Derby Station - another revamp?

[RichmondCommu]

I know in the 90s there were some trains regularly scheduled to go that way however before it closed who operated the Castle Donnington Line and where did it go to?

I'm not aware of any lines being closed in the Castle Donnington area.

 

[Lostin Transit]

I think they mean the old power station line at Castle Donington which was closed and lifted around 1996 when the power station was closed but then rebuilt in 2013 for a distribution siding which still awaits its first train!!

 

[RichmondCommu]

I think they mean the old power station line at Castle Donington which was closed and lifted around 1996 when the power station was closed but then rebuilt in 2013 for a distribution siding which still awaits its first train!!

From memory that was a collection of sidings rather than a line.

 

[Townsend Hook]

It will be very interesting to see if/how access is maintained to Etches Park and the RTC during the blockade. I have heard on the grapevine at work that the test train fleet and locos may up sticks to Toton for the duration.

 

[civ-eng-jim]

Even if we can assume that the platform will only have one face (as opposed to being an island platform) surely track would still need to be retained in order to serve the refueling shed.

Platform 6 and the service platform will be an island. Between that and Pride park will be the Pilot Line and the Fueling&Inspection line

 

[civ-eng-jim]

Over the last few weeks I've seen a lot of troughwork and cabinet/REB bases going down between Spondon and Stenson. Looks like some budget for resignalling has been released. The local rag is also quoting NR that the scheme will involve a very protracted semi-blockade.

The whole project is essentially a resignalling scheme and is led by Network Rail's East Midlands Signalling Renewals team.

A dozen or so track work stages will be installed before the blockade. Troughing routes and REB bases can be installed before the blockade works start.

 

[thenorthern]

Trains from Crewe normally terminate at Tutbury when the line into Derby is closed.

Fair enough I don't recall that happening recently though.

I'm not aware of any lines being closed in the Castle Donnington area.

I think they mean the old power station line at Castle Donington which was closed and lifted around 1996 when the power station was closed but then rebuilt in 2013 for a distribution siding which still awaits its first train!!

From memory that was a collection of sidings rather than a line.

The line that goes from Stenson Junction to Sheet Stores Junction which closed in 1930 and there was a Castle Donnington station on it.

 

[thenorthern]

Looking at a Derby blockade it will be more difficult than the Nottingham blockade given that most trains at Derby seem to pass through/reverse Derby rather than terminate and unlike Nottingham some quite important trains run through Derby.

 

[DarloRich]

Looking at a Derby blockade it will be more difficult than the Nottingham blockade given that most trains at Derby seem to pass through/reverse Derby rather than terminate and unlike Nottingham some quite important trains run through Derby.

just divert round via Toton and Erewash surely?

 

[edwin_m]

Looking at a Derby blockade it will be more difficult than the Nottingham blockade given that most trains at Derby seem to pass through/reverse Derby rather than terminate and unlike Nottingham some quite important trains run through Derby.

This may be why they are talking about extended disruption rather than a single blockade. I haven't seen any detail on what is happening but it could be something like:

Stage 1 - Divert Nottingham-Birmingham via Sheet Stores and Stenson. Divert London-Sheffield via Alfreton. Turn Matlock-Nottingham at Derby or bustitute, turn Crewe-Derby somewhere. Close platforms 3-6 and re-build that side of the station. NE-SW runs normally.

Stage 2 - Continue Nottingham-Birmingham, Matlock-Derby and Crewe-Derby changes. Re-open platform 5 (currently 6) and the new 6 and restore London-Sheffield service. Divert NE-SW via Sheet Stores and Alfreton. Close and re-build plaforms 1-3.

At lest one total shutdown of a few days is needed to commission the signalling. Otherwise this would keep some trains through Derby and therefore reduce capacity problems on the diversionary routes. Some thinning out of NE-SW services might happen during Stage 2 if the fleet size and/or path constraints elsewhere on their routes can't accommodate the extra journey time.

 

[thenorthern]

just divert round via Toton and Erewash surely?

For the Sheffield to London Trains that would work and it would probably be quicker than going through Derby, the problem I was thinking more was the CrossCountry trains.

 

[DarloRich]

For the Sheffield to London Trains that would work and it would probably be quicker than going through Derby, the problem I was thinking more was the CrossCountry trains.

you would run via Sheet Stores & Stenson junctions surely?

I have been via Toton a couple of times on XC and i am sure they must have run via Castle Donnington at some point. That would suit me as i cant recall doing the Castle Donnington section before.

 

[RichmondCommu]

The line that goes from Stenson Junction to Sheet Stores Junction which closed in 1930 and there was a Castle Donnington station on it.

Stenson Junction to Sheet Stores junction didn't close in 1930. Indeed it still remains in use for freight and diversions.

 

[thenorthern]

you would run via Sheet Stores & Stenson junctions surely?

I have been via Toton a couple of times on XC and i am sure they must have run via Castle Donnington at some point. That would suit me as i cant recall doing the Castle Donnington section before.

Problem is capacity as currently it would need to be used by the CrossCountry services towards Sheffield and the North of England as well as the two Birmingham to Nottingham services.

As others have said it will probably be a partial closure rather than a full one for Derby.

Stenson Junction to Sheet Stores junction didn't close in 1930. Indeed it still remains in use for freight and diversions.

It closed to regular passenger traffic in 1930 I know there was a station at Castle Donnington for a time.

 

[RichmondCommu]

Problem is capacity as currently it would need to be used by the CrossCountry services towards Sheffield and the North of England as well as the two Birmingham to Nottingham services.

With the decline in local freight in the last 20 years (especially coal) I wouldn't have thought the line is too busy so should have plenty of spare capacity.

 

[The Planner]

You won't have trouble fitting 4 tph extra along the Castle Donnington route, it runs on a 5 minute headway.

 

[edwin_m]

Only three Ns in Donington please folks. It must have "donated" the other one to somebody in greater need (or eed).

 

[IanXC]

Only two Ns in Donington please folks. It must have "donated" the other one to somebody in greater need (or eed).

I make that three?

 

[snowball]

I make that three?

It's a bit like Alfred Russel Wallace, co-discoverer of natural selection. The important thing to remember about him is that he only has four Ls.

 

[edwin_m]

I make that three?

Yes three, but definitely not four. I was having a bad day...

 

[LowLevel]

With the decline in local freight in the last 20 years (especially coal) I wouldn't have thought the line is too busy so should have plenty of spare capacity.

Several of the East Midlands freight lines (Coalville line as well) have unusually high capacity signalling to allow for the regular block freight trains that used to run so frequently from collieries and power stations.

 

[D6975]

It closed to regular passenger traffic in 1930 I know there was a station at Castle Donnington for a time.

The Castle Donington line used to be the way the Cardiff-Nottingham service ran before it was transferred to XC.

 

[snowball]

Press release

https://www.networkrail.co.uk/feeds...dustry-confirms-dates-for-derby-2018-upgrade/

Dates for a major £200million railway upgrade that will improve journeys to and through Derby station have today been confirmed, with plans being put in place to keep Derby moving.

Network Rail and industry partners CrossCountry and East Midlands Trains, who manage the station, have announced that the track and signalling in the area around Derby station area will be enhanced during 79-days of carefully planned engineering, starting on 22 July 2018.

While the station itself was modernised in 2013, the existing track layout has not been improved since it was installed nearly 50 years ago and is nearing the end of its operational life, whilst the signalling has not been upgraded since it was installed in the 1960s. Regular maintenance has kept the station performing well for the past five decades, but as track and signalling work together to manage train movements efficiently, they are both being replaced and upgraded at the same time.

The historic layout of the railway has become inefficient as use of the railway has grown and now often results in lengthy waiting times outside the station, with the existing bottlenecks restricting the movements that trains can make and the platforms they can access. With passenger numbers having doubled in the past 20 years and demand set to continue to grow, the Derby 2018 project is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve a vital part of the rail network which carries trains bound for as far afield as Aberdeen to the north and Plymouth to the south, as well as services right across the Midlands.

Because the 79-days of engineering requires removal of track and signalling there will be significant changes to the timetable between 22 July 2018 and 7 October 2018

The full, detailed timetable will be published in the New Year but will see East Midlands Trains services to London, Crewe, Matlock and Nottingham affected at various points of the work. CrossCountry services will divert around Derby, with a bus replacement service from Derby to connecting stations

Rob McIntosh, managing director for Network Rail’s London North Eastern and East Midlands (LNE&EM) route, said: “It is many decades since the rail infrastructure at Derby saw this kind of investment and we have spent a huge amount of time working with our train operators, stakeholders and local businesses to make sure we keep disruption to a minimum while getting this vital work done as quickly as possible. Derby is a key interchange on the Midland Main Line and once the upgrade is complete and the bottleneck removed, the region will benefit from a more efficient, reliable and modern network fit to meet the needs of the economies and communities our railway serves.”

Jake Kelly, Managing Director for East Midlands Trains, said: “This work is vital to deliver an upgraded railway in Derby and we are supportive of the plans in place by Network Rail.

“Our key priority is to ensure that we provide the best possible service for our customers during the works . We are developing comprehensive plans to ensure that we can continue running as many of our London train services as possible, whilst ensuring that we can offer reliable replacement rail services on the local routes during the times we are not able to operate our train services.

“We’re in the process of finalising all the details of our timetable during the works and will be publishing detailed customer advice and timetables early in the New Year. We’ll also be carrying out an extensive communications campaign with customers, key businesses and rail station users so they are aware of the changes they can expect during these works.”

CrossCountry’s Managing Director, Andy Cooper, said: “These works will mean a long period of disruption for many CrossCountry customers, which is something we’d always try to avoid. However, the journey time improvement they deliver will get our customers to the north east quicker than ever before. The railway layout at Derby was great in the ‘days of steam trains’ but does not meet the needs of today’s much busier railway.

“We will do all we can to minimise the impact on customers travelling to and from Derby, and others with extended journeys times caused by diversions around the station, including clear and frequent real time communication during the period of disruption and publishing revised timetables in good time. While there will inevitably be some inconvenience for many, for which we apologise, we are working with our industry partners to ensure this massive project will deliver real benefits for our passengers.”

 

[edwin_m]

The Castle Donington line used to be the way the Cardiff-Nottingham service ran before it was transferred to XC.

Not significantly (diversions and maybe the odd funny working), at least as far back as 1988.

 

[TheBigD]

Deleted