Rail Freight Through The Channel Tunnel

[RichmondCommu]

G'day,

I think its far to say that in terms of rail freight the tunnel is under used and I would be interested to read people's views on this.

For those that are interested these are my thoughts:

1. The vast majority of imports / exports heading between the UK and the rest of Europe are moved between Felixstowe and Rotterdam / Hamburg and therefore do not need to use the tunnel.

2. Previous customers were put off with the problems caused by asylum seekers and now have a bad experience of using the tunnel.

3. The access charges for the tunnel are too expensive.

4. SNCF (Fret) is too inefficient. Given the amount of agricultural produce imported from Spain and Portugal there is surely huge potential for carrying these through the tunnel but I’ve read that SNCF tend to take their time running through France with lots of loco changes.

5. The loading gauge compared to the rest of Europe precludes the use of Continental wagons. However I’ve read this week that DBS have run a freight train along HS1 and I know they have plans to run regular services along HS1 to Barking.

Your thoughts would be most welcome!

Richmond Commuter

 

[Freightmaster]

6. All of the above!

MARK

 

[Domeyhead]

Good Summary. My feeling is that the real inhibitor to growth is the lack of terminal facilities in the UK, which has a number of factors of its own:-
1) The outrageously high cost of building any kind of rail-connected infrastructure
2) Removal of the Section 8 grants to help business build the above
3) Business short term attitudes which preclude any kind of long term view on developing the above
4) Reluctance of business to commit to rail long term when switch to road is always in the background
5) Perceived view by business of railreight as being inflexible and unable to adapt to novel or unusual arrangements
6) Lack of any kind of government assisted "seedcorn" initiative to encourage growth (example - Government grant to underwrite cost of running an "enterprise" style freight service for 5 years between London and the West Country - inviting a turn up and go intermodal freight operation).
This decline of terminal facilities means freight has so few places to go it makes lorry trucking for some distance in the UK inevitable....... and the rest can be deduced.

 

[Hydro]

I'd like to see a return to the piggyback experiment of carrying lorry trailers on rail wagons. Carry them through the tunnel and up to Wembley, Daventry, Mossend etc and unload them with lorries taking the trailers the final mile. You could have one block train calling at all railfreight terminals, dropping off trailers at each on on the way.

The Channel Tunnel needs to make itself more attractive to freight. Dollands Moor does seem underutilised, I went down there a few weeks ago and there were three intermodals waiting to leave, in both directions, and a steel train ready to go to France. I didn't get the impression much more was going to happen. It's not uncommon to be empty during the day, or used as a stabling point.

Large scale logistics companies like DHL or TNT would benefit from some investment in rail transport. I don't think the days of Speedlink will come back to any meaningful degree, the long term investment and money lies in block movement of large quantities of goods.

 

[NightatLaira]

What is the speed limit of freight through the tunnel? Could it feasibly be raised to 90mph or whatever the passenger trains go at?

 

[DarloRich]

Large scale logistics companies like DHL or TNT would benefit from some investment in rail transport. I don't think the days of Speedlink will come back to any meaningful degree, the long term investment and money lies in block movement of large quantities of goods.

Agreed - but i CAN see a market for perhaps some form of "open access" service. IE you get you lorryload of goods to X and we will form up a train to point Y where you can pick it up

I suppose i mean an open access freightliner style service. it might allow companies without the bulk to move thier good quicker

 

[swt_passenger]

I'd like to see a return to the piggyback experiment of carrying lorry trailers on rail wagons. Carry them through the tunnel and up to Wembley, Daventry, Mossend etc and unload them with lorries taking the trailers the final mile. You could have one block train calling at all railfreight terminals, dropping off trailers at each on on the way.

Isn't the problem that the typical lorry trailer nowadays is just far too big to go on such a train - they are generally much taller than the larger maritime containers, and then you need more height for the wheels.

Look at the time and cost of modify freight routes to W10 - which is nowhere near what is required for piggy back services.

 

[Hydro]

Isn't the problem that the typical lorry trailer nowadays is just far too big to go on such a train - they are generally much taller than the larger maritime containers, and then you need more height for the wheels.

Look at the time and cost of modify freight routes to W10 - which is nowhere near what is required for piggy back services.

Trials were carried out at Old Dalby with "Eurospine" low riding wagons that could carry road trailers. I'm quite sure that they have already run in a trial capacity on the mainline too. I distinctly remember seeing a post-privatisation advert or article for Freightliner touting piggyback services from the late 90's.

DarloRich: The case for that would be very location specific. Fratton gained it's "railfreight terminal", with new siding and loading pad for a small intermodal trip working to Eastleigh to join onto the big trains going north, and vice versa. It was envisaged the local businesses and logistics companies (Like Condor at Hilsea) would like the opportunity to use it as a way to ship goods north, and for northern companies to have a good connection to Portsmouth docks to get goods to Spain and France.

I think it lasted about 6 weeks.

That's not to say freight trip workings couldn't work in other places; it'd just have to be carefully considered. I'd imagine that more remote places, like Cornwall, the north of Scotland and parts of Wales could benefit from small scale freight workings to large yards, and return, to open up the access to goods and services.

 

[RichmondCommu]

Agreed - but i CAN see a market for perhaps some form of "open access" service. IE you get you lorryload of goods to X and we will form up a train to point Y where you can pick it up

I suppose i mean an open access freightliner style service. it might allow companies without the bulk to move thier good quicker

I like the idea of this but i would imagine that there would have to be enough of it for the service to be profitable. Isn't that the kind of thing that BARS are trying to achieve?

There may well be a minimum distance involved too. I only say this because i've read that containers don't travel by rail between Felixstowe and London because the distance is too short which is a real shame.
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Trials were carried out at Old Dalby with "Eurospine" low riding wagons that could carry road trailers. I'm quite sure that they have already run in a trial capacity on the mainline too. I distinctly remember seeing a post-privatisation advert or article for Freightliner touting piggyback services from the late 90's.

DarloRich: The case for that would be very location specific. Fratton gained it's "railfreight terminal", with new siding and loading pad for a small intermodal trip working to Eastleigh to join onto the big trains going north, and vice versa. It was envisaged the local businesses and logistics companies (Like Condor at Hilsea) would like the opportunity to use it as a way to ship goods north, and for northern companies to have a good connection to Portsmouth docks to get goods to Spain and France.

I think it lasted about 6 weeks.

That's not to say freight trip workings couldn't work in other places; it'd just have to be carefully considered. I'd imagine that more remote places, like Cornwall, the north of Scotland and parts of Wales could benefit from small scale freight workings to large yards, and return, to open up the access to goods and services.

The problem is its very hard to make trip workings pay because of the volumes carried and the distance travelled. The other problem is how long the train would have to wait in the large yard before the wagons were attached to another service to head south. To win traffic from road haulers the railways have to be very competitive and make a profit.

The reason that I based this article on the tunnel is that the distances from the Continent are long enough to make freight services profitable. There does seem to be the start of a renaissance through the tunnel but more is needed.