Public meeting over intensive rail works in West Reading

http://www.getreading.co.uk/news/local-news/public-meeting-over-intensive-rail-6254723



Motorists and householders are being warned of disruption and noise while engineers carry out further works on the railway tracks.

Teams will be carrying out overnight and weekend works in the Oxford Road area right through to early February, including Christmas.

Overnight closures of part of Cow Lane have also been announced in November.

Network Rail is holding a public event in the pentahotel today to give neighbours the chance to find out more about the works.

Letters have been sent to thousands of householders likely to be affected by the intensive work programme over the next three months.

Eimear Fitzpatrick, communications manager at Network Rail, said: ^Due to the nature of the work, there may be some noise generated at night-time. The work will also have to be illuminated.

^We hope you will bear with us while these improvements are being carried out and we apologise for any inconvenience our work may cause.

^We will do all we can to minimise any impact it may have.^

Activity in the area around the Oxford Road railway bridge, near Reading West station, has already started and will continue on Saturday or Sunday mornings through to January 13, 2014.

Engineers will be working over Christmas from 11pm on Christmas Eve through to 5am on Monday, December 30.

Follow-up works will then be carried out on Saturday nights, between 11.30pm and 8.30am, between January 18 and February 2, 2014.

They are part of the ^895 million improvement programme and includes building a new viaduct, near Loverock Road and piling foundations for new signals and to carry overhead lines to enable electric trains to run.

Householders are being warned the work will include earthwork excavations, laying tracks using trains and cranes, unloading and compacting ballast, deliveries and plant movements and illumination for night working.

Network Rail says the Cow Lane bridge widening project will require the closure of Cow Lane, between Cardiff Road and Portman Road roundabout, between 11pm and 5am from Sunday, November 10, to Thursday, November 14, and then again between 11pm and 5am from Sunday, November 17, to Thursday, November 21.

Vehicle and pedestrian access will be maintained from Portman Road to Safestore, as well as the First Great Western depot and a diversion route will be signposted.

Engineers and project managers will be on hand to discuss the works at the pentahotel, Oxford Road, between 3.30pm and 7.30pm today.

A significant amount of blockwork was laid overnight on the fresh P7 foundations at the country end.

There were a few parts for the P1/2 canopy in a fenced off area at the country end but I was too busy running this morning to see what else had appeared.

There were signs up yesterday on P8 stating that stopping services will be switching to the other end of the platform as of next Monday until approximately the end of November.

Lots more blockwork on P7 too and some hefty excavations for the new canopy.

The new canopy on P1/2 is operating under it's own power now. Will there be some kind of cover over the ends of P1/2 ? The slightly higher section closer to the station buildings has what look like connector holes that would bridge over to P7 when that is completed.

J.

There was already some blockwork on the foundations of P7 by this morning, right under the transfer deck.

They've been steadily munching through it overnight. The rubble has been accumulating around p1/2/7, presumably as infill for the new wall when complete.

Also around the site I noticed that country end of P7 has been removed over the weekend.

I've been offered it twice. Last night I wasn't offered it though it was on the trolley. I forgot it was complimentary until the trolley had gone by.
Maybe it'll take a little more time to bed in.

Thank you, it does indeed. I had a look around last night and there were upright girders (the same as those used for hoarding elsewhere) going in, tracing a fairly tight perimeter around the edge of the current building area at P1/P2.

P10 pushing ahead, there were already 3 courses of blockwork in place last night atop the concrete poured only a day earlier.

That could be interesting at peak times. Would that be using the currently closed off door(s) in the waiting room and then opening up what is currently a builders yard at the end of P1/P2 ?

I noticed the first concrete pour at the western end of P10 had taken place by yesterday evening.

As of yesterday evening both escalators are gone and the structure is little more than a shell.
There are lots of markings and filled concrete holes appearing on P7 overnight(s).

There is activity taking place at various locations at the moment.

Clearance of the old depot on the triangle has started, sections of track south of the main shed have disappeared.

The rest of the temporary P10 has gone, workers were constructing the reinforced steel cages for concreting sections earlier this morning.

I noticed that the last vestiges of the old canopy at the eastern end of P7 have been removed too along with the shanty town style corrugated iron temporary section.
Does anyone know what the plans are for what used to be the access to the old bridge. That section of the building has been largely stripped down to a shell and sections of the roof were gone as of yesterday evening.

Now that the temporary P10 surface has been removed I was intrigued to see what was beneath. Where the foundations for the new bridge have been sunk they have cut straight through the sleepers of the original track and removed just half of it.

In the same area, excavations have begun. Presumably these are footings for the new permanent P10 in line with the new track position.

I see in the Reading Station Improvement works: Summary of Changes link posted elsewhere:

Monday 23 September to Thursday 2 January 2014    
On London Paddington to west of England trains, the rear two First class coaches (G-H) will not be available to board/alight at platform 7, at Reading station . Customers are advised to listen to announcements.

That could be interesting on busier trains!

I'm pretty sure they were installed overnight on P8/P9, my train came in on P12 and blocked my view.
Camera 01#01 is back online and appears to confirm this compared to 5 days ago.