FCC: An Interview Without Coffee?

North East Bedfordshire MP Alistair Burt and Anne Main MP, the member for St Albans, are hosting a meeting with First Capital Connect’s boss, Mary Grant, at the House of Commons on Wednesday, 9th December at 15.00 hours. They propose to invite MPs whose constituents are affected by FCC lines' current reliability in order to raise questions about the current drivers' dispute.

Mr Burt said "Mary Grant has recently taken over the running of FCC, as the previous MD lost his position a couple of weeks ago when services began to suffer. My colleagues will be questioning her about the progress of the dispute, what she expects to happen in the near future, and when we might get back to normal."

This follows on from Anne Main's parliamentary question, where she raised the issue of current FCC service levels and asked the DfT what monitoring was being carried out on the level of disruption being caused:

Anne Main: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport, what the outcomes are of his Department's monitoring of the effects on train services of First Capital Connect train drivers choosing to work only their contracted hours; what assessment he has made of the effects of such action on routes other than the Bedford to Brighton route; how many other routes have been affected to date; what steps he is taking to resolve the situation; and what assessment he has made of the extent to which First Capital Connect can deliver on its franchise requirements while such action persists.

Chris Mole: Officials at the Department for Transport are ensuring that the amended timetables that First Capital Connect is operating look to protect the first and last services of the day for all First Capital Connect routes; provide a balanced service during the day; and provide replacement bus services where appropriate. First Capital Connect is obliged to re-instate trains when resources are available and this is happening when possible.

No assessment has been made of the effects of the action on other routes, but there is a notable increase in passengers using First Capital Connect services on the Great Northern route during peak periods. In addition, First Capital connect has arranged for its tickets to be valid on Southern services between Brighton, Sutton, Wimbledon and intermediate stations to Victoria, as well as on Stagecoach South West Trains services between Wimbledon and Waterloo.

First Capital Connect Thameslink tickets can also be used on the Tramlink services and on London underground and buses on all reasonable routes. Further, on the Great Northern route, First Capital Connect will when necessary arrange for their passengers to be able to use the East Coast services between Peterborough and London.

First Capital Connect is in negotiation with the unions to resolve this matter and all parties are urged to resolve this unacceptable situation.

The Department for Transport is monitoring First Capital Connect's ability to deliver their franchise requirements in accordance with their contractual commitments and we will take appropriate action to ensure compliance.

"An interview without coffee" is the military term for what - in polite northern society - they call "giving a good telling." The next stage up is a "Carpet Parade" that begins with "Soldier-and-Escort, by-the-right, Quick-MARCH" or for officers "Your hat, my office."

Obsessionist railway kremlinologists, such as ourselves, will be watching to see whether or not head gear is deemed necessary.

If you have a question that you feel ought to be raised and are in a constituency affected by the disruption, you might like to consider an e-mail to your MP asking that he/she attends the session and also to put to him/her any particular issues that you would like to see raised.

In Pictures: The New Kings Cross Ticket Hall

As FCC previously confirmed, the New Northern Ticket Hall at Kings Cross finally opened this week.

This doesn't mean that the £800m station upgrade project is now complete (step free access still needs to be added to a number of areas for a start) but it does represent a major milestone both for the station and passengers.

Overall, the new ticket hall is rather impressive, if a little soul-less (and frankly on Monday it could definitely have done with a clean). The signage at the station could also probably do with some reworking, as it's not always obvious now what the best path to the various Underground options is. This isn't necessarily a new problem though - Kings Cross has always been rather confusing for those not familiar with its labrynthine nature.

I've included a selection of photos of the new ticket hall below, and hopefully more will follow shortly.

The ticket hall during construction, courtesy Balfour Beatty

The staircase above, now completed

The new ticket windows. First image courtesy of d6images

The barriers, courtesy d6images

The escalators...

...and what's happening beneath them, courtesy d6images

A view down one of the new connecting passageways, courtesy d6images

And finally, courtesy of TfL:

The Mayor, Peter Hendy, Richard Parry and Tessa Jowell all committing that greatest of commuter crimes - failing to "stay on the left and keep moving."

Thameslink: The State of Play at Farringdon

Leaving the ultra-modern Saint Pancras International Station Low Level, southbound Thameslink trains join the Metropolitan Widened Lines to Farringdon and Blackfriars. As it leaves the station, the line veers east under the forecourt at Saint Pancras, now cluttered with builders’ sheds as part of the Saint Pancras Hotel and Lofts development – the final element in the recreation of Barlow and Scott’s masterpiece. Passing through the now disused Thameslink Station, the line joins the valley of the River Fleet on its way to the Thames at Blackfriars.

The line descends by way of a fly-under and passes beneath the Metropolitan and Circle Line and the Ray Street Bridge at the Gridiron, before climbing a steep gradient to Farringdon’s platforms 3 and 4. The dip under the Gridiron has always been a congenital weak point in the London railway network as demonstrated by the picture below, which shows flooding in 1915 (complete with an iconic 4-4-0 Metropolitan Railway tank).


Part of the problem stems from the choice by the then broad gauge Metropolitan Railway to take the route from Saint Pancras to Farringdon Street down the valley of the River Fleet in 1863. In 1868, the now standard gauge Metropolitan Railway opened the widened lines from Kings Cross and Saint Pancras, requiring the Ray Street Gridiron. This part of the route, now hemmed in by existing buildings, has always been something of a tight fit.

On the 24th November this year, Crossrail’s Tim Grimshaw told a well-attended meeting of the local Islington Community Liaison Panel that the Farringdon area was turning out to be “geotechnically exciting and every bit as challenging as we thought.” Crossrail have been involved in the extensive drilling of boreholes in the area for the last six months. This is going to continue until January 2010 in the St. John’s Lane and Eagle Court area. This excitement involves some new boreholes being drilled within feet of previous bores. Crossrail is trying to locate the geological fault running through the area, and plan to “dewater” some of the layers they will have to drill through. As evidenced by the retaining wall collapse at Dalston during the drilling of HS1, this could have obvious implications for the stability of buildings in the area during and after Crossrail tunnelling starts. At Christmas, works will also start to divert the sewer of the captive River Fleet to facilitate Thameslink work

Climbing up the steep gradient from the Gridiron to Farringdon, travellers will alight at platform 3 which is (and will remain) narrow at its western end, being sandwiched against the westbound Metropolitan and Circles lines. New shelters have been built on platform 4, the northbound Thameslink, to encourage passengers to disperse more widely down the platform. Farringdon will still have narrower platforms than other stations in the Thameslink core and successful operation will depend on passengers learning how to maximise the space and the operation of intensive services to clear platforms during the peaks. The new footbridge at the western end of the station has a somewhat unfinished air, following the structure supplier’s collapse into administration midway through the contract. This somewhat rough and ready approach can also be seen at the new peak hour exit onto Turnmill Street. This will be rebuilt as permanent feature, but for now revenue protection is enforced by the presence of a notice board, an Oyster reader and flexible grill door.



Turnmill Street, on the eastern side of Farringdon is named after the watermills powered by the River Fleet on its way from Hampstead Heath to the Thames. The original street, which was pulled down in the Clerkenwell improvements of 1856–7, is mentioned as Trylmyl Streate as early as the reign of Henry IV. A letter from Recorder Fleetwood to Lord Burleigh in 1585 suggests it was a sink of vice, frequented by highwaymen, footpads and rogues of every description. Here the Pistols and Bardolphs of the time swaggered and cheated. Shakespeare’s Justice Shallow in the “Merry Wives of Windsor” boasts of wild and youthful feats in Turnmill Street to Falstaff.

These days, anti-social behaviour on the street tends to be confined to lads and ladettes dropping post-clubbing litter. Malcolm Cree, of Islington Council, advised the Community Liaison Group that the litter bins outside Farringdon are emptied 7 times a day and 55 people have been issued with fixed penalty notices for littering in Cowcross Street in the last 6 months.


The above view of Turnmill Street looking south shows work in progress in building the new permanent entrance. As can be seen, the combination of building works and street patterns dating from the 15th and 16th centuries presents a challenge - Turnmill Street was at one stage completely blocked by the large crane required to swing in the new footbridge. Thameslink are now doing underpinning work in Turnmill St, while, in background beyond the station to the right, the Cardinal Tower, the site of Crossrail’s station has been scaffolded and covered as part of its demolition.



There are significant difficulties working on such a constrained site. Only strictly limited access to Cowcross Street is available as can be seen from this picture of the front of Farringdon station.


Outside Cardinal Tower a temporary roadway possession operates in off peak hours – being removed to maximise pedestrian access during the peak. Work will start soon to divert services to allow the rebuilding of the complex bridge that constitutes Cowcross Street outside Farringdon Station. With my “Obsessionist” hat on it is, incidentally, worth looking this bridge from underneath from the end of LUL’s platform 2, to see this bridge arches’ complex profile. (Photographers should remember that flash photography here would be dangerous).

Rebuilding will take much of 2010 and involves hoardings blocking much of Cowcross Street. Security and safety aspects of this are being addressed, particularly during the peak hours for travel and clubbing. The current building access arrangements are deemed unsustainable and a more permanent solution has been developed just round the corner.


Planning of the replacement building for Cardinal Tower is advancing with developers Cardinal Lysander. The owners of Caxton House, on Farringdon Road, that backs on to Cardinal House are also reported to be considering demolition but there are no details on this yet.


Rebuilding these blocks co-terminus with that of building the Thameslink and Cross Rail projects makes sound commercial sense. It is reasonable to expect there will be a stepping up of redevelopment in the immediate vicinity of the new interchange, spreading down Farringdon Road as far as the northern entrance to City Thameslink at Holborn Viaduct. Property is also in the process of being acquired in the Charterhouse St/Lindsey St area to enable work on the Crossrail’s eastern ticket hall to start and the Moorgate branch will be de-commissioned in during Christmas 2009 period possession. The closure of the branch will enable the extension of platform 3 across the existing junction.


The Moorgate line track bed will be used to provide a more robust solution for trick access to the worksite. On Charterhouse Street, just opposite Smithfield Market, Steve Crosby’s butcher’s shop has disappeared. The soon-to-be-gone Cardinal Tower can now been seen through the gap. This access point will shortly form the truck route for the construction of both ends of the new Crossrail Station and Farringdon and Barbican.


Following the final removal of the Moorgate Branch, the option for stabling failed stock there will close. The 25 kV overhead catenary has now been extended down to City Thameslink – as a can been seen from the picture – clearances here are very tight and at one stage a fixed overhead rail, such as that fitted to the tunnels at Edinburgh Waverley, was under active consideration.

Our thanks and copyrights acknowledgements to, Councillor George Allan, Daimler_fan, Network Rail, Crossrail and the London Transport Museum

Forest Hill Footbridge and Limehouse Link

This weekend finally saw the opening of the link between the DLR and C2C platforms at Limehouse.

Limehouse is a major interchange between the DLR and C2C, and the new link means those making the west-to-east change no longer need to walk down the stairs from one platform, cross to the adjacent station then head back up again to complete the interchange.

As the Westbound C2C platform and the Eastbound DLR platform actually lie side-by-side, the link has been constructed to allow direct transition between the two, although it will be closed after 21.00hrs on weekdays, after 17.00hrs on Saturday and all day on Sunday.

We previously covered the Limehouse link a while back, which included photos of it under construction. If anyone finds themself making use of it today, we'd be grateful for photos of the final product.



Elsewhere, the new Footbridge at Forest Hill was lowered into place on Sunday. This is part of the upgrade works that Network Rail have been undertaking at the station since September. As well as the normal array of tactile platforming and help points, the footbridge is intended to give the station better step-free access (although there will still be no step free access to road level at the station's rear end). The bridge is the first to be installed on the new southern section of the ELL extension.



Thanks to MA and Nsikan for the spots and Chris for the Limehouse photos.

A Look at the work of the RAIB: An Accident at Dalston

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB), is the independent railway accident investigation organisation for the United Kingdom. It is concerned with the investigation of accidents and incidents on the national railway network, the Channel Tunnel (in co-operation with its equivalent operation in France), the London and Glasgow Underground systems and other metro and tramway systems. Its formation resulted from Lord Cullen’s inquiry report following the Ladbroke Grove rail accident.

Failures at Ladbroke Grove

On the 5th October 1999, a west bound three-car local Thames train was involved in a head on collision with a High Speed Train inbound to Paddington at Ladbroke Grove Junction. The 130 mph combined closing speed of the two trains led to major damage and casulaties. The first car of the Thames train was totally destroyed on impact, and the full load of diesel fuel carried by this train at the start of its daily journey ignited, causing a series of separate fires in the wreckage - particularly in coach H at the front of the HST, which was completely burnt out. Thirty-one people, including the drivers of both trains involved, were killed, and 227 people were admitted to hospital. A further 296 people were treated at the site of the crash for minor injuries.

The immediate cause of the disaster was identified as the Thames Train’s Driver, Michael Hodder passing a signal SN109 when it was showing a red aspect (technically known as a Signal Passed at Danger or SPAD), 563 metres before the impact point. Lord Cullen’s public inquiry, however, identified a number of contributory factors and criticised Thames Trains' driver training procedures: Driver Hodder had only qualified 13 days earlier, there was no documentary evidence of him being taught anything about the complexities of the route, and his Drivers' Rules examination paper bore neither his signature nor had any 'pass/fail' ticks on it to indicate that any subjects had been discussed.

Also criticised were Railtrack, then responsible for the maintenance of the track and signalling, who had not taken appropriate action in view of the fact that there had been eight SPADs at signal SN109 in the preceding six years (although all those trains stopped before reaching the junction), or taken sufficient action in response to complaints from train drivers about the visibility of various signals - particularly SN109. The Railtrack signalling centre staff at Slough were also criticised for not sending a radio "emergency all stop" signal immediately upon realisation that the Thames Train had passed a signal at danger. They were expecting the train to stop shortly after the signal, as had happened with the earlier SPADs at that signal, and it is not known if the radio signal eventually sent was received before the impact 33 seconds later. Finally, the system did not provide flank protection; points ahead could have been set as a default to divert an overrunning train to a parallel line instead of into a head-on collision.

The Responsibilities of the RAIB

The RAIB was established following the passing of the Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003. Whilst the RAIB must investigate all rail accidents involving a derailment or collision which result in the death of at least one person, serious injury to five or more people or extensive damage to rolling stock, the infra-structure or the environment, it also investigates other incidents which could have implications for railway safety, including those which under slightly different circumstances may have led to an accident.

This is sometimes known as “near miss” analysis. Accident investigations in many other complex systems engineering areas areas such as aviation, the petrochemical or nuclear energy industries have shown that serious incidents have often been preceded by precursor near miss incidents, such as the SPADs at SN109, where accidents did not quite happen. Establishing a method for blame free reporting of these incidents and identifying the root causes and the possible implications is now seen as essential in reducing risk.

A “Near Miss” at Dalston


In March 2009 an incident occurred on the North London Line at Dalston Junction just west of the signal box, under the bridge where the four lines converge into two. On the four-track section freight trains operate on the right hand (northern) pair of tracks bypassing all stations from Canonbury to Caledonian Road whilst the left hand tracks, passing through all stations, are used by North London Line trains from Richmond and Clapham Junction to Stratford. At 12:43 hrs on 30 March 2009, a passenger train from Richmond to Stratford, travelling at about 15 mph (25 km/h), struck a railway worker on the track at Dalston Junction, north London. The worker’s role was to look out for approaching trains, and warn the rest of the group that he was working with. The track worker was struck on the head and thrown to the ground. He was taken to hospital, but was not seriously injured and has since made a full physical recovery.

Each RAIB investigation concludes with a comprehensive yet comprehensible report that explains the nature of the incident and the causal and contributory factors. They also give an insight into the complex systems engineering interfaces that have to be managed by the railway’s operators - systems that are made even more complex when an intensively used section of line is subject to a major engineering upgrade, as is the case of the North London Line from Camden Road to Dalston Junction.

The Dalston report maintains the high standards set by the RAIB and reads almost like an engineering detective story and is worth reading in full if you have the time.

As part of the upgrade of the NLL, there is a need to identify and remove Japanese Knot Weed from the embankments bordering the railway, large parts of which are in cutting. Railways represent largely undisturbed bio-corridors that plants, birds and small animals find attractive. Unfortunately pernicious foreign plants such as buddleia, ragwort and Japanese Knot Weed use these corridors as invasion routes. The end of steam traction engendered a general reduction in the maintenance of embankments as a result of the reduced fire risk and budget cuts in the guise of maintenance holidays conceded the ground that will now require extensive and expensive remediation.

The long-term effect of this unchecked vegetation, together with the abuse of the embankments by fly-tippers, now makes it extremely difficult for workers to avoid having to walk along the track. In order to remove Knot Weed, it is necessary to inspect the affected area in daylight, which in turn presents difficulties when the line is as busy as the NLL. Only in extreme cases is it possible to close the line, which means that track workers are obliged to carry out their duties whilst trains are passing. This in turn involves dedicating track workers to act as lookouts and a detailed plan of work to be developed so that everybody concerned both in the operating and maintenance functions can be made aware of the presence of people on the track.

A project’s Risk Minimisation Manager, (RIMINI), produces this detailed plan, which is then briefed to the track team by the Controller of Site Safety (COSS). This briefing included instructing two lookouts and advising the group where to take refuge on the approach of a train

In the case of Dalston, this work was not done by Network Rail employees but by a contractor, Carillion. The members of the track team - although experienced railway engineers - did not therefore have previous detailed local knowledge of the site. Neither, it later transpired, had the RIMINI.

Events Unfold

On the day in question, the work group set out eastwards from Camden Road, walking on the northern side of the route, mostly in the cess - although vegetation, litter and items of fixed equipment sometimes forced them to walk on the track. The group consisted of seven people and continued past Canonbury on towards Dalston. One of the lookouts was walking ahead, while the other remained with the group and, as they approached Dalston Junction, the first lookout was about 150 metres ahead of the group.

Meanwhile, the 11:57 from Richmond to Stratford (train 2N54) left Camden Road on the down line at 12:33 hrs. It was crewed by a driver-instructor, a trainee driver (who was driving) and a guard. At Camden Road East Junction it was routed onto the down number two line.

The train called at Caledonian Road, Highbury and Canonbury stations and was running at 40 mph as it passed through the disused Mildmay Park station, 300 metres from Dalston Junction. As it approached the Junction, the driver of train 2N54 applied the brakes to reduce the train’s speed - a 15 mph speed restriction was in place for the junction itself. As he did so, he saw the group walking beside and on the down number one line, and sounded the horn.

At least three members of the group acknowledged the warning by raising one arm above shoulder level as the train overtook them, its speed still decreasing (it would reach 15 mph about 20 seconds before the junction). The train driver then observed the lookout walking ahead of the group, and sounded the horn again, 14 seconds before reaching the junction.

The lookout probably acknowledged the warning, and continued to walk along the four-foot towards the junction. The train driver sounded the horn again about three seconds before the train crossed the junction, but the lookout did not move clear and the left-hand front corner of the train cab struck him on the back of the head.

The Findings

The build up to the accident was captured on the train’s forward facing CCTV system but unfortunately the CCTV system does not operate when the train crosses a gap in the third rail, and so did not capture the point of impact itself.

The RAIB investigation found that the immediate cause of the accident was that the track worker did not react to the warnings sounded by the approaching train by moving clear of the line.

Probable causal factors, the RAIB concluded, were the unfamiliarity of some of the workers with the area, and in particular the injured person’s lack of knowledge that the four-track section ended at Dalston Junction; and the planning of the work to take place while trains were running.

Also contributing to the accident, were likely the way in which the worker and his supervisor worked with each other during the inspection; the lack of local knowledge of the staff involved in planning the work; and the condition of the area alongside the track (which had resulted in the need for staff to walk on the line).

The RAIB also identified a number of underlying factors. There were deficiencies in Carillion’s safety management system, the RAIB established, in particular the way in which this project was managed in its early stages. There was also an absence of clear guidance in the Rule Book about lookout duties around junctions.

As mentioned earlier the RAIB report is well worth reading. Whilst blame is often the first thought when accidents occur, in many ways it is the improvements to process and safety that are the most important consequences of any incident. The accident at Dalston Junction is a good example of this, and one hopes that the issues identified by the RAIB are addressed – that is, indeed, if they haven’t been already.

In Pictures: The Feltham Bridge Collapse

Although attention has been focused this week on the bridges of Cumbria, Monday also saw the reopening of the line between Staines and Twickenham, which had been severed a week earlier by a bridge collapse outside of Feltham.

The bridge in question was River Crane bridge 3/48, which lies adjacent to the old Feltham Marshalling Yard. Although partially built upon now (it closed in 1969), the old Yard is still Network Rail free-hold (its one of the potential Airtrack depot sites and current site of the Feltham Railway Club). This proved rather fortuitous for, as can be seen from the pictures below, the bridge itself is unlikely to be back in service any time soon.

Image courtesy of Rail-News

The temporary solution has been to slew about 300m of track onto the old depot site, which the Crane runs underneath by culvert. After some understandably frantic work, this allowed the line to reopen yesterday, albeit with some signalling issues and a 20mph speed limit across the slewed section of track (It could have been worse. As one railforums poster pointed out, a similar exercise at Witley a while back didn't go so well - one of the power cables was laid over the running rails, resulting in a rather impressive bang when it was promtly cut by the first Portsmouth-bound train).

The temporary track being laid

It'll be interesting to see what the final report is as to what the ultimate causes were of the bridge's collapse. Obviously the heavier-than-normal water flows played a huge role - the Crane is one of the major surface run-off rivers in an area which grows increasingly more concreted by the year. Other factors, however, may well have played their part.

Maintenance records will obviously need to be assessed, and the bridge was also a classic piece of Victorian architecture - and no matter how well built they are, they don't last forever. The Crane itself has also undergone a certain amount of change since the bridge was built, with nearby construction possibly meaning this particular section draws more water flow than it used to. Finally, there are the dreaded Desiros that run on that section of line - trains that have not exactly developed a reputation for being kind to rail infrastructure.

Whatever the case and whatever the additional causes, the photos above are a rather healthy reminder that water and railways very definitely do not mix.

Thanks to Paul for the spot

Clash of the Titans – Opening up Redhill to Freight: Part 2

When we last left our intrepid freight connection, it was about to face off against shopping behemoth Tesco. This is because, as reported in This is Surrey Today, the supermarket firm have put in a planning application for a superstore bang in the middle of the proposed railway alignment.

The rise of Tesco’s is recorded in Andrew Seth and Geoffrey Randell’s comprehensive history “The Grocers”. Founded over seventy years ago by Jack, later, Lord Cohen, it has grown from a humble market stall operation into the mighty global empire of today.

Integral to their success has been an unrelenting focus on price. Lord Cohen drove Tesco’s through their “Pile it High, Sell it Cheap Days” achieving national coverage and his achievements proved a foundation for further success under the leadership of Sir Ian McLaurin.

When Sir Ian’s reign began in the late 1970’s, Tesco was infamous for its attitude to planning authorities. When Tesco bid for and secured a new site they tended to ignore planning regulations which were seen as a restrictive nuisance. Sometimes this might result in a retrospective fine, which was often easily financed by the expanded store’s profits and seen as worth paying for a quiet life.

This type of pragmatism alienated local authorities throughout the country, who began to use the weapon of denying building permission to Tesco. To add insult to injury, they then sometimes gave permission to other supermarket chains who played the game in a proper manner. Noisy and often costly fights for both Tesco and the local authorities broke regularly but the reputation of being one of the most cavalier and irresponsible supermarket operators stuck.

Reforming the Cowboy

Ian MacLaurin decided to get rid of Tesco’s millstone reputation as a cowboy outfit, and began a charm offensive building bridges with local authoritiesand their planners. Tesco also moved into a consolidation phase, shedding stores that did not fit their 30,000 square feet plus flexibility format.

Over the years, they put together a store development organisation that would - by virtue of the rate of their expansion - became one of the most experienced property development organisations in the country. They invested the benefits of their near-to-cash (they take credit from suppliers but do not give credit to customers) position to build up a large land bank, enabling them to - in some cases such as Biscester - carpet bomb the town with Tesco outlets. They also became, in practice, much more familiar with the issues of integrating a major store into a community than the planning departments they faced across the table.

The arrival of a major store was a big (and often one off) deal for many planners. For Tesco, it was the day job.

Tesco knew the rules and in many ways helped to shape the effected application of planning law as opposed to the espoused principles that are embodied in the legislation. The introduction of S106 requirements enabled them to play tunes on the aspirations of local councils and this has recently reached a pinnacle in the wooing of the residents and council in Kirkby, part of Knowsley on Merseyside, where in essence Tesco are saying “Buy a Tesco and get an Everton Football Stadium for free.” In Redhill, 25 (no doubt affordable) homes above the store have been offered just for starters.

The key point to note is that Tesco are now an extremely professional and experienced operation who know what they want and how to get it. The chances of persuading them to give up a site they want are similar to that of me persuading Dwmbwls, the Mwmbwlian Spaniel in residence, to part with his bone. That does not happen unless you use a firm tone and threaten to smack with the rolled up newspaperand and even then it might not happen. What is needed is for the local authority to refuse planning permission, but they are in fact obliged to give permission unless there are powerful and persuasive reasons, capable of being tested in court, for not doing so.

Raising Objections

Planning law requires that objectors must be heard and due weight given to their objections. If the objectors are neighbouring local authorities who would be impacted by cross boundary issues, or national organisations whose plans might be frustrated, then provisions exist to make sure that these objections are given a fuller hearing at a broader Planning Inquiry on behalf of the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. This practice is known as “Calling In.” LR has been following - and will follow - the Radlett Freight Depot proposals, which is a classic example of this process.

It is also possiible for the DfT to designate alignments for safeguarding, preventing unsuitable development. The Chelney (or if you prefer Hacksea) Crossrail 2 proposal is an example of this type. The DfT recently refreshed this to allow for subsequent changes to which it had consented. This is why Thornton’s Field Carriage Sidings at Stratford will now be turned into an access area to the Olympic Stadium, and not the Crossrail 2 depot as originally intended.

As can be seen from the article, Network Rail, who are in the midst of carrying out the routing studies for the Department for Transport, have already objected to the proposal to build a store across their proposed alignment. They may well have referred this matter back to the DfT seeking guidance as to whether a safeguarding order should be brought in. It is also apparent from the article that local councillors are concerned.:

Describing it as a "can of worms", Redhill West ward member, councillor Jullian Ellacott shared concerns for the scheme with the Mirror.
Mr Ellacott said: "There are massive implications if Network Rail are seriously looking at creating a new line through the town."There would be a lot of issues around the speed, noise and vibrations of the trains on what are quite rural lines. And we would have to consider how a new line would affect existing services at Redhill.

The two lines concerned are the most lightly trafficed routes through Redhill and mitigation of the concerns about speed, noise and vibration could be met not only by the use of electric rather than diesel traction but also, if necessary, a longer version of the noise abatement tunnel spanning the East Coast Main Line at Kings Cross on HS1. No doubt Network Rail will come up with more detailed reponse at the apprpriate stage.

As previously indicated, London also has a stake in this proposal if the Mayor’s plans to augment the London Overground network as outlined in his strategy are to come to fruition. With the proposed sale of HS1, the future of freight on that route still has to be debated and the possibility of a logistical log jam with regard to freight through London remains a possibility. TfL should, and may indeed have, register(ed) their interest and the implications for the West London Line with the DFT and Reigate and Banstead Borough Council.

Our thanks and copyright acknowledgements to the Ordnance Survey for permission to reproduce their map and to the Department for Transport likewise.

Further Reading

Megaprojects and Risk: Bent Flyvberg,Nils Bruzelius and Werner Rothengatter
Publisher: Cambridge University Press 2003 ISBN 978 0 521 00946 1

Bent Flyvbjerg, a Danish economist, has written the definitive book on why megaprojects such as the Channel Tunnel spring a leak. The Danes built a massively over time and over cost bridge linking Funen (Fyn) to Zeeland across the Great Belt. It was supposed to cost 13.9 billion krone – it cost 21.4 billion. Having learnt from their mistakes the Danes then replicated them when building the Oresund link to Sweden. The initial German response to a proposed third bridge project from Denmark to Germany was reported to be, “Oh really.”

This book should be on the reading list of every London Assembly member, as his/her office rocks to the distant thrum of the Crossrail TBM

The Grocers – the rise and rise of Supermarket Chains: Andrew Seth and Geoffrey Randell
Publisher: Kogan Page 2001 ISBN 0 7494 3549 6

Oyster on National Rail: 2nd Jan is Now Official

2nd January has now officially been confirmed as the launch date for Oyster PAYG on National Rail Services.

To quote TfL's official press release:

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, Transport Secretary, Andrew Adonis, and the Train Operating Companies serving the capital today confirmed that the hundreds of thousands of passengers who travel on National Rail services within Greater London will be able to use Oyster pay as you go from 2 January 2010.

The extension of the ticketing system will cover all commuter rail routes within Greater London, and will particularly benefit commuters living across south and north east London, where Oyster pay as you go is not currently accepted on the vast majority of rail services.

The Mayor has also confirmed that Oyster pay as you go will be accepted on all Thames Clipper River services from today, making river travel more convenient for thousands more Londoners and helping to boost usage of London's underused thoroughfare.

Our previous post on what 2nd January will bring Oyster-wise can be found here. As always, the devil is in the details and unfortunately whilst the official Press Release and its accompanying media brief answers some, it does not answer them all.

Most notably, in fact, the concept of Oyster Extension Permits don't appear to get a mention anywhere at this stage - which means that Travelcard users currently unaware of their impending existence may be in for some disappointment.

For those unfamiliar with what these will entail, there is more information on our previous post (linked to above). In a nutshell, from the 2nd of January, if you have a season ticket on your Oyster Card, you will need to charge it with an "Oyster Extension Permit" if you wish to make a journey via National Rail services that will take you outside your paid-for zones. In this context, "National Rail" effectively means "non-TfL" - so no OEP is required for travel on the Overground. These will only be available from Oyster resellers, which means that to travel outside of your zones from a not insignificant number of National Rail stations, you will need to have pre-charged your Oyster Card somewhere else with an OEP before you tap in and make your journey.

[UPDATE: TfL have indicated to us that they are mentioning OEPs where relevant in actual media interviews, but believe that they will only affect 0.04% of passengers. They definitely don't get a mention in the "standard" PR documents, however, as I've indicated above. - JB]

In terms of questions that are answered, perhaps the largest is what happens at National Rail stations that already have arrangements to accept Oyster PAYG. These are:

• Amersham – Marylebone (operated by Chiltern Railways)
• West Ruislip – Marylebone/Paddington (operated by Chiltern Railways)
• Finsbury Park – King's Cross/Moorgate (operated by First Capital Connect)
• Stratford – Liverpool Street (operated by National Express East Anglia)
• Tottenham Hale/Seven Sisters – Stratford (operated by National Express East Anglia)
• Walthamstow Central/Tottenham Hale/Seven Sisters – Liverpool Street (operated by National Express East Anglia)
• Upminster/Rainham (Essex) – Fenchurch Street/Liverpool Street via Barking; but not at Forest Gate/Maryland (operated by C2C)
• Watford Junction – Euston (operated by London Midland)
• Watford Junction – Clapham Junction (operated by Southern)
• West Hampstead (Thameslink) – Moorgate/Elephant & Castle/London Bridge (operated by First Capital Connect)
• West Drayton/Greenford to Paddington (operated by First Great Western)
• Balham to London Victoria (operated by Southern)
  

In all these cases, these will operate under the "TfL fares" category rather than the National Rail category.

The press release also indicates that Oyster PAYG will not be accepted for National Rail journeys that start or finish outside the zones where Oyster pay as you go is accepted. It will also not be accepted on Heathrow Express/Heathrow Connect services between Hayes & Harlington and Heathrow Terminals, or on Southeastern High Speed services between Stratford and St Pancras International.

So, overall, there are still plenty of questions to be answered. On the positive side, however, at least Oyster PAYG on National Rail now has an official launch date - and the total reach it will now have on London and its surrounds do make for a rather impressive map (warning LARGE):

"Go Ahead By The End Of The Year" For Surrey Canal Road?

East London Lines carried a story on Friday indicating that discussions were at an advanced stage between TfL, the DfT and Lewisham Council over the funding of Surrey Canal Road station:

TfL are now hopeful that an announcement will be made before the New Year giving the go-ahead for the station as part of the second phase of the multi-million pound scheme. The move follows talks between TfL, Lewisham council and the Department of Transport.

[...]

Proposals for the station to be built appeared to have been shelved earlier this year, owing to a lack of funds. TfL is said to have taken the view that the stop did not represent value for money.

But a TfL spokesperson said today: "TfL and the London Borough of Lewisham have met with the Department for Transport to discuss the case for funding a new station in this location. We hope to have the go ahead by the end of the year."

TfL confirmed to LR this morning that the article was correct and that the TfL spokesman was quoted correctly. When pushed on what the financial arrangements might be, however, they were (understandably) tightlipped, commenting:

We are unable to confirm the funding arrangements under discussion.

It'll be interesting to see what happens with regards to the situation over the next few weeks.

Clash of the Titans – Opening up Redhill to Freight: Part 1

With the ever-increasing political rhetoric over freight carriage, and depot battles being fought elsewhere, it would be easy to overlook another area where policy and developers appear to be clashing over the issue of Freight routes – Redhill.

The Background

Most British Railways were built during the reign of Queen Victoria. During this effervescent and turbulent period of massive construction now known as “The Railway Mania”, lots of one-route railway companies bloomed briefly before coalescing into bigger companies – some never even operated a train before being taken in hand. These were the days of the great companies, bitterly fought competitions for passengers and freight and brightly coloured engines. It was the halcyon days of the London Brighton and South Coast, the London and South Western, the Great Western, the Midland and finally as a late comer, the Great Central.

After the First World War, this railway structure was exhausted, and consolidation loomed again in the forming of the grouping into the London Midland and Scottish, the London and North Eastern Railway, the Great Western and the Southern, but much of the shape of the nation’s network was set before 1900.

Redhill in Surrey played a full part in railway history. The two pre-grouping main-line railways that left London for Surrey, Sussex and Kent - the London and Brighton Railway (and its successor, the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR)) and the South Eastern Railway (and its successor the South Eastern and Chatham - shared the route from Croydon to Redhill by parliamentary decree. As with a similar arrangement north of the Thames when the Midland had running powers from Hitchin into the Great Northern’s Kings Cross, these arrangements were fraught with operational difficulties. Whilst the Midland subsequently built the London extension from Bedford to Saint Pancras, the LB&SCR built a line avoiding Redhill station altogether, known as the Quarry Line, still in use by fast trains today.

There were originally two Reigate stations at separate sites, an inconvenient arrangement for passengers changing trains. Both were named Reigate after the nearby town, as was the new station north of the junction opened on 15 April 1844. The station was rebuilt in 1858, when the present buildings on the southbound side were constructed. It was at that time renamed Redhill Junction, later shortened to Redhill by Sir Herbert Walker’s Southern Railway in 1929.

Redhill station now has three platforms. Platforms 1 and 2 - serving the up tracks - are an island on the northbound side, whilst platform 3 is on the southbound side serving the down slow line. There are two through tracks between the platform 2 and 3 tracks. All platforms are subdivided into 'a' (north end) and 'b' (south end). Today all platforms are of 12 car lengths and have access to all routes, although there is no access from either through track to or from the North Downs Line. Consequently, all traffic (including freight trains) from this direction must pass through one of the platforms.

It is, however, the lines operated by the South Eastern and Chatham Joint Railway that we need to focus on. They operated two routes through Redhill from London’s Charing Cross and Victoria to Dover and by a somewhat circuitous route from London Charing Cross to Reading.

The Dover route is these days better known as the Redhill to Tonbridge Line. It branches to the east at the southern end of Redhill station and, after 19 miles, joins the current main line, that largely replaced it, from London to Ashford to Dover at Tonbridge station. The old route had been sanctioned by Parliament in 1836 as part of the first rail route from London to Dover. Looking at the map shows its remarkably straight route across country, as serving the settlements en route was at that time a secondary consideration.

Passing the sight of the old steam motive power depot wedged between the branch and the LB&SCR line, it starts with an initial curve just outside Redhill where it passes over the LB&SCR bypass route, the Quarry Line that is in a tunnel. The Bletchingley Tunnel, about a mile and a half southeast of Bletchingley is just over half a mile long. At the "Crowhurst Spur" the line connected with the East Grinstead branch of the Oxted Line but this was lifted in the early 1970’s.

The line has been electrified (750 V DC third rail) since 1992 and carries a half hourly service from Tunbridge Wells running alternately to Horsham, for which reversal at Redhill is required and also to London Bridge via East Croydon.

The line from Redhill to Reading was built by the Reading, Guildford and Reigate Railway (RG&RR), opening in 1849. The stated objective of the company was to:

secure through traffic passing between the West, North and Midlands and the Channel Ports avoiding the congestion of London and thus saving time, distance and expense.

The line runs roughly parallel to the North Downs between Ash and Redhill. The South Eastern Railway which operated the line from its opening, ran passenger services on the line from Reading to London Charing Cross via Redhill and even today, the distances along the line are measured from the terminus of the former SER.

As can be seen from the Ordnance map all tracks funnel together in south of Redhill before heading north to London, just as their promoters intended over one hundred and fifty years ago. If by chance you were a passenger who wanted to travel from Ashford or Tonbridge to Guildford or Reading, you simply changed trains at Redhill.

For freight, wagons were to the delight of small boys shunted by small tank engines or if a full freight train was required, the locomotive and brake van at the ends of the train were swapped and the train could then continue. This arrangement matched market needs and for over a century everyone was happy.

Freight in the Channel Tunnel Age

The building of the Channel Tunnel, however, prompted British Rail to look carefully at freight routes in and out of Kent. The lines from ROSELAND, as estate agents so prosaically describe the Rest of the South East, came under review as timetable planners grappled with the problem of integrating an expected glut of freight trains from Europe onto an already busy network. Their problem was made worse by the fact that HS1 was only a twinkle in the mind of Mark Bostock, a consultant at Arup, who argued in the early 1990s for the route eventually taken by the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, now renamed High Speed 1, over the Thames east of London, through Stratford and into St Pancras station.

Like all good heretics he was ignored. The then-nationalised British Rail had favoured a route through south London into Waterloo station. Mrs Thatcher’s views about any futher investment had no doubt been conditioned by the 80% cost over run on the main Channel Tunnel project. Mwmbwls’ first trip on Eurostar involved being pushed back into my first class seat (back in the long lost days of being able bill clients for travelling expenses) as we joined the TGV Nord north of Villiers-La-Bel-Gonesse and then slumping in the same seat as we diddly dummed in from Dollands Moor, under Mount Sydenham to Waterloo over the only piece of purpose built new track infrastructure that slipped through Mrs Thatcher’s net – the link from Linford Street Junction to Nine Elms Junction.

Elsewhere British Rail Planners had enjoyed success by linking up old pregrouping rival lines to create new travel opportunities and increase network connectivity at minimal cost. In Manchester, expensive plans for an Underground link from Manchester Piccadilly to Manchester Victoria had been rebuffed in the 1970’s, but traffic had continued to build on the network. The dream of linking the northern and southern rail networks in Manchester did not die. The Hazel Grove Chord, built by British Rail, between the former MR and LNWR lines opened in 1986 and allowed trains from Sheffield via the Hope Valley line to run through Stockport on the way to Manchester Piccadilly station. Whilst beyond Deansgate Station lay Ordsall Lane Junction and to its right two former goods depots belonging to the London and North Western and Lancashire and Yorkshire Railways stood cheek by jowl although they were not directly connected by rail. They were further testament to historic levels competition in the days of Cottonopolis. The Windsor Link was a new line from Windsor Bridge Junction on the former LYR line built through the two goods yards to Ordsall Lane on the former LNWR line at minimal expense. It allowed trains from Bolton, Preston and the North to run directly to Piccadilly station and on via the Hazel Grove Chord to Sheffield and the East Midlands. The link opened in 1988 and came into full use in 1989, with many trains packed to the gunnels ever since. (That is if trains do have gunnels).

A Link At Redhill

Having demonstated the concept works, other examples were sought and a link at Redhill was proposed to enable Cross Channel freight trains to be diverted out of the path of both Eurostar and Kent commuter trains on routes into London. If a chord could be built from the Tonbridge line to the North Downs line, freight trains could be diverted off the main line to London and diverted by Redhill and Guildford to Reading and thereafter to Bristol and Birmingham. As they say in the advert – Simples.

Unfortunately Channel Tunnel traffic did not build as the promoters of the Channel Tunnel had predicted. This was for a number of reasons. Firstly, the promoters of the Channel Tunnel systemically exaggerated the traffic figures in order to secure funding from Governments and Banks (financing costs overran by 140%). Secondly, Eurotunnel’s highly efficient Euroshuttle operation, together with United Kingdom policies on road tax and fuel kept road-freight viable. European rail operators also showed a marked reluctance to change operating practices, facilitating cross border operations. German ports put up a strong national case supported by public opinion to retain their share of the export market (a situation that persists to this day despite the efforts of the EU Commission). Faultering logistics hampered by illegal immigrant-induced disruption and dented freight confidence as well and, finally, loading gauge differences and tunnel operating and safety requirements restricted the rolling stock types approved for international operation.

All in all - and unsurprisingly - faced with all of these the scheme remained firmly in the "too difficult" box.

A Scheme Reborn

More recently interest in such a link has, however, revived - but another snag has appeared. Whilst looking for the DfT papers in respect the proposed sale of the Dartford Bridge, we stwmbled across a DfT-commissioned study into ways to address capacity constraints at the Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing.

The Study, published in April 2009, had the following objectives:

1. To advise the DfT about the future requirement for crossing capacity across the lower Thames over 30 years to 2037. This should include an initial evaluation of what role other modes (e.g. light / heavy rail, bus) might play in any plans for new capacity, leading to agreed options for evaluation. The study should look at demand and the consequential impacts (environmental and economic) of meeting that demand with new infrastructure.
2. To investigate what may be done to improve traffic flow through the existing Dartford Crossing in the short to medium term, known as ‘making better use’ of the Crossing. This work should take into account existing Highways Agency plans for the Crossing and the motorway network in the immediate vicinity.
3. To make best use of available traffic models to help understand the nature of current demand at the Crossing, the likely evolution of that demand and the impact that various options might have.

The Study includes an assessment as to whether if another bridge was built, a rail link should be installed on the bridge, making it bi-modal. As part of this analysis Parsons Brinckerhofff had included a concise summary of all major freiight flows by rail to and from Kent:

Key origins and destinations for rail freight services in North Kent and South Essex

In terms of existing rail freight services to/from north Kent there are broadly four main origins and destinations of traffic, namely:
1. Isle of Grain
a. Thamesport deep-sea container terminal (maritime container imports and exports)
b. Foster Yeoman aggregates imports (via berth and terminal adjacent to Thamesport)
c. Brett aggregates imports (via berth and terminal near Cliffe).
2. Medway Towns
a. Scrap metal exports (via Sheerness)
b. Steel imports (via Sheerness)
c. Brett aggregate imports (via Ridham Dock)
3. Maidstone/Ashford
a. Inward flows of aggregates (from Mendips) to Allington, Hothfield and Sevington
4. The Channel Tunnel
a. Imports and exports by intermodal and conventional rail

The origins and destinations outside Kent occur due to the industrial and distribution centre concentrations that are generally found to the north and west of London. Consequently, the existing train services to/from Kent either originate from or are destined for the WCML and GWML. Within Kent, rail traffic utilises two railway corridors, which subsequently join in south London before crossing the Thames (via the West London Line) and connecting with the WCML and GWML. In terms of Thames crossing facilities, the only route where rail freight is able to cross the river in the London area at present is over the Chelsea Bridge in west London.

Freight route to/from the Isle of Grain and Medway Towns

From the Isle of Grain and Medway Towns, departing freight trains head in a westbound direction along the North Kent Line via Gravesend and Dartford, before joining the Bexleyheath Line at Crayford Junction. Trains then continue on the Bexleyheath line via Eltham and Blackheath, and after passing through Lewisham station join the Catford Loop line at Nunhead Junction in the direction of London Victoria (alternatively, trains can run via Sidcup to Lewisham). Trains then continue along the Catford Loop via Peckham Rye and Brixton then, just to the north of Wandsworth Road station, leave the Catford Loop at Factory Junction and take a chord which subsequently joins the West London Line at Latchmere Junction (passing beneath the Waterloo-Clapham Junction line). Trains then continue along the West London Line, crossing the Thames at Chelsea Bridge and passing via Kensington Olympia towards Willesden Junction station, before joining the WCML at Willesden Junction and the GWML via Acton Wells and Acton East Junctions. Channel Tunnel freight routes

The main route used by freight trains to/from the Channel Tunnel.

The main route used by freight trains to/from the Channel Tunnel and the West Midlands, North West and Scotland is via Ashford and Swanley in Kent. Departing the Channel Tunnel, trains use the Folkestone-Ashford Line to Ashford, before joining the Ashford- Swanley Line just north of Ashford International station. Trains then follow the mainline via Maidstone East and Otford before joining the Chatham Mainline at Swanley Junction in the London direction. Continuing along the Chatham Mainline via Bromley South, trains subsequently join the Catford Loop line at Shortlands Junction. Trains then pass via Nunhead Junction along the route to the WCML and GWML described above. Trains to/from the aggregates terminals at Allington, Hothfield and Sevington also use the Ashford-Swanley route.

The “common” part of the routes used by all freight trains to and from Kent is therefore between Nunhead Junction and Willesden Junction via Factory Junction and the West London Line. Both routes are shared with passenger services and these can be constrained by freight trains as a result of their slower acceleration and braking rates. In turn any increase in the number of stops or number of passenger trains will result in knock on effects. The LOL’s Imperial Wharf, West Brompton and Shepherd’s Bush station are route pollution choke points for freight trains.

Bidirectional signaling from Latchmere Junction to Mitre Bridge Junction relieves some of the pressure as does the loop at Kensington Olympia, but a step change in freight traffic would be difficult to accommodate. In essence all of Kent’s eggs are in the west London basket. Which would be fine as long as TfL don’t wish to put more Londoner’s eggs in the same basket. The Mayor has however indicated at MQT that as part of the Transport Strategy, he wishes to expand LOL services and to create major transport nodes at Clapham and Willesden Junctions.

For reasons of operational robustness it would thus be to both London’s and Kent’s benefit, if some of these freight trains could be diverted away.

A Strategic Freight Network

This view is echoed in a recent DfT report about establishing a strategic freight network published in September 2009

The report builds on the need defined in the 2007 Rail White Paper for a Strategic Freight Network (SFN). The SFN is defined as: "a core network of trunk freight routes, capable of accommodating more and longer freight trains, with a selective ability to handle wagons with higher axle loads and greater loading gauge, integrated with and complementing the UK’s existing mixed traffic network."

Gordon Petrash, Director of Intellectual Property at Dow Chemical stressed the importance of vision in putting together a successful strategy on the logical basis:

If you can visualise it, you can measure it, and if you can measure it you can manage it

The DfT report makes a decent stab at this by listing a number of "what the system will look like" criteria:

An ideal freight network would accommodate optimum sized freight trains travelling at appropriate line speed, without checks, over optimum routeing to commercially preferred timings. In practical terms this suggests that the SFN should:

Optimise the pattern of freight trunk routeing to minimise passenger/ freight conflicts. This may lead to fewer, higher capacity trunk routes/ diversionary routes but also to the definition of ‘new’ trunk routes. This would provide potential gains in reliability, environmental performance and operating cost savings.

Develop appropriate diversionary routes and implement a standard network-wide possessions regime, with general use of single line working (SLW), to provide 24-hour/365-day network availability.

Upgrade an optimised pattern of freight trunk routes to eliminate traffic conflict and pinch points. This may require construction or reinstatement of chords, avoiding lines, investment in grade separated junctions, etc.

Upgrade trunk freight routes to meet the requirements of traffic, which may include any (or all) of the following: measures to increase the number of freight train paths; provision for increased train length; increased loading gauge (including the longer term objective of securing a European gauge route from High Speed1 (HS1) to the North); increased axle-load; and infill electrification.

The SFN will continue to evolve over time to reflect emerging national and international logistics and freight network requirements. We should therefore consider safeguarding strategic disused freight alignments, etc

New SFN capacity, particularly on key intermodal routes, will be required to meet industry growth forecasts if this additional traffic is not to be forced onto the congested road network. Routes for consideration for early capacity enhancement are likely to include:

1. Ipswich to Nuneaton (CP4 and CP5);
2. The GN & GE ‘Joint Line’ (to be upgraded in CP4 as the ECML Peterborough to Doncaster via Spalding freight line, with possible further capacity enhancement in CP5);
3. Stourbridge to Walsall and subsequently Walsall to Lichfield restitution;
4. Southampton to WCML – possibly with upgrades to routes and/or examination of alternative routeing options to provide East-West Line (Oxford-Bedford with upgraded links to the West Coast Main Line (WCML) and MML;
5. MML 4-tracking;
6. Freight routes to Manchester Hub terminals including Trafford Park.

The DfT then goes on to task Network Rail:

As a key element in developing the SFN, the Department has asked NR to undertake two freight routing studies and recommend the preferred routes between London and the South-East, and the Midlands and North of England, and the enhancements necessary to accommodate rail freight activity forecast to 2030 (the ‘Routes to the North’ (RTN) study); and an optimal cross-London freight strategy (CLFS).

The RTN study will include advice on accommodating UIC GB+ gauge freight vehicles whilst maintaining passenger and station capability, and the incremental cost of providing this. The CLFS is being taken forward as part of Network Rail’s proposed London and South-East Route Utilisation Strategy (RUS).

The DfT then goes on to publish a draft map of routes it considers worthy of study.


We annex the map here – if you cannot make out the detail it is Appendix A on Page 18in the report. Hopefully you should be able to see the green line running in a straight line due east of Tonbridge. At Redhill the green line splits into two suggesting that the LB&SC route to Clapham Junction’s platforms 16 and 17, and then back on to the West London Line, might be considered. But it also shows the green line continuing across country to Guildford and Reading via the North Downs and Blackwater lines.

The principle advantage of this route is that apart from the 1,327 yard long Bletchingley Tunnel, there are no other tunnels from Tonbridge to Reading. This would greatly facilitate the works necessary to allow the carriage of larger ISO containers.

A number of other upgrades taking place elswehere in the country which would add synergy to any upgrade of the North Downs/Blackwater Lines. Reading station is being rebuilt with a series of flying junctions. A disused fly-under from the Blackwater line to the former goods yard already exists at the east end of Reading Station. The lines from Reading to Bristol, Cardiff and Swansea, Newbury and Oxford are destined to be electrified under the current plans for the Great Western Main Line. This would mean that subject to minor infill ( probably third rail) electrification from Redhill to Guildford and Ash to Wokingham it would be possible for trains to and from Kent and the Channel Tunnel to be electrically hauled. This would include the aggregate trains bound for Kent originating from Theale, just east of Newbury.

Any major works required to establishing the Tonbridge Reading link would, apart the Redhill chord, involve either loading gauge clearance work to allow 9 feet 6 inch containers to be carried or the easing of potential choke points such as Guildford.

Some resignalling of services may be required from Wokingham to Reading where traffic flows could be intensified by the addition of Airtrack operations to Heathrow. The route from Southampton to Birmingham via Baisingstoke, Reading and Oxford is already being cleared for larger container usage as part of an existing national programme to improve port access. The DfT report makes mention of using the yet-to-be-reopened line from Oxford to Bedford to access the also-to-be-electrified Midland Main line.

And So The Conclusion

This all sounds splendidly doable and it would nice to leave the story at this point with Network Rail and the DfT’s wheels of their research engines turning in Noel Coward’s words with an “oomalacka boomalacka whee”. However, the site of the Redhill chord - over which a railway has never run although it easily might - has attracted the attention of one the great beasts of United Kingdom retailing...

Tesco.

And thus a clash of veritable Titans has now been born...