Wokingham's present from Network Rail - a new siding

[whole diary]

[stuving]

Look what we're getting for Christmas (next year sometime) - a new siding!

Last Friday I got this letter from Network Rail - obviously bad news, as it started "Dear Railway Neighbour".  Once again, they are going to be noisy at night, but this time mostly some way down the line. Starting last Sunday night,  they will be renewing the siding at Wokingham station, which is alongside and accessed off the Down Guildford. Originally it was 350 m long, but for years has been blocked at about 150 m, roughly where the third rail stops. The letter says the work will be continuous until the 29th January - somehow I doubt that's literally true!

So on Sunday night a couple of digger RRVs^▸ (Road Rail Vehicle) were unloaded (by Quattro, the owners), and an engineering train or two turned up. By Monday they'd obviously ripped up the old track and dug out the ballast, and had started "ground works". For some reason they seem to be preparing a layer of coal to put the ballast on ... I've no idea why.

But why is it now needed? I has been too short for 8-car, let alone the now-standard 10-car, trains for years. I've not even seen a Turbo in it recently, only the odd RHTT^▸ (Rail Head Treatment Train). I guess SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) have identified a need for parking the odd train there, and presumably did so some time ago to get the work signed off and booked into the EAS. One limitation on its use is that the siding is not accessible from the Up line (platform 1 ) - there is mention of "track replacement", but it's unlikely that will be more than the siding itself.

[stuving]

Here's a picture from Monday. The safety fencing had been put in in advance - if "safety" is the right word. I can see a tiny little trip hazard - can you? The siding is down beside the advancing train.

The work on the roof the signallers' outhouse is coincidental, and it's not clear what they are up to yet. This box is due to be recontrolled to Feltham ROC^▸ (Rail Operating Centre - a centralised location for railway signalling and train control operations for a specific route or region) soon, though I don't think it was part of the last announcement by Grant Shapps of the Government's largesse - "?9.74 million for signalling and infrastructure enhancements delivered on the Wessex route at Twickenham, Bracknell and Virginia Water as part of the Feltham and Wokingham Signalling Renewal Programme, which will help improve the reliability and flexibility of services starting from Easter 2021". Maybe it's a sun lounge, for underemployed signallers.

[stuving]

We've all noticed how whatever work gets done on the railways costs far more than looks reasonable. So how big a job is relaying a siding? A hundred years ago, when we had already had mechanical cranes and shovels for decades (and were replacing steam ones by petrol or diesel), you'd have said a gang of ten blokes for a couple of weeks would be more than enough. But now it's going to take more than two months, not counting the new year break.

The first point is that the contractor is not a small local one, but AMCO-Giffen of Barnsley - second level, behind the really big boys. The current activity was a bloke on a mini 'dozer (an RRV^▸ (Road Rail Vehicle) one), who had two helpers to stand watching and wave their arms. There was another one too, sitting peering at his phone.

There is also a nearby works site, with a pair of office cabins plonked next to what is now the something shed. (It was a men's shed when it opened only two years ago, but not for long.) There were at least three more staff here, doing ... whatever. I'm sure it all makes perfect sense to someone!

[CyclingSid]

More activity than Reading Green Park. The last few times I have been down there, not a sign of the workers. Compared with the large multi-storey building next to the down line it is snails pace (if that isn't insulting to snails).

[bobm]

The building next to the box at Wokingham is the relay room.   Apparently earlier this week the work caused a leak in the roof and various electrical components were doused in water.

[stuving]

The building next to the box at Wokingham is the relay room.   Apparently earlier this week the work caused a leak in the roof and various electrical components were doused in water.

It looks a lot of scaffolding if the work is just to relay the roofing felt. Which would be a bit ironic, of course.

[eightonedee]

The first point is that the contractor is not a small local one, but AMCO-Giffen of Barnsley - second level, behind the really big boys. The current activity was a bloke on a baby 'dozer (and RRV^▸ (Road Rail Vehicle) one), who had two helpers to stand watching and wave their arms. There was another one too, sitting peering at his phone.

There is also a nearby works site, with a pair of office cabins plonked next to what is now the something shed. (It was a men's shed when it opened only two years ago, but not for long.) There were at least three more staff here, doing ... whatever. I'm sure it all makes perfect sense to someone!

Someone better let them know that "time and motion" Stuving is on their case - might make them speed up a bit!

[Fourbee]

If it's not for EMUs^▸ (Electric Multiple Unit) then it maybe it is for DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit), 769s? Or would they have fitted in with the previous length?

[stuving]

If it's not for EMUs^▸ (Electric Multiple Unit) then it maybe it is for DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit), 769s? Or would they have fitted in with the previous length?

I'm sure it was easily long enough, though I can't find a picture of where the marker was. This year's TPR^▸ (The Pensions Regulator) has its length as 8 cars, which agrees with what I estimated as 150 m (ish).

[stuving]

Another weekend, another mob of track workers out - in the rain, this time. About ten certainly working on the siding on Sunday, but there were at least twice as many from other contractors so probably doing other stuff. As you can see, yesterday we got some sleepers, and by today (last pic) they run the full length. Still about ten people doing the usual vital work: watching the sleepers, moving long bits of wood from place to place, etc. ...

[CyclingSid]

Excuse my eyeballs, but I can't make out sufficient detail, are those sleepers suitable for third rail?

[Electric train]

The building next to the box at Wokingham is the relay room.   Apparently earlier this week the work caused a leak in the roof and various electrical components were doused in water.

It looks a lot of scaffolding if the work is just to relay the roofing felt. Which would be a bit ironic, of course.

After a very serious incident 2 years ago where a technician received electrical burns in a traction power substation, the flash over was caused by water ingress into the build' a survey of all operational buildings containing operational electrical were surveyed.   A plan is being worked through to repair building roofs in a number of types / age of buildings its been decided to remove to old roofing and renew it with a modern system.

Excuse my eyeballs, but I can't make out sufficient detail, are those sleepers suitable for third rail?

   
it may not be an electrified siding in which case no need for third rail sleepers

The first point is that the contractor is not a small local one, but AMCO-Giffen of Barnsley - second level, behind the really big boys. The current activity was a bloke on a mini 'dozer (and RRV^▸ (Road Rail Vehicle) one), who had two helpers to stand watching and wave their arms. There was another one too, sitting peering at his phone.

Network Rail (NR^» (Network Rail - home page)) was required by DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) and ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) to reduce costs by the use of Framework Contractors, each Route tendered out the Framework.  These contracts were multi discipline the Framework contractor then employing sub Framework contractors / suppliers.
These Framework and subs are in the main from large National companies.

Is it cheaper, more efficient etc ............... who knows!

Edit: VickiS - Clarifying Acronym

[ellendune]

NR^» (Network Rail - home page) was required by DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) and ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) to reduce costs by the use of Framework Contractors, each Route tendered out the Framework.  These contracts were multi discipline the Framework contractor then employing sub Framework contractors / suppliers.
These Framework and subs are in the main from large National companies.

Is it cheaper, more efficient etc ............... who knows!

I am very skeptical about cost savings from frameworks contracts as they currently operate.  They certainly reduce the clients management costs, but in many cases the levels of sub-contracts can be significant.  So you have the tier 1 contractor subcontracting to a tier 2 to a tier 3 etc.. Each contractor takes a cut and communication gets lost so I have seen requirements in the original contract watered down or lost by the 3rd tier as the price has been committed by the main contractor and each tier needs to pay for its cut! 

Perhaps it is because the contracts are trying to be too much of a good thing. 

In these systems smaller contractors only get a bite of the cake by working for their larger rivals. This leads to a situation similar to the supermarkets and farmers where the smaller contractors are screwed down on price (and do sometimes therefore do a bad job) to pay for the margins of those in between. 

[stuving]

Excuse my eyeballs, but I can't make out sufficient detail, are those sleepers suitable for third rail?

Well, the concrete castings are - they have the fixing holes for chairs - but there are none with chairs fitted. I'd have thought that these days they'd have to be factory fitted - you can't just clip them down using those holes can you? I can't make out any maker's name, but they do have a number - 5894 - on one end. Oddly, they have all been laid with that number on the same (east) side but the chair fixing holes are a random mixture of that side and the other. I can't imagine how they get manufactured that way.

But if it's not to be electric, it does remove the only obvious use for a siding. Based on pre-Covid plans, of course, SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) should be moving up to 4 tph all day, so if there's a hold-up on the Reading side they can rapidly end up with too many trains in one place. If a driver is missing (out of hours, for example) or the capacity for returning trains towards Waterloo is a limitation, a parking place would be a good idea.

But if it's not SWR's trains, it's hard to see why it needed lengthening - unless the track was now so rough it had been declared unfit for DMU^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit) habitation and longer is better. Unless it is foreseen that there will be multiple failures of 769s, even of just one engine, so they have to be pulled out of service ...

[Electric train]

Excuse my eyeballs, but I can't make out sufficient detail, are those sleepers suitable for third rail?

Well, the concrete castings are - they have the fixing holes for chairs - but there are none with chairs fitted. I'd have thought that these days they'd have to be factory fitted - you can't just clip them down using those holes can you? I can't make out any maker's name, but they do have a number - 5894 - on one end. Oddly, they have all been laid with that number on the same (east) side but the chair fixing holes are a random mixture of that side and the other. I can't imagine how they get manufactured that way.

All the moulds on the production line will all be orientated in the same direction, if i remember correctly there are 10 sleepers per mould.  Sleepers tend to come pre clipped, for third rail there will be 4 holes on each side to anchor the pot, these holes are onl6 12mm dia and may be plugged to prevent unused ones filling with water and potential freeze cracking the sleeper end