Western Rail Access To Heathrow (WRATH) - merged topics

[whole diary]

[ChrisB]

Probably simply a press conference to launch the meetings above

[a-driver]

Lovely, if it'll be anything like Airport Junction it'll be yet another location we get checked down to a stand to allow a Heathrow train to proceed in front of us!

[Electric train]

On my our local radio station (which I call dross FM due to choice of music and inane talk) there was a news article which refered to the proposed rail link from Heathrow to Reading - but I can't find anything new about this ? Have I missed something ?

There is nothing like regurgitating old news as new news, especially when a General Election is looming

[BerkshireBugsy]

On my our local radio station (which I call dross FM due to choice of music and inane talk) there was a news article which refered to the proposed rail link from Heathrow to Reading - but I can't find anything new about this ? Have I missed something ?

There is nothing like regurgitating old news as new news, especially when a General Election is looming

Oh you cynic ET....

[paul7575]

On my our local radio station (which I call dross FM due to choice of music and inane talk) there was a news article which refered to the proposed rail link from Heathrow to Reading - but I can't find anything new about this ? Have I missed something ?

There is nothing like regurgitating old news as new news, especially when a General Election is looming

So should NR^» (Network Rail - home page) cease all normal activity because there happens to be a general election coming up?  DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) asked for this in the CP5^▸ (Control Period 5 - the five year period between 2014 and 2019) HLOS^▸ (High Level Output Specification - the DfT's High Level Output Specification, which has specified to Network Rail the outputs that need to be delivered within a Control Period (CP)), so as per last April's enhancement milestones NR are consulting prior to their single option selection decision in November 2015.  Perhaps it would be better if they stopped work for a few months?

Paul

[BerkshireBugsy]

@paul7755 - I certainly wasn't suggesting that NR^» (Network Rail - home page) stop work whilst there is an election imminent. I think my question was more along the lines of "is this new news"

[paul7575]

@paul7755 - I certainly wasn't suggesting that NR^» (Network Rail - home page) stop work whilst there is an election imminent. I think my question was more along the lines of "is this new news"

I agree, it isn't new news at all, it is minor news of a planning stage being reached. 

I was really trying to contradict Electric train's view that this was some sort of pre-election stunt (which is why I quoted his response). If on the other hand the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) themselves had issued little more than an empty 'puff piece' then I'd agree with him.

This definitely seems to be NR going through normal processes.  The problem is that the NR GRIP^▸ (Guide to Railway Investment Projects - Network Rail's process for project management of schemes through development and implementation) process for enhancements, and the 5 year (railway) control periods overseen by ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road, formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)'s timescales (themselves imposed by the 2005 Railway Act), mean that nearly all major rail projects will overlap with the election cycle at some point.

PS, would it possibly better to combine this thread with the earlier thread in the London to the West forum:  http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=15298.0

Paul

[Chris from Nailsea]

PS, would it possibly better to combine this thread with the earlier thread in the London to the West forum:  http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=15298.0

Paul

Fair comment, Paul: I've now moved and merged those topics here, on the London to Reading board. CfN. 

[Electric train]

@paul7755 - I certainly wasn't suggesting that NR^» (Network Rail - home page) stop work whilst there is an election imminent. I think my question was more along the lines of "is this new news"

I agree, it isn't new news at all, it is minor news of a planning stage being reached. 

I was really trying to contradict Electric train's view that this was some sort of pre-election stunt (which is why I quoted his response). If on the other hand the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) themselves had issued little more than an empty 'puff piece' then I'd agree with him.

This definitely seems to be NR going through normal processes.  The problem is that the NR GRIP^▸ (Guide to Railway Investment Projects - Network Rail's process for project management of schemes through development and implementation) process for enhancements, and the 5 year (railway) control periods overseen by ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road, formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)'s timescales (themselves imposed by the 2005 Railway Act), mean that nearly all major rail projects will overlap with the election cycle at some point.

PS, would it possibly better to combine this thread with the earlier thread in the London to the West forum:  http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=15298.0

Paul

I was probably being cynical I know only too well the Control Period cycle I live and breath GRIP  sad I know 

And yes this is NR going through process, I am certain that the political class will be making mileage out of it over the next few months

[stuving]

We seem, collectively, to have missed out on the formal consultation on WRAtH^▸ (Western Rail Access to Heathrow). This is with the planning inspectorate, who have a page on it here. There's a big scoping report, DfT^» (Department for Transport - about)'s reply and the consultation responses, plus some letters provided under the PI's new "openness policy". Note this is leading towards a DCO^▸ (Development Consent Order, or Driver Controlled Operation (that is, operation and dispatch of the train solely by the driver even with another member of staff on board), depending on context), not a TWA^▸ (Transport and Works Act 1992) application.

I didn't look very closely at Jacobs' 343-page effort, which is where the maps (of the track, and the newts etc) are. It does entirely exclude the option touted by NR^» (Network Rail - home page) of a possible grade-separated link to the Main Lines at Langley. It also says this:

Once built, the new rail link will provide a train service of four trains per hour in each direction between Heathrow Terminal 5 and Reading station. This could be a new direct service or an extension of planned Crossrail and / or current Heathrow Express services currently operating into Heathrow.
...
There is no planned impact on the existing service between Reading and Paddington.

(This thread continues the other one with WRAtH in its title.)

[grahame]

Would this ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03k2wdy ) be a through station to the western link?

[stuving]

Would this ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03k2wdy ) be a through station to the western link?

Well, it's no real secret that T5 was built to serve a through railway to somewhere. It was an implicit part of Airtrack. What's odd its that that BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) piece didn't mention the operating station, and how the two relate, nor the WRAtH^▸ (Western Rail Access to Heathrow) plans as such.

My mental picture was that there were two or three more platforms beside the operating ones, or space for them, connecting to the east. We know there are two tracks that run westwards as far as a wall; they could be from any of the platform tracks.

It's barely mentioned in that WRAtH scoping report - it doesn't need building, of course:

At the Heathrow end, there will be a cavern containing a rail crossover (which allows
trains to change tracks) which will also be constructed by the cut and cover method.
The last few hundred metres from this cavern will be a tunnel constructed using
spray concrete lining under the A3044 and Western Perimeter Road to connect with
the existing tunnels west of T5 station.

[JayMac]

There's certainly a lot of space in the T5 station underground cavern.

There are two 'safeguarded' platforms for future westward extension. Initially intended for Airtrack to Waterloo but could be used for WRAtH^▸ (Western Rail Access to Heathrow).

[stuving]

I think that BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) video piece is rather misleading. The words on the page say this "immense secret station" already has platforms, which is what I'd heard. But the huge caverns they show don't - I think that's spare basement space at the same level. I'd also heard of this basement as another T5 feature - it goes 22 m down, as well as 40 m up. I guess the, actually rather small, unused station space is not shown except maybe a glimpse at the end.

According to the architects' descriptions, the platforms have natural light from skylights in the "plaza". The plaza is at the ends of space between T5 proper and the bus road, and is meant to be a landscaped public space. I'd always just rushed past it and never noticed, like (I suspect) most people. Between the two parts of this plaza are some of those ETFE "plastic bags", forming skylights for the station - and it's not even a Grimshaw building!

[paul7575]

There's certainly a lot of space in the T5 station underground cavern.

There are two 'safeguarded' platforms for future westward extension. Initially intended for Airtrack to Waterloo but could be used for WRAtH^▸ (Western Rail Access to Heathrow).

A drawing in the Airtrack consultation showed the broad layout below ground, there are three main line gauge 'starter tunnels' extending westward, the middle one of three aligns with the future platform 2 and existing platform 3 track.

The most Northern extension of the four is the turn back siding for the Piccadilly line, they operate with one arrival and one departure platform, so that tunnel is longer.