Western Rail Access to Heathrow

[whole diary]

[Surrey 455]

Heathrow landing planes fly over City airport!

If you look at the live flights map at http://www.flightradar24.com/ you'll often see a Ryanair or other flight flying north over Heathrow on it's way from Europe to Stansted or other airports. They're at a much higher altitude though.

In the following screenshot I didn't have time to wait for this to happen but here's a Stansted bound plane flying over Hounslow. It's the red plane.
Sometimes I can watch this site for an hour or so clicking on each plane to see where it's going.

[JayMac]

Virtual planespotting. I like it!!!

Can we have similar for National Rail please? I know there's a TfL^» (Transport for London - about) train tracking site as well one for services operated by East Coast, but UK^▸ (United Kingdom) wide would be cool.

[TonyK]

If you look at the live flights map at http://www.flightradar24.com/ you'll often see a Ryanair or other flight flying north over Heathrow on it's way from Europe to Stansted or other airports. They're at a much higher altitude though.

Which is no accident. Passenger jets follow clearly defined airways when under control of a traffic controller - the one over Heathrow is designated L9, and is 10 NM wide. Altitude depends on direction. Above FL 245 (which is 24500' with altimeter set to 1013.25 HPa, so that all the big boys measure height the same way), flights with a magnetic track between 0 and 179 degrees fly at odd numbered levels, 180 to 359 degrees at even numbers. Routing flights via large airports makes for great visual reference points, plus radio beacons and radar service, and somewhere with emergency facilities to glide to land if everything goes quiet unexpectedly.

[Btline]

Wow - what an amazing website! Thanks for sharing. Now I'll know what planes fly over my house at 30,000 ft leaving streaks (but thankfully no noise, so presumably at 30,000 ft)

- although it's made me feel sorry for those living near Heathrow as a Quantas jet has just taken off at 11.45pm eastbound flying right over South West London. Not fair for residents trying to sleep.

[Rhydgaled]

Virtual planespotting. I like it!!!

Can we have similar for National Rail please? I know there's a TfL^» (Transport for London - about) train tracking site as well one for services operated by East Coast, but UK^▸ (United Kingdom) wide would be cool.

I've not heard about an East Coast train-tracking site. Is it like the aircraft site posted just above where it gives the type of aircraft (for East Coast I'm thinking does it identify which trains are IC125s and which are IC225s, and whether they are short-formed/in reverse formation and things like that)?

[JayMac]

The East Coast map only features one train, that has been fitted with a GPS tracker. The headcode for whatever service (timetabled or ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock)) the set is on is included:

http://bbarker.co.uk/eastCoast/

Currently shacked up for the night at Heaton TMD^▸ (Traction Maintenance Depot).

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Reading Chronicle:

Shadow transport secretary Maria Eagle says the ambitious ^500m western rail link to Heathrow is key to rejuvenating the British economy.

The senior Labour MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) welcomed the plans when she visited Reading last Wednesday to host a party policy forum canvassing supporters' views on transport services ahead of creating a blueprint for the party's 2015 election manifesto.

Speaking before the meeting at the Cornwell Centre in Tilehurst, the MP for Liverpool's Garston and Halewood constituency said: "It's sensible increasing connectivity to Heathrow. Airports and other transport centres are an important way of increasing economic growth and we are supportive of it."

By 2021, the proposed Western Rail Access to Heathrow (WRAtH^▸ (Western Rail Access to Heathrow)) will provide direct rail services from Reading to the airport, slashing journey times to 28 minutes.

Companies in this area spend up to ^10m annually on taxi fares to Heathrow because train travellers face either face a lengthy detour through London or catching Rail Air link buses from Reading Station which take 40 minutes to complete the road journey.

The rail link, backed by the Thames Valley Berkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP^» (Local Enterprise Partnership - about)), would serve Reading with four trains every hour, with two services calling at Maidenhead and Twyford and options include building a tunnel linking the Western Mainline east of Langley with platforms already built at Terminal 5.

Ms Eagle who also met Reading West electoral candidate Victoria Groulef, warned spiralling rail fares and Government plans for 'super peak' tickets - which could see passengers paying more to travel at the busiest times in an attempt to reduce overcrowding - are taking their toll on passengers and added: "There are hard pressed commuters in Reading trying to get to work and they can't take much more of a squeeze. They are seeing their cost of living going up and fares going up."

[stebbo]

What if they decide to close Heathrow (unlikely, I know)? Surely the decision on the western link should follow the decision on the airport's location? Which says, hurry up and get on with it.

[ellendune]

Mind you a taxi from Swindon is cheaper than the Train via Paddington & HEX full fare!

[swrural]

Is there market analysis on Heathrow pax market from the west country?  We have existing Reading Link data (somebody has).  All I remember is that in the analysis of the West Coast traffic to Heathrow, it was estimated at 10% of the total flow to the London area.  That resulted in the Lord Malwhinney recommendation not to send HS2^▸ (The next High Speed line(s)) to Heathrow but to stop off at OOC^▸ (Old Oak Common (depot)) (and then just some of the services).

I find it difficult to envisage that flows from the GW^▸ (Great Western) area would justify a better link than that which failed to be feasible from the North West. 

[TonyK]

I think the pax numbers from the West country to Heathrow will be only part of the calculation. There will be opportunities for faster travel to Heathrow from Wales, Oxford, even the likes of Birmingham. Although I have flown from Heathrow on holiday a couple of times, it is seen primarily as the departure point for those carrying a briefcase rather than a bucket and spade, and the quality of traveller is likely to have some impact, as well as the quantity. It will also have some impact on the number of passengers travelling between Reading and Paddington, as anyone from west of there heading for LHR will have a choice other than bus or Paddington then back by HEX.

It is not only air passengers who will benefit. I have read that more people work in Heathrow than in the entire city of Newcastle. That may be apocryphal, but Heathrow has around 70,000 employees including franchises, not all of whom live in nearby Staines. When this scheme is operational, it will provide extra direct services from Woking and Bracknell, as well as Waterloo, Clapham Jct, Guildford, and a few other places. In short, it will link a major employment zone with several high-density residential areas, some of which are not easily accessed by public transport, as well as connecting the west to Heathrow. In terms of benefit cost ratio, it will score highly. The new infrastructure will be following existing very busy roads (mainly the M25) or be underground. No outstanding beauty issues have been identified. Some level crossings will be closed more than now however, and the consultation has addressed that point, if not resolved it.

This could be a situation where the skills of the demographist and the statistician prove to be crucial, and possibly more important than those of the civil engineer. There may also be development effects along the routes concerned, and my guess is that this development will be followed by universities, to inform future opinion.

I don't think the value of this project is influenced to any great degree by the Heathrow / Boris Island argument. My own thinking is that the Boris island idea is a goer, and that Heathrow should not have survived the 1950s, but that major infrastructure decisions are seldom driven by anything other than the potents for the  next election. We are therefore stuck with the imperfect Heathrow for many years. A  western rail link will ameliorate the problems that causes. Or solves.

[Andrew1939 from West Oxon]

Heathrow workers live over a wide area but the further away from Heathrow, the numbers fall. Here in Hanborough I know someone who works at Heathrow (reason: housing much more affordable). However he travels to and from work by private car and says that it is relatively quick as he works permanent nightshifts on aircraft maintenance leaving Hanborough for work around mid evening and returning home early morning when the heavy trafic flows are in the other direction.

[Electric train]

There would be uproar from the taxi drivers in the Maidenhead area when the western rail connection is made, they thrive on the fact the buses are pants almost 2 hours and the current rail journey is a pain with the over bridge interchange at Hayes where there is no lifts to help with luggage.

There does not need to be passenger numbers to justify it the creation of new journey opportunities is also a perfectly acceptable case for the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about)

[eightf48544]

It will also give extra capacity between Hayes and Langley a couple of Crossrail trains going via the Airport can be overtaken by Padd Reading Semis on the Relief line.

One point what will the fare be? Will there be a stupidly excessive  add on like Hayes to Heathrow on the Connect. Presuambly passnegers will be able to catch trains from Langley and westwards going via the airport at the same price as along the main line. Just a thought!
 

[ChrisB]

Doubt it - the infrastructure in place from the Airport to Airport Junction is owned by the airport operator, not NR^» (Network Rail - home page).