Reading Station improvements

[whole diary]

[ellendune]

I was concerned that there was a lot of work to do on the south side before the new underpass could be used, which I assume needs to be by 1st March?

The use of precast modular construction for the ramps is certainly fast and I am sure these will be done in time now, but the plan shows steps from the entrance of the underpass up towards the station building. These seem to be under the blue site huts.  Do we know when these will be moved?

There still seems a lot of work to do before 1st March if this entrance is to be in use by then.

[IndustryInsider]

I'm with Paul on this one.  An extended Xmas break for the workers suggests all is well within hand.  I'm sure there'll be the odd snagging works to do here and there after opening, but Easter is still a fair way away - eleven weeks should be plenty of time.

[Electric train]

To an outsider looking in to a project it can often seem illogical why things are done in the order they are and can seem madness that something is not happening on part of the site that seems dormant.  There will be very detailed plans in place there are a number of activities that done mix and have to be kept separated, also contract strategy comes into play don't want lots of staff sitting around doing nowt. 

All large projects have to go through a risk review at 11 weeks to go the Reading project teams will have had a 12 week go no-go assessment, there are a number of other assessments the next key one will be 6 weeks, this not held at 6 weeks but a week or so before.  After 6 weeks there is a 4 week and the 2 week at which stage they can go to daily.

There   

[johngreg]

I was lucky to go on a site visit of the Reading station works in late November (purely as a "tourist") The introduction presentations, and the site itself underline the scale of the job and emphasised to me the last posting about the projects, within projects and all the timetabled checks. The number of different contractors on site during my time there and the obvious co-ordination of them was very impressive.

Thank-you to the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) staff that arranged the visit.

[paul7575]

Another point is that the definition of 'finished' is fairly flexible.  Some of the detailed finishing touches might not be made by early April - I suppose the opposite sort of thing to removing the roofs from original platforms while they were still open, for example.

As long as the new parts of the station are safe for passenger use, there's no need for them to be at absolute 100% completion, 99% might be good though!

Similarly outside the station south side, are the alterations to the old bus station area by Reading BC included in 'completed', or by early March (when the car park link closes) will NR^» (Network Rail - home page) and others only have to provide a safe route through a building site controlled by those others?  Potentially passengers affected might have to turn right and walk to the end of the ramps, then double back towards the station.  (By the way the first prefabricated step sections are going in this afternoon...)

Paul

[IndustryInsider]

As long as the new parts of the station are safe for passenger use, there's no need for them to be at absolute 100% completion, 99% might be good though!

Hence my comment on snagging works.

[ellendune]

Similarly outside the station south side, are the alterations to the old bus station area by Reading BC included in 'completed', or by early March (when the car park link closes) will NR^» (Network Rail - home page) and others only have to provide a safe route through a building site controlled by those others?  Potentially passengers affected might have to turn right and walk to the end of the ramps, then double back towards the station. 

A diagram of the walking route is now shown on the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) website

Looks very direct, but then it is only a diagram.

Also lists what services will use each platform.

[bobm]

Makes you wonder who the leaflet is aimed at when it mentions Up and Down trains - to say nothing of freight trains on platforms 12 and 15!   

[paul7575]

Seems a lot simpler than what the online train times sites are showing...

Eg XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) are down for 8,9,10,13 & 14 at various times. Nothing about 13/14 being split either...

Suggesting the Paddington stoppers all go from P13 will be quite amusing for people stood there watching the next one leave from P14... 

Paul

[EBrown]

Yes I agree Bobm, perhaps if up and down were defined somewhere or were maybe something slightly more common sense like North/South East/West London/Penzance etc.

[IndustryInsider]

Two comments on that web page:

1) Up to 15 minutes extra - that's an extraordinary amount of time to allow for that walk, even if you are at the top of the multi-storey and want to board a train at the extreme end of Platform 4! Hopefully the actual difference in practice will be less than 5 minutes. 
2) It seems to hint that only part of the transfer deck will be opening after Easter with access to Platforms 1-7 still via the subway.  Or am I reading that incorrectly?

[swrural]

Yes I agree Bobm, perhaps if up and down were defined somewhere or were maybe something slightly more common sense like North/South East/West London/Penzance etc.

Perhaps with all this recent publicity (NR^» (Network Rail - home page) 2014 - 2109 plans, tube 150, floods, etc) they think we are all rail buffs now. 

Could be.  In Reading we always said 'up to London' when we lived there, as we have wherever we lived in the West Country.

I see FGW^▸ (First Great Western) apparently thinks the WoE is west of Castle Cary whereas in Bath, Weston, Thornbury (and to a much, much, lesser extent College Green) they think it's the greater Bristol area.  By the way I had to look up where the pulsating centre of South Glos was to find out it was the vibrant metropolis of Thornbury (shortly to be rail connected it must be acknowledged).

[paul7575]

Two comments on that web page:
 
2) It seems to hint that only part of the transfer deck will be opening after Easter with access to Platforms 1-7 still via the subway.  Or am I reading that incorrectly?

I agree it looks odd the way they've written that bit.  It implies an absolutely massive problem for interchanging if they are correct.  Perhaps they are basing it on starting from the north side it will be slightly quicker to go that way rather than all the way up and over the transfer deck, and then down to ground level again?   

An alternative possibility - perhaps it really only applies to the period between Tuesday 2nd and Monday 8th April, when the entire service is being run through P12-15, and P8-11 will all be closed?  After all the second diagram is captioned 'fully operational from 8th April' at the top...

Daftest aspect of the first drawing (that I think we've failed to mention so far) is that they've probably started with an existing sketch and adapted the Vastern Rd bridge to become the existing footbridge. Hence it being shown passing over the far ends of the Southern platforms and the new junctions?   

Paul

[John R]

Makes you wonder who the leaflet is aimed at when it mentions Up and Down trains - to say nothing of freight trains on platforms 12 and 15!   

I think it's reasonably explicit in stating "from Didcot direction" or similar, in addition to the use of up or down. Though maybe wouldn't get the crystal mark for plain English. 

[animationmilo]

Are they still diverting trains via Banbury on weekend 5th to 8th April?