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Midland Main Line Electrification


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3 minutes ago, ess1uk said:

OOOOps

why did that happen?

 

I imagine like most cash strapped LAs, Leicestershire want works done by a 3rd party to be of a very high standard - as it saves them having to come and do stuff out of their own budget (i.e. get the 3rd party to resurface more of the road then is technically necessary.

 

Network rail by contrast are under instructions to lower costs - every £ more they have to spend on enabling works makes the treasury less likely to want to invest in electrification.

 

As such there was probably a bit of a Mexican standoff for some time which has now been resolved.

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3 hours ago, billbedford said:

It's remarkable how much LA works get started between Christmas and the 5th of April. This is when the LA knows how much has been spent in the current year and how much needs to be spent to avoid the next year's grant being curtailed. 

Always used to happen with BR projects and maintenance as well. When we joined Railtrack in April 1994, the 'new' management said that this practice would no longer happen as "all future projects would be properly costed and correctly budgeted". Oh, how we laughed.

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On 03/03/2023 at 16:13, ess1uk said:

OOOOps

why did that happen?

 

Hmm.  One only has to drive the roads of Surrey (for example) to see the "high standards" LAs set.  Imo much more likely the LA thought that as NR are *the* experts when it comes to over engineering and wasting money they could get something much more grandiose than was needed.  All this "standards" waffle is probably just grandstanding to make themselves look good.

Edited by DY444
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5 hours ago, DY444 said:

All this "standards" waffle is probably just grandstanding to make themselves look good.

 

Indeed, it is hard to understand the Council's concerns, given the difference in safety standards between road and rail transport, and, as stated in the linked article 'The council would not tell the media exactly what its safety concerns were'. Which inevitably makes one think, why on earth not tell us?

 

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  • 7 months later...
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There is an article about the MML electrification in the latest Modern Railways.  Apparently Wigston was chosen as the terminating point as it's the furthest place that can safely be fed from Braybrook. 

 

Jamie

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On 04/03/2023 at 10:42, billbedford said:

It's remarkable how much LA works get started between Christmas and the 5th of April. This is when the LA knows how much has been spent in the current year and how much needs to be spent to avoid the next year's grant being curtailed. 

And the same thing happened with a FTSE 100 company I worked for in the 1980s.  Buy any equipment you need as long as it's invoiced by Friday...

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On 04/11/2023 at 12:56, ess1uk said:

Emergency work this weekend at Braybrook

This is still ongoing, Connect services terminating at Wellingborough and all trains North of there diverted via Manton with only two trains an hour in each direction. The single platform at Corby effectively renders this stretch as single line which doesn’t allow much leeway in the timetable between Leicester and Kettering Southbound. Any late running delays Northbound trains from entering Corby.

 

Works are expected to be completed by the end of Wednesday with a 20mph restriction over the affected length for the foreseeable future.

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The knitting  is visually complete (at least) as far as Kilsby Bridge.

 

At the B562 crossing just south of the Junction there's no sign of anything new looking north, but looking south there's some HV stuff, but no wires or pylons.

 

Southwards:

 

 

B562 Looking South.JPG

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For completeness, Kilby Bridge. FWIW Bing and Google Maps are both locked in the past. Looking at the tree/shrub clearance on the embankments between Leicester & Market Harborough I'd say the intrusive work had been done to avoid the bird-nesting season, although March and April are also best avoided if the habitats might have hibernating snakes.

 

 

Kilby Bridge at A5199.JPG

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On 21/12/2021 at 12:41, Edwin_m said:

I expect the reason to finish at South Wigston is that there are ideas for re-modelling the section from there through Leicester to Syston, to reinstate the fourth track and possibly provide a grade separation to remove conflict between the MML and east-west (mainly freight) traffic.  If they wire the existing layout it becomes that much more difficult and costly to change it.  

On a quick look on Google maps, @Edwin_m has it wrapped up. The Knighton tunnel is two bores, one in mainline use, one for goods/abandoned/lightly used. So re-instating to 4-track at two levels (the new one lower) plus a new  (lower) island platform at Leicester on the (largely unused) sidings and goods bypass are seems to solve problems without shutting traffic off for many months.

 

Just paying for it to go then.

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Could it be done?  There are several restricted height road bridges on that stretch - Knighton Fields Road and Lancaster Road - that couldn't be lowered, then there's about 500m from Regent Road bridge to the A6 London Road bridge for any descent into Leicester Station.

 

Long term maybe the entire station site could be lowered... I don't think anyone here would shed any tears if Leicester was bulldozed (apart from the porte cochère which is listed I believe) the rest of it is of no merit whatsoever.  The glorious Midland station buildings went in the 70s I think.

 

I wish it would happen soon, as I am not a fan of the dirty noisy clapped out junk that EMR have to use at the moment and some clean quiet EMUs would be preferable.  But it s not London, so I doubt anything will happen in my lifetime.  

 

 

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5 minutes ago, Dr Gerbil-Fritters said:

 

I wish it would happen soon, as I am not a fan of the dirty noisy clapped out junk that EMR have to use at the moment and some clean quiet EMUs would be preferable.  But it s not London, so I doubt anything will happen in my lifetime.  

 

 

 

Don't forget that EMR are due to take delivery of a fleet of bi-mode IETs in the near future that will be able to take advantage of OLE where it exists.

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There may well be a technical solution to London Road in the form of an Insulating coating under the bridge. This was used under the bridge over the GWML just east of Cardiff General, that the Queen Street lines use. 

 

Jamie

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On 01/04/2024 at 10:25, DenysW said:

For completeness, Kilby Bridge. FWIW Bing and Google Maps are both locked in the past. Looking at the tree/shrub clearance on the embankments between Leicester & Market Harborough I'd say the intrusive work had been done to avoid the bird-nesting season, although March and April are also best avoided if the habitats might have hibernating snakes.

 

 

Kilby Bridge at A5199.JPG

 

Back in the day, (1960s), there were a LOT of snakes on the Midland Mainline embankment and cutting sides in that area.

 

CJI.

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