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Author Topic: Great Western Main Line electrification - ongoing discussion  (Read 283445 times)
Red Squirrel
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« Reply #420 on: October 19, 2018, 11:44:52 »

...It seems in current times these aesthetic considerations have now been lost. BNM's earlier observation that engineering comes before aesthetics on a modern railway is, of course, quite correct and equally, cost is now a massive factor in the present economic evironment.
My thought here is that will future generations look on our more mundane/bland/ugly aspects of functional, modern railway architecture as a lost opportunity?

Bad design takes good materials and produces an ugly result, like Platform 4 at Filton Abbey Wood. A good design could have used cheaper materials and achieved a more aesthetically pleasing result. Away from the constraints of their 'listed' estate, much of what Network Rail (NR» (Network Rail - home page)) do is un-necessarily ugly.

Edit: VickiS - Clarifying Acronym
« Last Edit: May 21, 2021, 12:03:56 by VickiS » Logged

Things take longer to happen than you think they will, and then they happen faster than you thought they could.
johnneyw
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« Reply #421 on: October 19, 2018, 11:49:23 »

Yes true, and the Eiffel Tower was once widely disliked too. It will be interesting to see how modern railway architecture fares in the future but would some of the newer smaller stops really capture the heritage imagination? Perhaps they will😐

Edit: Image below is Cranbrook Station in Devon, completed a couple of years back.
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broadgage
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« Reply #422 on: October 19, 2018, 11:57:47 »

"Oh admire the classic uncluttered design"
"The perfectly linear yellow line"
"The artfully placed yellow salt bin that forms a focal point"

Clearly should be listed as modern installation art, and access tightly controlled to prevent muddy pawed dogs and sticky fingered children spoiling the careful interpretation by the artist, of the divisions in modern society.
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A proper intercity train has a minimum of 8 coaches, gangwayed throughout, with first at one end, and a full sized buffet car between first and standard.
It has space for cycles, surfboards,luggage etc.
A 5 car DMU (Diesel Multiple Unit) is not a proper inter-city train. The 5+5 and 9 car DMUs are almost as bad.
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« Reply #423 on: October 19, 2018, 12:35:40 »

I do hate how exaggerated this thing about the "massive" steelwork is. Yes the ones for the tensioning equipment where wire runs start or finish are quite big, but they need to be able to withstand a lot of force. Unfortunately you can end up with several of them near stations where there are many crossovers. But for plain line the normal Series1 twin-track cantilevers look much better than the old Mk3 system (both normal length and extra length ones).

Mk3
Southall: https://flic.kr/p/22t5QDW
Southall again: https://flic.kr/p/MVUWhx

Series1
Pangbourne: https://flic.kr/p/HKLVrK
Pangbourne again: https://flic.kr/p/21BYR51
Maidenhead: https://flic.kr/p/21KWQqy
Iver: https://flic.kr/p/DGs7ff (although one of the massive tensioning ones were just out of shot)
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johnneyw
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« Reply #424 on: October 19, 2018, 15:22:35 »

"Oh admire the classic uncluttered design"
"The perfectly linear yellow line"
"The artfully placed yellow salt bin that forms a focal point"

Clearly should be listed as modern installation art, and access tightly controlled to prevent muddy pawed dogs and sticky fingered children spoiling the careful interpretation by the artist, of the divisions in modern society.

Move aside Will Gompertz, there's a new kid on the block!
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Bmblbzzz
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« Reply #425 on: October 19, 2018, 18:16:11 »

"Pretty" was the word I chose to contrast with "visually pleasing," though as has been pointed out there is a lot that is "good looking" too. And some that is "ugly". I haven't yet seen FAW's platform 4, so can't comment on that!
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« Reply #426 on: October 19, 2018, 19:06:23 »

I do hate how exaggerated this thing about the "massive" steelwork is. Yes the ones for the tensioning equipment where wire runs start or finish are quite big, but they need to be able to withstand a lot of force. Unfortunately you can end up with several of them near stations where there are many crossovers. But for plain line the normal Series1 twin-track cantilevers look much better than the old Mk3 system (both normal length and extra length ones).

Mk3
Southall: https://flic.kr/p/22t5QDW
Southall again: https://flic.kr/p/MVUWhx

Series1
Pangbourne: https://flic.kr/p/HKLVrK
Pangbourne again: https://flic.kr/p/21BYR51
Maidenhead: https://flic.kr/p/21KWQqy
Iver: https://flic.kr/p/DGs7ff (although one of the massive tensioning ones were just out of shot)

Putting aside the cantilevers and portals - what about the bits that actually hold the wires (small part steel? Can't remember the exact terminology)? The Series 1 bits are so much tidier than their Mk 3 counterparts.
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« Reply #427 on: October 19, 2018, 20:41:45 »

I do hate how exaggerated this thing about the "massive" steelwork is. Yes the ones for the tensioning equipment where wire runs start or finish are quite big, but they need to be able to withstand a lot of force. Unfortunately you can end up with several of them near stations where there are many crossovers. But for plain line the normal Series1 twin-track cantilevers look much better than the old Mk3 system (both normal length and extra length ones).

Mk3
Southall: https://flic.kr/p/22t5QDW
Southall again: https://flic.kr/p/MVUWhx

Series1
Pangbourne: https://flic.kr/p/HKLVrK
Pangbourne again: https://flic.kr/p/21BYR51
Maidenhead: https://flic.kr/p/21KWQqy
Iver: https://flic.kr/p/DGs7ff (although one of the massive tensioning ones were just out of shot)

Putting aside the cantilevers and portals - what about the bits that actually hold the wires (small part steel? Can't remember the exact terminology)? The Series 1 bits are so much tidier than their Mk 3 counterparts.


Small Part Steel (SPS (Small Part Steel)) is the correct term  Grin

The BR (British Rail(ways)) Mk3 and its predecessors was / is made up of a thing called "OLEMI (Overhead Line Equipment Master Index)". (Overhead Line Equipment Master Index) this is a range of standard parts by a number of manufactures plus some generic parts that were specified to be able to fit with each other, heavy reliance was made on clamping parts together which looks cumbersome.

NR» (Network Rail - home page)'s series 1 and 2 is also in OLEMI 
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Thatcham Crossing
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« Reply #428 on: October 20, 2018, 12:00:25 »

This at Midgham LC (Level Crossing) this morning, no doubt in connection with the B&H (Berks and Hants - railway line from Reading to Taunton via Westbury) juice turn-on :-)
« Last Edit: October 21, 2018, 08:04:31 by Thatcham Crossing » Logged
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« Reply #429 on: October 21, 2018, 22:04:50 »

This morning there was a Block to Electric Traction between Maidenhead and Didcot Parkway while the wires to Newbury were tested. This saw the stopping services between Paddington and Reading or Didcot Parkway either split at Maidenhead with Class 387 EMUs (Electric Multiple Unit) east of there and Turbo DMUs (Diesel Multiple Unit) west of there, or Turbo DMUs running throughout. It was planned to finish around 1100 but overran by about a couple of hours. Unfortunately it was mostly 3-car 165s replacing 8-car 387s (as there probably aren't enough units to have all services as double units), so there was a lot of overcrowding from about 1000 onwards until the wires were available again and the 387s could run west of Maidenhead.
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onthecushions
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« Reply #430 on: October 25, 2018, 16:05:46 »


Rumour has it that there will be a pan-up working from Swindon to Steventon, this Sunday, overnight. Anyone confirm this?

OTC
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« Reply #431 on: October 25, 2018, 16:16:53 »

What will happen ar Steventon given that the bridge can't be  be raised? (Until sense prevails...)
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« Reply #432 on: October 25, 2018, 16:23:37 »

What will happen ar Steventon given that the bridge can't be  be raised? (Until sense prevails...)

Trains can go through pan-up at up to 60 m.p.h. I understand
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« Reply #433 on: October 25, 2018, 18:47:37 »

Quote from RailUK forums.

Quote
From the 28th October 80x trains running DOWN passenger trains can use the OLE (Overhead Line Equipment, more often "OHLE") between Causeway Crossing & Swindon.

The OLE between Foxhall Jn & Causeway and that west of Swindon Station is still not authorised for passenger service so down trains will ‘pan down’ at Moreton Cutting as norm then ‘pan up’ at Causeway.

Down trains not stopping at Swindon will revert to diesel mode prior to the station, stopping trains can switch to diesel during the station stop.

80x units may be observed with ‘pan up’ between Didcot & Steventon and between Swindon & Bristol Parkway but these will be ECS (Empty Coaching Stock) involved with the OLE testing.
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« Reply #434 on: October 25, 2018, 22:12:17 »

What will happen ar Steventon given that the bridge can't be  be raised? (Until sense prevails...)

Trains can go through pan-up at up to 60 m.p.h. I understand

That is the long term plan as well! 
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