News from the East Anglian Branch of Railfuture, Edited by Martin Thorne and Jerry Alderson.
Railfuture News Snippets 200 - 16/01/2010
- RAIL ROUTES [all issues]
- STATIONS [all issues]
- Planning application submitted to build new station north east of Chelmsford
- No progress yet on increasing cycle spaces at Cambridge station
- Construction of new Southend Airport station proceeds on schedule for July/August 2010 opening
- Consultation exercise for medium- and long-term transport improvements in Royston
- GUIDED BUSWAY [all issues]
- PRESERVED RAILWAYS [all issues]
On Friday 12th February 2010 Andrew Cooper, Managing Director of CrossCountry, will be speaking to the Cambridge University Railway Club in the William Thatcher room at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge. Non-members are welcome. Meeting starts at 20:30.
Further to the news in [Snippets 199] about the grand opening of the North Norfolk Railway's new level crossing, it has been announced that Pete Waterman will perform the ceremony on 11th March 2010 (at around 14:00), which will see a charter from Liverpool Street (leaving 10:20) to Holt (arriving 14:50) making the first crossing for 46 years. Railfuture members have contributed towards the funding of the £140,000 level crossing.
On Wednesday 20th January Downham Market Town Council's planning committee will be discussing Network Rail's resubmitted application for a footbridge over the tracks at Downham Market railway station. Three Network Rail representatives will be attending the meeting in the council's Paradise Road offices. The public will be able to contribute.
The Railfuture 2010 summer conference will be held at the The Albemarle Centre, Albemarle Road in TAUNTON. It is just off Station Road and is 5 minutes' walk from the station. Confirmed speakers so far are Charles Varey of Network Rail who will be talking about the Southampton-West Midlands freight upgrade (loading gauge enhancement etc.), Nick Gallop a consultant from Intermodality LLP talking about freight terminal development, and Richard Burningham, manager of the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership.
The Railway Forum, which is effectively a cross-industry think tank, has closed down after 15 years of existence, having been created around the time of privatisation. It had been funded by train operators but fewer have been willing to support it during the recession. With Passenger Focus now also reponsible for bus services, Railfuture is arguably the only national exclusively rail organisation capable of continuing its work.
On Sunday 7th March 2010 the Wisbech-March railway Bramley Line group will be holding a sponsored walk from Weasenham Lane in Wisbech along the railway line to Elm Road Level Crossing at March, where there will be a members' BBQ (weather permitting). To comply with its licence from Network Rail, only Bramley Line members will be allowed to walk on the track. However, walkers can join by paying £10; for details see http://www.bramleyline.org.uk.
Norfolk County Council has agreed to set-up a 'GreatTrainsofNorfolk' website to promote all the railways (both on the national network and all of the independent lines) in the county, and to encourage people to use public transport to visit them. The website details will be included in a future edition of Snippets.
The Thameslink Consortium will be holding a stakeholder meeting on 21st January 2010 at the Guildhall in London.
Rail activists who wish to lobby politicians just prior to the 2010 General Election are reminded that the cost of first and second-class stamps will be rising in April. Money can be saved by buying "1st" and "2nd" stamps in advance.
Transport Times will be staging a "High Speed Rail 2" converence on 24th March 2010. The keynote speaker is Lord Andrew Adonis, Secretary of State for Transport. Details are at: http://www.transporttimesevents.co.uk.
Anyone interested in the progres of the Edinburgh Tramway, and in particular the conversion of its former guided busway to a
tram line, can see photographs at:
http://www.edinburghtrams.com/include/uploads/media_release/Photo_Update_January_2010.pdf.
RAIL ROUTES
TWA Order Application submitted for £250m "Evergreen 3" Marylebone-Oxford route
Keywords: [EastWestRail]
On 15th January 2010 Chiltern Railways submitted an application for a Transport & Works Act (TWA) order primarily for the new 800-metre chord linking the Marylebone-Birmingham mainline with the Bicester Town-Oxford line, which will form the western-most section of the East West Rail Link, which is a key Railfuture campaign (see http://www.railfuture.org.uk/Ox-Cam).
The TWA Order will also provide powers for a major upgrade of the route between Oxford and Bicester, which includes level crossing closures. The scheme will provide a new park and ride station at Water Eaton in north Oxford and second platforms at Islip and Bicester Town, which do not require TWA powers. The line between Oxford and Bicester will be redoubled, having been singled in 1973 when Oxford PSB opened. The track betwen Bicester signal box and Bletchley, which would be part of the East West Rail Link and was itself singled in 1987, is not part of the scheme.
Chiltern's Evergreen 3 scheme also covers work on the mainline from London to Birmingham that will also reinstate the Birmingham Moor Street station terminus platforms and improve line speeds. Network Rail is providing funding and will recover the money through "facility charges" over 30 years; Chiltern's franchise lasts until 2021.
RailNews article: http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/general/2010/01/15-network-rail-to-fund-250m.html
EWRL Press Release: http://www.eastwestrail.org.uk/news/documents/PRESSRELEASE-EWRC150110.pdf.
STATIONS
Planning application submitted to build new station north east of Chelmsford
On 14th January Countryside Properties and its development partner, London & Quadrant, submitted a detailed planning application for a new railway station in North East Chelmsford to relieve pressure on the existing station, which is the busiest commuter station in the Anglia region outside of London. The developer woulf fully fund the new four-platform station (last mentioned in [Snippets 195] when a public exhibition took place), which would include a bus interchange and substantial cycle parking, is in Essex County Council's Local Transport Plan 2006-2011 and is supported by both Network Rail and the Department for Transport not least because it includes passing loops that would bring efficiency and capacity benefits to the operation of the Great Eastern main line and therefore no reduction in services to branch lines, such as the Braintree branch.
A train could call at the station every ten minutes during peak periods with certain trains that are currently eight carriages long being increased to 12. It would be expected to open in spring 2015 providing that detailed planning permission being in place by early 2012 to allow construction to commence in 2013.
The station application complements a recent application submitted by the developer to build 4,000 new homes and 75,000sq metres of commercial space on a neighbouring site at Beaulieu Park.
News item: http://www.regen.net/news/ByDiscipline/Transport/977494/Plans-submitted-new-Chelmsford-railway-station.
No progress yet on increasing cycle spaces at Cambridge station
Keywords: [CambridgeStation]
To overcome the shortage of bike racks at Cambridge railway station Cambnridge City Council had offered to pay for extra racks (from its £7.2m budget from cycle improvements in the city) if National Express East Anglia, which leases the station, would allocate space for a new bike parking area. However, NXEA has said that the only land available at present would be car park spaces, which would simply move the probme from a lack of cycle spaces to a lack of car park spaces. Councillors have accused NXEA of being more concerned about the loss of income from those car parking spaces. In the meantime cycle spaces could be found by removing dumped and disused bikes.
Construction of new Southend Airport station proceeds on schedule for July/August 2010 opening
Keywords: [SouthendAirportStation]
Construction of the new £12m Southend Airport railway station (mentioned in [Snippets 190]) on the Liverpool Street to Southend Victoria line has continued over Christmas and the New Year. Work included new OHLE gantries to replace those with stanchions in the way of the platforms, and the foundations for the platforms and station building. The footbridge should be in place during February. It will be served by National Express East Anglia serrvices and is the first new station in East Anglia for a decade (Braintree Freeport opened in September 1999). Southend Arport and its parent, the Stobart Group is fully funding the station.
Consultation exercise for medium- and long-term transport improvements in Royston
Two open days will be held for the public to find out about proposals for improvements to roads and transport in Royston, Hertfordshire that might be needed in the short-term and over the next 20 years. Suggestions include relocating the bus station from its current location to the town hall car park or Market Square area to improve access, introducing a park-and-ride bus service, and creating contraflow lanes for cyclists. The plans, which form part of a public consultation exercise, will be held Royston Town Hall, Melbourn Street, Royston. Herts SG8 7DA from 15:30-20:00 on Tuesday 19th January and from 10:00-13:00 on Saturday 23rd January.
GUIDED BUSWAY
Cambridgeshire County Council reveals more about delays to guided busway
On 4th January BBC Radio Cambridgeshire broadcast an interview with Brian Smith of Cambridgeshire County Council about the much delayed guided busway scheme, which should have opened in its entirety in spring 2009. He confirmed that it is still not possible to give an opening date (not even an approximate one) for the first phase, from outer Cambridge to St. Ives. The council met BAM Nuttall in easly January with a hope to agreeing a way forward.
BAM Nutall would give a 10-year warranty on the busway meaning that council taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for any repairs caused by deficient work. However, this warranty may be at risk, or additional costs may be incurred, if the county council forces BAM Nuttall to rush to complete work by insisting on a particular opening date.
According to one city councillor "apparently the meetings to discuss [matters such as an opening date] are now being held so secretly that even the meetings themselves don't appear on the meeting schedule!"
Mr Smith revealed that BAM Nuttall should have completed the entire work and handed it over to the county council back in February 2009. They have been liable for a £14,000 penalty for each day since. Assuming this applies to each day of the week and public holidays the BAM Nuttall have already incurred penalties of £4.2 million (about £1.50 for every 'lost' bus journey) in addition to overrun costs. Of course, these penalties specified in the contract may not be fully awarded if, as expected, the financial dispute between the council and the contractor goes to court.
Further "snagging" issues have come to light. More flooding of the parallel cycle way (not yet open to the public but used by many people) has occured at Fen Drayton. Bob Menzies, the council's head of busway delivery, said "The contractor has built the cycleway at a lower level than it should have been, resulting in it being more prone to flooding. There are also areas where more drainage is required. We have told the contractor to put this right." According to the county council BAM Nuttall will be rescheduling their finishing works because work the recent very cold weather prevented work such as pouring concrete.
The County Council also faced new public criticism after it revealed that £100,000 had been spent on artwork at bus stops and park and ride sites along the route at St. Ives, Longstanton, Oakington and Trumptington. However, the county council insists that provision of public art is a planning requirement for schemes of this type.
Busway website: http://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/transport/thebusway
Busway media archive (e.g. radio interviews): http://www.noguidedbus.com
Busway myths exposed: http://www.transportmyths.co.uk/Busways.htm.
PRESERVED RAILWAYS
Mid-Norfolk Railway achieves target 'sponsor a sleeper' sponsorship from British Sugar
Keywords: [MidNorfolkRailway]
The Mid-Norfolk Railway is delighted that its members and supporters have donated more than £2,000 in the last few months to its 'Sponsor a Sleeper' appeal, which has enabled it to obtain the maximum £2,000 match-funded offer from British Sugar. All of the new sleepers, which cost around £25 a time, will be used on the currently out-of-use 'Northern Section' between Dereham and Hoe. The £4,000+ raised will buy at least 160 sleepers. Volunteers aim to change 200-300 sleepers in 2010. The appeal remains open indefinitely.
Whitwell and Reepham railway reaches 400 members in first year of operation
Keywords: [WhitwellReepham]
The Whitwell and Reepham Railway Preservation Society, which has only had a running railway since 28th February 2009, now has more than 400 members, which is a remarkable achievement as it offers little more than a station building, yard and quarter of a mile of track (with a short extension opening in 2010) in the middle of no-where. This compares to around 1,000 members for the Mid-Norfolk Railway, which has been running trains for more than a decade and operates an 11-mile line between two towns.
Its first AGM will be on 19th Feb 2010 at 17:30 at the station building, which has just been allocated a postcode for the first time: NR10 4GA.
Website: http://www.whitwellstation.com.
Railfuture East Anglia Branch News Snippets 200 - 16/01/2010
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