An idea: New stations Leicester - Melton Mowbray

[TheBigD]

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[edwin_m]

Cities of the size of Leicester can't really sustain suburban rail services, except where it's possible for a train making a longer journey to make a useful stop on the way into the city as at Syston and Wigston. Most suburbs aren't even near a railway and for those that are a much more frequent bus, that stops nearer to most people's origin and destination, is likely to win out even if the train is a lot faster on the main leg of the journey. There's also the option of driving, which tends to be relatively easy as mentioned in this sort of city unless perhaps the council is strongly pro-public transport as in Nottingham.

Any purely suburban services these cities had were lost to tram competition in the early 20th century. Although traffic congestion impedes journeys into the city centre it would also impede journeys to suburban stations except for those living within walking distance. The balance shifts in the very largest cities where distances can make rail commuting viable, and the demand for it is enough to keep purely commuter routes and services in business.

 

[RichmondCommu]

That's an excellent point and it applies to Nottingham, Derby, as well as a few other large cities one can mention. In Bristol, offices have been 'moved' to the station, not the shopping centre though. Perhaps the secret is fast frequent trams from the station? At Leicester's size and layout, it seems to fall between two stools.

Although I'm very proud to say that I was born in Derby I would certainly not class it as being a "large city". Indeed I'm happy to say that Nottingham is far bigger and far more important.

 

[didcotdean]

There was a campaign to reopen the station at Blaby about 10 years ago which petered out fairly quickly.

There is a few thousand living in the immediate area, but nearly all to the south both of the railway line and the Blaby bypass.

I have to disagree with the claims that Leicester is an easy city to drive in; it lacks proper complete ring roads for one thing having to cope with a few incomplete and / or low spec ones. Of course if you live there long enough you know the best routes which by and large means ignoring the direction signs. Much the same as most cities really.

Proposals were made in the 1960s (monorail) and 1980s (tram) for PT infrastructure but neither got much beyond concepts, although the former hung around for about 10 years

To think by contrast in the 1920s the tram network was still being extended, mainly down dedicated track in the middle of new dual carriageways.

 

[70014IronDuke]

There was a campaign to reopen the station at Blaby about 10 years ago which petered out fairly quickly.

There is a few thousand living in the immediate area, but nearly all to the south both of the railway line and the Blaby bypass. ..

If you can't find the will to give Wigston South an hourly service, there is not much point in opening a new station at Blaby IMO.

However, if you could introduce 3 trains per hour between Brum and Leicester, with a 'fast' to Stansted and two semi-fasts (skip stopping some stations), you could ensure Water Orton, South Wigston, and a new station at Blaby at least one TPH.

The semi-fasts should continue to at least a new Thurmaston station, and maybe Melton or Nottingham (giving the Ivanhoe Line 2 TPH),

 

[70014IronDuke]

XC proposed extending some Birmingham-Leicesters through to Cambridge (from December 2008 if my memory is correct) not long after they took over the route from Central Trains... The extra trains had pretty poor paths as they as to fit around existing services, and the extra platforms at both Peterborough and Cambridge hadn't been built then... The extra services even made it in to the public timetable but never operated...

If the extra services had gone ahead Cambridge depot would have seen extra drivers/guards recruited to operate the extra service... The extra services required 2 170's and were to have been resourced by splitting up the double 170's that operates the 0707 Notts-Cardiff and associated workings and using the unit which just worked the 1739 Derby in service all day... No extra rolling stock was needed to operate the service as there would not have been any double 170 workings...

The extra services were planned to operate Mondays to Saturdays as follows...

0652, 0852, 1052, 1252 and 1852 Birmingham-Leicester extended through to Cambridge...

0818, 1018, 1218, 1418, 1618, 1818 and, Saturdays only 2228 Leicester-Birmingham starting back from Cambridge...

Given Abellio's ambition to operate hourly Ipswich-Peterborough services, the growth of freight (particularly containers to/from Felixstowe) and the constraints of Ely North junction, timetabling the extra services today would be a challenge...

That would have been a big enhancement to Leicester - Cambridge, and it would have been a big boost to the connectivity for the smaller stations between Brum and Leicester too. Were they planning to keep the Melton/Oakham/Stamford stops out on the Stansteds when these trains ran in front of them, or just double the service in those hours?

Interesting that Abellio - who must have done their sums - believed they could fillm them and were so ambitious. Could they turn trains at Peterborough today if there were no paths Peterborough - Ely? Or would it break the business case?

 

[TheBigD]

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