Levenmouth rail link to reopen: project updates

[Nicholas Lewis]

There was this https://network-rail.wistia.com/medias/m18gtseev5

Excellent video thanks for posting.

Surprised single lead jcn is being retained or is this temporary.

 

[najaB]

Surprised single lead jcn is being retained or is this temporary.

Would the cost of remodelling the junction it be worth it given the service frequency?

 

[snowball]

As discussed upthread it seems to be a (permanent) single-lead junction incorporating an unusually long single-track section.

At 5:55 in the video they seem to be building something (presumably a bridge) inside a temporary building. I don't think I've ever seen that before.

 

[fgwrich]

Would the cost of remodelling the junction it be worth it given the service frequency?

Not only that, but would there be the space for two junctions almost on top of each other? There really isn't much space between were the connection from Leven joins the mainline and the line to Glenrothes with Thornton curves off.

 

[68000]

As discussed upthread it seems to be a (permanent) single-lead junction incorporating an unusually long single-track section.

At 5:55 in the video they seem to be building something (presumably a bridge) inside a temporary building. I don't think I've ever seen that before.

Presumably so the workers can have protection against the weather

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I'd be surprised if they've installed signalling yet, I would've expected electrification work to precede it. But hey, what do I know?

The only signalling commissioned is the first mile

 

[reddragon]

At 5:55 in the video they seem to be building something (presumably a bridge) inside a temporary building. I don't think I've ever seen that before.

They seem to have lifted out the metal span & put it in a tent for shot blasting, repairs, treating & painting. Very common on steel/iron structures.

 

[snowball]

They seem to have lifted out the metal span & put it in a tent for shot blasting, repairs, treating & painting. Very common on steel/iron structures.

I've seen smaller tents around parts of structures but never one hiding a whole bridge before.

 

[snowball]

Press release

Construction of new Cameron Bridge Station begins

Network Rail has started work to build the new Cameron Bridge station

www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk

Network Rail has started work to build the new Cameron Bridge station

Cameron Bridge, one of two new stations which will be built on the £116m Scottish Government Levenmouth Rail Link project, will boast two platforms with a connecting footbridge and lifts.

It will serve the western end of the line connecting the communities of Cameron Bridge and Methilhill to the rail network for the first time in more than five decades as well as serving as a ‘park and ride’ facility for communities across the East Neuk of Fife.

Located southeast of Windygates just off the A915, the new station will have 125 car parking spaces with provision for EV charging, accessible spaces and cycle storage.

It will also have a bus stop, turning circle and will connect to local communities via new footpaths being constructed. It will also connect to Methilhill via a new bridge over the river to the south.

The work on the new station begins with the construction of the foundations for the 196m platforms. This will be done using more than 100 precast units and approximately 200 cubic metres of concrete.

It is anticipated that work to create the new Cameron Bridge station will take approximately 10 months and will be opened as part of the overall delivery of the Levenmouth Rail Link in Spring 2024.

Tommy McPake, Network Rail project manager for the Levenmouth Rail Link said “We are delighted to be starting work to construct the new Cameron Bridge station.

“While work is progressing well on track elements of the new line, the stations will be the gateway to the rail network for local people and it is great to get work moving on what will be the public facing elements of the project.

“In the coming months, the community will see a lot of work happening and quickly as the project gathers momentum and starts to build towards the opening of the line in Spring 2024.”

A planning application for the new station was submitted in early October and a combination of permitted development rights and ‘prior approval’ enables the project to progress work within the confines of the railway corridor. Planning permission is still being considered by Fife Council for wider elements of the station design.

In late 2022, the platforms of the old Cameron Bridge station were demolished and the spoil moved to the site of the new station approximately 200m to the east. The spoil from the old platforms will be utilised within the new station development.

 

[vic-rijrode]

As an aside, I amcurrently reading the Oakwood Press book "The Leven and East of Fife Railway". It is great to read the section on the Leven Railway being built in the early 1850's and know that some 170 years later it is again "being built"!

Just need a small extension to Anstruther in a couple of year's time ...

I know, I know it's never going to happen.

Incidentally for those interested in the the history of the railways in the East of Fife, the series of books by Hajducki, Jodeluk & Simpson are fantastic.

 

[lachlan]

As an aside, I amcurrently reading the Oakwood Press book "The Leven and East of Fife Railway". It is great to read the section on the Leven Railway being built in the early 1850's and know that some 170 years later it is again "being built"!

Just need a small extension to Anstruther in a couple of year's time ...

I know, I know it's never going to happen.

Incidentally for those interested in the the history of the railways in the East of Fife, the series of books by Hajducki, Jodeluk & Simpson are fantastic.

Looks like the trackbed has been built over. I did wonder though if it will be quicker in the future to change from bus to train at Leven vs taking the bus all the way to Edinburgh. Looking at bus times I don't think there will be much in it unfortunately.

The direct buses appear to stop at 6pm though so the train will improve journeys for those travelling in the evening

 

[jamieintercity]

Ballast has now reached to site of the old cameron bridge station according to Thomas haywood aerial photography Facebook page, so I'm assuming that relaying the double track can commence at some point to cameron bridge.

In terms of bridges, which ones will need to be replace to ensure electrification happens in the next few years. Would the bridge linking the Diageo site off the A911 and footbridge at the distillery need to be demolished and rebuild along with station road and the A915? Would iron bridge and the one just west of it in leven need replaced?

 

[snowball]

In terms of bridges, which ones will need to be replace to ensure electrification happens in the next few years. Would the bridge linking the Diageo site off the A911 and footbridge at the distillery need to be demolished and rebuild along with station road and the A915? Would iron bridge and the one just west of it in leven need replaced?

All the press releases say that the scheme is due for completion by spring 2024 and includes electrification, so I would expect any necessary bridgeworks to be starting pretty soon if they haven't started already.

There has been speculation that the actual wires will be omitted at first as BEMUs will not be available until about 2027, but I think any bridgeworks will still be done as part of the present scheme.

The Thornton feeder station is due Nov 2024 according to the one document I've seen that includes a date.

Edit: I've found this (from last year) about bridges on the route but it only concerns underbridges.

Reinstatement of the Levenmouth Rail link moves forwards, evidence of works popping up throughout the route.

As the reinstatement of the Levenmouth Rail link moves forwards, evidence of work are popping up throughout the route.

www.railadvent.co.uk

The early inspection of bridges along the route is vital to the project due to its location running alongside the river and the streams which flow into it.

A thorough inspection of the bridges will certify that they are in good condition and structurally sound in order to support the new railway.

Five underbridges which are the structures that sit beneath the railway – across the route have seen inspections and a programme of work is currently being carried out in order to bring them up to the correct standard required to enable the project.

Every structure will be grit-blasted which will remove the old paint from the bridge, taking it back to the base metal. Any corroded sections of the bridge will see replacement and repairs wherever needed. The bridges will also see the installation of new timber bridge decks and will both strengthen and support what will soon become a double-tracked railway running over them. Following this work, the bridge will be repainted using a special paint system which will guarantee that it is waterproofed and coated protecting it for 25 years.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 27 Feb 2023 ==

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Press release

Breaking ground at new Leven station site

Work is now under way to build the new Leven station as part of the £116m Scottish Government funded Levenmouth Rail Link project.

www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk

Work is now under way to build the new Leven station as part of the £116m Scottish Government funded Levenmouth Rail Link project.

Leven will be one of two new stations built on the route, alongside Cameron Bridge, reconnecting communities in Levenmouth to the rail network for the first time in over 50 years.

The station will boast 205m island platforms and a pebble styled pavilion area as the entrance to the new station.

Located next to Leven Leisure centre, with easy access to connecting bus services and all existing active travel routes, the new station will have 133 car parking spaces with provision for EV charging and cycle storage. There will also be ‘blue badge’ accessible parking spaces.

Work on the new station began on Monday (Feb 6) with the construction of the foundations for the platforms. This will be done using more than 98 precast units and around 200 cubic metres of concrete.

It is anticipated that work to create the new station will take approximately 14 months and it will be opened as part of the overall Levenmouth Rail Link in spring 2024.

Alex Hynes, managing director of Scotland’s Railway said: “I am delighted to be here to see work begin to construct the new Leven station.

Incidentally I recently re-watched the video in #269, showing the route as it was in December, and noticed something I'd missed first time round, though others may have spotted it: at 1:25 you can see the set of points which marks the end of the long single-lead juntion with the main line. It's on the first bit of straight track after the long curve.

 

[Nev85]

David Shirres has shared this article from Rail Engineer regarding the process of laying the tracks for the Levenmouth reopening

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

David Shirres has shared this article from Rail Engineer regarding the process of laying the tracks for the Levenmouth reopening

My magazine came in the post today.....it is the 200th issue.

 

[snowball]

David Shirres has shared this article from Rail Engineer regarding the process of laying the tracks for the Levenmouth reopening

Thanks for that. No mention of work to overbridges except Bawbee bridge, so perhaps the others have adequate headroom for electrification. The spans appear from the video in #269 to be rectangular in elevation, with no curved arches.

 

[Tormod]

David Shirres has shared this article from Rail Engineer regarding the process of laying the tracks for the Levenmouth reopening

Interesting, thanks.

 

[Snow1964]

Another article and video following official groundbreaking of Leven station on Levenmouth rail link

Work is now underway to build the new Leven station as part of the £116 million Scottish Government funded Levenmouth Rail Link project.​

Leven will be one of two new stations built on the route, alongside Cameron Bridge, reconnecting communities in Levenmouth to the rail network for the first time in over 50 years.

The station will boast 205m island platforms and a pebble-styled pavilion area as the entrance to the new station.

Located next to Leven Leisure centre, with easy access to connecting bus services and all existing active travel routes, the new station will have 133 car parking spaces with provision for EV charging and cycle storage. There will also be ‘blue badge’ accessible parking spaces.

Work on the new station began on with the construction of the foundations for the platforms. This will be done using more than 98 precast units and around 200 cubic metres of concrete.

It is anticipated that work to create the new station will take approximately 14 months and it will be opened as part of the overall Levenmouth Rail Link in spring 2024.

Video: Ground broken at new Leven station site

Work is now underway to build the new Leven station as part of the £116 million Scottish Government funded Levenmouth Rail Link project.

www.scottishconstructionnow.com

Seems the platforms will be 205m, seems quite an unusual length.

 

[gingertom]

Another article and video following official groundbreaking of Leven station on Levenmouth rail link

Video: Ground broken at new Leven station site

Work is now underway to build the new Leven station as part of the £116 million Scottish Government funded Levenmouth Rail Link project.

www.scottishconstructionnow.com

Seems the platforms will be 205m, seems quite an unusual length.

is that long enough for Flying Scotsman, 11 coaches and a 47?

 

[zwk500]

is that long enough for Flying Scotsman, 11 coaches and a 47?

No - Top/Tail Load 11 would generally be 260m (Locos and Mk1s are c.20m). Scotsman could always come in with a shorter train, of course.

 

[Trainbike46]

Another article and video following official groundbreaking of Leven station on Levenmouth rail link

Video: Ground broken at new Leven station site

Work is now underway to build the new Leven station as part of the £116 million Scottish Government funded Levenmouth Rail Link project.

www.scottishconstructionnow.com

Seems the platforms will be 205m, seems quite an unusual length.

maybe they are hoping for at most 10x 20m MUs?

 

[Cheshire Scot]

Seems the platforms will be 205m, seems quite an unusual length.

In terms of a Steam Special about one coach shorter than Tweedbank which is 228m

 

[68000]

I think it is at the insistence of Transport Scotland such that the line can accommodate steam specials

 

[tbtc]

Thanks for that. No mention of work to overbridges except Bawbee bridge

Excuse my ignorance here, but is that the one with the weight issue which meant that Stagecoach had to divert/ replace their long established service from the East Neuk/ Levenmouth to Glasgow because the coaches used on the X27 were too heavy?

(A handful of journeys a week survive to get vehicles from/ back to Aberhill depot, but via Standing Stane Road)

I was just wondering whether work to the bridge might remove the weight limit (to permit through coaches from Anstruther etc to Glasgow)?

 

[snowball]

Excuse my ignorance here, but is that the one with the weight issue which meant that Stagecoach had to divert/ replace their long established service from the East Neuk/ Levenmouth to Glasgow because the coaches used on the X27 were too heavy?

(A handful of journeys a week survive to get vehicles from/ back to Aberhill depot, but via Standing Stane Road)

I was just wondering whether work to the bridge might remove the weight limit (to permit through coaches from Anstruther etc to Glasgow)?

Not being local I hadn't heard about the buses, but the Bawbee bridge is the one that carries the A955 over the railway and the River Leven close to the proposed Levenmouth station and fairly close to the mouth of the river. Google Streetview shows it to be subject to an 18 tonne weight restriction - so it could well be the one you're thinking of. There is some info about it in press releases quoted and linked upthread, mainly #223.

A post on SABRE by andrum99 confirms that the span over the railway is being completely replaced (abutments and deck, with a thinner deck and a slight track lower, taking the gauge from W6a to W12). The arched span over the river is unaffected, so I suppose it depends on whether that span is OK for full weight.

Edit: andrum99 on SABRE also posted details of a planning application. Go to https://planning.fife.gov.uk/online/ and fill in the reference number 22/00840/CLP .

(I previously had a link here which was meant to go direct to the intended planning application, but whenever I checked it it went to one about scour protection.)

 

[zwk500]

I think it is at the insistence of Transport Scotland such that the line can accommodate steam specials

205m Can handle a charter with only 8 passenger vehicles (assuming it's Top/Tail with no runround at leven). That's quite short for a charter set, so they'll be pricey specials if TS want them there. Do you have anything from TS that confirms they are thinking of railtours specifically with that length and not just future proofing for 10-car or Platform-sharing?

 

[Brubulus]

205m Can handle a charter with only 8 passenger vehicles (assuming it's Top/Tail with no runround at leven). That's quite short for a charter set, so they'll be pricey specials if TS want them there. Do you have anything from TS that confirms they are thinking of railtours specifically with that length and not just future proofing for 10-car or Platform-sharing?

Given that most Fife Circle services are currently 3 coach, I'm not expecting to see the new battery stock consist of more than 4 coaches, not run in multiple.

 

[68000]

205m Can handle a charter with only 8 passenger vehicles (assuming it's Top/Tail with no runround at leven). That's quite short for a charter set, so they'll be pricey specials if TS want them there. Do you have anything from TS that confirms they are thinking of railtours specifically with that length and not just future proofing for 10-car or Platform-sharing?

I have a mate who is on the project and there have been wranglings about the infrastructure to accomodate specials with the cost spiralling. TS seemed to be insisting that the branch line is built and signalled to accommodate spcials even though very few operators are committing to use it. NR are under pressure to build the line in a cost effective manner but probably not helped with gold plating from the client

 

[zwk500]

I have a mate who is on the project and there have been wranglings about the infrastructure to accomodate specials with the cost spiralling. TS seemed to be insisting that the branch line is built and signalled to accommodate spcials even though very few operators are committing to use it. NR are under pressure to build the line in a cost effective manner but probably not helped with gold plating from the client

But it's not even gold-plating... A typical Steam special has 2 Locos and a support coach before you even get to the passenger accomodation. That's 60m of non-revenue space immediately. leaving 145m, or 7 coaches for passengers. The only way you're going to make money on a train that short is by doing figure-8 loops of the Fife Circle and Edinburgh Sub, which is a pain in the neck to service (needs Craigentinny open or a shunt onto Joppa Straight) and will do no end of good for performance....

 

[68000]

Increasing cost to accommodate a service that may or may not run once a year epitomises gold plating

 

[zwk500]

Increasing cost to accommodate a service that may or may not run once a year epitomises gold plating

But gold-plating indicates that at least it's done to a high standard This is brass or maybe silver-plating, and a great spaffing of money up a wall at that. Imagine how welcoming a station environment for passengers you could have created with the money they'll be spending on platforms twice as long as they need to be...