Leicester to Bristol via Oxford

[whole diary]

[grahame]

https://www.leicester.gov.uk/media/180873/leicester-and-leicestershire-rail-strategy.pdf

Section 9.2

Services to Swindon and Bristol (and possibly onwards to the West Country) would be routed via the Midland Main Line, East West Rail Western section and the Great Western Main Line, potentially serving:
• Bedford • Bletchley • Bicester • Oxford • Didcot • Swindon • Bath • Bristol

Clearly, completion of the East West Rail (EWR) “Western Section” throughout between Oxford and Bedford, currently planned for the end of CP6^▸ (Control Period 6 - The five year period between 2019 and 2024) in 2024, is a prerequisite for introduction of these services.

Capacity issues would also affect the Midland Main Line between Kettering and Bedford, where informed opinion states that only one additional main-line path is available (although accurately determining railway capacity, dependent as it is on a number of variable parameters including track layout, signalling design, line speeds, rolling stock performance, stopping patterns etc. is notoriously difficult). However many spare paths are actually available, there will, as discussed elsewhere, be competing views on the best use to which they can be put.

There are also separate issues regarding capacity at Oxford (which would, at east to some extent, be addressed in the large-scale redevelopment at Oxford station proposed in Control Period 6 and beyond, and on the Great Western Main Line both between Oxford and Didcot and west thereof towards Swindon. A stop at Didcot could be achieved with the current station layout at the expense of a time-consuming reversal, or new platforms would be required on the west curve connecting the Oxford route with the Main Line towards the west.

[ChrisB]

nice wish-list. Well, it is the old Chiltern Management team :-)

http://www.slcrail.com/the_team.php

[Merthyr Imp]

Re 'Capacity issues would also affect the Midland Main Line between Kettering and Bedford', couldn't they restore quadruple track to it? 

But I'm not as up to date on that section of route as I used to be so I don't know what the situation is now.

[John R]

That is indeed planned over the next couple of years.

[eightf48544]

That is indeed planned over the next couple of years.

That used to a favourite Rail Quiz Question what is was the longest stretch of 4 track in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) and the answer was St Pancras to Kettering North, 72? miles.

If Didcot to Swindon was 4 tracked throughout that would be 77 miles from Padd

[didcotdean]

Leicester - and in some respects Nottingham - has never recovered the cross-country services that it had before the GC^» (Great Central Railway - link to heritage line) route was closed. Travelling via Birmingham for points south and south-west is the best part of an hour more than if there were still a direct route to say Banbury, or even a workable route via Nuneaton and Coventry. Leicester lost its other route to Rugby earlier when this traffic was concentrated onto the GC.

I'm never sure how practical platforms would be on the Didcot west curve. It would be somewhat of a long way from the main station requiring crossing one or two set of lines by bridge and the multi-storey carpark shortly to be constructed. Maybe one massive transfer deck could do it 

[Tim]

I'm never sure how practical platforms would be on the Didcot west curve.

I've often thought that that would be useful.  But all other issues aside in today's railway I don't expect that a curved platform would be allowed.

[Noggin]

Who would have thought that four platforms at St Pancras for MML^» (Midland Main Line. - about) services wouldn't be enough. Doh!