Kenilworth Station - new project?

[whole diary]

[IndustryInsider]

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Worcester Parkway doesn't look like it's about to make the final approved list of stations from the government's new stations fund.  Surprisingly, perhaps, nor does Kenilworth, with the three probably candidates being Ilkeston (Derbyshire), Pye Corner (Newport West) and Lea Bridge in Walthamstow.  Hopefully this scheme will be extended in future years to allow the likes of Worcester Parkway and Kenilworth to open sooner rather than later.

Then again, perhaps it's not too late for Kenilworth...

http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2013/06/03-new-station-announcement-may-be.html

[IndustryInsider]

Confirmed (provisionally).

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/kenilworth-new-station

[paul7575]

100m platforms.

That seems to suggest a new service pattern possibly involving extension of an existing LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise) route,  because XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) would not be able to stop there with 5 car 221s.  It would be impractical to diagram only 4 car 220s, I've always assumed XC assign the different train types only loosely?

Paul

[brompton rail]

LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise) trains to Coventry are all electric however, with the exception of Nuneaton shuttle. To extend Nuneaton services to Leamington would require two services per hour to cross all tracks at Coventry, surely a non starter?

Chiltern don't have any services that terminate at Leamington either, unless the poor Stratford service is diverted to Coventry. This would require a franchise change though, as well as removing London services from Stratford. LM only run to Leamington in the peaks anyway. 

The 100m platforms would seem to rule out XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise))'s desire to divert Reading (etc) to Newcastle services via Coventry as there would be capacity problems with 2 extra services per direction per hour. Capacity between Coventry and Birmingham is the current issue for these XC services anyway.

A Leamington - Kenilworth - Coventry only service would not seem to be a great deal for Kenilworth passengers, surely Birmingham is their preferred destination.

[paul7575]

Surely capacity for XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) to run their second service via Coventry (and electrification) was/is already being dealt with as part of the CP5^▸ (Control Period 5 - the five year period between 2014 and 2019) HLOS^▸ (High Level Output Specification) proposals previously announced?

But we're getting a bit far away from Worcester, and don't really need to drag this out of area matter out...

Paul

[grahame]

Surely capacity for XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) to run their second service via Coventry was/is already being dealt with as part of the HLOS^▸ (High Level Output Specification) proposals previously announced?

But we're getting a bit far away from Worcester, and don't really need to drag this out of area matter out...

Paul

I'm going to split the thread tonight if I get a chance, Paul (unless someone else is around to do it in the meantime).

It IS a useful topic - though perhaps under "Cross Country" .. Kenilworth is virtually identical in population to Melksham, where a station was re-opened but there has never been a reliable, appropriate, advertised service.   Joinedup thinking is needed to ensure that Kenilworth station doesn't become a construction project, with services at just 06:38 and 19:11 to Nuneaton, and 07:20 and 19:50 to Leamington Spa, each day.

[Chris from Nailsea]

I'm going to split the thread tonight if I get a chance, Paul (unless someone else is around to do it in the meantime).

Cough, splutter! 

I've taken grahame's gentle hint, and split / moved this topic accordingly.

Hope this helps!  Chris. 

[ChrisB]

There was rumour of an announcement today?.....Possibly only for Kenilworth, as the Minister was paying them a visit....

[Red Squirrel]

Yes, there's an off-topic discussion of this on the 'Worcester Parkway' thread. Blimey, wouldn't want to be an admin on this forum, blinkin' minefield...

[ChrisB]

A Leamington - Kenilworth - Coventry only service would not seem to be a great deal for Kenilworth passengers, surely Birmingham is their preferred destination.

Well, it seems that is what they will get - an hourly service run by London Midland - according to the Leamington Observer who published this on Saturday.

[grahame]

I'm going to split the thread tonight if I get a chance, Paul (unless someone else is around to do it in the meantime).

Cough, splutter! 

I've taken grahame's gentle hint, and split / moved this topic accordingly.

Hope this helps!  Chris. 

Many thanks, Chris ... I have been teaching a keen class today, and there was a risk strong probability that I would get halfway and then get called away if I had tried to do the split earlier on.

Yes, there's an off-topic discussion of this on the 'Worcester Parkway' thread. Blimey, wouldn't want to be an admin on this forum, blinkin' minefield...

The admin and moderation job here is surprisingly pleasurable - made such by a great team doing that role, and a fantastic lot of members.   But there's a lot to look out for at times; I note your application not to join us 

[IndustryInsider]

LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise) trains to Coventry are all electric however, with the exception of Nuneaton shuttle. To extend Nuneaton services to Leamington would require two services per hour to cross all tracks at Coventry, surely a non starter?

Chiltern don't have any services that terminate at Leamington either, unless the poor Stratford service is diverted to Coventry. This would require a franchise change though, as well as removing London services from Stratford. LM only run to Leamington in the peaks anyway. 

The 100m platforms would seem to rule out XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise))'s desire to divert Reading (etc) to Newcastle services via Coventry as there would be capacity problems with 2 extra services per direction per hour. Capacity between Coventry and Birmingham is the current issue for these XC services anyway.

A Leamington - Kenilworth - Coventry only service would not seem to be a great deal for Kenilworth passengers, surely Birmingham is their preferred destination.

The original proposal, called NUCKLE, was for an hourly service from Nuneaton to Leamington Spa via Coventry and Kenilworth (hence the name), so I assume that is still the desired plan? To be initially operated by diesel, but then later on by electric trains?  Crossing the tracks at Coventry will of course put pressure on that junction, but I can't see how that would make it a 'non-starter', and would have the benefit of not clogging up a platform at Coventry for as long as if it was just a Leamington-Coventry shuttle that operated.

I agree that Birmingham would be an better destination than Coventry or Nuneaton, but the only way I can see that happening is if the current hourly shuttle from Birmingham International to New Street starts back at Leamington Spa, calling at Kenilworth and Coventry, then Birmingham International.  Or possibly if it made a couple of extra calls at Tile Hill and Hampton-In-Arden that would have the added benefit of allowing those calls to be removed on the LM service from Euston to Birmingham via Northampton, and knock off a few minutes from what is currently a pretty slow link between two large places like Northampton and Birmingham.  For that to make sense you'd need Leamington to Coventry wired sooner rather than later though, so it depends how quickly Network Rail can get that done.

Still, the final plan is for Network Rail to work out, and that's why the 'wider picture' caveat has been included in yesterday's press release.

[Red Squirrel]

The admin and moderation job here is surprisingly pleasurable - made such by a great team doing that role, and a fantastic lot of members.   But there's a lot to look out for at times; I note your application not to join us 

I didn't mean to rule out the possibility of lending a hand!

[ChrisB]

I can see the electrification of that line only being done within the project that will electrify the full 'electric spine' for freight....

[IndustryInsider]

I can see the electrification of that line only being done within the project that will electrify the full 'electric spine' for freight....

Yes, that line is definitely being electrified (and fully redoubled) as part of the 'electric spine' project, and as I said it's just a question of how quickly that bit is done as to what form the Kenilworth service might take to start with and then be subsequently developed over the years.