Metrowest Status

[whole diary]

[martyjon]

As far as I know, as I asked an SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) driver on this point, the driver must always be in the leading cab for all movements, there may be a union requirment too, that the guard etc, would have to be trained and paid a drivers wage for that day, when carying out a drives role.

But what are the chances of a more than one unit working a Yate terminating service anyway, slight.

[martyjon]

With the PM's announcement that he is to speed up infrastructure projects, will this apply to the Portishead line, the Henbury Spur/Loop, the OHL^▸ (Over-Head Line) via Bath to Bristol, Bristol East Junction remodelling to name just a few, I can't see it myself as our local politicians are such ditherer. I have heard it said of the combined authority, the WRECA authority following the publishing of the latest timetables for bus services leaving still no service from Marshfield to Bristol, the Bath - Bristol via Keynsham restricted to early morning/evening services only, no Bristol - Bath service via Bitton/Kelston. Not to be outdone, the Metro Mayor has gained the nickname 'Butcher Bowles'.

Whilst I am having a rant, the m3 service seems to have been given the chop if only temporarily with the m3x running throughout the hours of operation, at 10 minute intervals in peak hours and 30 minute intervals off peak. This gives rise to the possibility of passengers wanting UWE travelling from Emersons Green/Lyde Green/Emerald Park/Willy Wicket being dumped at the Hambrook stop with their connecting service 19 being full under covid19 measures having travelled from Bath via Bitton, Oldland, Warmley, Kingswood, Soundwell, Downend and Bromley Heath and only operates on a 30 minute schedule.

That's enough ranting from me for now.

[martyjon]

Further to my previous post the TT's for the T1/T2/Y1/Y2 are a nightmare. Prior to lockdown the T1/Y1 services operated from start of service to 1900 ish with the T2/Y2 covering journeys between Bristol and Thornbury/Yate and Sodbury which operate via the A38/A432. The latest TT's agreed by WRECA show the T2/Y2 ceasing at 1900 meaning pax relying on these services to travel home after an evening shift is scuppered and will have to travel into Central Bristol to get a service out to their homes in Thornbury/Yate areas adding probably an hour to their homeward journey.

Rant part 2 over.

[Noggin]

With the PM's announcement that he is to speed up infrastructure projects, will this apply to the Portishead line, the Henbury Spur/Loop, the OHL^▸ (Over-Head Line) via Bath to Bristol, Bristol East Junction remodelling to name just a few, I can't see it myself as our local politicians are such ditherer. I have heard it said of the combined authority, the WRECA authority following the publishing of the latest timetables for bus services leaving still no service from Marshfield to Bristol, the Bath - Bristol via Keynsham restricted to early morning/evening services only, no Bristol - Bath service via Bitton/Kelston. Not to be outdone, the Metro Mayor has gained the nickname 'Butcher Bowles'.

{snip}

That's enough ranting from me for now.

Supposedly NR^» (Network Rail - home page) have been told by the Government to resume the development work that was paused on the MML^» (Midland Main Line. - about). It's currently at GRIP^▸ (Guide to Railway Investment Projects) 3, and talks are in early stages, but it's not impossible that Nottingham and Derby could have electric services by the next election, though they'll have new 80x Hitachi trains from 2022 anyway. I would guess the desire is to be seen to be doing something whilst HS2^▸ (The next High Speed line(s)) gets built and the local East and West-Midlands schemes go through the GRIP process.

On that basis, it might not be inconceivable that the Government would tell NR to throw some cash at wiring Bristol once the East Junction work is complete, plus perhaps Oxford and Reading to Basingstoke before the next election to be seen to be doing something. In fact, if you were really lucky they might be happy to be seen to be spending money on grid connections, which are often the expensive bit that drags the BCR^▸ (Benefit Cost Ratio) of electrification projects down.

[grahame]

Anyway, the funding has been confirmed, according to the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) website:

Five new rail stations to 'boost' regional economies
28 July 2017

The Department For Transport will invest more than £16m in the new stations
Five new rail stations should be completed by March 2020 after funding was confirmed, officials have said.
The Department For Transport (DFT^▸ (Department for Transport)) said it will invest more than £16m in four stations in England and one in Wales.
The stations will be at Horden in County Durham, Warrington West in Cheshire, Reading Green Park, Portway Parkway in Bristol and Bow Street in Ceredigion.

Horden opens today - 3 months late. How are the others doing?

From RailNews

TRAINS are calling today at Horden station on the Durham Coast for the first time since May 1964.

The station is not far from the post-war new town of Peterlee and will serve a catchment area with a population of 70,000. It has an hourly train service from today in each direction which calls at all stations between Newcastle and Middlesbrough.

[rogerw]

Warrington West is open

[Bmblbzzz]

Portway Parkway is partway to halfway.

[grahame]

From Cambrian News in April [2020]

Work is set to restart on the new Bow Street railway station.

Construction work on the £8 million project was suspended when the coronavirus crisis hit, but Transport for Wales has announced that work will restart on the site from Monday, 4 May.

Workers will concentrate on earthworks on site and roadworks nearby, with the introduction of a new slipway on the opposite side of the road.

Local councillor Paul Hinge welcomed the news, saying: “It is pleasing to hear that they are looking at how they can safely carry out the work and have decided to resume on Monday, 4 May.

“It is thought that the interchange site will officially open in November but the railway station could be operational before then.”

[TonyK]

Portway Parkway is partway to halfway.

 

This is the station that Councillor Tim Kent proudly announced, back in 2011, would be open by 2013. Last I saw, it was due to open in summer of 2021. Last year, the minutes of a BCC^» (Bristol City Council - about) meeting recorded that if it wasn't open by June 2020, the central funding would be lost.If that hasn't been changed, WRECA (like it, martyjon) is in for a £2.4 million hit on the MetroWest Rail budget.

[chuffed]

Are the members of the WRECA comittee called Phew Sue, Barney, McRue, Herbert, Dribble and Scrubb ,with apologies to the Trumpton Firemen !

[TonyK]

Are the members of the WRECA comittee called Phew Sue, Barney, McRue, Herbert, Dribble and Scrubb ,with apologies to the Trumpton Firemen !

I don't know, but it would make sense, possibly even more if we find they are D. P. Gumby, R. J. Gumby, L. R. Gumby....

[bradshaw]

August Modern Railways has an article on MetroWest (p71), as part of a feature on GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)(p59-81) Philip Sherratt provides an update on the plans.

[Red Squirrel]

Due process continues to creak and groan onward. Jack Lopresti has just tweeted about his meeting with mayor Bowles at Severn Beach station (thinks: wonder how they got there?) to discuss 'his ongoing work to improve our suburban rail network and the plans for the Metro West Project'.

Delving into the detail, it appears that the latest piece of progress is nothing less exciting than the news that the Planning Inspectorate have sent out 'Rule 17' questionnaires to check if any interested parties are running Windows 98, or don't have an email address. This is to allow the process to grind on using Zoom or somesuch.

Well worth a photo op at Severn Beach, I'd say.

I really ought to stop using the word 'glacial' in this context. These days, glaciers are getting fairly fleet of foot.

[stuving]

I really ought to stop using the word 'glacial' in this context. These days, glaciers are getting fairly fleet of foot.

Or you could reserve it for the kind of project of which the end recedes continuously, until it trickles away and eventually nothing is left.

[martyjon]

I thought this project was virtually 'shovel ready', but no not quite. I personally became involved in this project in 1982 when I prepared a briefing paper for a friend who had been elected to Avon in the 1981 election and was on the Highways and Transport Committee of said Council. How many back to square ones have been achieved in the intervening 38 years I have lost count of.

One day when time permits I will try and recall the detail of my late friends briefing paper that I prepared for him and post on this forum.