Blackpool - Manchester Electrification

[GRALISTAIR]

Who says we don't think ahead ...

Great news

 

[Ploughman]

There's a first for everything.

 

[ashworth]

I noticed last week that there was tree felling on a massive scale around Poulton le Fylde. I know that trees need to be cut down but the amount of mature trees being cut some distance from the line did appear a bit excessive to me.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

I noticed last week that there was tree felling on a massive scale around Poulton le Fylde. I know that trees need to be cut down but the amount of mature trees being cut some distance from the line did appear a bit excessive to me.

I think it is planning ahead - why come back again in a couple of years if you have possession etc now? I think disruption is a factor seen in certain people being "against" electrification.

 

[LDECRexile]

Reg has photographed the first mast between Lever Street footbridge and Bolton Station (inclusive) and kindly sent it for publication.

I've added it to his album here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157671732263863

and to the Combined Volume here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157661069863633

Thank you Reg

 

[CdBrux]

Ohns??

 

[snowball]

Ohns??

On Her Najesty's Service

or perhaps Overhead Neutral Section.

Meanwhile, pictures of the Bolton skylink posted on SSC by Johnny de Rivative:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=140575699&postcount=192

 

[LDECRexile]

Wrinkley has kindly sent shots from Lostock to Green Lane.

I've added them to his album here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157654034635234

and to the Combined Volume here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157661069863633

Encouraging stuff.

Thank you Wrinkley.

 

[absolutelymilk]

I travelled Manchester to Blackpool yesterday and noted the multitude of different mast types as others have pointed out, seemed to be a fair amount of bases and masts, I would (very roughly) estimate that about half the distance had bases and a fifth had masts up. Will the progressometer be getting an outing soon? It will be interesting to see whether we are on track for December!

 

[GRALISTAIR]

I travelled Manchester to Blackpool yesterday and noted the multitude of different mast types as others have pointed out, seemed to be a fair amount of bases and masts, I would (very roughly) estimate that about half the distance had bases and a fifth had masts up. Will the progressometer be getting an outing soon? It will be interesting to see whether we are on track for December!

did you by any chance see any masts at all Flyde Junction to Blackpool - or were they strictly Manchester - Euxton Junction only ?

Dave and myself plus probably one other (PDG1949) will be doing a photography progress run July 5th concentrating on Fylde Junction to Kirkham North Junction and possibly beyond.

Of course I would hope a huge amount on the Blackpool line will get done for these major total blockades.
Preston to Blackpool South closed Saturday 11 November 2017 until Friday 26 January 2018
Kirkham to Blackpool North closed Saturday 11 November 2017 until Sunday 25 March 2018

 

[absolutelymilk]

did you by any chance see any masts at all Flyde Junction to Blackpool - or were they strictly Manchester - Euxton Junction only ?

Dave and myself plus probably one other (PDG1949) will be doing a photography progress run July 5th concentrating on Fylde Junction to Kirkham North Junction and possibly beyond.

Of course I would hope a huge amount on the Blackpool line will get done for these major total blockades.
Preston to Blackpool South closed Saturday 11 November 2017 until Friday 26 January 2018
Kirkham to Blackpool North closed Saturday 11 November 2017 until Sunday 25 March 2018

Sorry I meant I got the Manchester to Blackpool train and got out at Preston so didn't see any of Preston - Blackpool! I look forward to reading the updates!

 

[LDECRexile]

I travelled Southport-Bolton-Man Vic and back today, armed with camera, not counting pen.

Photos attached here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/albums/72157661069863633

I will update the Progressometer when I get a set of data covering at least Salford-Euxton, be it by my own hand or anyone else's.

 

[cl19]

Went to lytham on the train on Saturday so saw the North line as far as Kirkham. Lots more bases but no masts

 

[LDECRexile]

Please be aware that some of the people whose albums are linked to the Combined Volume have added photos, 141trackworker's are especially topical.

My jaunt today was uplifting, I saw widespread visible progress, notably:

1. Signalling work here, there and everywhere
2. Lots afoot at Bolton station
3. Ditto Burnden
4. Most if not all bases in place on southbound side between Moses Gate and Farnworth
5. Some bases between Farnworth tunnel and Kearsley
6. Lots more bases between Kearsley and Agecroft, not continuous runs, but lots more
7. Masts around Windsor Bridge North Junction
8. Masts around Windsor Bridge South Junction, probably extending to Ordsall Jct
9. Most bases in place on south side of tracks between W B S Jct and Salford Central
10. Work afoot at Lostock

The bases from Lostock towards Wigan don't appear to be recent. I couldn't see any which haven't been there for a while.

Some of these observations echo ones made by other people.

 

[Whistler40145]

Is there a Neutral Section being installed on the Bolton line adjacent to Euxton Junction Track Sectioning Cabin?

On Sunday morning I passed by on a train to Manchester Piccadilly and there's some kind of steel framework with insulators attached lying on the ground, presumably this is likely to be installed over the crossbeam.

Any information would be gratefully received

 

[LDECRexile]

I attach the Bridgeoscope, duly updated.

Any info on the crossings between Preston and Blackpool would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Joseph_Locke]

Is there a Neutral Section being installed on the Bolton line adjacent to Euxton Junction Track Sectioning Cabin?

On Sunday morning I passed by on a train to Manchester Piccadilly and there's some kind of steel framework with insulators attached lying on the ground, presumably this is likely to be installed over the crossbeam.

Any information would be gratefully received

Yep. and one just north of Lostock Junction.

 

[snowball]

Is there a Neutral Section being installed on the Bolton line adjacent to Euxton Junction Track Sectioning Cabin?

On Sunday morning I passed by on a train to Manchester Piccadilly and there's some kind of steel framework with insulators attached lying on the ground, presumably this is likely to be installed over the crossbeam.

Any information would be gratefully received

It's an obvious place for one. Where one route turns off another (as happens here from the point of viw of someone going south) it's natural to have a track sectioning cabin just after the split on both routes (if both are electrified), and that means a neutral section on both routes.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Any info on the crossings between Preston and Blackpool would be greatly appreciated.

I have a school friend - Kirkham Grammar School who is a Councilor - he said no way in busy summer season and no way during illuminations -so although appearing to cut it very fine - all happening in aforementioned blockade. That is the best info I have but I am happy to stand corrected if anyone has better info.

 

[Whistler40145]

Yep. and one just north of Lostock Junction.

Much appreciated

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

 

[SodTheDrummer]

Does anyone know what's being done (or not) about the Nat Grid power lines crossing the tracks near Clifton and Kearsley? Or have they decided it ain't a problem anymore like the clearances at Bolton..?

 

[Joseph_Locke]

Does anyone know what's being done (or not) about the Nat Grid power lines crossing the tracks near Clifton and Kearsley? Or have they decided it ain't a problem anymore like the clearances at Bolton..?

"know" is a bit strong but at least some of them need removing / raising before the catenary can go up. I'm not party to the final scope.

 

[snowball]

Two press releases:

https://www.networkrail.co.uk/feeds/bolton-station-improvements-means-changes-to-services/

As work continues to provide a better railway between Manchester and Preston, Bolton passengers are being warned of changes to train services in August.

For 16 days between Saturday 12 August and Sunday 27 August 2017, Network Rail’s orange army will continue work to upgrade the station in time for electric trains to run.

The upgrade forms part of the £1bn+ Great North Rail Project which will see faster, electric trains between Manchester and Preston.

As a result, the majority of train services will not run in or out of Bolton until the first service on Monday 28 August 2017. However, trains will still run from Bolton to Blackburn and Clitheroe during weekdays and bus replacements will also be in use. Passengers are being urged to plan their journey ahead and check before they travel on www.nationalrail.co.uk.

Mark Killick, chief operating officer for Network Rail, said: “These essential improvements will ensure the station is fit for use for many years to come as the demand on train services increase. The work will allow more trains to run between Manchester and Preston, enabling faster and more frequent journeys for passengers in Bolton.

“I understand the work will cause disruption for some people and I apologise but in the long term, the enhancement of the station will improve the passenger experience.”

Liam Sumpter, regional director for Northern, comments: “Great improvements are coming for our customers in the north west, and particularly those travelling through Bolton, with quicker journeys, longer trains and more frequent services. Before we can deliver that, essential large scale engineering work has to take place and we thank our customers for their patience while this happens.”

Work taking place includes: restoring an unused platform, modifying existing platforms and canopies as well as remodelling track, upgrading signalling, installing overhead line equipment and building a new footbridge.

https://www.networkrail.co.uk/feeds...re-about-upgrades-to-preston-manchester-line/

Residents in Preston are invited to a drop-in event next week to find out more about work to electrify the line between Preston and Manchester.

As part of Network Rail’s £1bn+ Great North Rail Project, work continues to complete the upgrade and electrification of the railway between Manchester and Preston via Bolton. For safety reasons some work has to be carried out at night when trains aren’t running which includes piling work to install foundations and the steel masts which will carry electric wires to power greener and quieter electric trains.

Network Rail will be working in the Preston area from Saturday to Thursday, between 11pm and 7am, until the end of July 2017.

Noel Connolly, head of programme management for Network Rail, said: “This work forms part of our Railway Upgrade Plan and will deliver better, greener and more efficient services for passengers in the north.

“I appreciate that the work could be disruptive, so I’d like to thank local residents for their patience while we carry this out. We will take all possible measures to keep disruption to an absolute minimum.”

The drop in will take place between 4 and 7pm on Monday 19 June at Ashton Methodist Church, Wellington Road, Preston PR2 1BU.

The event forms part of a number of drop-in events along the route where local residents are invited to speak to Network Rail staff who will be on hand to answer questions and provide more detail on the working being carried out.

To find out more about this work please visit our website at www.networkrail.co.uk/blackpool

Any residents who cannot make the drop in and have any questions can call our national helpline on 03457 11 41 41.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

It says work in the Preston area - but then talks about Manchester-Preston - work would be Euxton Jct onwards so I suppose you could say that is Preston area. Then it says right at the bottom

QUOTE To find out more about this work please visit our website at www.networkrail.co.uk/blackpool END QUOTE

That link talks about Preston - Blackpool which makes more sense.

 

[snowball]

Also the location of the drop-in event is well to the NW of Preston station and near the Blackpool line.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Also the location of the drop-in event is well to the NW of Preston station and near the Blackpool line.

Agreed - so I think NR probably have a typo or rushed the announcement out - but they must mean Preston - Blackpool part of the project. There is still some piling to do and of course all the gantries and cantilevers and SPS and wiring to follow - plus signals. I wish I was home (sorry England will always be home not the USA!) as I would definitely attend the drop-in session.

 

[Ploughman]

Any comments about this article in the Rail Engineer.

http://www.railengineer.uk/2017/06/...ctrification-projects-that-are-going-to-plan/

Electrification schemes have been very much in the news over the last couple of years, at least so far as the railway industry press is concerned. And it’s not all been good. There is the much-publicised Great Western Electrification Programme (GWEP), since changed to the Great Western Route Modernisation, and now late and over budget. The National Audit Office has recognised that the Department for Transport did not plan and manage the project “in a a sufficiently joined up way”, that “the electrification timetable was not based on a bottom-up understanding of what the works would involve” and that “Network Rail was too optimistic about the productivity of new technology”.

Then comes the Edinburgh Glasgow Improvement Programme (EGIP), over budget and running late, allegedly due to problems with new electrical clearance regulations.

So readers might be forgiven for thinking that Britain’s electrification master plan is in tatters. The truth is, it isn’t. There is more to electrification that the two programmes mentioned above, even though they form a large part of it. Some of the others are going well, and three of those are run by Carillion.

A familiar name

The name Carillion has become very familiar within the rail industry over the last twenty years. Demerging from the original Tarmac company, it did much work after railway privatisation in the early 1990s including various West Coast Route Modernisation contracts and the successful Nuneaton remodelling which included new platforms and a new link avoiding a flat crossing of the main line by Birmingham – Leicester services.

Martin Smith, managing director of Carillion Powerlines, is a civil engineer by profession. He originally joined the rail industry at around the time of infrastructure privatisation and then gained wide experience across non-rail sectors. He came back to rail after experiencing everything from highways to facilities management.

Carillion Powerlines Limited (CPL) was formed on 10 February 2014, with its registered office in Wolverhampton, as a joint venture between SPL Powerlines and Carillion. Its aim was to do business, as a significant European electrification player, with resources directed at delivering Network Rail’s ‘National Electrification Programme’ framework.

While CPL is involved in several electrification schemes, Carillion is also engaged in electrification works in its own right. Martin Smith recently met with Rail Engineer to explain what his companies are doing and how they are progressing. He was particularly pleased to be working under the Early Contractor Involvement scenario, which allows much more open development of schemes. This initiative has changed the way in which contracts are approached and has a great track record for success.
These companies are currently working on three electrification projects:

The line between Holytown and Midcalder between Glasgow and Edinburgh via Shotts;
The Midland main line from Bedford to Corby – effectively, the London to Corby scheme (the commencement of the Midland main line electrification scheme previously authorised);
The balance of the North West programme – from Euxton Junction via Bolton to Manchester and east from Manchester towards the trans-Pennine route.
The first two are CPL projects, the third is Carillion’s alone.

Article continues.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Any comments about this article in the Rail Engineer.

http://www.railengineer.uk/2017/06/...ctrification-projects-that-are-going-to-plan/

I am a "glass is half full not empty" person. I am the eternal optimist. A positive article like this really boost my confidence in electrification. I love it. I will update the sticky too.

EDIT - quote from the article "project is key to the Northern Powerhouse vision and involves £160 million of work. Carillion is delivering phase four (Euxton Junction to Manchester via Bolton) and phase five (Manchester Victoria to Stalybridge). - The bolded bit to me fills me with confidence and is good news.

 

[Jamesrob637]

Shouldn't be as bad as other times being August since schools are on holiday and commuter numbers tail off somewhat as families take vacay etc.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Shouldn't be as bad as other times being August since schools are on holiday and commuter numbers tail off somewhat as families take vacay etc.

Interesting you should say that, slightly OT but when east of Manchester towards York was being discussed (aka TransPennine) in a presentation by engineers to engineers - link here, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTGnTgdWfh4 they said the exact same thing (key bit starts at 34.30 but good lead in before that) . The best time for a blockade after talking to all parties was summer when schools, universities etc are out (with TPE weather is a factor too) .