MML Electrification: progress updates

[GRALISTAIR]

Putting gantries and masts on the piles would be a better idea

I hear you sir - I totally agree!

 

[edwin_m]

Just also thought could a driver mistake an orange pile lid for a person in hi-vis lying down? Blue might be better, like the drain covers.

 

[Flying Phil]

I hear you sir - I totally agree!

Do they need to put the piles in, then, when all are ready, there is a dedicated rail set that installs all the masts as it trundles along - or do the masts also get put up individually?

 

[Bald Rick]

If you were to lay new lines between Hendon and Elstree tunnels, could you not go further, to say the southern edge of St Albans, and have a parkway station there, then operate an all-stations LO service on the (now extended) Hendon lines and run Thameslink semi-fast, serving only the new parkway station, West Hampstead and maybe one other station?

It appears no one picked up on my little quip about the spare land to the east of the railway between Hendon and Elstree tunnels. For those that don’t know, it’s the M1, and it is literally the width of a wall away. There is zero chance of any new tracks.

Road traffic is appalling now in the SAC area , such that even a minor accident in the peaks causes huge backs , often lasting well over an hour. If for any reason the M25, M1 , has a serious back-up or incident - then the traffic overflows onto the local network. Carnage.

To be fair I don’t think the traffic is particularly worse than it was 10 years ago. Yes it’s bad when the M1 (in particular) is closed or severely restricted somewhere between J9 and the M25, but that is pretty rare. By far the biggest issue is schools traffic, particularly when it rains in the morning. During school hols the reduction in traffic is astonishing. If only more of the little darlings would walk / cycle / bus to school.

 

[HowardGWR]

Arable Green belt for now... around Sandridgebury Lane is in the mix to be released from the green belt. However beyond that it is basically farmland for about a mile, more than enough to get up and down with 1:100 gradients that are good for freight (for the rare occasions they would use it).

Not going to happen though.

Just a note on the several comments on Green Belt (note capital letters, people often talk of green belt, which has no legal meaning). Green Belt legislation has two objectives: the area described by it is to prevent the joining up of separate urban areas with Development Boundaries and secondly to prevent urban sprawl (that is the extension of the Development Boundary into agricultural or otherwise undeveloped land. It doesn't have the object of protecting nature, for which other legal designations are available; for instance, SSSI or SAC - there are numerous others.

Whether a railway flyover or motorway would fall foul of the Green Belt has more to do with whether, in itself, it would promote the two undesirable developments mentioned above. I doubt whether a railway flyover would do so, or a motorway that just ran through the GB with no junctions. A new railway station would do so, I suspect, because why build a station, unless you wanted to encourage people to live nearby?

If there is a Green Belt around Worcester (I haven't looked) then that new station on the edge would be a very bad development. Some might think it is, anyway.

 

[Roast Veg]

At Leicester, the Up Main on platform 3 has had its TSR took away so 40MPH working through platform 3. Impressive to hear a HST scream towards London rather than power off for 15MPH.

All other TSR are in place still as far as I’m aware.

Any idea what the time saving is now?

 

[Bald Rick]

In theory, between 38 and 44 seconds for a train around 200m long. Less for shorter trains.

In context, it’s about the same as upgrading 10 miles of line from 110 to 125.

 

[cle]

In theory, between 38 and 44 seconds for a train around 200m long. Less for shorter trains.

In context, it’s about the same as upgrading 10 miles of line from 110 to 125.

That is great context - it's so easy to focus on the 'sexier' upgrades when these in relative terms give so much more, and for more units/stopping patterns. Are there any other examples on the MML of similar changes coming?

 

[AM9]

That is great context - it's so easy to focus on the 'sexier' upgrades when these in relative terms give so much more, and for more units/stopping patterns. Are there any other examples on the MML of similar changes coming?

Which means that even if the fasts from Carlton Road junction northwards were cleared to 125mph, an EM train forced to reduce its speed down to 100mph in order to slot in between the fast TL trains would take well under 2 minutes compared with if it had a clear road. hardly much of a price to pay given the incremental upgrades that can be gained without disturbing other traffic.

 

[Bald Rick]

That is great context - it's so easy to focus on the 'sexier' upgrades when these in relative terms give so much more, and for more units/stopping patterns. Are there any other examples on the MML of similar changes coming?

Market Harboro’ for one, cant remember the saving there though, around half a minute I think (and only applies to non stop trains)

 

[Roast Veg]

What about the Derby works?

 

[edwin_m]

Derby ought to save a over a minute for Sheffield trains. Unfortunately neither Derby nor Market Harborough benefits Nottingham, unless they manage to find a way of rearranging the timetable so the fast London train doesn't stop there.

 

[38Cto15E]

What work is being undertaken at Market Harborough this weekend, I believe it is one of the reasons for the MML weekend closure. TIA

 

[59CosG95]

What work is being undertaken at Market Harborough this weekend, I believe it is one of the reasons for the MML weekend closure. TIA

Start of work to realign the MML through the station, to increase the linespeed by minimising the reverse curve. https://www.networkrail.co.uk/runni...et-harborough-line-speed-improvement-project/

 

[InTheEastMids]

What work is being undertaken at Market Harborough this weekend, I believe it is one of the reasons for the MML weekend closure. TIA

They also seem to be working on the new footbridge at Little Bowden.

There must be work elsewhere as otherwise EMT would divert services via Oakham.

 

[38Cto15E]

The work around the Harborough area seemed to be laying new track south of the station, maybe the cant is being changed as well as the rails/sleepers. Network rail gave BBC Midlands access so there has been good coverage on BBC Midland News.

 

[Flying Phil]

I see that some new rail has been laid to the North of the station but it is still on the original alignment.

 

[38Cto15E]

Planehub have available a cab ride from Nottingham to St Pancras with an HST on youtube which must only be 4/6 weeks old, it shows lots of what is going on with the MML.

 

[Senex]

I see that some new rail has been laid to the North of the station but it is still on the original alignment.

Something that needed doing quite urgently, perhaps? That looks like a point where the future alignment will be under the other arch of the bridge, on what is the old LNW formation, if it's coming off a straightened route through the station.

 

[Hattermick]

Passing Clapham north of Bedford this morning, catenary up on the slow lines.

 

[Railwaysceptic]

Planehub have available a cab ride from Nottingham to St Pancras with an HST on youtube which must only be 4/6 weeks old, it shows lots of what is going on with the MML.

It also shows there is masses of spare capacity until you reach Bedford.

 

[londonmidland]

Between Spondon and Derby there are new signals lying on the ground, ready to be installed.

There are even replacements for the existing LED’s.

 

[59CosG95]

Between Spondon and Derby there are new signals lying on the ground, ready to be installed.

There are even replacements for the existing LED’s.

Presumably these are due to (hopefully) come online after this BH weekend. I assume the LED's being replaced are interlocked in Derby PSB, while their replacements will be in the EMCC.

 

[InTheEastMids]

It also shows there is masses of spare capacity until you reach Bedford.

Briefly - I wouldn't say "spare" as much as "unusable" because there isn't capacity at key points that you'd need to do anything useful.
1. Constraints South of Bedford mean there could be capacity, but nowhere for additional trains to go
2. It's getting hard to fit more services through Leicester and across Wigston Jncs (hence NR have a scheme called "Leicester Capacity")
3. There's a significant 2-track section from Kettering to Leicester where the speed differentials of non-stop EMT and freight (esp. heavy aggregate trains) creates capacity issues
4. All the potential conflicting moves around Trent & Sheet Stores junctions. Trains I'm on always seem to get held here (esp XX32 from Nottingham)

 

[londonmidland]

2. It's getting hard to fit more services through Leicester and across Wigston Jncs (hence NR have a scheme called "Leicester Capacity")

Is Network Rail going to reinstate the line between Wigston Jnc, through the tunnels to Leicester, and also add an additional freight line to Syston Jn?

 

[LowLevel]

Presumably these are due to (hopefully) come online after this BH weekend. I assume the LED's being replaced are interlocked in Derby PSB, while their replacements will be in the EMCC.

What is being replaced depends on what is going on. Spondon is being completely plain lined and I believe the crossing will be an obstacle detector type so the signalling is changing significantly.

In other areas the structures themselves are still in good condition so are being retained because very little or nothing is changing.

 

[InTheEastMids]

Is Network Rail going to reinstate the line between Wigston Jnc, through the tunnels to Leicester, and also add an additional freight line to Syston Jn?

From what I know, it's too early a stage for a scope and funding to have been agreed, but where it's been mentioned I've seen the following aspirations
- 4-tracking from Kilby Bridge Junction to Syston Junctions
- Additional platform(s) at Leicester
- Grade separation at Wigston Junctions
However, in the current climate, you could imagine this being "optimised" (probably towards less scope and more cost...)

 

[fflint]

Slightly off topic but still a MML question. Can someone explain please how Syston station works with only one platform? I know Brunel was a big fan but that was years ago.

 

[swt_passenger]

Slightly off topic but still a MML question. Can someone explain please how Syston station works with only one platform? I know Brunel was a big fan but that was years ago.

A train leaving Leicester will cross over to run down the eastern line of 3, it is the reversible Up/Down Slow. In fact I’m just watching 2L77 (1628 Leicester to Lincoln) do this on the Opentraintimes map here: https://www.opentraintimes.com/maps/signalling/spc3#T_LESTER

 

[londonmidland]

Slightly off topic but still a MML question. Can someone explain please how Syston station works with only one platform? I know Brunel was a big fan but that was years ago.

Syston is served by one train an hour. The XX:12 to Leicester (Calling at Leicester only) where it is then turned around to form a local service to Nottingham/Lincoln Central at XX:26 which gets to Syston at XX:35.

Syston is where XC services and intermodal freight join and leave the MML, heading to Peterborough and the East, and heading to Nuneaton, Birmingham and the West in the opposite direction. Usually most XC services do not run through the platform, but are routed immediately on the up fast heading towards Leicester.

All other EMT services pass on the up and down fast lines.

Just north of the station is where the up slow and down slow lines are, and also a loop which connects the MML to the Melton/Peterborough line for traffic from the North, avoiding Syston station itself and Leicester.