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Great Western Electrification Progress

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jimm

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GRALISTAIR said:
I will post the youtube documentary -o r similar reference when I find it. The 1945 Labour Government decided to make Britain a nuclear power and thought long term electricity would come from it. Post war Germany, France et al started electrifying. Labour wanted to protect the coal industry and kept building steam engines. Despite "winning the war" we were more backwards than other nations.
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I might remind you that post-war (West) Germany and France both used mainline steam longer than 'backward' Britain - into the mid-1970s. The last German mainline steam loco was built in 1959, just a year earlier than Evening Star emerged from Swindon works.
 
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jimm

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Henbury Loop said:
Agreed. However I can't understand if that is the case why NR haven't said so.
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Given some of the places lorry drivers have been led by their sat navs, it probably won't matter if someone puts up lots of signs banning them.

And looking at the pictures, that temporary road looks a whole lot more suitable for HGVs than many Wiltshire roads or them winding through housing in the southern end of Wootton Bassett, which they would be doing under normal circumstances. Residents of the town may well be campaigning for retention of this road in the long term.
 
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hassaanhc

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The wires have been installed on P14 at London Paddington and are live :idea:
 

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GRALISTAIR

GRALISTAIR

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snowball

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GRALISTAIR said:
Outstanding :D

BTW pardon my ignorant question - does by chance the fact that a conductor bar is being used preclude an auto-transformer system - or is there still room for the 25KV pi radians out of phase feed wire too?
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The autotransformer wire would probably become an insulated cable where it goes through the tunnel and would run along the wall. Some of the renders of Farnworth Tunnel created before it was enlarged show what I suspect is the autotransformer wire.

Edit: on second thoughts I'm not so sure about the Farnworth renders. The picture I was thinking of is this one:

http://www.ruthjacksonplanning.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/clammerclough-tunnel-news.jpg

I thought the black squares were where the AT wire is secured to the portal wall but on second thoughts they may just be where the catenary wire is secured.

However I think my first sentence still applies.
 
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swt_passenger

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GRALISTAIR said:
Outstanding :D

BTW pardon my ignorant question - does by chance the fact that a conductor bar is being used preclude an auto-transformer system - or is there still room for the 25KV pi radians out of phase feed wire too?
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To confirm snowball's understanding, the other 25kV feeder cable can be a fully insulated type and run in trunking on the tunnel wall, it's only put up on the gantries normally because it can be un-insulated up there.

There's a NR briefing paper about somewhere from the WCML project that shows an example of the ATF being changed to cable where it passes through tunnels and stations, but I'm having trouble finding a link to it, so I've attached a copy of the file below. Figure 5 refers.

Paul
 

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swt_passenger

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LNW-GW Joint said:
Box Tunnel is 125mph (Middle Hill 100), while the Severn Tunnel is 75mph.
Might well be speed related.
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If a tunnel is longer than a normal contact wire length, like Box or the Severn, the catenary or conductor bar decision will also have to take into account the need for tensioning, and all the extra equipment necessary. It may be feasible to use normal tensioning methods in Box, so they've done it that way.

F&F now reckon their conductor bar system is OK at up to 250 km/h.

It is now fitted in Stanton tunnel on the Old Dalby test track, in connection with IEP testing.
 
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Tio Terry

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hassaanhc said:
The wires have been installed on P14 at London Paddington and are live :idea:
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No, they are not live. The warning notices may well say they should be treated as live but they are not. The issues revolving around fault currents and their possible effect on the signalling system on the H&C LU line are not yet resolved.
 
D6975

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LNW-GW Joint said:
Box Tunnel is 125mph (Middle Hill 100), while the Severn Tunnel is 75mph.
Might well be speed related.
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Severn Tunnel is 90mph. The 70 restrictions are bi-di working only.
Source - Sectional Appendix

(plus the fact hat I've been through the tunnel in sub 3 mins on quite a few occasions)
 
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steverailer

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swt_passenger said:
If a tunnel is longer than a normal contact wire length, like Box or the Severn, the catenary or conductor bar decision will also have to take into account the need for tensioning, and all the extra equipment necessary. It may be feasible to use normal tensioning methods in Box, so they've done it that way.

F&F now reckon their conductor bar system is OK at up to 250 km/h.

It is now fitted in Stanton tunnel on the Old Dalby test track, in connection with IEP testing.
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Don't think that is correct, no tensioning required for more than 1 contact length, just a change over point between each wire length.
 
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swt_passenger

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steverailer said:
Don't think that is correct, no tensioning required for more than 1 contact length, just a change over point between each wire length.
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I found the point made in a NR OHLE guide, provided to Bath and NE Somerset for planning purposes.

If a tunnel is longer than about 1200m, the tensioning of the wires needs to be done within the tunnel, which can be quite complex because of the physical restrictions and environmental conditions.

http://www.bathnes.gov.uk/sites/def...ng/nr_a_guide_to_overhead_electrification.pdf
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What I meant was that if that complexity was found when designing a conventional OHLE installation it would then make the case for using conductor bar better.

In fact that document is quite a good read about all sorts of electrification details, definitely worth saving.
 
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LNW-GW Joint

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D6975 said:
Severn Tunnel is 90mph. The 70 restrictions are bi-di working only.
Source - Sectional Appendix
(plus the fact hat I've been through the tunnel in sub 3 mins on quite a few occasions)
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My copy of the SA (6.6.2015, although the actual page is dated 27.8.2013) shows 75mph in the tunnel (70mph reversible and through Severn Tunnel Jn).
The 90mph applies eastwards from the English portal to Patchway.
 
cactustwirly

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I noticed yesterday that foundations for supports(I don't know the techinical term) Piles were in evidence between Maidenhead and Twyford
 
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LNW-GW Joint

LNW-GW Joint

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cactustwirly said:
I noticed yesterday that foundations for supports(I don't know the techinical term) Piles were in evidence between Maidenhead and Twyford
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Piles at the Twyford end of this stretch have been installed for quite a while.
But there has been a persistent 3-mile gap in the cutting between Ruscombe and Maidenhead (ie either side of the A404 overbridge).
If that section is now being piled we have some progress!
 
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jimm

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Off to Reading for work today and observed the following work along the way.

Pretty much all the portals through Didcot Parkway station area are now up but although piles are in place at Didcot East junction none of the cross-pieces have been lifted into place from there down to the electrification depot at Moreton cutting.

Progress with wiring has all four tracks equipped from just east of Pangbourne to Purley-on-Thames/western outskirts of Tilehurst. West of Pangbourne all four tracks are wired past Beale Park, with the reliefs wired a bit further west towards Lower Basildon as well.
 
59CosG95

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This has probably been asked beforehand, but does anyone actually know how far west the wires will extend out of Temple Meads? (e.g. To reach the Freightliner terminal at Parson Street)
 
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steverailer

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jimm said:
Pretty much all the portals through Didcot Parkway station area are now up but although piles are in place at Didcot East junction none of the cross-pieces have been lifted into place from there down to the electrification depot at Moreton cutting.
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Not for the want of trying :D:D The weight of them means they need heavy cranes to lift them into place, Several attempts have been made up to yet but the weather keeps throwing up high winds on the night so not able to get them in
 
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