Bruce Depot Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 Hi Back in 2007 I visited City Airport for a few hours and can remember using the DLR and running alongside what appeared to be the mothballed NLL line at the time. Ended up watching a program last night about LT and it reminded me so can anyone throw any light on why it was shut between Stratford and North Wollwich and what future if anything it holds? The stations and track all looked in good nick back then as well! cheers Keith Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
'CHARD Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 It closed for the eventual use of parts of the formation for Crossrail. The replacement transport link is by DLR to King George dock station, which is a five minute walk from Pier Road. The GE museum is still functioing at the old station, but the intermediate station at Silvertown is abandoned. I think the Connaught Tunnel (?) has been used for filming and emergency exercises since closure. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glorious NSE Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 Stratford to North Woolwich closed to be rebuilt and it will re-open as a DLR branch (extended to Stratford International) in time for the Olympics. The NLL trains now call at new platforms at the high level station which allows the DLR to take over that section and get to work, their trains will go under the main lines on the old NLL alignment and loop round to terminate at the International station. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Depot Posted March 8, 2010 Author Share Posted March 8, 2010 Thanks both for the info, all change in that area then... cheers Keith Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edwin_m Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 To expand on previous replies: The part between Stratford and Canning Town becomes DLR, a major new junction is being put in south of Canning Town so that trains from Stratford can run to either Beckton or Woolwich. There is no track connection at Stratford to the existing DLR route via Pudding Mill Lane, which will continue to terminate at Stratford (High Level) where it recently got a better terminus with two platforms. The DLR section opens this summer I think - work is certainly well advanced. Crossrail will emerge from its city centre tunnel near Victoria Dock DLR station, interchange at Custom House and use the formation nearly as far as North Woolwich where it will dive under the Thames to get to Woolwich and Abbey Wood. All the closed stations are at or close to DLR stations which will have a much more frequent service as well as direct connections to the City, so it is unlikely this closure has upset many of the locals. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulG Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 In respect of the Museum at North Woolwich the following statement appears on the Great Eastern Railway Society website: "The Society regrets that the North Woolwich Old Station Museum has closed permanently. The closure had been under review for some time, and was finalised at the end of November 2008. Although the Great Eastern Railway Society had a significant interest in the Museum, and had contributed much to its opening and some of its displays it had no involvement in the Museum's management. This was in the hands of the London Borough of Newham who, unfortunately, were no longer in a position to financially support the facility. Despite many efforts over an extended period the Council were unable to find another body that was able to take on the responsibility for the installation. The building remains in the ownership of the River Lea Tidal Mill Trust - the renamed Passmore Edwards Museum Trust. The contents of the Museum have not been moved together, but have been dispersed to various other locations: Some items have been returned to their owners who had placed them there on loan. The bulk of the smaller artefacts have gone to the East Anglian Railway Museum at Chappel. The GER horse-drawn parcels lorry has gone to Mangapps Railway Museum at Burnham-on-Crouch. Many documents have passed to the GERS and in due course will be placed on loan and deposited at the Essex Record Office at Chelmsford." Regards Paul Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Oldddudders Posted March 8, 2010 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 8, 2010 Hi Back in 2007 I visited City Airport for a few hours and can remember using the DLR and running alongside what appeared to be the mothballed NLL line at the time. Ended up watching a program last night about LT and it reminded me so can anyone throw any light on why it was shut between Stratford and North Wollwich and what future if anything it holds? The stations and track all looked in good nick back then as well! This section of the NLL route was only electrified, I think, in 1985, as part of the revision of services with the impending loss of Broad Street as the terminus in 1986, for the Broadgate development. Prior to that there had been, at least since 1979, a diesel shuttle from Camden Road to North Woolwich, including Cravens Units. Although the NLL reached North Woolwich in 1864, I think the electrification of the Broad Street line in 1916 probably left North Woolwich as a bit of a backwater, and its services for some years had been rather tied in with Tottenham Hale via Stratford, again Cravens units, which stopped on electrification. The DLR & Jubilee extensions of the '90s provided good alternative routes into Central London for the area south of Stratford, and the NLL trains didn't carry much business, certainly below Canning Town. It's good to know that there is future renaissance in store, but my several visits to North Woolwich never convinced me that it was a thriving place. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
eastwestdivide Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 Pic from the just before electrics took over: Anyone got a recent shot of the same view? That would be some comparison from my gallery at http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?app=gallery&module=user&user=6971&do=view_album&album=343 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold unravelled Posted March 8, 2010 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 8, 2010 Also posted in another thread "> Silvertown station in November last year Further down the line, inset track which once ran across the road and gates still visible "> Dave Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 There was a 'Plan Of The Month' in RM of the Silvertown Tramway, probably in the late '70s/early '80s. Anyone know which issue for sure? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Depot Posted March 8, 2010 Author Share Posted March 8, 2010 I can remember reading/looking at that mag many years ago, although no idea which month/year it was now. Wonder what would have happened with the freight if it had still been running now... cheers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edwin_m Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 This section of the NLL route was only electrified, I think, in 1985. The part from south of Stratford to Canning Town was completely rebuilt in the late 90s to make room for the Jubilee Line alongside. All the signalling and probably all the track is now replaced, though most of the civils and stations are re-used for the DLR. The rules of economics seem to be a bit different in East London compared with the rest of the railway. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
'CHARD Posted March 8, 2010 Share Posted March 8, 2010 I can remember reading/looking at that mag many years ago, although no idea which month/year it was now. Wonder what would have happened with the freight if it had still been running now... cheers I imagine Tate & Lyle at Silvertown would have been the last destination left had it survived today, bulk foodstuffs of one sort or another in and refined product/ by-products out. I'm not entirely certain what part of the refining process and for what specific product that plant specialises in, but it is easy to envisage a river/ rail transport solution rather than the predominantly road transport that services it currently. As I don't follow today's freight rolling stock I have no idea what vehicles would be employed. At Custom House, if one stands looking west from Excel, it's almost possible to imagine the PLA's fleet of shunters plying its trade in the many miles of sidings alongside this part of the Thames. Just don't wander by mistake into Britain's most lawless postcode area, as that's just the other side of the tracks. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glorious NSE Posted March 9, 2010 Share Posted March 9, 2010 DRS run a Tilbury-Daventry (where it connects to services headed further North) block train of containerised bulk products for Tate & Lyle nowadays, so it is still rail served, just not right to the door. It sometimes includes some nicely branded containers as well: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edwin_m Posted March 9, 2010 Share Posted March 9, 2010 Is that what people mean by a hi-cube? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glorious NSE Posted March 9, 2010 Share Posted March 9, 2010 LOL Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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