Ordsall Chord

[snowball]

stadiumcat reports on SSC that the arch has been lifted and moved. This is presumably a trial lift to make sure everything is working. Kermit72, also on SSC, predicted last weekend that it would be moved 40m nearer the river this week. As far as I know we are on course for the big lift on Tuesday.

 

[snowball]

From the NP Twitter feed, a bird's-eye view of the two cranes and the arch next to the river:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C43GeigWQAEvowY.jpg

 

[SansHache]

Can't compete with the aerial shots but I have created Flickr albums with the photographs I have taken over the last 9 months following the progress of the Ordsall Chord project.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/organize/?start_tab=one_set72157676959877703
Things are certainly moving on apace!

Correct link to albums below
https://www.flickr.com/photos/147280282@N07/albums

 

[snowball]

Can't compete with the aerial shots but I have created Flickr albums with the photographs I have taken over the last 9 months following the progress of the Ordsall Chord project.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/organize/?start_tab=one_set72157676959877703
Things are certainly moving on apace!

Thank you, but that link requires me to be registered with Yahoo, whereas the picture link you recently posted in the Blackpool-Manchester thread #3815 works for me.

 

[jonesy3001]

Can't compete with the aerial shots but I have created Flickr albums with the photographs I have taken over the last 9 months following the progress of the Ordsall Chord project.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/organize/?start_tab=one_set72157676959877703
Things are certainly moving on apace!

Your link isn't working keeps going onto organize pics on flickr.

 

[Howardh]

When this is finished, will any trains to the south - notably Euston, Birmingham etc begin from Victoria (and maybe not even call at Piccadilly on their way past!)?

Can't see why they should but for pax coming from N. Manchester, E Lancs it could save a trek across town - admitting that the areas concerned are well served by the Metro which can take them to Picc without changing (if they're lucky...)?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

When this is finished, will any trains to the south - notably Euston, Birmingham etc begin from Victoria (and maybe not even call at Piccadilly on their way past!)?

You might conceivably get XC Voyagers round to Victoria if needed, and EMUs from Crewe/Stoke.
But Pendolinos are unlikely.
You could fit a 9-car 390 into P3/4 at Victoria, but 11-car would be too long.
Theoretically you can work electric trains from the south into Victoria today via Warrington BQ if the route via Stockport was closed for some reason, but I don't think it has happened yet.
ATW South Wales services sometimes divert that way, but end up at Oxford Road.

 

[Chester1]

When this is finished, will any trains to the south - notably Euston, Birmingham etc begin from Victoria (and maybe not even call at Piccadilly on their way past!)?

Can't see why they should but for pax coming from N. Manchester, E Lancs it could save a trek across town - admitting that the areas concerned are well served by the Metro which can take them to Picc without changing (if they're lucky...)?

There is no capacity to terminate extra services at Victoria and it would be a waste of city centre capacity.

 

[adamedwards]

A more likely scenario would be a London train starting from Bolton. Like Skipton or Harrogate via Leeds. But that's not using the chord.

 

[anorack 1]

There used to be a morning Rochdale London train service, via Victoria and Newton le Willows. Just after privatisation started. Maybe that could run a new service through the Chord?

 

[edwin_m]

Passengers from Rochdale to London will be able to get one of the Calder Valley Airport trains to Piccadilly and change there, but I don't think there's any chance of a London train starting anywhere other than Piccadilly.

 

[Shaw S Hunter]

Another restriction is the available standing length for a train stopped by signals on the chord itself. I believe this is only 8x20-something metres so anything longer could be most inconvenient during the bulk of the day.

 

[lejog]

When this is finished, will any trains to the south - notably Euston, Birmingham etc begin from Victoria (and maybe not even call at Piccadilly on their way past!)?

Can't see why they should but for pax coming from N. Manchester, E Lancs it could save a trek across town - admitting that the areas concerned are well served by the Metro which can take them to Picc without changing (if they're lucky...)?

This is a Northern Hub project remember.....

AFAIK, the capacity of the Chord is 4tph. Definite paths are allocated to the two TPE Airport services and the Northern Bradford to Airport service. Northern want to use the fourth path for a Blackburn-Burnley-Airport service, but that rather depends on paths being available south of the Chord.

 

[HowardGWR]

You could fit a 9-car 390 into P3/4 at Victoria, but 11-car would be too long.

Anyone else feel the historical irony in that (very true) statement about platform length?.

 

[SansHache]

Thank you, but that link requires me to be registered with Yahoo, whereas the picture link you recently posted in the Blackpool-Manchester thread #3815 works for me.

Apologies, hopefully this should be the correct link
https://www.flickr.com/photos/147280282@N07/albums

 

[Elecman]

Anyone else feel the historical irony in that (very true) statement about platform length?.

Yes indeed from being the longest platform in the country

 

[snowball]

Apologies, hopefully this should be the correct link
https://www.flickr.com/photos/147280282@N07/albums

Thank you, excellent pictures!

 

[Ianno87]

A more likely scenario would be a London train starting from Bolton. Like Skipton or Harrogate via Leeds. But that's not using the chord.

The First Group West Coast franchise-that-never-was proposed a daily Euston Pendolino serving Bolton. That would've been in operation in December 2016 had:
-The new franchise not been canned, and
-Bolton electrification been completed by now

Let's see if the next attempt at the ICWC franchise comes up with anything like that.

Anyway, back on topic..

 

[Altfish]

The lift I was expecting doesn't seem to have happened - possibly too windy.

I think it is due to be tomorrow (Tuesday) subject to the weather

 

[Joseph_Locke]

I think it is due to be tomorrow (Tuesday) subject to the weather

However both cranes were "hooked up" as at 0730 this morning, but the bigger one's superlift ballast wasn't connected yet.

 

[Chrisyd]

Photo showing the cranes connected, unfortunately can not make out if the ballast is attached.

by Chris Davis, on Flickr

They have also removed some of the covers on the pillar at the far side of the river (unfortunately did not realise photo did not cover this until I was back at my desk).

 

[Chester1]

Anyone else feel the historical irony in that (very true) statement about platform length?.

Yes indeed from being the longest platform in the country

It doesn't need huge platforms these days. If the was sufficient demand then 2 of the through platforms could be extended but I doubt there will be even a need to fit in a set of 3 x 3 car sprinters, let alone an 11 coach Pendolino or a 3 x r car 319 or 350. As someone has pointed out the ordsall chord can't fit in very large trains anyway.

The First Group West Coast franchise-that-never-was proposed a daily Euston Pendolino serving Bolton. That would've been in operation in December 2016 had:
-The new franchise not been canned, and
-Bolton electrification been completed by now

Let's see if the next attempt at the ICWC franchise comes up with anything like that.

Anyway, back on topic..

Probably but if there was huge demand then a daily service could have been provided with a double Voyager and some timetable alterations.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Probably but if there was huge demand then a daily service could have been provided with a double Voyager and some timetable alterations.

Virgin (in their original bid) also offered those extra services.
Eventually the DfT asked them to serve Blackpool and Shrewsbury with the Voyagers.
I suppose there will be a spare Voyager from 2018 once the Blackpool line is wired.
It isn't yet clear if/how the Blackpool service will be resourced with 390s.

 

[hwl]

Photo showing the cranes connected, unfortunately can not make out if the ballast is attached.

by Chris Davis, on Flickr

They have also removed some of the covers on the pillar at the far side of the river (unfortunately did not realise photo did not cover this until I was back at my desk).

Lots (hundred so tonnes) of ballast on the ground in the photo.

 

[snowball]

The lift I was expecting doesn't seem to have happened - possibly too windy.

I think it is due to be tomorrow (Tuesday) subject to the weather

In the post to which you're replying, which is now a week old, I wasn't referring to the big lift of the aches over the river. I was referring to a lift of girders near the tie-in with Middlewood Viaduct, using three smaller cranes as discussed by Kermit72 on SSC and linked by me. (Though I now suspect that the large steel beams that are lying on the ground will not go there at all, but are waiting for a later phase after the re-diversion of Trinity Way.)

There are now some new picture by Kermit72 and Stopfordian Dreamer on SSC:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1345619&page=109

 

[absolutelymilk]

I suppose there will be a spare Voyager from 2018 once the Blackpool line is wired.
It isn't yet clear if/how the Blackpool service will be resourced with 390s.

I thought that there weren't enough 390s to cover all the existing diagrams, which is why the Scotland via Birmingham is sometimes run by Voyagers?

 

[GRALISTAIR]

I thought that there weren't enough 390s to cover all the existing diagrams, which is why the Scotland via Birmingham is sometimes run by Voyagers?

jeepers creepers that is a lot of diesel under the wires mileage.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

I thought that there weren't enough 390s to cover all the existing diagrams, which is why the Scotland via Birmingham is sometimes run by Voyagers?

Yes indeed.
There are only a few options for VT to run 390s to Blackpool.
There are 4 early starters from the Preston area:
0513 Lancaster-Euston (390)
(0539 Blackpool)-0600 Preston-Crewe-Euston (221, merges with Holyhead portion at Crewe)
0617 Preston-Birmingham (221, an early part of the Scotland-Bham-Euston service)
0658 Lancaster-Euston (390)

You could start any of these at Blackpool.
But the rest of the day these trains all go to/from Scotland.
So its not easy to see how extra services can be provided without new stock, which won't be forthcoming until 2020, possibly only when HS2 comes on stream.
Running anything via Bolton deprives Wigan/Warrington.
I should think there is still a possibility that VT will just keep the timetable as is.
You are not going to fill a 390 at 6am at Blackpool.

(Off topic, sorry, should be in the Blackpool electrification thread really).

 

[Geeves]

Nobody says the Bolton VT has to go beyond Bolton. They could easily extend a few Piccadilly terminators if they wanted once the wires are up. Who knows about Blackpool

 

[fflint]

From GtNorthRailProject twitter feed the lift has started view here:
https://twitter.com/NetworkRailNP?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

our photographers need to get there quickly.