Reading Station improvements

[whole diary]

[CCTV99]

Looking at RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) for late April, we see most if not all passenger trains heading from Up Westbury (UW) towards London use the Festival Lines into P10 or P11 at Reading which is perfectly logical.

And the heavy freights from UW towards London for which the ^freight only^ (according to FGW^▸ (First Great Western)/NR^» (Network Rail - home page) publicity a couple of years ago) Festival Lines were supposedly provided to avoid a flat crossing over the UM, DM and DR east of Reading?  Well, most if not all are routed via P7 and cross the DM, UM and DR on the flat at Kennett Bridge!

Someone please tell me this is only temporary.  Or was I right about the gradients?.   

Festival Lines?
Don't you mean Feeder Lines?

[stuving]

Someone please tell me this is only temporary.  Or was I right about the gradients?.   

There are some notes about timing freights over the Feeder Relief Line in the Timetable Planning Rules, so draw your own conclusions.

It is planned that freights will normally use the Feeder Relief Line  (But note, here these lines are still labelled UFM and DFR.):

Reading Signal T1728 DFR:
Up Trains on the Down Feeder Relief of less than 4400t to be timed to stop here where it would otherwise be necessary to add pathing time approaching Reading.

But, just in case:

Reading Signal T1726 UFM:
Up Trains on the Up Feeder Main of less than 4400t to be timed to stop here where it would otherwise be necessary to add pathing time approaching Reading.

Those two signals are on the slope up into the station, so clearly the gradient is no problem for most trains - better to stop there than to hang about further south, getting in the way. For the heaviest ones it's different. Under "Reading: Adjustment to Sectional Running Time (to be shown approaching this location)" is says:

No additional allowance is to be added to freight schedules over 4400t approaching Reading coming from Oxford Road Jn on the Feeder Relief Line. This is due to the curvature and incline. All additional time to be added as pathing approaching Southcote Jn or Oxford Road Jn or to be added as a dwell in Reading Station.

So evidently they are going to take this route, but not wait at that point. I don't think there is any suggestion they might not start again, just that it would have to be done so slowly it is worth avoiding.  The curve, I take it, places a limit on the tractive effort that can safely be applied, and how well force gets distributed along the train. I can't find the posts now, but I'm sure we established that the rise from the feeder box is quite small, and the slope so short, that the average gradient felt by a long train is not that adverse. 

The EAS did say for the Easter blockade that the Feeder Lines would open after it. However, there are still a lot of possessions labelled  "RSAR" after that, so maybe something down Westbury way will not be properly finished until a bit later.

[CCTV99]

And the heavy freights from UW towards London for which the ^freight only^ Feeder Lines were supposedly provided to avoid a flat crossing over the UM, DM and DR east of Reading? 
Well, most if not all are routed via P7 and cross the DM, UM and DR on the flat at Kennett Bridge!

It's not most or all.
As an example, on Thursday 24th April.....
There are 4 Up stone trains in excess of 4000 tonnes that route via platform 7 (other days some are via platform 8 ).
However there are 5 others (4000 tonnes plus) which route via the Feeder Lines and via platforms 13 & 15.

The 2 heaviest (4800 tonnes) route via platform 7, but one of those passes at 0300.
The other passes through platform 7 at 1039 when the relief platforms are either occupied or about to be.

Those 5 Up trains routing via the Feeder Lines, are listed as 4400 & 4200 tonnes, the same as the other 2 passing through platform 7.

Also note, that there are lighter Up freights (2000 tonnes or less) routing from the Westbury Line, that also route via platforms 7 & 8 and cross over to the reliefs at Kennet Bridge, in addition to other similarly loaded freights that will use the Feeder Lines.
This might suggest that there are pathing reasons for using this routing, rather than using the Feeder Lines at those particular times.

?

[W5tRailfinder]

Its not only the UPs that are routing via platform 7, the down empties are also routing that way as well.

By the way, whats happening on the ground? Not had anything since the new year. Obviously what work that is going on now is only visible from trains or with binoculars from the station.

[eightf48544]

My cousin reported an interesting working on a Cross Country from Birmingham to Southampton. The guard annouced "Don't be alarmed we will stop at Reading but not this time."

And apparently they went through the platform (high number) and stopped at Kennet bridge and reversed to 7 or 8 for the station stop. He asked the guard if this was usual and was told yes up until April. Presumably it's when a through train runs Up Relief from Didcot.

[paul7575]

This is the standard route for the southbound Southampton service that leaves Reading on weekdays around 1220. Normally 1215 in the standard timings presumably the 5 mins extra allows for the greater distance covered, and the driver changing ends.

This was happening every hour last Sunday with the Bournemouth services, with the flyover shut for engineering works, however on the Saturday the solution involved Bournemouth trains using the west curve to bypass the station. (Mentioned earlier this week.)

Paul 

[Gordon the Blue Engine]

Thanks Paul.  1O84 0725 Newcastle - Soton has an interesting routeing through Reading, it's shown as approaching Reading on the UR, passing through P15 without stopping, reversing in Kennet Loop, and then finally stopping in P7 at 1218.  Now that's going to give passengers alighting at Reading a bit of a surprise.

Yes, we discussed this move earlier.  I think the conclusion was that a "run through, reverse and stop" move is not unusual at times of disruption or over a weekend etc of engineering work, but you don't normally get them for 4 months!

[paul7575]

Yes, we discussed this move earlier.  I think the conclusion was that a "run through, reverse and stop" move is not unusual at times of disruption or over a weekend etc of engineering work, but you don't normally get them for 4 months!

I thought we'd mentioned it but I didn't search that far back    so that must have been when we were discussing the Jan timetable well in advance, and now in the last few pages we're discussing stuff that happens in May...

Situation normal then...

Paul

[Adelante_CCT]

Sunday 1st March 1Z61 08:58 Pad to Cardiff, 09:56 off RDG^‡(resolve). At the moment RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) has it down as P9 then RW Junc though a: this is not possible and b: no trains are using P12-P15 nor the relief lines all the way up to and including Didcot (XCs^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) and Oxfords are reversing at Foxhall) therefore RTT will change, but I'm assuming this will be the first steam over the flyover.

Note: on UKSteam it has "diesel at rear ?" Presumably this may be needed to help push from Reading.

[CCTV99]

Note: on UKSteam it has "diesel at rear ?" Presumably this may be needed to help push from Reading.

Don't they always have diesel at the rear as required by NR^» (Network Rail - home page) as insurance against failure?

[paul7575]

With all this extra freight from Southampton heading through Reading to reach the WCML^▸ (West Coast Main Line), and the latest news that the Harbury cutting failure will last for "several weeks" - I was wondering, if they increased resources at Reading, if they could get at least the Relief Feeder line opened somewhat earlier than planned?

Paul

 

[stuving]

With all this extra freight from Southampton heading through Reading to reach the WCML^▸ (West Coast Main Line), and the latest news that the Harbury cutting failure will last for "several weeks" - I was wondering, if they increased resources at Reading, if they could get at least the Relief Feeder line opened somewhat earlier than planned?

I had a look down the ex-mains alignment with binoculars yesterday. All I could see was big heaps of stuff and yellow machines to push them around. So no, it doesn't look at all close to laying track - not without a very special effort, at least.

[paul7575]

I expect there's a lot to do, but if they've about 8 weeks to go you might expect the track to be down in a month's time or so.   Might still help with capacity for a few weeks even if we're getting into March.

Paul

[stuving]

How long would it take the lawyers to sort out the implications for the current contracts?

[TonyK]

How long would it take the lawyers to sort out the implications for the current contracts?

The first week would be spent sorting out the contracts for the lawyers who will sort out the said implications.

The second week belongs to the accountants...