the devolved areas and doing it in a haphazard fashion makes everyone look amateur