Morpeth Curve

[Class 170101]

But the service could be re-written to terminate Morpeth services at Newcastle with other DMU services running through instead.

 

[Mark62]

The ruling linespeed round there is 110mph.

Roughly speaking, a 50mph speed restriction of approx half mile on an otherwise 110mph railway costs 2m20sec for a 250metre passenger train.

Having said that, a bypass would be about a mile shorter, which would save another 30 seconds (at 110mph). Therefore, 3 minutes, for about 3 miles of new railway (including a viaduct across a particularly sensitive part of the River Wansbeck.)

And that would be a complete waste of money and is never going to happen. Thankfully

 

[adamedwards]

And that would be a complete waste of money and is never going to happen. Thankfully

Also need to factor in the savings on all the fast trains not slowing down and then consuming power accelerating back up to 110mph over a 30 year payback period. Any one able to estimate that?

 

[deltic08]

Also need to factor in the savings on all the fast trains not slowing down and then consuming power accelerating back up to 110mph over a 30 year payback period. Any one able to estimate that?

You have a point. Congestion relief is another one and the payback period is 60 years usually but has to have a good business case in the first place unlike HS2 which is being built with a very poor business case..

 

[Bald Rick]

Also need to factor in the savings on all the fast trains not slowing down and then consuming power accelerating back up to 110mph over a 30 year payback period. Any one able to estimate that?

With regen braking, it will be peanuts in the scheme of things. Maybe a fiver a train net. Maybe £1m a year.

 

[Meerkat]

Would only be worthwhile if you were building properly fast lines from Newcastle to at least north of Pegswood, with the current lines left for a proper suburban service.
But that certainly wouldn’t happen if HS2 is planned to go via West Coast (is that the current plan, I saw the options but didn’t realise they had decided?)

 

[Killingworth]

We seem to be repeating points made months ago.

In 1825 the Stockton and Darlington Railway opened. In 1847 the line through Morpeth was opened and trains ran between London and Edinburgh by 1850.

Speeds were somehat lower in those days but the topography is against a relief line unless there was a large pot of money available. The size is such that a lot of other projects would score a lot higher in any cost/benefit analysis. There are many of those set out in other threads.

 

[Fradgie]

There does not appear to be any pictures of D9011 stood on its own at Morpeth station immediately after the 1969 accident - I don't know if anyone has got any images of the Deltic in the station together with the remnants of the brake van that was coupled immediately behind it?

 

[SteveP29]

Clean, modern but not very comfortable.

Plus you've got ar**holes who put their feet up on the seats.
Blasted one particular dic*head this morning and left him with my usual parting shot 'I hope the next seat you sit on it covered in the sh*t off someone else's shoes'