Reading Station improvements

[whole diary]

[eightf48544]

The new underpass Reading East Main Junction, 8421 points - Reading Southern Junction (Reading Low Level line) (148) WH03 [note: Accessible only to or from Reading platforms 13 or higher] now appears on the PSUL website

http://www.psul4all.free-online.co.uk/2014.htm

you can even do it on a Voyager!

[lbraine]

I did wonder what they were going to do about that. Presumably the retail units were never part of the original (Grimshaw) design, which included signage and CIS^▸ (Customer Information System) done jointly with NR^» (Network Rail - home page) (though needing some redesign since then). They will have been designed/bought/acquiesced to by a different bit of the organisation, I think - one that's commercial, not technical.

I witnessed first hand the signage issues last night, around 7:30.

The transfer deck has a continuous flow of well dressed people returning from Ascot. They arrived up the main escalator (South side) which bring them naturally to the B side of the platforms. They walked along the deck looking for an A platform reference - and could not see one.

And you can't. The new units block the line of sight to the A side escalators. So if you do not know Readings platform layout you are pretty much stuck.

I directed 2 couples myself to 13A and the Police (in place for the England game pub exodus) were doing a pretty good job at helping to.

I really do thing someone is going to have to rethink the signage (and passenger flows) with these units in place.

[ChrisB]

The new underpass Reading East Main Junction, 8421 points - Reading Southern Junction (Reading Low Level line) (148) WH03 [note: Accessible only to or from Reading platforms 13 or higher] now appears on the PSUL website

http://www.psul4all.free-online.co.uk/2014.htm

you can even do it on a Voyager!

Of course, XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) to Guildford....

[insider]

To Help Traincrew find their trains, some staff information screens (train describer and staff version of CIS^▸ (Customer Information System) feed) have been installed in some locations, some private but one is in the public area.

Next time you are on the Western Gateline (the new one adjacent to platform 7 and all the escalators), have a look at the partition behind the ticket machines- opposite the bottom of the stairs, and you can see a live train describer of the station!!

[lbraine]

A new sign has appeared - just as you come up the southern escalators and turn right onto the transfer deck - there is a sign cross the entrance with a big enormous B and arrow pointing to the country end and a big enormous A and arrow pointing to the London end.

Nothing on the new northern side.

[SandTEngineer]

Here are two photographs of the 'new' transfer deck layout taken yesterday (21 June 2014).  The new shops are located in the middle between the lifts.  There are three units in total.

On the 'B' Platform Side looking North

Image (c)2014 SandTEngineer

On the 'A' Platform side looking North

Image (c)2014 SandTEngineer

[paul7575]

A new sign has appeared - just as you come up the southern escalators and turn right onto the transfer deck - there is a sign cross the entrance with a big enormous B and arrow pointing to the country end and a big enormous A and arrow pointing to the London end.

I'm 99% sure it was there on Wednesday - so before you posted about race goers getting lost...

In any case, the A end escalators for P8/9 were always visible, as there are no obstructions in line of sight from the entrance to the transfer deck to those.

Paul

[paul7575]

The Network Change Notice for Stage L (Christmas/New Year 2014) is now available on the NR^» (Network Rail - home page) website, going into some detail about the track works at the various locations.

New info (to me) is that the crossovers allowing for routes from the up and down main to the Festival Line and onward to P3, (where the viaduct is rising at the east end), will be named 'Reading High Level Jn'.

Summary section copied here, each section is described in far more detail in the document:

^ Closure of the tempoary Up and Down Main Lines between Reading Station and Whitehouse Junction (in use since Easter 2013).
^ Opening the new Up and Down Main Lines over the elevated railway between Whitehouse Junction and Reading Station.
^ Remodelling of Westbury Line Junction.
^ Temporary re-alignment of the Up Westbury Line to facilitate Christmas 2014 commissioning.
^ Realignment of Whitehouse Junction to provide access to the new Up and Down Main Lines over the elevated railway.
^ Re-opening of Platform 3.
^ Introduction of Points 8424 and 8420 on the Up and Down Main Lines at Reading East.
^ Introduction of a new junction and associated signalled routes between the Down, Up Main and the Down Reading Festival Line referred to as Reading High Level Junction.
^ Opening of the eastern section of the Down Reading Festival Line between Westbury Line Junction and a High Level Junction on the elevated railway.
^ Introduction of new signalling between Tilehurst East Junction and Reading Station over the Up and Down Main Lines
^ Changes to Platform use at Reading Station.
^ Changes to Reading West Junction.

Network Rail NC/G1/2014 RSAR 001 30 April 2014

Route tables at the end of the document show all the connections between platforms and lines available in the interim period until the up feeder line becomes available.  In the 6 months or so up trains from the Westbury direction will have to pass through platforms 7 or 8 bidirectionally.  Last but not least P3 will re-open, with routes to and from both up and down mains via the High Level Jn as mentioned earlier.

Paul

[IndustryInsider]

Thanks for posting those details, Paul.

A shame the re-opened Platform 3 won't be long enough to accommodate a 5-Car IEP^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project.) which may have been useful during periods of disruption, but another stride forward at Christmas in providing a massively enhanced operation at Reading which will largely be completed the following Easter.

Do we know whether there will be Chiltern Line/Waterloo diversions this Christmas as well as next Easter?

[paul7575]

Do we know whether there will be Chiltern Line/Waterloo diversions this Christmas as well as next Easter?

I think I checked this a while ago and found nothing about Waterloo/Banbury in the EAS until Easter:

http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=6405.msg151860#msg151860

The reliefs should be open anyway, so they might get away with the normal sort of reduced Sunday service through P13-15; with diversions via Melksham for the 'via Westbury' services?

Paul

[IndustryInsider]

Yes, that's what I thought - just next Easter.  A relief to those travelling through Reading at Christmas then!

[ChrisB]

I hear that the sleepers are also coming via Banbury over the Easter closure.

[Southern Stag]

That was rumoured last time. It never happened though and we had an overnight HST^▸ (High Speed Train) into Waterloo instead.

[paul7575]

A couple of phone pics taken last Friday showing the additional signage attempting to explain the A and B ends.   Both also show additional 'next train' displays hanging from ceiling in the distance.

Notices had also been put up explaining that the north entrance is to be closed to the public for much of the working day (after 0900) on the 17th for the 'opening'.  Those blokes laying slabs outside the north end of the station probably need to have a bit of a tidy up...

Paul

[MVR S&T]

A good way of testing the signage, perhaps, is to get the MD of the project drunk, take away their glasses and give them them a short time to get the right train, at the right end of the right platform, with some large cases perhaps to add to challenge!