Borders Railway - Now Open

[railjock]

RailScot has a photograph of the first usable new piece of track on the Borders Railway. Looking forward to more track getting put in place this month.

http://www.railbrit.co.uk/imageenlarge/imagecomplete.php?id=48922

 

[Ploughman]

Interesting looking set of temporary stop blocks.
Any details known?

 

[swt_passenger]

Interesting looking set of temporary stop blocks.
Any details known?

They hinge outwards in two halves to allow trains through. Mentioned in this 'Rail Engineer' article, there's a more detailed photograph of the buffers:

Near Newcraighall, five miles south east of Edinburgh Waverley, is a siding with a folding buffer stop...

The main phase of track laying is to commence in October when frequent engineering trains will pass through this buffer stop. These trains will not require possessions as special instructions have been written to transfer the trains from Network Rail infrastructure to the project.

http://www.therailengineer.com/2014/08/29/borders-on-track/

 

[fgwrich]

The buffer stop is open. 66s are behind it and the Dutch Tracklaying machine is now at... Shawfair.

There will be a publicity event due this Thursday which Keith Brown will be attending.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/64006671@N06/15440256636/in/photostream/lightbox/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn178iGOkqc

There is also some progress down at the other end of the Borders Railway, with the foundations for Tweedbank station now set and construction work starting. In a similar set up to Tynehead, The first set of points have also now been laid outside Tweedbank station.

 

[HowardGWR]

The buffer stop is open. 66s are behind it and the Dutch Tracklaying machine is now at... Shawfair.

There will be a publicity event due this Thursday which Keith Brown will be attending.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/64006671@N06/15440256636/in/photostream/lightbox/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn178iGOkqc

There is also some progress down at the other end of the Borders Railway, with the foundations for Tweedbank station now set and construction work starting. In a similar set up to Tynehead, The first set of points have also now been laid outside Tweedbank station.

Wow, (Youtube video) Gromit would be jealous!

 

[deltic08]

The buffer stop is open. 66s are behind it and the Dutch Tracklaying machine is now at... Shawfair.

There will be a publicity event due this Thursday which Keith Brown will be attending.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/64006671@N06/15440256636/in/photostream/lightbox/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn178iGOkqc

There is also some progress down at the other end of the Borders Railway, with the foundations for Tweedbank station now set and construction work starting. In a similar set up to Tynehead, The first set of points have also now been laid outside Tweedbank station.

That is quick work. At mid morning today they were nowhere near Shawfair station. At over a mile a day they should be finished in a month

 

[railjock]

That is quick work. At mid morning today they were nowhere near Shawfair station. At over a mile a day they should be finished in a month

It's not all ready for new track yet. But progress should be really quick once it is. Will be great to see a locomotive going along the line again.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-29505220

Track laying article and video.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I have been on the list for regular e-mail newsletters from Borders Rail, but the last one in my inbox appears to have been the seventeenth in the series issued in August. Have any more been issued since then?

 

[fgwrich]

That is quick work. At mid morning today they were nowhere near Shawfair station. At over a mile a day they should be finished in a month

The rails may not have been running through Shawfair station but as you can clearly see from the video I posted on the 6th were touching the Edinburgh end of the down platform. The Media release and Press Visit was conducted today at Shawfair Station with the BAM Rail Machine running through the Up Line heading downwards towards Sherrifhall. By reckoning, I'd say it's likely that the down line will have reached the set of points at Sherrifhall with the intention of creating the first loop on the line - the team are aiming to complete the rail laying by December.

Some pictures?
Shafair on the 7th with track.
http://www.railbrit.co.uk/imageenlarge/imagecomplete.php?id=48952
http://www.railbrit.co.uk/imageenlarge/imagecomplete.php?id=48963
Shawfair with two lines.
http://www.railbrit.co.uk/imageenlarge/imagecomplete.php?id=48984
http://www.railbrit.co.uk/imageenlarge/imagecomplete.php?id=48977

Some work to be completed before the sleepers reach Newtongrange though.
http://www.railbrit.co.uk/imageenlarge/imagecomplete.php?id=48954

Gorebridge
http://www.railbrit.co.uk/imageenlarge/imagecomplete.php?id=48970

Work has been steadily progressing on the Southern end of the line, with the first set of points laid at Tweedbank and construction of the island platform commencing. Work has also been progressing further up the line with the rails laid on one line in Bowshank Tunnel and the Platform Construction is well advanced at Stow, with the Up direction platform looking likely to be completed first.

Unless you would like to contradict me again with otherwise information?

 

[dysonsphere]

nice pic thx

 

[swt_passenger]

That is quick work. At mid morning today they were nowhere near Shawfair station. At over a mile a day they should be finished in a month

One of the quotes in the linked BBC story reckons 5 mile per hour! Must be mistaken, talking about something else entirely:

According to one engineer on site, an average of five miles an hour is their rough, rather ambitious target. Whatever the speed the aim is to have all the track laid from top to bottom at Tweedbank before Christmas.

 

[fegguk]

This guy has managed to capture 3 trains on the borders railway in one photo

http://www.donaldstirling.me.uk/ScottishRailways/Borders-Railway/i-ZX7CXMz/A

 

[Railsigns]

That is quick work. At mid morning today they were nowhere near Shawfair station. At over a mile a day they should be finished in a month.

The rails may not have been running through Shawfair station but as you can clearly see from the video I posted on the 6th were touching the Edinburgh end of the down platform. The Media release and Press Visit was conducted today at Shawfair Station with the BAM Rail Machine running through the Up Line heading downwards towards Sherrifhall.

...

Unless you would like to contradict me again with otherwise information?

I wonder if you may have misinterpreted deltic08's words? Saying that the track laying team was "nowhere near Shawfair station" could be interpreted as meaning they're making good progress in pushing southwards and have left Shawfair behind. He did write "that is quick work".

 

[deltic08]

I wonder if you may have misinterpreted deltic08's words? Saying that the track laying team was "nowhere near Shawfair station" could be interpreted as meaning they're making good progress in pushing southwards and have left Shawfair behind. He did write "that is quick work".

When I visited Newcraighall Junction on Monday morning (6th), the rail train was still visible on the up track from the old road overbridge nearby. By the time I returned home (Ripon) in the evening, there was a photo posted on this site of the train reaching Shawfair up platform a mile away. To my mind, this was fast work compared to the Balfour Beatty tracklayer on the A2B line but that did lay sleepers and rail together.

I hope this has cleared up any misunderstanding that appears to have happened to some.

 

[onyxcrowle]

What is the next station after Shawfair? Is the trackbed ready? Newton Grange doesn't look like it will be ready for track for months. They have made a real mess there.
They haven't even started building the station yet have they ?.
At the rate the track Laying is going they might have to Crain it over that bit somehow and carry on South. Coming back to finish. Why is it such a tip?. It looks barley started.
How far is it from Shawfair? .
Also what's to become of the old Eskbank Station.
Why couldn't they restore it?.
It looked in good order. With Tourist trains key it would have made sense to.restore it to former period glory.
I wonder if that could still be done and made as a tourist train stop.
Or gave they already covered some of it over ?

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

What is the next station after Shawfair? Is the trackbed ready?

This will be that of Eskbank.

 

[PaxVobiscum]

I have been on the list for regular e-mail newsletters from Borders Rail, but the last one in my inbox appears to have been the seventeenth in the series issued in August. Have any more been issued since then?

Paul, this appears to be the complete list of Borders Railway newsletters from Network Rail.

 

[fgwrich]

What is the next station after Shawfair? Is the trackbed ready? Newton Grange doesn't look like it will be ready for track for months. They have made a real mess there.
They haven't even started building the station yet have they ?.
At the rate the track Laying is going they might have to Crain it over that bit somehow and carry on South. Coming back to finish. Why is it such a tip?. It looks barley started.
How far is it from Shawfair? .
Also what's to become of the old Eskbank Station.
Why couldn't they restore it?.
It looked in good order. With Tourist trains key it would have made sense to.restore it to former period glory.
I wonder if that could still be done and made as a tourist train stop.
Or gave they already covered some of it over ?

I believe that the reason why a few of the former stations sites - Eskbank especially is due to the locations and need to include amenities such as car parking and transport interchanges, which is what the previous site didn't offer. Eskbank is also being built near to the campus of Edinburgh College as to provide a good interchange with them.

When I visited Newcraighall Junction on Monday morning (6th), the rail train was still visible on the up track from the old road overbridge nearby. By the time I returned home (Ripon) in the evening, there was a photo posted on this site of the train reaching Shawfair up platform a mile away. To my mind, this was fast work compared to the Balfour Beatty tracklayer on the A2B line but that did lay sleepers and rail together.

I hope this has cleared up any misunderstanding that appears to have happened to some.

It has, Sorry I've had a rather long week! I was wondering why the NTC wasn't being used too having seen it in action at Caldercruix on A-B but that was a Balfours contract and this is BAM.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Paul, this appears to be the complete list of Borders Railway newsletters from Network Rail.

Thanks for that link. The eighteenth (and latest) one is now in my possession. It is strange that issues 1 to 17 came through normally, but number 18 never appeared in my inbox. I will send them an e-main to ensure that I have not been accidentally removed from their e-mailing list.

 

[Tobbes]

Great to see all the progress, especially with the track laying started. Am a bit confused about how the system works, though - the rails are laid onto the sleepers, and then what? How do the (Pandrol?) clips get done up and does the system weld the rails together as it goes along?

Forgive the ignorant questions!

Toby

 

[swt_passenger]

The second part (@ 2m 27s) of this video by 'rail engineer' magazine shows the BAM equipment being used and it suggests to me that all the larger green machine is doing is pulling the track off the train behind it, and aligning it with the first few rollers so that the smaller machine can guide the rail as it moves forward. The clipping is done by blokes walking along with powered clipping machines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHWuTvpcco4

As far as I can work out, this means the sleepers must be accurately aligned across the gauge width, and the ballast depth very accurately set, as they don't seem to be lifting the sleepers at all.

I don't think any welding will be done, same as the Balfour System the individual strings will be temporarily clamped with those yellow fishplates, and the welding will probably just happen progressively later on.

(This last bit was added while fgwrich was posting his info about the welding.)

 

[fgwrich]

Great to see all the progress, especially with the track laying started. Am a bit confused about how the system works, though - the rails are laid onto the sleepers, and then what? How do the (Pandrol?) clips get done up and does the system weld the rails together as it goes along?

Forgive the ignorant questions!

Toby

The second half of this video by 'rail engineer' magazine shows the BAM equipment being used and it suggests to me that all the larger green machine is doing is pulling the track off the train behind it, and aligning it with the first few rollers so that the smaller machine can guide the rail as it moves forward. The clipping is done by blokes walking along with powered clipping machines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHWuTvpcco4

As far as I can work out, this means the sleepers must be accurately aligned across the gauge width, and the ballast depth very accurately set, as they don't seem to be lifting the sleepers at all.

Correct. The welding will be done later most likely by a RRV Attachment, all the rails so far are 'temporarily' clamped.

 

[deltic08]

What is the next station after Shawfair? Is the trackbed ready? Newton Grange doesn't look like it will be ready for track for months. They have made a real mess there.
They haven't even started building the station yet have they ?.
At the rate the track Laying is going they might have to Crain it over that bit somehow and carry on South. Coming back to finish. Why is it such a tip?. It looks barley started.
How far is it from Shawfair? .
Also what's to become of the old Eskbank Station.
Why couldn't they restore it?.
It looked in good order. With Tourist trains key it would have made sense to.restore it to former period glory.
I wonder if that could still be done and made as a tourist train stop.
Or gave they already covered some of it over ?

Sleepers are laid to south of Eskbank new station but I don't know how much further they go over the new Hardengreen viaduct and Newtongrange viaduct.

I was at Newtongrange on Monday 6th and soil was still being removed from the trackbed by bulldozer and scooped out of the cutting by long reach JCBs on the west side adjacent to the new footbridge. A roll of geotextile membrane was installed through the site of the old Newtongrange station as I watched. On the other side of the road bridge, construction of the new station was progressing well with supports cast. The trackbed was being tidied for laying of membrane and under ballast on top.

At current speed of rail laying I think there will be a delay whilst trackbed and sleeper planting is finished at Newtongrange.

 

[Tobbes]

Many thanks, fgwrich and swt_passenger

 

[deltic08]

Sleepers are laid to south of Eskbank new station but I don't know how much further they go over the new Hardengreen viaduct and Newtongrange viaduct.

I was at Newtongrange on Monday 6th and soil was still being removed from the trackbed by bulldozer and scooped out of the cutting by long reach JCBs on the west side adjacent to the new footbridge. A roll of geotextile membrane was installed through the site of the old Newtongrange station as I watched. On the other side of the road bridge, construction of the new station was progressing well with supports cast. The trackbed was being tidied for laying of membrane and under ballast on top.

At current speed of rail laying I think there will be a delay whilst trackbed and sleeper planting is finished at Newtongrange.

Picture of Newtongrange new station on Railscot website taken on 5th October showing station base complete waiting for fitting of edging stones and asphalt. The solum is still messy.

 

[fegguk]

You may want to check out this youtuber videos taken last week. it and the other videos show various movements on the new track between Millerhill and Shawfair

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lG4ooSZunQI&list=UUnUCNQr1OfCDuUUh13of5Yw

 

[Fozzie49]

Just a bit of update Mon 13/10/14. Went out this morning to photo first load of ballast being laid by autoballasters but it ran too late for me to see. I had a look at extent of sleepers laid around Eskbank and spoke with Bam chap. Said there could be a bit of delay due to last minute piling work needed at Hardengreen during weekend. No sleepers laid this morning between old Glenesk Jcn and Hardengreen Jcn but they seem to be about to lay ballast and seem to have all 'hands on deck' to catch up ready for rail laying train which was at Sherrifhall earlier this morning ready to start. Also sleepers laid out across Hardengreen new viaduct as far as I could see.

 

[Photohunter71]

I'm seriously going to have to pay a visit to MH soon! I really do miss it as a freight depot,but if I can get a viable parking space as the work on the access road to the new waste depot seems to have taken away a decent spot,I'll be there.Beggars belief as to why they couldn't have shifted the tonnes of rubbish/waste by train to this new depot!

 

[HowardGWR]

Just enjoying the monthly report contents with a fine gallery shewing development down the line. One thing that is occurring to me. Whilst there is much single line, the room left seems very generous to me, in many cases. Does anyone know if some 'future proofing' is provable. In any case, much of the cutting work seems expandable with use of gabions, if needed, and the tunnels are definitely laid with two tracks.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

With the exception of the two new sites at both Shawfair and at Tweedbank, are all the other new station sites either on the same site (or adjacent to) the former station sites at Eskbank, Newtongrange, Gorebridge, Stow and Galashiels ?