Probably not if it is a non-station overbridge; there are several bridges over the ECML near where I live and none of them have notices aimed at bridge users.
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Manchester - Liverpool Electrification
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Probably not if it is a non-station overbridge; there are several bridges over the ECML near where I live and none of them have notices aimed at bridge users.
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LDECRexile
Established Member
Following very welcome reports (and a photo) re Sankey Viaduct and Rainhill I have added ten pictures here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/sets/72157648494725811/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/127646831@N03/sets/72157648494725811/
childwallblues
Established Member
No wiring at Roby yesterday either.
Ploughman
Established Member
Signs need to be in place before the system is powered up.
Normal practice, as stated earlier, for all staff to treat OHLE as live at all times unless you hold or have seen the signed piece of paper that tells you it is turned off.
Normal practice, as stated earlier, for all staff to treat OHLE as live at all times unless you hold or have seen the signed piece of paper that tells you it is turned off.
DJH1971
Established Member
Only a matter of time as almost all steelwork is up.
mcnw35282
Member
Does the wiring need to be continuous? I thought the buildings at edge hill and Huyton quarry were feeder stations? They'll energise in sections won't they?
Thank you for more interesting photos of portals. I would have thought removing shrubbery from the stonework of Sankey Viaduct would be high on the priority list?
Headspan wires on the ECML were strung complete between trains. At Rainhill the top headspan wire only has been strung. I wonder why?
LDECRexile
Established Member
I'm glad you find them interesting.
I have been told that Planning Consent has been given for the whole viaduct to be shotblasted and a contract has been let. The end product should be spectacular, ie rid of nearly two centuries of muck, graffiti and vegetation.
I use the term 'shotblasted' as a layman, it might be sandblasted, gritblasted or wiped with a feather duster, possibly even down rather than up.
I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean by 'strung complete between trains.'
Kind regards
Dave
Yes it was a bit ambiguous.
The complete headspan, usually for four tracks, was built up as one unit with the correct offset for that pair of uprights, on a warehouse floor then rolled up like a swiss roll and transported to site. Here it was unrolled and strung between the uprights in between passing trains without a possession in literally a matter of minutes.
The return cable had already been fitted on the outside of the uprights before the headspans were fitted. The catenary and contact wires were fitted later.
I hope it is clearer this time?
LDECRexile
Established Member
Thank you for this full and interesting description.
I don't know why they've gone about it differently at Rainhill, but would wonder if it is to do with things you mention such as:
assembling in a factory and transporting: excellent when you are doing loads and loads over a long section of railway, maybe not when there are four only?
slipping it in in between trains without a possession: would modern standards allow this above a well used station?
Cheers
Dave
In response to the earlier question about the lines being energised.
Indeed all the residents between Lea Green and St Helens Junction received a letter stating the wires would be live as from 31/12/14.
Working in a different industry from rail but nonetheless an industry that does adhere to H&S guidelines. One would always assume a power line is on unless not only a piece of paper tells you it's off but also it is tested as off.
From my own perspective if they say the lines are on ...they're on!
Budge
Indeed all the residents between Lea Green and St Helens Junction received a letter stating the wires would be live as from 31/12/14.
Working in a different industry from rail but nonetheless an industry that does adhere to H&S guidelines. One would always assume a power line is on unless not only a piece of paper tells you it's off but also it is tested as off.
From my own perspective if they say the lines are on ...they're on!
Budge
Was there any procedure for making the signalling system treat the section as occupied?
UrbanWorld
Member
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This may sound daft to those in the know, is the Liverpool to Wigan line being electrified now and scheduled to be operational at the same time as the Liverpool to Manchester line?
LNW-GW Joint
Veteran Member
Yes, it's 80% finished - all of it was supposed to be done by last month.
Just the bit in the middle through St Helens Central to do, and connecting up at both ends to the main lines.
For a while it was further advanced than the main line, but has evidently been de-prioritised in the last few weeks.
I should think it will take maybe a month to finish after the main line.
DJH1971
Established Member
It's the Carr Mill Viaduct holding things up a bit.
It was, until the recent admission that the December 2014 schedule would not be met. There is no official published revised opening date for either line, but February has been talked about for Liverpool to Earlestown. The Wigan line may be a bit later. Similarly Ordsall Lane junction to Manchester Victoria.
Incidentally, I wonder what will happen to the supposedly quarterly updates to the CP5 Enhancements Delivery Plan, given that the last one was six weeks late? It might be simpler to skip one, but will the ORR allow that?
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LNW-GW Joint
Veteran Member
There's about 2-3 miles of wiring to do Ravenhead-Carr Mill, and the first half mile of the branch from Huyton Jn.
Carr Mill viaduct has its masts up and just needs a couple of booms added for it to be wirable.
Then there's the one missing mast south of Carr Mill, and the final few hundred yards up to Springs Branch to wire (with a few masts needed at the junction as well).
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Not that I could see as a lineside observer but there must have been to allow all four tracks to be obstructed for up to ten minutes.
I don't think there are many places on current electrification projects where headspans will be used. Rainhill station is the only one I've heard of. So it probably isn't worthwhile to go to great lengths to achieve efficient ways of putting them up, as it was on WCML north or ECML where there were hundreds of them.
LNW-GW Joint
Veteran Member
There are a couple approaching Manchester Victoria (over 4+ tracks).
UrbanWorld
Member
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Thanks. So the Liverpool to Wigan and Liverpool to Manchester lines should be full operational on electric in March - we hope. But with 4 electric train sets?
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swt_passenger
Veteran Member
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Peter Semmens' book on the electrification of the ECML explains that on long sections with automatic signals there were local switches added so that the wiring teams could set the relevant signals to red while the prefabricated headspans were run across the tracks. The basic idea was that they'd connect everything to the mast on one side first while trains ran, and as and when the timetable allowed they'd protect themselves for just enough time to pull the other end of the headspan round over the tracks, and then raise it and tension it using ropes and pulleys.
Just 'speed read' the relevant chapter on how the wires were put up, and it strikes me that many procedures would not pass a modern risk assessment.
LNW-GW Joint
Veteran Member
For reasons I don't really understand, the first wires up through Rainhill were the catenary wires (running through from completed wiring either side).
Normally the mast wiring (earth/return, AT) goes up first, then the over-track wires.
The ECML approach gets you completed headspans, but you still have to wire lengthways when you have enough spans for a full wire run.
Rainhill is only a 4-headspan run in a long run of portals/cantilevers.
They also have a habit of putting the catenary/contact wires up without connecting them to the registration arms (which sometimes are not even there!).
There are quite long stretches of wiring with only temporary connections to masts to keep them up.
So "wires up" has to be qualified a bit.
Earlestown for instance at the moment is a curious mix of finished, half-finished and missing wiring.
And all done in variously dark, wet and frosty conditions. Impressive.
Normally the mast wiring (earth/return, AT) goes up first, then the over-track wires.
The ECML approach gets you completed headspans, but you still have to wire lengthways when you have enough spans for a full wire run.
Rainhill is only a 4-headspan run in a long run of portals/cantilevers.
They also have a habit of putting the catenary/contact wires up without connecting them to the registration arms (which sometimes are not even there!).
There are quite long stretches of wiring with only temporary connections to masts to keep them up.
So "wires up" has to be qualified a bit.
Earlestown for instance at the moment is a curious mix of finished, half-finished and missing wiring.
And all done in variously dark, wet and frosty conditions. Impressive.
I watched the headspans being strung on the section between Thirsk and Pilmoor. It was not obvious how the workers were protected from passing trains. I assumed by radio communication but thank you for explaining.
The original idea is to have 3 Class 319's on the Liverpool Lime St - Manchester Airport service first and that remains the case. Other NR services will convert in time as and when they receive the other refurbished Class 319's. Patience please.
Whistler40145
Established Member
Exactly, as they say "Rome wasn't built in a day"[emoji1]
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DJH1971
Established Member
Which should be later this year.
Yeah, you don't deserve a usable rail service until an unspecified period of time after the date when changes were promised...
LNW-GW Joint
Veteran Member
If you are talking between Lime St and Manchester, oddly only Patricroft and Eccles can handle 8-car (20m) trains.
On the Wigan line, only St Helens Central.
Some platforms are on a list for extension, but only up to 6 cars.
They are currently all odd lengths from 4 upwards, with no consistency.
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