East Kilbride/Barrhead electrification updates

[InOban]

One of the biggest uncertainties in determining the final cost will have been the relocation and building of Hairmyres Station and its associated road works. Given the inflation in construction costs it's hardly surprising that the numbers keep increasing.

 

[snowball]

This was reported in Scottish Govt Major capital projects progress update

So it was. I'd seen those figures and then forgotten them again.

So not as much inflation as I thought.

A little more info has appeared on the Scotland's Railway website, including a picture of Hairmyres station:

East Kilbride Enhancements

East Kilbride Enhancements

scotlandsrailway.com

To see the picture, click on the above, scroll down to "Full funding granted by Scottish Government" and click on that.

Full funding granted by Scottish Government

On 06 September 2023, Minister for Transport, Fiona Hyslop MSP, approved full funding for the delivery of the East Kilbride Enhancement Project.

This £139.8m investment from the Scottish Government will deliver:

Electrification of the route between East Kilbride and Glasgow,
A relocated accessible station at Hairmyres,
A new accessible station at East Kilbride,
A 1.4km extension of the existing loop at Hairmyres,
A new accessible station footbridge with lifts at Giffnock Station and platform extensions,
A new footbridge and additional station entrance at Clarkston station,
A new footbridge at Busby Station
The introduction of greener and cleaner electric trains from December 2025.

 

[d9009alycidon]

One of the biggest uncertainties in determining the final cost will have been the relocation and building of Hairmyres Station and its associated road works. Given the inflation in construction costs it's hardly surprising that the numbers keep increasing.

I am not entirely convinced that the relocation of Hairmyers Station is necessary, it moves it further away from the Hospital and surrounding homes. The only possible benefit is to build a bigger car park for park and ride, surely there is more land at Thorntonhall to facilitate this

 

[OB23Gone]

I am not entirely convinced that the relocation of Hairmyers Station is necessary, it moves it further away from the Hospital and surrounding homes. The only possible benefit is to build a bigger car park for park and ride, surely there is more land at Thorntonhall to facilitate this

Many people are using Hairmyers Hospital car park instead of the station car park. According to what I heard at 1 of the NR & Council "drop ins". This is a major problem apparently as staff, people trying to get to appointments, patient visitors etc are finding a parking place difficult to come bye. There will also be a bus interchange at the new Station as well as car charging points. Initially 320 parking spaces with opportunity for many more

 

[clc]

‘A new footbridge and additional station entrance at Clarkston station’

Would the additional entrance be from the Goods Yard car park? Would make sense.

 

[gingertom]

what about the road bridge at Clarkston station, any word on what the plans are for it?

 

[snowball]

A question this week in the Scottish parliament asked about the decarbonisation programme. The answer mentioned no other schemes except Barrhead and EK.

Question reference: S6W-21056

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 September 2023
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 6 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress with the decarbonisation of rail services.

Answer

I can confirm that excellent progress is being made with the Scottish Government’s rolling programme of electrification. The Glasgow to Barrhead line will see electric services operating on the route from December 2023. Indeed Network Rail and its contractors have recently successfully completed a six week programme of key installation work to facilitate the electrification works and changes at various stations along the line of route. I would like to thank passengers for their patience during these works.

I can also confirm that I have now approved full funding for the delivery of the East Kilbride Enhancement Project. This will deliver electrification of the route, a relocated station at Hairmyres, a new accessible station at East Kilbride, accessibility works at other stations and a 1.4km extension of the Hairmyres double track section to enhance operational resilience and flexibility of service on the route. This project represents a further £139.8m commitment from this Government which will contribute to our wider net zero objectives and will enable the introduction of electric services on the route from December 2025.

Both of these projects were priorities of our Rail Services Decarbonisation Action Plan which was published in July 2020. In line with commitments for review within the Action Plan a refresh will be published later this year reflecting current progress and the expected budgetary position.

I think the claim of "excellent progress" might be called optimistic. The rate of electrification will have to be increased many times over if they are to meet their target dates.

 

[Falcon1200]

The only possible benefit is to build a bigger car park for park and ride, surely there is more land at Thorntonhall to facilitate this

Building a P&R at Thorntonhall would require not just tarmaccing over fields but also constructing a new road to the site; And this in an area of exclusive/expensive houses!

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

So it was. I'd seen those figures and then forgotten them again.

So not as much inflation as I thought.

A little more info has appeared on the Scotland's Railway website, including a picture of Hairmyres station:

East Kilbride Enhancements

East Kilbride Enhancements

scotlandsrailway.com

To see the picture, click on the above, scroll down to "Full funding granted by Scottish Government" and click on that.

This branch was ideal for BEMUs would have been better off deploying the 140m over to the Fife side now especially as they are paying for the feeder stations already.

 

[Bald Rick]

This branch was ideal for BEMUs would have been better off deploying the 140m over to the Fife side now especially as they are paying for the feeder stations already.

Indeed so. I know it was considered but Battery EMUs weren’t quite there yet when the design was being done 5 years back.

 

[kaysha]

Remember the original plan was for double tracking all the way to EK. Once that was descoped I think it would have been a step to far to further scrap full electrification of the line.

 

[route101]

Remember the original plan was for double tracking all the way to EK. Once that was descoped I think it would have been a step to far to further scrap full electrification of the line.

I was worried at one point that was the case. I thought the second platform at East Kilbride had been dropped but may be still on.

 

[anthannan]

Thanks, I've edited it now. December 2025 is just about compatible with the "autumn 2025" in #1601!

As Autumn ends on the 20th December it certainly is

 

[snowball]

As Autumn ends on the 20th December it certainly is

Other definitions of autumn are available, such as the one used by the Met Office, which ends on 30 November.

 

[vic-rijrode]

Other definitions of autumn are available, such as the one used by the Met Office, which ends on 30 November.

Given the weather that we're currently experiencing, the Met Office definition that we are now in Autumn has always struck me as one of computer convenience and rather daft. Early June is often cooler than mid September yet is classed as "Summer". I may have missed the info on this thread, but having passed through Busby Junction last Thursday on a Glasgow to Carlisle trip, I thought that all the wiring is done both on the Barrhead line and the EK branch as far as I could see. Others may have a more accurate status.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Given the weather that we're currently experiencing, the Met Office definition that we are now in Autumn has always struck me as one of computer convenience and rather daft. Early June is often cooler than mid September yet is classed as "Summer".

It's most likely down to the would-be convenience of having a simple three-months-to-a-season system - aka, Winter DEC JAN FEB, Spring MAR APR MAY, Summer JUN JUL AUG and Autumn SEP OCT NOV (or as I like to call them, the _ber months )

 

[snowball]

Getting off topic (and on to a topic that has been discussed in numerous threads) but temperature isn't everything. Daylight length is much less in September than June and that's also a relevant factor.

Pity there's no on-topic news.

 

[380101]

Given the weather that we're currently experiencing, the Met Office definition that we are now in Autumn has always struck me as one of computer convenience and rather daft. Early June is often cooler than mid September yet is classed as "Summer". I may have missed the info on this thread, but having passed through Busby Junction last Thursday on a Glasgow to Carlisle trip, I thought that all the wiring is done both on the Barrhead line and the EK branch as far as I could see. Others may have a more accurate status.

Wiring from Muirhouse to Barrhead is complete, but not yet live. They are still fitting some additional components to the top of some of the portal frames which look like anti-surge protection.

Wiring on the EK branch goes as far as just before Thornliebank station. No overhead structures in place beyond this. Some piles have been done between Giffnock and Clarkston on the down line.

 

[Macwomble]

I take it there's still no word on what's to happen about the road bridge at Clarkston Toll.

....or have I missed something

 

[Southsider]

I take it there's still no word on what's to happen about the road bridge at Clarkston Toll.

....or have I missed something

Nothing yet but, according to the Daily Record, the funding for the branch has been formally approved.

 

[snowball]

Nothing yet but, according to the Daily Record, the funding for the branch has been formally approved.

No need to rely on the Daily Record, in was in the press release on Wednesday (#1615).

 

[Southsider]

Another ‘Railway Neighbour’ letter has arrived telling us that the Scottish Government has approved funding and they aim to finish by December 2025, so nothing new there. No explanation of why the previous letters notifying us of imminent works came to nothing.

 

[John R]

If the rate of progress is completion of a short branch (under 10 miles) every 2 years, it’s going to take a very long time for this allegedly rolling programme to produce any meaningful reduction in carbon emissions of Scotrail’s network.

 

[snowball]

If the rate of progress is completion of a short branch (under 10 miles) every 2 years, it’s going to take a very long time for this allegedly rolling programme to produce any meaningful reduction in carbon emissions of Scotrail’s network.

They seem to be responding to the financial crisis by reducing the spend rate, much as the UK govt is doing with HS2 - or perhaps even more drastically. When the decarbonisation plan was published three years ago there was talk of electrifying 100 stk per year or a bit more, but it looks as though in the first 5-5.5 years they will only have done Barrhead and EK (about 22 stk each, I think) plus the piling for a further 19.5 stk on Levenmouth.

And there's been no news in over a year on rolling stock.

We can only hope for better news in the refresh document, still promised for this year.

Can anyone remember how many stk were wired in Scotland in the twenty-teens? It must have been more than this? What with Glasgow-Edinburgh, Shotts, Stirling etc.

 

[Trainbike46]

If the rate of progress is completion of a short branch (under 10 miles) every 2 years, it’s going to take a very long time for this allegedly rolling programme to produce any meaningful reduction in carbon emissions of Scotrail’s network.

Scotland has the challenge that there are very limited borrowing powers, and that a lot of the ScotGov income is from the Barnett formula, so if Westminster reduces spending, ScotGov generally also has to reduce spending. So the reducing of the annual HS2 spend means ScotGov also has to cancel or delay projects. fortunately, ScotGov doesn't appear to want to cancel anything, but that does mean the delays have to happen.

There's definitely been exploratory work on electrifying to Aberdeen, based on the amount of planning applications to councils along that route.

There's also the various bits of work that were supposed to happen last Christmas on the fife lines, but were delayed for, as far as I can tell, stupid reasons.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 19 Sep 2023 ==

I do agree it would be nice if the pace accelerated though!

 

[snowball]

Scotland has the challenge that there are very limited borrowing powers, and that a lot of the ScotGov income is from the Barnett formula, so if Westminster reduces spending, ScotGov generally also has to reduce spending. So the reducing of the annual HS2 spend means ScotGov also has to cancel or delay projects. fortunately, ScotGov doesn't appear to want to cancel anything, but that does mean the delays have to happen.

There's been discussion in some thread or other of whether there Scotland gets any Barnett consequentials at all for HS2. It would be nice to see a definitive answer from someone who knows.

There's definitely been exploratory work on electrifying to Aberdeen, based on the amount of planning applications to councils along that route.

As discussed in the relevant thread, four overbridges between Dundee and Aberdeen have been demolished, two with replacement, two without. This was probably work authorised a while ago, before the financial situation got so bad.

There's also the various bits of work that were supposed to happen last Christmas on the fife lines, but were delayed for, as far as I can tell, stupid reasons.

This was some work for Haymarket-Dalmeny, but more worrying than the specific cancellation of the work last Christmas is the news that a compound set up for the work has been cleared, as if nothing is going to happen there in the near future.

For months now Scotgov pronouncements have avoided saying anything about Fife or the Borders line wherever it can be avoided.

 

[Frankton Junct]

Scotland has the challenge that there are very limited borrowing powers, and that a lot of the ScotGov income is from the Barnett formula, so if Westminster reduces spending, ScotGov generally also has to reduce spending. So the reducing of the annual HS2 spend means ScotGov also has to cancel or delay projects. fortunately, ScotGov doesn't appear to want to cancel anything, but that does mean the delays have to happen.

The overspend on the two ferries under construction would have drawn down the transport capital budget too.

 

[Trainbike46]

There's been discussion in some thread or other of whether there Scotland gets any Barnett consequentials at all for HS2. It would be nice to see a definitive answer from someone who knows.

Based on this answer in the houses of paliament this spring, it does sound like HS2 Barnett consequentials go to Scotland (and not Wales, hence the reason for the question in the first place) (my bold):

Geraint Davies

(Swansea West) (Lab/Co-op)

4. Whether he has made a comparative assessment of the level of additional rail funding provided to Scotland and Wales as a Barnett consequential of HS2. (904295)



The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland

(John Lamont)



May I also start by congratulating the Scotland team on their triumph last night and the new First Minister of Scotland?

The United Kingdom Government are responsible for heavy rail infrastructure in Wales. Conversely, it is a devolved responsibility in Scotland, so the Scottish Government receive Barnett-based funding. That is consistent with the funding arrangements for all other policy areas that are reserved in Wales but devolved in Scotland.

source: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commo...C0B82BB326/RailFundingHS2BarnettConsequential

 

[MadMac]

Can anyone remember how many stk were wired in Scotland in the twenty-teens? It must have been more than this? What with Glasgow-Edinburgh, Shotts, Stirling etc.

Off the top of the head:

E-G via Bathgate, Shotts, Falkirk High and Grahamston
Dunblane
Alloa
Springburn-Cumbernauld-Greenhill
R&C (Mount Vernon)
Larkhall reopening?

 

[snowball]

Off the top of the head:

E-G via Bathgate, Shotts, Falkirk High and Grahamston
Dunblane
Alloa
Springburn-Cumbernauld-Greenhill
R&C (Mount Vernon)
Larkhall reopening?

Larkhall was 2005 so a bit early.
Paisley Canal was 2012 so within the period I was thinking of.
But I was wondering if anyone remembered the total stks.