Train GraphicClick on the map to explore geographics
 
I need help
FAQ
Emergency
About .
Travel & transport from BBC stories as at 19:35 28 Mar 2024
* Easter getaways hit by travel disruption
- How do I renew my UK passport and what is the 10-year rule?
- Passengers pleaded with knifeman during attack
- Family anger at sentence on fatal crash driver, 19
- Easter travel warning as millions set to hit roads
Read about the forum [here].
Register [here] - it's free.
What do I gain from registering? [here]
 02/06/24 - Summer Timetable starts
17/08/24 - Bus to Imber
27/09/25 - 200 years of passenger trains

On this day
28th Mar (1988)
Formal end to carrying coffins by BR (link)

Train RunningCancelled
17:54 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
17:57 London Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street
18:03 London Paddington to Penzance
18:08 London Paddington to Frome
18:36 London Paddington to Plymouth
19:23 Reading to Gatwick Airport
19:24 Newbury to Bedwyn
19:33 London Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill
19:35 Exeter St Davids to London Paddington
19:55 Bedwyn to Newbury
20:03 London Paddington to Plymouth
20:13 Swindon to Westbury
20:16 Frome to Westbury
20:49 Newbury to Bedwyn
20:56 Worcester Foregate Street to London Paddington
21:16 Bedwyn to Newbury
21:53 Newbury to Bedwyn
22:25 Bedwyn to Newbury
22:47 Newbury to Bedwyn
Short Run
15:03 London Paddington to Penzance
16:19 Carmarthen to London Paddington
16:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central
16:35 London Paddington to Plymouth
16:50 Plymouth to London Paddington
17:03 London Paddington to Penzance
17:30 London Paddington to Taunton
17:36 London Paddington to Plymouth
17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury
17:59 Gatwick Airport to Reading
18:19 Reading to Gatwick Airport
18:29 Gatwick Airport to Reading
18:54 Reading to Gatwick Airport
18:59 Gatwick Airport to Reading
19:04 Paignton to London Paddington
19:06 London Paddington to Bedwyn
19:13 Salisbury to Bristol Temple Meads
19:29 Gatwick Airport to Reading
20:42 Bedwyn to London Paddington
21:04 London Paddington to Plymouth
Delayed
13:59 Cardiff Central to Penzance
14:15 Penzance to London Paddington
16:03 London Paddington to Penzance
16:15 Penzance to London Paddington
Additional 17:17 Exeter St Davids to Penzance
Additional 17:26 Castle Cary to Penzance
19:04 London Paddington to Plymouth
19:59 Gatwick Airport to Reading
23:04 Reading to Bedwyn
PollsOpen and recent polls
Closed 2024-03-25 Easter Escape - to where?
Abbreviation pageAcronymns and abbreviations
Stn ComparatorStation Comparator
Rail newsNews Now - live rail news feed
Site Style 1 2 3 4
Next departures • Bristol Temple MeadsBath SpaChippenhamSwindonDidcot ParkwayReadingLondon PaddingtonMelksham
Exeter St DavidsTauntonWestburyTrowbridgeBristol ParkwayCardiff CentralOxfordCheltenham SpaBirmingham New Street
March 28, 2024, 19:37:23 *
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Forgotten your username or password? - get a reminder
Most recently liked subjects
[133] West Wiltshire Bus Changes April 2024
[132] would you like your own LIVE train station departure board?
[53] Return of the BRUTE?
[44] If not HS2 to Manchester, how will traffic be carried?
[41] Infrastructure problems in Thames Valley causing disruption el...
[32] Reversing Beeching - bring heritage and freight lines into the...
 
News: A forum for passengers ... with input from rail professionals welcomed too
 
   Home   Help Search Calendar Login Register  
Pages: 1 ... 20 21 [22] 23
  Print  
Author Topic: East - West Rail update (Oxford to Bedford) - ongoing discussion  (Read 145860 times)
grahame
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 40690



View Profile WWW Email
« Reply #315 on: June 13, 2023, 21:10:26 »

From the Press and Journal

Quote
Proposed Oxford to Cambridge railway line compared with Britain’s bendiest road

Richard Fuller, Conservative MP (Member of Parliament) for North East Bedfordshire, claimed a proposed section of the East West Rail line running between Bedford and Cambridge was “full of twists and turns, and ups and downs”.

[snip]

“Back when governments and other people knew how to build railways in the Victorian age, of course they chose a straighter, less hilly route.”

I understood that the flatness of early railway lines was due to the limited traction from locomotives, and these days they can slope a lot more in order to go a route that's less expensive to construct.  The honourable member for North East Bedfordshire is, perhaps, protesting that his team or iron horses could not cope with the ups and down and would get tired by the longer distances - or am I thinking of the honourable member for North East Somerset in his carriage?

Logged

Coffee Shop Admin, Acting Chair of Melksham Rail User Group, Option 24/7 Melksham Rep
Bmblbzzz
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 4256


View Profile
« Reply #316 on: June 13, 2023, 23:23:26 »

Odd. I thought that Roman roads, built in straight lines, were as a result often much hillier than later highways. In any case, Cambridge to Bedford is pretty flat by general standards.
Logged

Waiting at Pilning for the midnight sleeper to Prague.
Red Squirrel
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 5190


There are some who call me... Tim


View Profile
« Reply #317 on: June 14, 2023, 08:28:34 »

I’ve seen a recent video presentation by Richard Fuller in which he claims he originally supported East West Rail. If this is the case, it was a fleeting flirtation that never (as far as I can tell) made it into print.

He wrote a piece for the Telegraph in 2017 describing it as a ‘white elephant’ and a waste of taxpayers’ money. He also secured a debate in 2021 in which he called for it to be scrapped.

Fuller has strong links with more than one Tufton Street Think Tank.

Logged

Things take longer to happen than you think they will, and then they happen faster than you thought they could.
IndustryInsider
Data Manager
Hero Member
******
Posts: 10095


View Profile
« Reply #318 on: June 14, 2023, 09:54:14 »

Personally I can’t think of any rail project that is more likely to be a huge success than this one.
Logged

To view my GWML (Great Western Main Line) Electrification cab video 'before and after' video comparison, as well as other videos of the new layout at Reading and 'before and after' comparisons of the Cotswold Line Redoubling scheme, see: http://www.dailymotion.com/user/IndustryInsider/
Noggin
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 514


View Profile
« Reply #319 on: June 14, 2023, 12:24:31 »

Personally I can’t think of any rail project that is more likely to be a huge success than this one.

Yes, huge potential as a regional metro given the huge success of Cambridge and Oxford in attracting investment yet the dearth of affordable housing, even for higher paid employees.

Even better if someone had the vision to run some long-distance express services - I imagine Bristol to Cambridge would work quite well as a corridor, as would fast Norwich and Ipswich to Cambridge I suspect. 

As for other projects, without understating E-W rail, I think that the South Wales Metro is going to be a real eye-opener when it's complete and the English see the difference a decent regional metro makes.

Logged
Red Squirrel
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 5190


There are some who call me... Tim


View Profile
« Reply #320 on: June 14, 2023, 13:14:36 »


...I think that the South Wales Metro is going to be a real eye-opener when it's complete and the English see the difference a decent regional metro makes.


Indeed. We've been watching enviously from our side of the Afon Hafren.
Logged

Things take longer to happen than you think they will, and then they happen faster than you thought they could.
paul7575
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 5316


View Profile
« Reply #321 on: December 13, 2023, 15:19:37 »

Just seen on another forum - quoting X/Twitter - that they’ve now joined up the track (the down Bletchley or eastbound side) at the EWR/HS2 (The next High Speed line(s)) overbridge site, at Calvert. 

I’d expect the up side will be done by the Balfour Beatty track construction machine in the next few days, it’s only a few hundred metres yet to do, that will be a major milestone achieved.

Link to X/Twitter:  https://twitter.com/marshrail/status/1734946741596610778?s=46

Paul
« Last Edit: December 13, 2023, 17:20:04 by paul7575 » Logged
ellendune
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 4452


View Profile
« Reply #322 on: December 13, 2023, 15:29:39 »

May be the camera angles, but there seem to be some heroic gradients now!
Logged
stuving
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 7156


View Profile
« Reply #323 on: December 13, 2023, 15:45:18 »

The NAO have just published a report of their investigation into EWR.
Quote
Government needs to ensure its growth plans for Cambridge are aligned with its £6-7bn investment in a new regional railway (East West Rail, Oxford to Cambridge), so it can maximise the economic benefits of the line, a new report by the National Audit Office says (NAO).

The independent public spending watchdog’s report examines the evolving context for the East West Rail (EWR), Department for Transport’s (DfT» (Department for Transport - about)) assessment of its benefits and costs, and the arrangements in place to deliver it. The report does not provide a judgement on EWR’s value for money or examine delivery progress.

At the 2017 Autumn Budget, government announced plans to support economic growth in the region between Oxford and Cambridge. The plans included a new road project, ambitions to build up to one million homes, and investment for EWR, which the Department for Transport expects will cost around £6-7 billion.

The improved connectivity is intended to make the region more attractive to businesses and new housing development, supporting growth and jobs. The EWR project is being delivered by the East West Railway Company (EWR Co2), an arms-length body established by the DfT. However, in March 2021, DfT cancelled the road project due to value for money concerns, and in July 2021 government confirmed its approach was to support locally led planning for housing development.

Separately, in July 2023, the Department for Levelling Up Housing & Communities (DLUHC) announced a new long-term plan for locally led housing development, including plans to expand Cambridge. DLUHC intends this to enable significant housing and business development in a new section of the city, while the business case for EWR depends on development along the rail route.

Government risks the planning for both projects being at cross purposes. The two departments are now working together to align plans ahead of EWR Co’s statutory consultation on the EWR route, planned for 2024.

DfT’s cost-benefit analysis suggests that the costs of the project may outweigh the benefits. In 2021, DfT assessed that every £1 spent on the project would result in between 50p and £1.10 in benefits.3 The calculated benefits have reduced further since then; DfT estimates that there would be between 30p and 60p of benefits for every £1 spent on connection stages 2 and 3. However, these assessments do not quantify the benefit from the wider aims of the project to transform the economy of the region. DfT has concluded, most recently in May 2023, that there is a strong strategic case for the project.4

DFT (Department for Transport) has not yet decided how to power EWR trains, so the projected costs do not include the costs of electrifying the line. The department is committed to achieving a net zero carbon emissions rail network by 2050 and wants to remove diesel-only trains from UK (United Kingdom) railways by 2040. Initial estimates suggested that full electrification of the line could cost up to £1 billion. However, DfT and EWR Co are considering options, including partial electrification or alternative approaches to full electrification of the line, which they consider could be delivered at a lower cost.

EWR Co is coordinating activity with local authorities, universities, local enterprise partnerships and England’s Economic Heartland5 to identify growth opportunities at stations along the EWR route. The company still has more to do to respond to the concerns6 of local residents, some of which could be negatively affected by the project and are unhappy with how EWR Co has engaged with them.

HM Treasury has recently established a cross-government board (the Board) to support the development of a shared vision for growth associated with EWR. To improve the chances of unlocking the economic benefits from its investment, the NAO recommends that DLUHC, DfT and the Board should establish effective cross-department governance that complements and bolsters the local stakeholder partnerships being created in the region, to focus on achieving the benefits of East West Rail.

    "The rationale for East West Rail rests on its wider strategic aims of increasing economic growth in the Oxford to Cambridge region.

    “To maximise the economic benefits from its investment in East West Rail, government must ensure stronger strategic alignment between departments and with wider local growth initiatives, so that there is a shared, coherent vision for the future of the region, and the contribution that the East West Rail project will make to it is clear.”
    Gareth Davies, head of the NAO

The full report is linked from here
- a choice of three versions (I've not yet looked at any of them).
Logged
paul7575
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 5316


View Profile
« Reply #324 on: December 13, 2023, 15:50:20 »

May be the camera angles, but there seem to be some heroic gradients now!
There’s a heck of lot of foreshortening (Huh) going on,  the distance from foreground to background in the first photo is about 4 km.

It’s true the bridge over HS2 (The next High Speed line(s)) is a definite high point, but as you suggest the camera seriously exaggerates it.  The long shot from the side, looking over the fields, shows it’s not really a huge gradient.

Paul
Logged
Noggin
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 514


View Profile
« Reply #325 on: December 14, 2023, 09:33:41 »

The NAO have just published a report of their investigation into EWR.
Quote
Government needs to ensure its growth plans for Cambridge {snip}

The full report is linked from here
- a choice of three versions (I've not yet looked at any of them).

How on earth do they get £1bn as an estimate for EWR electrification? It's only 90 odd miles and surely most of the new structures and signalling are all electrification compatible? Perhaps they've fished around, thrown in electrification of Oxford, new stock, EMU (Electric Multiple Unit) depot and a couple of grid connections.   
Logged
paul7575
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 5316


View Profile
« Reply #326 on: December 19, 2023, 14:43:50 »

Report with photos on X/Twitter that the new track construction machine has closed the gap in the up line, contractor VolkerRail states the track work is 99% complete:

https://twitter.com/volkerrailuk/status/1736710963464741190?s=46&t=OUz0_Kol-CBqWN8VOOP0Og

Logged
grahame
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 40690



View Profile WWW Email
« Reply #327 on: March 06, 2024, 01:38:10 »

Ceremonial linking of the tracks - from Network Rail

Quote
An event to mark the coming together of the tracks on Connection Stage One (CS1) of the East West Rail project. The final section of track connecting Bicester and Bletchley will be laid Thursday (7 March) as part of the East West Rail (EWR) project to improve rail connectivity between Cambridge and Oxford.

I suspect this is not supposed to be out as a general public invite (even though it is out there) so I have mirrored the invite in the members archive - if you are logged in and interested you can find it at http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/mirror/ewinvite_20240307.pdf
Logged

Coffee Shop Admin, Acting Chair of Melksham Rail User Group, Option 24/7 Melksham Rep
TonyK
Global Moderator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 6435


The artist formerly known as Four Track, Now!


View Profile
« Reply #328 on: March 06, 2024, 17:20:47 »

Ceremonial linking of the tracks - from Network Rail

Quote
An event to mark the coming together of the tracks on Connection Stage One (CS1) of the East West Rail project. The final section of track connecting Bicester and Bletchley will be laid Thursday (7 March) as part of the East West Rail (EWR) project to improve rail connectivity between Cambridge and Oxford.

I suspect this is not supposed to be out as a general public invite (even though it is out there) so I have mirrored the invite in the members archive - if you are logged in and interested you can find it at http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/mirror/ewinvite_20240307.pdf

I think it's primarily for the press. Whether Joe Public will be able to watch the smiles and handshakes, and listen to the minister saying "Vote for us, and we'll fix everything that is wrong on the railway and slash fares" is another matter.
Logged

Now, please!
ChrisB
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 12334


View Profile Email
« Reply #329 on: March 06, 2024, 21:13:49 »

It does clearly say "Media"
Logged
Do you have something you would like to add to this thread, or would you like to raise a new question at the Coffee Shop? Please [register] (it is free) if you have not done so before, or login (at the top of this page) if you already have an account - we would love to read what you have to say!

You can find out more about how this forum works [here] - that will link you to a copy of the forum agreement that you can read before you join, and tell you very much more about how we operate. We are an independent forum, provided and run by customers of Great Western Railway, for customers of Great Western Railway and we welcome railway professionals as members too, in either a personal or official capacity. Views expressed in posts are not necessarily the views of the operators of the forum.

As well as posting messages onto existing threads, and starting new subjects, members can communicate with each other through personal messages if they wish. And once members have made a certain number of posts, they will automatically be admitted to the "frequent posters club", where subjects not-for-public-domain are discussed; anything from the occasional rant to meetups we may be having ...

 
Pages: 1 ... 20 21 [22] 23
  Print  
 
Jump to:  

Powered by MySQL Powered by PHP Powered by SMF 1.1.2 | SMF © 2006-2007, Simple Machines LLC Valid XHTML 1.0! Valid CSS!
This forum is provided by customers of Great Western Railway (formerly First Great Western), and the views expressed are those of the individual posters concerned. Visit www.gwr.com for the official Great Western Railway website. Please contact the administrators of this site if you feel that the content provided by one of our posters contravenes our posting rules (email link to report). Forum hosted by Well House Consultants

Jump to top of pageJump to Forum Home Page