Congestion for the Langley Station area

[whole diary]

[Adelante_CCT]

http://www.sloughobserver.co.uk/news/news-roundup/articles/2015/06/26/1121160-rallying-cry-issued-over-heathrow-express-depot-for-langley-plan-with-mp-leading-the-charge/

I hadn't realised they were planning to move that depot

[ellendune]

Of course they jump to the immediate conclusion that because a maximum of 26 two-way trips in any hour is quoted then this would run for 10 hours a day all week. 

The most likely reason for a lot of trips an hour would be a very big continuous concrete pour. At 6 cu metres a load that would be 1560 cu metres per day or 7620 cu metres in a week.  That would be enough concrete to make a solid concrete 1:1 model of a depot.  Not sure that would be very useful - no room to get the trains in.

Me thinks someone is trying to start a scare campaign.

I think we need to remember that this is a derelict industrial site that used to be an oil distribution depot.  So didn't it once receive many HGV road tankers a day for onward delivery of oil?

The acronym Nimby comes to mind. 

[Electric train]

The relocation is part of the HS2^▸ (The next High Speed line(s)) hybrid Bill rework, the original location was in the part of North Pole not used by GW^▸ (Great Western) IEP^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project.) however with the planned Western rail access to Heathrow the relocation of HEX depot to Langley is very sensible use of a bit of industrial land

This does make me chuckle, the clue is in the article it was an oil terminal which had HGV full of nasty flammable stuff moving through Langley 24 - 7 not that many years ago and back in 1973 there was a huge fire. http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1973/nov/16/oil-storage-depots-and-refineries this article also shows there has been much debate about this bit of Railway land" there are some local News Paper articles calling for this land to be used for housing which I am guessing is Slough council and South Bucks council first choice

The other thing that makes me smile is the fact it really don't matter what they build on the site there will be the same amount of HGV's for the construction.

The group that are the anti brigade are house boat dwellers who see the tranquillity of their dead end branch of the Grand Union Canal going. 

[tom m]

I norticed that my local MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) has raised concerns about the additional railway traffic generated by moving the depot on Twitter.

Very generic statment considering most empty coaching stock moves are early in the morning or late at night when there is less passenger traffic on the railway anyway. Unlike FGW^▸ (First Great Western) the service pattern for HEX is fairly constant through the day requiring minimal trips in and out of the depot during peak hours. Separating the HEX and FGW depots should also reduce some of the congestion that does happen late at night, often seen a number of FGW and HEX units queing up to get into old oak common along the carriage rception lines.

[Electric train]

I norticed that my local MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) has raised concerns about the additional railway traffic generated by moving the depot on Twitter.

Very generic statment considering most empty coaching stock moves are early in the morning or late at night when there is less passenger traffic on the railway anyway. Unlike FGW^▸ (First Great Western) the service pattern for HEX is fairly constant through the day requiring minimal trips in and out of the depot during peak hours. Separating the HEX and FGW depots should also reduce some of the congestion that does happen late at night, often seen a number of FGW and HEX units queing up to get into old oak common along the carriage rception lines.

The thing to bear in mind, by the time HEX has moved to Langley FGW will have vacated the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) depot and the carriage siding the only depot on the old 81A site will be the Crossrail train care facility there will be very little conflict as the HEX trains will be able to access Heathrow via the new line to be built between Langley and Iver.

The hybrid Bill is making provision for Crossrail to be extended to the WCML^▸ (West Coast Main Line) for the Tring services as part of the Euston rebuild through the OCC site.

Railnews has some use info on the hybrid Bill  http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2015/06/17-hs2-construction-to-start-in.html

[tom m]

Agreed, but still think its wrong she is sighting rail congestion as a reason for opposing the move. I can't see the depot having an advese effect on TV services

[Surrey 455]

Are Heathrow Express confident that they will still be in business in a few years? Wasn't there speculation and an expectation on these forums that once Crossrail and IEP^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project.) start, HEX services would cease?

[Electric train]

Are Heathrow Express confident that they will still be in business in a few years? Wasn't there speculation and an expectation on these forums that once Crossrail and IEP^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project.) start, HEX services would cease?

When the western rail access is open HEX want to run Paddington - Heathrow - Reading fasts, they still see the need for a "premier" type of service especially to Reading.  It should be noted that the good Burgers of Slough would like to see HEX call at Slough yet they don't want a depot.

HEX will I believe will use different platforms at Padd, their operating licence is due for renewal soon (or has been recently)

[Adelante_CCT]

Are Heathrow Express confident that they will still be in business in a few years? Wasn't there speculation and an expectation on these forums that once Crossrail and IEP^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project.) start, HEX services would cease?

I was wondering about this, I remember the Network Rail RUS^▸ (Route Utilisation Strategy) a few years ago saying ideally they would get rid of HEX which would allow up to 19tph (20 with signalling improvements) to run in the peak on the main lines from Paddington towards the Thames Valley.

[Adelante_CCT]

Slough Council have now got involved
http://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/slough-files-against-rail-depot-plan