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Tunnel collapsed in Gerrards Cross area

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Tom

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Summary Disruption on the line at Gerrards Cross
Time reported 20:10
TOC(s) affected Chiltern Railways
Route affected London Marylebone-Gerrards Cross-Princes Risborough-Aylesbury/Banbury-Birmingham Snow Hill.
Description Services are being disrupted in the Gerrards Cross area due to a tunnel collapsing in the area.
Services to/from Birmingham and Aylesbury will start/terminate at High Wycombe. Services to/from London will start/terminate at South Ruislip.
A bus shuttle will run between South Ruislip and High Wycombe.
No time has been given for normal working to resume
Easements Virgin Trains, First Great Western Link and London Underground will pass Chiltern tickets until further notice
 
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Simming

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Is this the new Safeways Tunnel being built, a cut and cover thing to hold the new supermarket on top?
 

Simming

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sounds pretty bad actually, look at the main news page for BBC (the page that has all the international news as well)

LATEST: Train tunnel collapses at Gerrards Cross. More soon.
 

Simming

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HELL!! :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

That aint just the few bits of rumble on the track!!
 
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Tom

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I believe bus services will operate to West Ruislip, where users can interchange with LULcentral services to the City.
 

yorkie

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Photos of the construction of the tunnel are here:-
http://freespace.virgin.net/guy.gorton/GerrardsCrossTescolateFeb.html

I don't particularly like the look of it!

I also very much doubt it'll be open in 3 days. 3 days for HSE to think about it, a week to clear the debris maybe?

Compare the shape of the tunnel roof:
http://freespace.virgin.net/guy.gorton/GX_Feb_topfill.jpg (before) vs
_41252981_tunnel203.jpg
(after) :shock:

Some more info here: http://www.exstrado.co.za/tesco-gerrards-cross.html "exstrado consulting engineers....expert structural analysis, design & optimisation" I think they need to be a bit more modest in their claims :roll:
 

Lewisham2221

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...plus time to repair the tunnel (the rest of it has no doubt been weakened or will have to be strengthened anyway to prevent a repeat) and a bit more HSE red tape and yes, it is looking more like months than days.
 

yorkie

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Marv said:
...plus time to repair the tunnel (the rest of it has no doubt been weakened or will have to be strengthened anyway to prevent a repeat) and a bit more HSE red tape and yes, it is looking more like months than days.
I think the tunnel will never open to be honest! (and in the unlikely event that it does, it'll be a very long time to do that and I'm sure trains will pass through long before then)
 

yorkie

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Apparently the Chiltern Line has been escalated to the status of the "main line" between Birmingham and London according to the News.
 

jd

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TheSlash said:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/beds/bucks/herts/4639671.stm
Lucky we arent looking at a major rail disaster really

Maybe so, but two trains were very close to the tunnel when this happened. Had it collapsed a few minutes earlier/later, or had the trains been delayed/early, we would certainly be looking at a VERY major disaster IMO.

Is anything known yet as to the possible cause of the collapse?
 

jonb

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I will be there on Sunday so will obtain some photos and post them on the forum.
 

yorkie

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Exstrado have withdrawn their website.

The website they now don't want you to see is at still cached at:-
http://66.102.9.104/search?q=cache:kAnjXwLaBVIJ:www.exstrado.co.za/tesco-gerrards-cross.html

"....expert structural analysis, design & optimisation" I think is one of the quotes they are now embarrased about.

Meanwhile it could now be "weeks" before the line is re-opened.

Apparently the cause of failure IS KNOWN, but they are keeping it a secret from the public at the moment. :x

They can't keep it a secret forever though.
 

jonb

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This is frustrating im meant to be going on a Railtour next week from Victoria - Crewe and this is the route we were meant to be taking:

"GBRf Class 66,87 and 73 all in action on a tour from London to Cheshire and Kent!

GBRf Class 66: London Victoria and Clapham Junction via Kew, Acton Wells, West Ruislip, High Wycombe, Banbury and Tyseley to Bescot Yard.

GBRf Class 87: From Bescot Yard via Bushbury Junction, Stafford, Stone and Kidsgrove to Crewe (45 minute break), then WCML to Mitre Bridge Junction.

GBRf Class 73`s: from Mitre Bridge Junction via Olympia, Factory Junction, Beckenham Junction, Bickley Junction, Orpington, Tonbridge, Paddock Wood, Maidstone West, Strood, Dartford and Bexley Heath to Victoria."

Hertfordshire Railtours will be recieving a call from me tomorrow morning about the situation.
 

Simming

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There 73s are quite Rateable actually, which is suprising, seeing as there is usually more thrash out of the drivers farts than the exaust of a 73. Although I was at the other end of the train blagging a window for the return working with 2 GBRf 73s and a Crompton ( :shock: )
 
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