TrainViation
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Could you see if there was any masts east of Cameron Bridge station, or closer to Leven?Was down to Leven yesterday, the mast count is up to 96 now.
Could you see if there was any masts east of Cameron Bridge station, or closer to Leven?Was down to Leven yesterday, the mast count is up to 96 now.
That is serious progress. Great news!Was down to Leven yesterday, the mast count is up to 96 now.
There's still nothing east of the bridge over the River Leven at the Diageo plant.Could you see if there was any masts east of Cameron Bridge station, or closer to Leven?
As a resident of Glenrothes, that substation is around 4km at the closest point to the line, and 6.6km from Thornton Junction. Not sure how that would work, unless I'm wrong.I could have been misled but I believe the new feeder is planned to be located directly next to Glenrothes SubStation between Collydean & Leslie to the North of Glenrothes.
There is visible evidence that work on site started over 2 years ago on Google Street View & Maps
The Bowshank tunnel was laid with slab track to have enough clearance for electrification. They claimed at the time that the whole Borders railway was built to enable electrification without having to rebuild structure along the line.You would have thought that the rebuilding of the line would have been to 25kV specification but given the Northern limit, at the South end, is Bowbank Tunnel maybe not. That leaves c10km to recharge the batteries although energy demand on an Edinburgh journey will be reduced compared to Tweedbank direction. Of course they will specify what they want to achieve in BEMU specification but I wonder how much spare capacity the batteries need to retain to deal with operational issues.
Preparing the full line for full electrification, and then only going partial seems like a waste of time and resources… unless they go back eventually and fill in the gap.The Bowshank tunnel was laid with slab track to have enough clearance for electrification. They claimed at the time that the whole Borders railway was built to enable electrification without having to rebuild structure along the line.
Whether it was a waste depends on if anything was rebuilt that didn't otherwise need to be. If a bridge needed to be reconstructed anyway, reconstructing it to Electrification clearances isn't a big change in the overall cost.Preparing the full line for full electrification, and then only going partial seems like a waste of time and resources… unless they go back eventually and fill in the gap.
Wasn't that in the days of 2.7m clearances though?The Bowshank tunnel was laid with slab track to have enough clearance for electrification. They claimed at the time that the whole Borders railway was built to enable electrification without having to rebuild structure along the line.
Just to backtrack a little bit, was the addition of more masts on the section around Earlseat Junction? If so, then I’ll go down tonight or tomorrow and get some more drone footage.There's still nothing east of the bridge over the River Leven at the Diageo plant.
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Perhaps not the most exciting photos, but the site and compound of the new Mountfeurie bridge, just to the west of the Kirkland yard limits.
If they are doing what they can in the normal overnight access opportunities to begin with then doing the masts nearest to access points is a good strategy - this would also match the high rates of masts going up, the rate will drop the further from the access points they get.Well we have seen on other schemes "no apparent pattern too"
You have stated perfectly what I was trying to say. Thank youIf they are doing what they can in the normal overnight access opportunities to begin with then doing the masts nearest to access points is a good strategy - this would also match the high rates of masts going up, the rate will drop the further from the access points they get.
Great to hear we are in the triple digits now, they've absolutely SHOT up in the past month!Today's mast total is 114.
Four have sprung up between Earlseat junction and the signal protecting it from the Fife line.
As a note, the main yard that the contractors are using is immediately east of Cameron Bridge station.
Ironic considering our electrification has also been stop-start. Fife electrification was paused numerous times since June of 2022, both for financial and "we don't know what to prioritise" reasons.This (almost) amused me this morning - a story about electrification showing a diesel train! Yes, I know most readers wouldn't know or care...
View attachment 188959

Yep, that's an OLE mast alright.On a seperate note, I seen this post on Facebook by "Levenmouth Building a Railway" about an unrelated reason, where I noticed a pole next to the railway that looked noticeably thicker than the usual lampposts, and am just wondering whether it is an OHL mast?
View attachment 189112
It looks like the one at the other end of the platform is also an OLE mast.Yep, that's an OLE mast alright.
In total agreement there; the one nearest the camera looks like a Portal Leg, judging by the hinge pin at the top.It looks like the one at the other end of the platform is also an OLE mast.
Yes, thank you for confirming this. I'm assuming it'll be a similar sort of idea to that of Reston station, like this:In total agreement there; the one nearest the camera looks like a Portal Leg, judging by the hinge pin at the top.
Precisely. NWR has to use portals or TTCs above platforms (some places have used headspans, like Glasgow Queen St), and single track cantilevers are a no-no.Yes, thank you for confirming this. I'm assuming it'll be a similar sort of idea to that of Reston station, like this:![]()
Just found this too: