The Railway Magazine – July 2019

West Coast closure

planned by NR

at Acton Grange

NETWORK Rail will be closing

theWest Coast Main Line at

Acton Grange Jct between

July 20 and August 4 for a

£27million project to upgrade

track, cabling, overhead lines

and signalling.

Passengers travelling

between Crewe and Preston

will face diversions or

rail-replacement coach services.

Services to Chester will also

be affected.

Class 720 testing

begins at Old Dalby

TESTING of Greater Anglia’s

Class 720‘Aventra’EMU has

started at the Old Dalby test

track.

It had been expected testing

would begin in January, but

software issues with the train

management control system

has prevented this.

It was a similar problem

which delayed the Class 710

EMUs into service on the Gospel

Oak to Barking route.

HullTrains bi-mode to

arrive in September

THE first set of a five-train

£60million order by HullTrains

of Hitachi Class 802 bi-mode

units is due to arrive in the UK

at the end of August.

The sets are being built at

Pistoia, Italy, using bodyshells

manufactured in Kasado,

Japan.

The first set is expected to

be in use by November.

First train on Northern

Line extension

A BATTERY-powered

engineering train has become

the first train to run the

complete length of the London

Underground’s Northern Line

extension from Kennington to

Battersea.

The working was used to

take power cables into the

tunnel.

The extension is due to

open in 2021.

SIDELINES

10 •The Railway Magazine• July 2019

3 4

1 2

HeadlineNews

Railways in

Parliament

£1.7billion benefits

ROMFORD MP Andrew Rosindell asked

what recent assessments have been

made of the potential merits of increasing

the rail freight capacity for the economy.

Transport Minister Andrew Jones

said:“Rail freight offers benefits for

the environment, helps reduce road

congestion, and is extremely important

to UK businesses.

“Industry estimates that rail freight

delivers economic benefits, including

cost savings to industry, environmental

benefits and road congestion relief of

around £1.7billion per year.

“The Government published a Rail

Freight Strategy to provide a stable

policy framework to enable rail freight

to grow and achieve its potential.The

Government is committed to working

with the rail freight industry to support its

continued success.

“To support future growth of the rail

freight industry the Secretary of State also

confirmed that Government intends to

continue investment in improving the rail

freight network in Control Period 6

(2019-2024) as part of the regulatory

funding settlement.

“The department is working with

Network Rail and the freight industry

to identify options for future funding,

including capacity improvements.”

The Rail Freight Strategy can be found

at: https://tinyurl.com/yxjpn6hf

Spotlight on freight

CLEETHORPES MP MartinVickers asked

the Secretary of State forTransport, what

estimate the Department forTransport

has made of the potential effect on the

viability of rail freight of a 25% reduction

in mode shift revenue support.

Mr Jones replied:“The Government

provides grants worth £15.6million per

year to support rail and water freight

services, which deliver environmental and

economic benefits over road transport,

but whose operating costs are higher.

This level is net of a significant efficiency

saving implemented since 2015.

“Rail flows of intermodal freight

continue to be healthy and the grants

deliver high value for money. A research

project is underway to inform decisions

about future funding and operation of

the grants and will consider stakeholder

feedback.”

Trans-Pennine alternative

LORD GREAVES asked Her Majesty’s

Government in the House of Lords,

further to the announcement by the

Secretary of State forTransport, whether

they have commissioned further studies

into the possible reinstatement and

reopening of the Colne to Skipton line as

part of a trans-Pennine freight line and for

local passenger services; and if so, who is

undertaking those studies.

BaronessVere of Norbiton replied:

“Work is progressing and we expect

to receive the results later this year to

inform a decision as to whether the

scheme should go to the‘develop’

stage of the Government’s Rail Network

Enhancements Pipeline.

“Local stakeholders, including the

local MP Andrew Stephenson, have

championed the scheme, and we are

working closely withTransport for the

North to assess the proposed scheme and

to ensure that it can be affordable, will

attract sufficient traffic, and is part

of the right long-term solution for cross

trans-Pennine rail traffic.

“This is part of our new approach to

rail enhancements to ensure we address

the needs of passengers and freight, and

that funding commitments appropriately

reflect the stage of development of

schemes.”

by

Jon Longman

By CliffThomas and Chris Milner

THEVale of Rheidol Railway’s (VoR)

new Aberystwyth station was the

first of three narrow gauge stations

to be formally opened in the

province during June.

On June 6, Lord Dafydd Elis-

Thomas AM, Deputy Minister

for Culture, Sport andTourism,

officially opened the first phase of

the £2.2millionWales to theWorld

transformation of its terminus

(RMDec 2018).

This has encompassed

construction of new platforms to

relocate the station opposite the

former GWR loco shed, some 200

yards from its previous location in

the standard-gauge platforms of

Aberystwyth station.

The station entrance, now

immediately oppositeVoR’s car

park, leads into a new booking

office and shop.The platforms

feature a new toilet block in the

style of a GWR Pagoda building,

a waiting shelter and 1930’s style

lamps and posts.

Striking

The project has involved

significant remodelling of the

track arrangement and signalling

together with provision of revised

water and coaling arrangements.

On June 14, Caernarfon’s striking

new £3m terminus of theWelsh

Highland Railway was opened

by Sir Peter Luff, chairman of the

National Heritage Lottery Fund.

The station opened in a restricted

form last December for‘Santa’

trains, and was fully opened in

March.

The new £3m station – partly

funded by the European Regional

Development Fund through

theWelsh Government -– is a

key part of the £16mWaterfront

Three Welsh narrow gauge

stationsopeninaweek

1.View of Vale of Rheidol’s

(VoR) new Aberystwyth

station. The entrance from the

car park leads into the new

booking office and shop, with

the former GWR loco shed in

the background. The VoR’s

workshop facility is in the

background to the right.

CLIFF THOMAS

2.The finished station at

Waunfawr is a perfect addition

to facilities on the Welsh

Highland Railway.

CHRIS MILNER

3.Lord Dafydd Wigley and

Dr John Prideaux (chairman

of the Festiniog Railway

Company and the Ffestiniog

& Welsh Highland Railways)

prepare for a simultaneous

cutting of a ribbon to mark the

opening of Waunfawr station.

On the extreme left is new FR

president, Mike Schumann.

4.The contemporary exterior

of the Welsh Highland Railway

terminus in Caernarfon.

CHRIS MILNER

Development Project.

In addition to museum, shop

and cafe facilities opening daily,

providing a new focal point for the

town, the new station offers space

for exhibitions and events, and will

support seven full time posts.

After the June 14 opening,

guests were taken toWaunfawr for

a second station opening by Lord

DafyddWigley.

Here, the original 19th century

building was dismantled in order

to re-align the track to provide an

island platform.The remains were

labelled and stored for future use,

and thanks to a donation by Mike

Schumann, construction work on

the new building started during

autumn last year.

Contrast

The new building evokes the

era of the original WHR station,

but also provides a stark

contrast to the 21st century

building at Caernarfon.

During the ceremony, it was

announced Mike Schumann had

accepted the post of president of

the Festiniog Railway Company.

Mr Schumann, who first

volunteered at the FfR in 1956,

was heavily involved with the

Dduallt deviation, and has made

a substantial contribution to

the railway, both financial and

time served as a director of the

company and an FfWHR trustee.