Birmingham Transport

[feltip]

Some interesting bits from the new Network Rail Strategic Plan published today

http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%...est%20Mids.pdf

2010 – 2014 Connection of Camp
Hill line into Moor
Street Station

Re-instatement of north and
south facing chords on Camp
Hill line

Increase in capacity to central
Birmingham stations. Improved
connectivity and new journey
opportunities.

Chiltern Railways have ambitions to accelerate their London Marylebone to Birmingham services. Longer term, the aspiration is to provide a point to point journey time of 90 minutes, providing comparable journeys times to those offered on the
West Coast.

Spring 2008, will see the introduction of 5 daily return services between Wrexham and
Marylebone. These are to be routed from Wolverhampton via Tame Bridge, Aston, Stechford, Coventry and Leamington Spa, cutting across a number of key traffic flows at junctions.

Birmingham Moor Street – Discussions in relation to reconnecting the former Great Western Railway terminal station to the mainline are still ongoing.
The project is an agreed Chiltern Railways franchise commitment. As part of the Leamington re-signalling project, provisions have been made for this within the signalling technology.

Fort Dunlop – Developers (Urban Splash) of the Fort Dunlop development have approached us to share aspirations for an adjacent new station on the Birmingham to Derby line (near Water Orton). These aspirations are currently under review.

In the meantime, we are working on a scheme to provide an additional access to platform 12, which will reduce passenger congestion. The aim is to provide this facility by December 2008.

Beyond this point in time, the scarcity of additional train paths on rail corridors into Birmingham in the peak and the inability to radically enhance the rail infrastructure means that demand can only be met by optimising the existing infrastructure through
forthcoming renewals and by gaining additional capacity by lengthening trains.

Train-Tram
An industry wide working group is currently reviewing suitable sections of the whole network to locate a trail base for Train-Tram technology. The two most likely sites within Route 17 are routes between:

Coventry and Nuneaton
Round Oak – Walsall

As previously mentioned, the preferred option to accommodate this increased
growth is through longer train formations. However, both additional, and in some cases longer trains, may become more difficult to accommodate at Birmingham New Street.

This plan included the development of a north and south facing chord line that links the Camp Hill lines to Birmingham Moor Street (Snow Hill Lines). It also identified Birmingham Moor Street as a station that offers a low cost opportunity for additional platforms to be provided in the heart of Birmingham. Space exists for up to four eight car platforms to be
installed at relatively low cost. The rail strategy is presently at the consultation stage with the wider industry, and publication is expected mid November
2007

We are working with Centro, local authorities and Central trains on a ‘rail showcase’ project for the Cannock line between Walsall and Rugeley.
The aim of this project is to deliver co-ordinated improvements to stations, rolling stock and rail infrastructure from multiple funding sources. This is likely to include improved station facilities, expanded car parks, longer and more frequent trains and reduced journey times.

2009 -2014 Z Birmingham New Street
station – new bay platform

New bay platform converting and lengthening the current East Dock to
create additional platform facility at Birmingham New St station

Increased capacity

http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%...est%20Mids.pdf

[Engels]

Lots of good news there. Not really anything really major new but consistency and progress of plans is important

I didn't realise that they were going to try and upgrade the Chiltern line so much tho, but then it is amazingly slow at the moment (regularly be 2.5hrs to London on weekends). I believe they have started doing work on this on some of the local section just recently with weekend closures to do the work.

[smysticed]

Originally Posted by Engels

Lots of good news there. Not really anything really major new but consistency and progress of plans is important

I didn't realise that they were going to try and upgrade the Chiltern line so much tho, but then it is amazingly slow at the moment (regularly be 2.5hrs to London on weekends). I believe they have started doing work on this on some of the local section just recently with weekend closures to do the work.

Indeed they have, the Dorridge-Moor Street section has been closed at weekends recently to upgrade the Tyseley junction and improve speeds there.

I'd be amazed and very happy if they did make Snow Hill - Marylebone in 90 minutes though.

When it says that reopening the platforms at Moor Street is a franchise commitment, do they mean Chiltern are obliged to carry out this work themselves, or they can if they want to, or what?

[mk61]

Originally Posted by Engels

Lots of good news there. Not really anything really major new but consistency and progress of plans is important

I didn't realise that they were going to try and upgrade the Chiltern line so much tho, but then it is amazingly slow at the moment (regularly be 2.5hrs to London on weekends). I believe they have started doing work on this on some of the local section just recently with weekend closures to do the work.

The noted feasibility of additional platforms at Moor St sounds interesting - is that 4 additional platforms, or 4 total though? I don't know Moor st that well so excuse my ignorance on that one. With that kind of expansion Snow Hill could become the poor relation.

An extra platform at the south dock new street - good good. But what happens to freight?

We need the camp hill chord right now.

I have a great liking for the Chiltern line - I've used the service to Marylebone a few times and the scenery on the route is sometimes fantastic, especially as it heads past High Wycombe.

[Engels]

Originally Posted by mk61

The noted feasibility of additional platforms at Moor St sounds interesting - is that 4 additional platforms, or 4 total though? I don't know Moor st that well so excuse my ignorance on that one. With that kind of expansion Snow Hill could become the poor relation.

An extra platform at the south dock new street - good good. But what happens to freight?

We need the camp hill chord right now.

I have a great liking for the Chiltern line - I've used the service to Marylebone a few times and the scenery on the route is sometimes fantastic, especially as it heads past High Wycombe.

I'ev used Moor St on and off for the last 27 years and i wasn't even sure.

So i had a look at a certain aerial mapping website and look




There is space for a total of 6 tracks ie 4 extra tracks. The 2 at the top of the screen are the existing tracks that dive into the tunnel. Then there are an additional 2 tracks side by side actually with track laid (by the looks of this photo) and then space for 2 more (well you can actually see 3 lines but i'm fairly confident that they would not have that space as they would need an additional platform, so it would be 2+4)

[mk61]

Great! The extra capacity would be needed with the camp hill line reopened - we could have more services terminating at Moor Street using the four extra platforms - plus the additional platform at Snow Hill when Metro phase 1A goes ahead. Moor St is well placed for developments at east side too.

Camp Hill, again is an absolute must - look at the peak traffic congestion south-east of central on this. Eastside on it's own is going to be generating more journeys where the road system is evidently pretty stuffed already.

[smysticed]

I think another good idea would be restoring services fully to Bordesley Station, which could serve Camp Hill, Digbeth and maybe serve as a cataylst for regeneration in that area.

[mk61]

Long term - we need Crossrail

[Engels]

Maybe they could link it in to London and the Northwest. They could even call it the West Coast mainline

[mk61]

I doubt our esteemed spendthrift accountant-lead government would pay for it. The cost-to-benefit ratio can't be brilliant.

[smysticed]

Just give them the map with 'Birmingham' tippexed out, and 'London' written in big red crayon over the top. Then I'm sure the cost-to-benefit ratio would be acceptable.

[feltip]

Ironically if you look at railmap of South East, who would guess it but Birmingham New Street is in top left plus its classed as London North West area in some rail documents.

Perhaps some subtle or not so subtle renaming might help funding bids. Do a ryan air and call it London North West and say we need some more money to get people to central London quicker.

[mk61]

And who said that there was a perception up north that Bham was just another London suburb?

And that was posted - just can't remember when, where or who

[Victorian]

Originally Posted by feltip

Some interesting bits from the new Network Rail Strategic Plan published today
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%...est%20Mids.pdf

Very interesting document. Sadly, I could see no reference to route electrification apart from the short Barnt Green to Bromsgrove stretch. I would have thought Walsall to Rugeley and Birmingham to Nuneaton would be prime candidates for electrification.

[Biosonic]

Thanks for the info feltip

[feltip]

There was a small report in the Guardian for the report but no details aside from money for remodelling or redevelopment of Birmingham New Street as well as Reading and Kings Cross.

£10bn five-year plan to deliver a bigger, better railway


Passenger and freight boom puts pressure on the network

Mark Milner
Thursday November 1, 2007
The Guardian


Network Rail yesterday unveiled plans to deliver a near £10bn expansion of the rail network over the next five years to cope with rising demand from passengers and freight users.
Key schemes include the Thameslink upgrade, the Glasgow airport link and the redevelopment or remodelling of Reading, King's Cross and Birmingham New Street stations, plans to provide 100,000 extra daily seats and a special fund to finance small local schemes that will benefit rail users but which would not normally attract direct funding.

http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2202728,00.html

[fruit&nut]

Originally Posted by feltip

There was a small report in the Guardian for the report but no details aside from money for remodelling or redevelopment of Birmingham New Street as well as Reading and Kings Cross.


http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2202728,00.html

So that's £9.9 Billion for London & Reading

£99,999,980 for Glasgow

& £20 for a big tub of Whitewash for New St then. Yippee!

On a more positive spin, I spoke to someone with his eye on the Rail marhet recently, and his view was that with the recent OJEU notice for a Project Manager for New St, this scheme is seriously on the cards.

I can only hope....

[feltip]

Well the OJEU tender for project closed recently so thats excellent news. Hopefully we should start hearing more details on contractors etc.

A report on the proposed new stations at Aldridge and Streetly from Express and Star

Stations in line to return

New railway stations could be created in Aldridge and Streetly as part of plans to re-open the Sutton Park Line to passengers after more than 40 years.

The former Aldridge station, which shut down in 1966 as part of the Beeching cuts, would be rebuilt and a brand new one created in Streetly.

The last passenger train ran on the 13-mile route between Walsall and Water Orton in 1965 before it was closed following Dr Richard Beeching’s report to the Government on the future of the railway network.

But now Walsall Council is urging Centro and Network Rail to consider electrifying the line and re-reopening it for passengers from Walsall to Sutton Coldfield. A new station in Aldridge could be built within 10 years and Streetly station created within 11 to 20 years.

It is hoped that the line could eventually be extended to Birmingham and six trains an hour could run from New Street to Walsall via Aldridge.

http://www.expressandstar.com/2007/1...ine-to-return/

[El Paulo]

It is hoped that the line could eventually be extended to Birmingham and six trains an hour could run from New Street to Walsall via Aldridge.

This would be a great boost for Walsall because I think the existing route suffers from sharing the first few miles with the X-City line to Lichfield - also, if an spur is built to take Walsall traffic into Snow Hill, as has been suggested elsewhere, then that's three different options for the commuter coming in from the north of the Black Country. It might even give a new lease of life to the Wolverhampton/Walsall line.

BTW, what's happpening on the X-City line just south of Five Ways? - there's some track lying alongside the mainline and floodlights etc - are they simply replacing old points or actually adding a spur, because there's some space behind Five Ways station that used to take traffic into Granville St in days of yore. Can anyone help?

[feltip]

I expect they're just changing track. They wont reuse the old Granville St tunnel. There are some other bits of the tunnel which are 'guarded' according to our friends on 28 days later. Make of that what you will

http://www.28dayslater.co.uk/forums/...t=granville+st