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HS2 test facility in West Yorkshire

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CdBrux

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Does anyone know any more details of this, a test track is suggested, but presumably unless it's very long, which seems unlikely, it won't be for high speed running? I would assume it's more a static facility like a rolling road for trucks?

http://www.railtechnologymagazine.c...a-for-hs2-testing-facility-and-station-refurb

Proposals have been made to the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) Investment Committee to back new schemes that will create an HS2 testing facility, renovated station plans and a new rail park & ride scheme in the area.

The plans put forward to the authority involve 10 new schemes with a combined value of £383.5m pledged to its Local Growth Fund and West Yorkshire Plus Transport Fund programme.

Investment Committee members will be asked to support over £4m of work to progress the development, which will require £125m of combined authority funding overall.

Among the arrangements are a £23m, 400kph facility to test high-speed trains and high-speed rail infrastructure.

The scheme would deliver facilities that would enable the new full-scale testing of railway track structures such as embankments, preformed systems, and ground stabilisation technologies. A test track capable of operating rolling stock is also amongst the suggestions for the project.
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NotATrainspott

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There's no way on this earth that you could build a 400km/h test facility for £23m unless it was just a 'rolling road'. HS2 will cost tens or hundreds of millions of pounds per kilometre and you'd need many kilometres of track to even reach 400km/h, let alone run at it for any meaningful length of time. At 400km/h you're doing more than 100 metres per second. The only way I can see a 400km/h test running line being built is if it later becomes part of the HS2 line itself.

A static test facility might be a useful thing to have. There's plenty of things you can test without travelling too far, like extremes of weather in a closed chamber, or platform-train interfaces.
 
higthomas

higthomas

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It could be a circle. :p
Using Wikipedia's 7000m radius for 400kmh it would only need to be about 50km long. Easy. :D

(There might be some issue with uneven wheel wear though.)
 
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gsnedders

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higthomas said:
It could be a circle. :p
Using Wikipedia's 7000m radius for 400kmh it would only need to be about 50km long. Easy. :D

(There might be some issue with uneven wheel wear though.)
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Just change which direction you're running on every so often! :D
 
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thejuggler

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It's for R&D and testing of the new technologies HS2 will employ.

HS1 is now 10 years old and will start needing major asset replacement works very soon.

They are already planning the upgrades which will be required in 5-10 years time on HS1 as components wear and new technologes come on stream.
 
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jon0844

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By most anti-HS2 logic, can't they just spend a fraction of the money doing up some goods yard track? I mean all that money for a bit of track only used by a handful of people and perhaps the odd MP (for a photo op).

Then give the rest to the NHS...
 
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snowball

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The proposal is described in some detail on page 93 of the July Modern Railways. It's called the Institute for High Speed Railways and System Integration. It would be located near the proposed HS2 Crofton depot and occupy 40,000 sq m. It is supported by the universities of Leeds and Huddersfield, the Higher Education Funding Council for England and Network Rail. It must be serious because Leeds U has pledged to put up half the money.

There's more in the piece than I've said above.
 
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