News from the East Anglian Branch of Railfuture, edited by Martin Thorne and Jerry Alderson.
Railfuture News Snippets 351 - 30/06/2022
Official figures released by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) show a total of 990 million journeys were made in Britain between April 2021 and March 2022. This is more than double the number of rail journeys made the previos year (388 million), during which pandemic restrictions were in place for most of the time, as journeys fell to the lowest levels seen since the mid-nineteenth century. Passenger revenue recovered to £5.9 billion (from £2.0 billion) and equates to 54% of the £11 billion generated pre-pandemic. Season tickets accounted for just 16.9% of journeys made this year – half of pre-pandemic levels.
The East West Rail company will be staging drop-in style events on Wednesday 29th June at the The Clayton Hotel, Station Road, Cambridge CB1 2FB and Wednesday 20 July at The Cambridge Belfry, Back Lane, Cambourne CB23 6BW. All events are 14:00-20:00. This is part of the public consultancy process prior to submitting a Development Consent Order (DCO) application to government. The company considers it important to have face-to-face sessions now as their previous consultations were virtual owing to COVID-19.
Peter Aldous and Daniel Zeichner have sent a urgent letter from to Grants Shapps, the Secretr of State for Transport, and the Department for Transport, calling for commitment to fund the next phase of development work for Ely Junction (within Network Rail's Control Period 6 [CP6]) along with £20 million for Haughley Junction improvements. The letter was entitled "Realising the Potential of the East Of England's International Gateways: the Urgent Need for Investment in Ely and Haughley Junctions.
Greater Anglia has announced that their use of Class 317 trains will end completely by the end of July 2022. The use of these emu trains is already reduced to "if there is nothing else available". On Saturday 16th July one pair of units will operate all day between London Liverpool Street and Hertford East. The trains been operating in East Anglia since about 1986. The first batch were built for the Bedford-St Pancras/Moorgate electrification, but the second were for King's Cross-Royston where they replaced slam door 312s. From May 1988 they were the units used on Cambridge-King's Cross services. Later, all the 317s ended up based at Hornsey, for use on services from both King's Cross and Liverpool Street, running to Peterborough, Cambridge and King's Lynn, alongside 365s on the Great Northern. Their use on the Great Northern finished a few years ago, but they continued on West Anglia services until the new class 720s saw many of them sent for scrap.
Great Northern/Thameslink (par tof GTR) are offering advance purchase tickets for the first time as part of their "Spring & Summer 2022 leisure promotion" which will run through to September. Example routes for trips away across London to Brighton. Prices vary according to the journey being made and are available as a single journey on specific trains (Southern advance tickets were previously available). Advertisements will feature across many channels, including radio and social media.
A £34,000 car park car park impovement project at Greater Anglia stations has seen new markings and repairs to tarmac surfaces. The car parks include those at Dovercourt, Harling Road, Sawbridgeworth, Stowmarket, Thorpe-Le-Soken, Whittlesford Parkway and Wivenhoe, along with numerous ones in the Railfuture London & south East branch area. The works also mean that the car parks are compliant with equality legislation by ensuring that accessible parking spaces are clearly defined, there is the correct number of accessible spaces for each car park and that appropriate distances are maintained between vehicles in the accessible bays. The work started at the end of February 2022 and is now complete. See news article. Greater Anglia recently introduced a new pay by hour tariff for 31 of its station car parks, so people have a cheaper option if they're not planning to park all day. People can now park for up to four hours for £1 an hour at selected stations (these include Audley End, Cambridge North, Colchester, Diss, Ely, Ipswich, Kelvedon, Manningtree, Mark Tey andWhittlesford). There is no change to other tariffs and prices, which have been frozen since 2020.
The Fen Line Users Association (FLUA) will hold an in-person AGM on Saturday 26th November 2023 from 14:00 at "The Old Fire Station", Discover Downham Heritage Centre, 30, Priory Road, Downham Market PE38 9JS. It will also be possible to watch via Zoom.
In mid-June 2022 the secretary of state for transport granted Network Rail (NR)powers to close or modify 37 crossings as part of wider plans across East Anglia to reduce risk and create a safer, more reliable railway. This dates back to 2017, when NR submitted a Transport and Works Act Order (TWAO) application to close or modify 57 crossings in Essex, Hertfordshire, the unitary authorities of Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea, and the London Borough of Havering. Whilst the Secretary of State has granted Network Rail the powers to close or modify crossings there are strings attached. Where a public crossing is closed, users will be diverted to a suitable and safe alternative route if it already exists but where a suitable and safe alternative does not currently exist, a new public route will be provided prior to closure. NR will work with landowners and councils to agree designs for any new alternative route.
The Whitwell & Reepham Station will be holding a Steam Rally on Saturday 30th (10:00-23:00) and Sunday 31st July 2022 (10:00-20:00). Attractions comprise Steam Train Rides (full gauge and narrow 7.25-inch gauge), working steam engine displays, exhibition stands, working demonstrations, craft stands, classic vintage cars, vintage tractors, licensed bar & cafe, live entertainment and a showman's engine. Parking is available at Reepham High School on both days and is free.
On Sunday 17th July 2022, the Mid Norfolk Railway (MNR) will stage a Classic Car Day and Vintage Fair at Dereham Station from 10:00 to 16:00. The MNR has announced that its in-person AGM will be held on Saturday 22nd October 2022 from 14:00 at the usual venue, the Memorial Hall, 62A Norwich Street, Dereham. Members who are unable to attend will be able to vote by proxy by contacting the Company Secretary. The MNR's last two public running days before The Polar Express™ Train Ride (which has 90 trains sheduled to operate in November and December) will be on the day of the AGM (free travel for members who show their membership card) and then 29th October 2022. The railway will still be busy at that time as Direct Rail Services (DRS) visit the line for servicing of their locomotives and equipment at Dereham yard, coming on the railway via the mainline at Wymondham from Stowmarket.
In mid-June 2022, the Trust Council of the Mid-Norfolk Railway Preservation Trust (MNRPT) released a statement following what it described as issues being raised in relation to the running of the railway's steam services, following the sending of emails to some media outlets. The Trust Council wished to place on record that it is working to resolve these points and will strive to find the right balance between resolving these issues whilst acknowledging the key considerations of, Safety, Financial Security and Volunteer Enjoyment in all areas of the railway. It assessed that the key issue is a break down in communication and it takes responsibility for this failure, which has partly ariseon from the struggled with the effects of the Covid Pandemic (like all other heritage railways) and some of the issues are only now becoming apparent and are being addressed. See news statement.
Volunteers at the North Norfolk Railway (NNR) — and similarly on the Watercress Line — have been given the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service, which is the highest award that a local voluntary group can receive in the UK (244 local charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups receive the award this year, with the announcement made on 2nd June). The NNR has around 300 volunteers and attracts around 165,000 passengers per annum with steam trains running daily from April to October. See news story.
The North Norfolk Railway (NNR) will organising special Sixties Weekend on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th July 2022. A half-hourly service will operate between Sheringham and "Holt" (it is really High Kelling). Full details of the events and activities, including train times, can be found at www.nnrailway.co.uk. Passengers booking in advance via the NNR website enjoy a generous discount on train fares.
STATIONS
Stowmarket station to be first in Britain with installation of evolutionary modular railway footbridge
Keywords: [StowmarketStation]
Stowmarket station will be the first to have a modular Ava footbridge installed, which will replace the old concrete pedestrian that dates from the electrification of the Great Eastern Mainline in the 1980s. The project cost is £5.4m, with the footbridge being cheaper and quicker to construct, was funded by Innovate UK and Network Rail with funding from the 'Access For All' scheme. Rather than being built in a steel fabrication yard from standard sections, then shipped elsewhere to be painted before being transported to site as a full span length, the Ava bridge is designed to be assembled in 1.2m long modules using structural elements cut from flat sheets of stainless steel and bolted together. The truss modules can be configured to suit the destination site, taking up as little land as is feasible. It's fitted out with cladding, canopy, lighting and other mechanical and electrical services before being erected as close to finished as possible.
A demonstrator bridge is under construction at Widmerpool in Nottinghamshire for installation in August this year. The current timeline is for the new footbridge at Stowmarket to be constructed in September or October of 2023. Both versions of the bridge will have Ava's "plug and play" lifts for accessibility purposes. These lifts are also usable on other Network Rail bridges.
According to the images released, the roof on the footbridge and stairs stops at the bottom stop, which is both poor treatment of customers and a safety hazard — presumably built down to a price. It's another example of the foolishness of St Neots footbridge, where the roof was only funded over the stairs, so when it is raining heavily people will stand on the stairs until the last second and them dash down the stairs into the same set of doors on the train.
Proposals for Peterborough Station Quarter project approved by the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority
Keywords: [PeterboroughStation]
In late June 2022, plans for a greener and more people-friendly Peterborough Station Quarter were approved by the board of the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) and a transport bid will be submitted for the government's 'Levelling Up Fund Round 2' for transport-only projects that will uplift local areas, support town centre and high street regeneration, and make the most of cultural and heritage assets. In March 2022 the Government announced this second round of the Levelling Up fund. Under the Government's levelling-up rules,the Combined Authority is allowed to submit only one transport project for funding, so it has chosen Peterborough for its bid. The CPA will now collaborate closely with Peterborough City Council in drafting the application before submitting the bid by the 6th July 2022 deadline. Peterborough Station Quarter is a £l70m project, with the funding value for this Levelling Up Fund bid only £48m, match funding is expected from Peterborough City Council, Network Rail, LNER, and commercial and residential development.
The Peterborough Station Quarter transport project promises more fluent walking and cycling connections between the station, the town centre, and areas west of the station, encouraging people to take healthier and more climate-friendly travel options. It is part of a much wider scheme that will also reallocate space for commercial and residential use. Central to the overall project is a new western entrance to the station and associated parking. Currently, the only parking is east of the tracks, so development of a double-sided station — allowing easy access for cyclists, pedestrians and cars to both east and west — will alleviate pressure on city centre roads making it safer to get around Peterborough by bike. The project does not provide for improvements within the station itself, such as canopies on platforms 6/7.
The Environment Act 2021 requires a finished development to offer 10% measurable increase in biodiversity. Peterborough Station Quarter would be a key contributor, slashing carbon emissions in the county by boosting rail travel and helping Cambridgeshire cut private vehicle use by its target of 20%.
News: https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/local-news/70-million-funding-approved-redvelopment-24343787
https://cambridgeshirepeterborough-ca.gov.uk/news/peterborough-station-quarter-gets-the-vote/.
Railfuture East Anglia Branch News Snippets 351 - 30/06/2022
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