Single line sections that would benefit from becoming multitrack?

[Kite159]

I've got an EMT non-stopping service along there previously, so I guess it does get services "regularly".

But as the OP, I'm going to have to put my foot down and say this isn't a single track section (although I welcome the discussion ) Malton needs another platform !

And how long ago did EMT/EMR stop serving Scarborough on summer Saturdays?

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Maryport is similar to Malton, although that platform is located on a loop, the longer single line sections on the coast line probably has more bearing on the timetable.

 

[rower40]

Stansted Airport tunnel. The most intensively-used section of single track in the country. (Except the Merseyrail Liverpool loop - but that’s uni-directional.)

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My understanding of the Ware situation was that the local councillors, or equivalent way back when the railway was built, insisted on a single track across the level crossing, thinking that this would block their High Street for less time. So it got written into the Act of Parliament.

 

[dk1]

Stansted Airport tunnel. The most intensively-used section of single track in the country. (Except the Merseyrail Liverpool loop - but that’s uni-directional.)

Up to 110 carriages each hour 7 days a week.

 

[Gloster]

Maryport is similar to Malton, although that platform is located on a loop, the longer single line sections on the coast line probably has more bearing on the timetable.

Maryport is another historical one: it does not seem to have ever had an second through platform. The Maryport & Carlisle was an idiosyncratic line, particular in its early days, which may have cast a shadow over expenditure. There is also the fact that as far as the M&C were concerned, Maryport was a terminus.

 

[Zomboid]

I bet NIR are cursing whoever decided that the viaduct between (what is now) Lanyon Place and York Street should be single, complete with a short enough to be next to useless loop in the middle.

 

[Meole]

Ware appears always have had a short section of single-line across a level-crossing. Why is not clear from maps.

The situation north of Ardrossan was connected with trains to and from Hunterston ore terminal. I can’t remember the in and outs of it, but I think it was felt that having dedicated lines for each was a better way of maintains punctuality.

Ware was constrained by geography when built.

 

[Class 170101]

But there are some that just seem totally pointless and can't ever have saved much money. Which of these nuisances could be done away with ?

My top pick goes to Moreton to Dorchester South. What's the point !

Especially as Bournemouth - Weymouth is an important little main line that would justify a half hourly service.

Isn't it already twice hourly in both directions?

Trowse swing bridge must be a capacity constraint.

To a point yes

I expect it is - however I imagine it would be particularly difficult to do away with !

Trowse Swingbridge used to be double tracked before electrification

It’s not as bad as many think.

Except if you are trying to run trains between Norwich and Thetford (and beyond) results in a re-occupancy time of something like 9 minutes because of Trowse Jn single lead and the single line swingbridge. It is in effect a single line between Trowse Jn and Trowse Swingbridge.

 

[dk1]

Except if you are trying to run trains between Norwich and Thetford (and beyond) results in a re-occupancy time of something like 9 minutes because of Trowse Jn single lead and the single line swingbridge. It is in effect a single line between Trowse Jn and Trowse Swingbridge.

I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve been brought to a stand either side of Trowse Bridge in the last few months and I drive over it up to 4 times each day.

 

[Class 170101]

Money gets in the way. If its a choice of getting the station built or making it initially unaffordable by building them as two platforms, what do you do? Yes, its more expensive to come back later, but if it means it opens then you just build the one.

Not just money but political mismanagement too and a lack of vision sadly. It may be cheaper up front to build a single platform station but it costs more overall to come back later.

The ECML electrification was done cheaply by spreading out the masts but how much has it cost in speed restriction delay related repayments, dewirements and associated costs and the subsequent cost of putting in extra masts later on reduce these risks? Must have cost more overall.

 

[dk1]

Trowse Swingbridge used to be double tracked before electrification

And it was 15mph as apposed to 40mph now.

 

[Class 170101]

I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve been brought to a stand either side of Trowse Bridge in the last few months and I drive over it up to 4 times each day.

All I'll say is try and path additional trains between Norwich and Ely. I wish you luck.

 

[dk1]

All I'll say is try and path additional trains between Norwich and Ely. I wish you luck.

We seem to run additional trains for football and during GEML closures. It just ends up with heaps of recovery approaching Ely North Jcn or Trowse Jcn.

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EMR aren’t renound for reliability either across the Breckland.

 

[Class 170101]

We seem to run additional trains for football and during GEML closures. It just ends up with heaps of recovery approaching Ely North Jcn or Trowse Jcn.

Usually around xx03 behind the EMR service and that assumes there isn't a capacity eating Class 6 meandering its way to Norwich / Trowse Yards.

 

[dk1]

Usually around xx03 behind the EMR service and that assumes there isn't a capacity eating Class 6 meandering its way to Norwich / Trowse Yards.

From what I witness there are only a couple of daily freights through to Norwich and even then they don’t run every day. I’ve never had a problem moving additional ECS or with all the Stadler testing we did.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

They're the bane of the modern railway network. Some like the SW main line to Exeter Central are very long and would be expensive to redouble. Others like the single track sections on the Hastings main line are required for operational reasons (in this case narrow tunnels).

But there are some that just seem totally pointless and can't ever have saved much money. Which of these nuisances could be done away with ?

My top pick goes to Moreton to Dorchester South. What's the point !

Especially as Bournemouth - Weymouth is an important little main line that would justify a half hourly service.

It… has one…?

 

[Magdalia]

Stansted Airport tunnel. The most intensively-used section of single track in the country.

Stansted Airport tunnel was built single track for a 2tph Stansted Express service. It would be very expensive and disruptive to convert to double track, given that the tunnel passes under the runway. As the single track section is so close to the terminus, double track through the tunnel wouldn't actually make much difference to capacity. The main constraint is platform capacity in Stansted Airport station, not the single line sections outside.

Trowse Swingbridge used to be double tracked before electrification

Singling Stowmarket-Trowse was also threatened to get electrification to Norwich over the financial line. The single line swingbridge is a minor inconvenience in comparison.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Stansted Airport tunnel. The most intensively-used section of single track in the country. (Except the Merseyrail Liverpool loop - but that’s uni-directional.)

Unless you count light rail of course, in which case the MediaCityUK branch of Metrolink can see up to 20tph.

 

[dk1]

Stansted Airport tunnel was built single track for a 2tph Stansted Express service. It would be very expensive and disruptive to convert to double track, given that the tunnel passes under the runway. As the single track section is so close to the terminus, double track through the tunnel wouldn't actually make much difference to capacity. The main constraint is platform capacity in Stansted Airport station, not the single line sections outside.


Singling Stowmarket-Trowse was also threatened to get electrification to Norwich over the financial line. The single line swingbridge is a minor inconvenience in comparison.

Stansted was also built with the Regional Railways services via Peterborough too.

It was Diss to Trowse that was to be singled as a late economy measure. I had never heard of any intention to single from Stowmarket.

 

[Magdalia]

Stansted was also built with the Regional Railways services via Peterborough too.

But only 1 tph, hence the Stansted north curve also being single track. For most of the 1990s it only had a parliamentary service of 1 train each way per day.

It was Diss to Trowse that was to be singled as a late economy measure. I had never heard of any intention to single from Stowmarket.

You may be right, my recollection was single from Haughley to Trowse with a a passing loop at Diss.

 

[Harpo]

Almost more frustrating are the missed opportunities to re-double some of these lines. Most of Pinhoe to Honiton should have been done when Cranbrook was built. Likewise Worcestershire Parkway was built with passive provision for a second track and platform on the Cotswold line when it would have been much easier to get it added at the same time as the station.

It’s like the ‘why no spare train?’ argument. It’s public money and spending it on something that is not currently needed and spends a long time unused would only fuel the (often valid) perception of industry wastefulness.

 

[Falcon1200]

having dedicated lines for each was a better way of maintains punctuality.

Isn't the non electrified line only usable in one direction? I'm sure I saw something that suggested that trains towards the port used the electrified track.

The Largs branch situation dates from electrification in 1986, before then the line was conventional double track throughout. The non-electrified line is indeed only usable in the Up (away from Largs) direction, the electrified line being for all passenger trains and Down freights (of which there are precious few now, of course).

(South Beach/Largs was only added to the electrification at a late stage, originally it was to be a DMU shuttle from South Beach!)

 

[The exile]

It was said at the time that BR knew that singling Moreton-Dorchester was not worthwhile, but by using imaginative ways to show the ‘savings‘ of doing so, they were able to get the whole electrification project past the Treasury.

Is it not also the case that the power supply is/was such that that is the limiting factor at the far end of the Weymouth line…

 

[AndrewE]

The Largs branch situation dates from electrification in 1986, before then the line was conventional double track throughout. The non-electrified line is indeed only usable in the Up (away from Largs) direction, the electrified line being for all passenger trains and Down freights (of which there are precious few now, of course).

Hunterston could see freight again if development goes ahead: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c24n325q7zgo says

A £150m scheme to transform the site of the former Hunterston coal terminal in North Ayrshire has been given the go-ahead.

Peel Ports Clydeport, which owns the site, has been granted planning permission to fill in the dry dock and create a "hub for the blue and green economies".
Plans for the 350 acre (142 hectares) site include the world's largest Liquid Air Energy Storage facility and subsea cable manufacturing.

"Green" industry could mean raw materials at least coming in by rail. Mind you it's not the first scheme Peel Ports have come up with to try to make money out of the place...

 

[Transilien]

The Largs branch situation dates from electrification in 1986, before then the line was conventional double track throughout. The non-electrified line is indeed only usable in the Up (away from Largs) direction, the electrified line being for all passenger trains and Down freights (of which there are precious few now, of course).

I have not seen a train use that section of track in years. Is it basically pointless now as a section of track and would be better off being electrified at least some of the way to allow a 2tph service. Perhaps Ardrossan Town and Harbour could be closed to allow this. This is getting into speculative territory!

 

[Falcon1200]

I have not seen a train use that section of track in years. Is it basically pointless now as a section of track and would be better off being electrified at least some of the way to allow a 2tph service. Perhaps Ardrossan Town and Harbour could be closed to allow this. This is getting into speculative territory!

Re-instating the Up line for passenger use would require, as well as electrification, new platforms, and access to them, at West Kilbride and South Beach. And Ardrossan Harbour has (sometimes) ferry connections!

 

[Starmill]

From what I witness there are only a couple of daily freights through to Norwich and even then they don’t run every day. I’ve never had a problem moving additional ECS or with all the Stadler testing we did.

It doesn't really make much difference what actually runs or doesn't. If it has firm rights, and Network Rail have offered something to the FOC, they aren't going to let GA go on top of it either way. Most of the FOCs haven't got things bid on Saturdays however, which is why GA can frequently get things in then, as you suggest. Alternatively GA control may press an extra unit and crew into service on the day, going around whatever freight is activated or not.

 

[dk1]

It doesn't really make much difference what actually runs or doesn't. If it has firm rights, and Network Rail have offered something to the FOC, they aren't going to let GA go on top of it either way. Most of the FOCs haven't got things bid on Saturdays however, which is why GA can frequently get things in then, as you suggest. Alternatively GA control may press an extra unit and crew into service on the day, going around whatever freight is activated or not.

Of course but what I was saying is that if we want to run something extra we usually do. It's no big issue.

 

[08221]

Crewe North Staffordshire Junction to Barthomley Junction - only takes trains about 3 minutes to run over the single track section but can quickly cause significant delays.

 

[Zomboid]

Re-instating the Up line for passenger use would require, as well as electrification, new platforms, and access to them, at West Kilbride and South Beach. And Ardrossan Harbour has (sometimes) ferry connections!

Would it be necessary to reinstate the whole line? Presumably a loop somewhere would be sufficient to allow 2tph, and that might avoid any station rebuilding. With some luck it might not even involve any overbridges to worry about clearances on.

 

[mrcheek]

The Weston-Super-Mare loop and Frome loops are both BR era mistakes, that given time and money should really be restored to double track.

Weston-super-Mare was probably justified in being singled, since BR could not have envisioned how much the town would expand from the 70s onwards.

Its been on the list of potential redoublings for many years. Although since GWR have dramatically improved punctuality and operations over the last few years, its been dropped, since it hasnt caused so many problems lately