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Kenilworth station Opened 30th April 2018

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geoffk

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"The track was lifted and relaid next to the platform" - so is there not a loop and two platforms? If not is the single line going to cope with two extra train movements an hour, given that it's already a potential source of delay for Cross-Country?
 
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IrishDave

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"The track was lifted and relaid next to the platform" - so is there not a loop and two platforms? If not is the single line going to cope with two extra train movements an hour, given that it's already a potential source of delay for Cross-Country?
The existing Kenilworth loop remains, but the loop is about half a mile north of the station (roughly where the former line to Berkswell diverged). The station is situated on the single-line section south of the loop.
 

The Planner

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"The track was lifted and relaid next to the platform" - so is there not a loop and two platforms? If not is the single line going to cope with two extra train movements an hour, given that it's already a potential source of delay for Cross-Country?
The local needs to be reliable or the down XC will get nobbled, yes.
 

jharr

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Will be interesting to see how the train competes against the X17 bus service, which I think runs every 15 minutes and penetrates most of Kenilworth quite well.

I'd be tempted to agree. I'd imagine the fares to Kenilworth will be cheaper than Stagecoach's current ones but more expensive than taking the National Express Coventry 11. I think the train will make more sense for connecting rail journeys, particularly when it comes to reliability/compensation arrangements. However, in neither Coventry nor Leamington is the station truly central to the city/town, so the extra speed of the train probably isn't beneficial to the most popular local journeys.

It will be interesting to see if any of the bus operators choose to serve the stop on the station forecourt.
 

Kite159

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The local needs to be reliable or the down XC will get nobbled, yes.

Although the biggest risk is Northbound XCs getting delayed on route to Coventry, meaning the shuttle is delayed on departure. Quite often I'm on a XC for Manchester which hangs outside Oxford station waiting for a stopper to clear out of the way.

The bus will probably still be popular, mainly because it serves the centre of Coventry
 

The Planner

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The down XC is a good 13 14 minutes behind the shuttle so it would never be held for the XC.
 

boxy321

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The No. 11 bus's route to Coventry is a tortuous one through Warwick University and Canley (~1/2 hour). If someone really had a problem with the short walk from Coventry station to town they could always get a bus from the station.

Still no news on what will be driven up and down this line and by whom. Apparently the class 230 trials were made by freight drivers who know the route.
 

jharr

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The No. 11 bus's route to Coventry is a tortuous one through Warwick University and Canley (~1/2 hour). If someone really had a problem with the short walk from Coventry station to town they could always get a bus from the station.

Still no news on what will be driven up and down this line and by whom. Apparently the class 230 trials were made by freight drivers who know the route.

The 11 is indeed significantly slower to Coventry city centre but follows the same route as the X17 Kenilworth Clock - Leamington Parade which is a significant flow for these routes.

It's been suggested in the other thread, partly backed up by a letter from LM to XC, that the train will be a 172 with Leamington crews. The timings are for a 153.
 

trains2064

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Will be interesting to see how the train competes against the X17 bus service, which I think runs every 15 minutes and penetrates most of Kenilworth quite well.
Trouble is the 11 and x17 buses can take up to an hour in th
 

Xenophon PCDGS

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Is there a deliberate smokescreen being set up by those with decision making power who wish to hold off the station opening for as long as possible. Is it not the case that when reopening was discussed in 2013, a "provisional" date of 2016 was put forward? 2017 has already seen that date revised to August 2017, then to the state we find matters at in mid-November 2017.
 

jharr

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I suspect it's more cock-up than conspiracy at this point. Isn't the station build:

a) the bit that's now running late
b) paid for by the people who most want this finished on time?
 

XCTurbostar

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Chris Grayling is expected to be attending the new station on the 16th of December.
 

Xenophon PCDGS

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I suspect it's more cock-up than conspiracy at this point. Isn't the station build:

a) the bit that's now running late
b) paid for by the people who most want this finished on time?

For those who remember how rail projects can be difficult to believe in terms of new projects being subject to delays for differing reasons, I would put forward the example of the "Todmorden Chord" which had NetworkRail infrastructural works time extensions then when all these were finally completed, Northern then claimed they had no units to run on the proposed new services for many months.
 

Kite159

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For those who remember how rail projects can be difficult to believe in terms of new projects being subject to delays for differing reasons, I would put forward the example of the "Todmorden Chord" which had NetworkRail infrastructural works time extensions then when all these were finally completed, Northern then claimed they had no units to run on the proposed new services for many months.

Not forgetting the couple months between Coventry Arena & Bermuda Park being finished and them being opened
 

HLE

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More like nearly 6 months. Those stations were finished in August 2015, with the first opening date originally being the third week of Setember 2015.
 

TheDavibob

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There's a snippet in the budget:

the government will provide £2 million to develop options to address key constraints on the Coventry – Leamington Rail Corridor

Anyone know exactly what this is being earmarked for?
 

jharr

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The key constraint is the length of single track section, including through Kenilworth station itself. If the £2m is to 'develop options' then that's a lot of money. If it's to solve something, then it's not so much but I'd imagine would mean at least partial redoubling, presumably substantial enough to bring the second platform at Kenilworth into use.
 

trains2064

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2m could be second platform. I think other projects talked about like more double track would cost more!
 

The Planner

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£2 million isn't going to get you the track and signalling required for the second platform. Its purely getting it to the end of GRIP 2 again I would suspect and telling everyone what they already know.
 

Ianno87

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£2M buys you another set of consultants, another set of options and no shovels in the ground!

...but gives you much more confidence and justifucation that you're building the *right* thing.

Money no object, you'd double the whole lot and be done with it. But money is an object, so which bit do you double? North of Kenilworth? South of Kenilworth? A bit more north of Milverton or south of Gibbet Hill? Do these mean you can run the trains you want to run, given doubling the whole lot (or the 'wrong' bit) may be pointless anyway if you've still got capacity constraints somewhere else? Or does doubling the lot give sufficient benefits to justify doing so?

All will be very different for technical feasibilty (e.g. soil conditions to widen embankmemts for doubling, the need to double track the A46 bridge, number of bridges to be widened, impact on Kenilworth station etc.) thus cost, and all will potentially very different in what train services they can deliver. Moreso in a world of evolvimg timetables pre and post HS2.

The two of those combined prove (through a BCR etc. for the posdible options based on costs and benefits in each case) that this is a better thing to spend money on than something else (railway or non-railway).

Which then justifies the money getting spent, as schemes like this have to wash their own faces these days to justify stumping up the money for the "shovels in the ground".
 

Old Hill Bank

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...but gives you much more confidence and justifucation that you're building the *right* thing.

Money no object, you'd double the whole lot and be done with it. But money is an object, so which bit do you double? North of Kenilworth? South of Kenilworth? A bit more north of Milverton or south of Gibbet Hill? Do these mean you can run the trains you want to run, given doubling the whole lot (or the 'wrong' bit) may be pointless anyway if you've still got capacity constraints somewhere else? Or does doubling the lot give sufficient benefits to justify doing so?

All will be very different for technical feasibilty (e.g. soil conditions to widen embankmemts for doubling, the need to double track the A46 bridge, number of bridges to be widened, impact on Kenilworth station etc.) thus cost, and all will potentially very different in what train services they can deliver. Moreso in a world of evolvimg timetables pre and post HS2.

The two of those combined prove (through a BCR etc. for the posdible options based on costs and benefits in each case) that this is a better thing to spend money on than something else (railway or non-railway).

Which then justifies the money getting spent, as schemes like this have to wash their own faces these days to justify stumping up the money for the "shovels in the ground".
How many more studies are needed for this project!
 

trains2064

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£2 million isn't going to get you the track and signalling required for the second platform. Its purely getting it to the end of GRIP 2 again I would suspect and telling everyone what they already know.
No I agree but it’s about the amount to get a dozen people on site to do a bit of head scratching then disappear of to an office to drink tea and eat biscuits!
 

STKKK46

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Anywhere but here...
http://www.kenilworthweeklynews.co....with-full-service-severely-in-doubt-1-8261652
The opening of Kenilworth Station with a full service is ‘severely in doubt’ according to a Warwickshire county councillor.

Cllr Keith Kondakor (Green, Weddington), asked a question to council officers about whether the station would be delivered by its planned opening date of Sunday December 10 at recent Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting.


He said: “I believe there’s issues over the timetable and getting access to slots on the network, which will result in potentially not having a service starting on December 10 as planned.”


The officer replied to Cllr Kondakor by saying the timely delivery of the station was a ‘daily task’ the council was working on, and said it was working with Network Rail and rail operators to make sure this happens.
Kenilworth station not due to open until February now apparently...
 
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HLE

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Weirdly they mention ‘unfinished bits being cordoned off’.

So a 153 then, if this happens to start with.
 

XCTurbostar

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No doubt he will arrive on a stickered 2-car 172/2 to open the station even though they wont even use the route!
 
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