Ron Ron Ron

This is one of the reasons that HS2 spending has gone off the charts..... .

"Relatively easy job" ???????? 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Somebody has been smoking some strong stuff ! The HS2 lines into and out of Curzon St. will be on a high viaduct, including the large Bellingham Bridge. Leaving the station and crossing the Digbeth Branch Canal, the line then rises to cross over Lawley Middleway and high above the Duddeston line viaduct, before curving round to the north. Crossing the River Rea just north of the Landor St. Freightliner terminal, the viaduct continues over the line through Saltley (passing in front of the NR West Midlands Signalling Centre, before gradually returning the ground level as it approaches Washwood Heath. Where on earth can a chord to the south be easily inserted into that route? CGI.... Curzon St. in the distance. The Landor St. terminal is located just off the bottom of the photo..... Crossing high above and over the Duddeston Line viaduct...... .

That video has already been posted on here Jamie. 21st December 2023 - Page 355 .

From yesterday's Daily Telegraph..... HS2 bosses in talks to scrap first-class seats Operator considering the step to maintain passenger capacity because of train shortening First-class seats could be removed from HS2 in order to avoid a drop in passenger capacity after Rishi Sunak scrapped the northern leg of the multi-billion-pound project. The Prime Minister cut back proposals for Britain’s high-speed railway in October because of spiralling costs. A new railway will still be built between London and Birmingham, but HS2 trains will then be switched to the existing West Coast Mainline track from Birmingham to Manchester. The revised plans mean there could be a reduction in seats from London to Manchester as HS2 trains are shorter than existing trains that travel along this route, according to an internal government document seen by the Financial Times. The document suggests capacity could drop from 1,690 to 1,530 seats per hour between London and Manchester. Increased capacity was one of the original aims of HS2. Three industry and government figures have told the Financial Times that HS2 is now looking at ways to address the fall in seat capacity, although no changes to contracts have yet been made. One option being considered is scrapping all first-class seats. A senior rail industry figure told the Financial Times: “They are serious about ripping out first class, it’s another nail in the coffin of this being some kind of superior rail service but it’s probably less embarrassing than ending up with a lower capacity.” Another industry executive said that giving up first-class seats would be “another downgrade” for the line and could potentially lower revenues. The planned extension to the stations in Crewe and to the station at Manchester Piccadilly have been scrapped, meaning HS2 trains travelling beyond Birmingham will have to be shorter than planned. Sir Jon Thompson, the project’s chair, told MPs earlier this month that HS2 trains will also be slower than the current Pendolinos because the new trains cannot tilt round bends. “The HS2 train will go the same as a Pendolino on straight, 125mph, and round the bends it’ll go slower at 115mph. So an HS2 from Birmingham to Manchester, which of course would be almost entirely the West Coast Mainline, would go slower than the Pendelino, yes,” he said. HS2 declined to comment. The Department for Transport said no changes have been made to HS2 contracts. A statement said: “The contract to design and build HS2 trains includes both standard and first-class areas for passengers.” .

.

Press reporting is suggesting that this move by Andy Street and Andy Burnham is looking at different options to HS2 Phase 2. It includes looking at upgrades and bypasses on the existing WCML route and the possibility of a section of brand new line. This isn’t HS2 Phase 2, which is considered too expensive. There’s some mention of this route reaching the Stockport area, then joining a proposed NPR route. .

It’s origin was the original Wangrow System One, introduced and on sale 30 years ago, later this year. https://dccwiki.com/Wangrow#/media/File:SystemOne-CRM7-1995.jpg .

Apparently, today (24th January) marks the official commencement of the building of Birmingham's Curzon St. HS2 station. This is separate from the work to build the approach viaducts, which is well advanced; and separate from the previous years of site clearance, diversion and removal of utilities etc, etc. .

Wasn't that the long term vision for improvements to the WCML, north of the Golborne link? A mixture of route straightening and realignments, loop sections, quad tracking, bypasses and tunnelling. All wishful thinking from various policy and strategy documents, but nothing resembling a concrete, unified project. .

Indeed, just getting off the ground involves a level of risk, but in terms of operation, it would be more appropriate to use the term "boundaries of safety". i.e. never crossing those boundaries. I think you are misunderstanding my original response. I wanted to clear up the point that there was no suggestion of risk taking. .

I’m not sure what you meant by that, but there should be no element of “risk”, or risk taking. .

2021 to late 2023 - Oxford Rd., Aylesbury .

The 2nd part of the YouTube video, posted a few days ago, showing the Colne Valley viaduct. This video shows half the length of the two thirds of the viaduct that have already been built. See if you can spot the launching girder in the distance.…. .

You will also see the Atlas Road logistics site, just south of the Willesden hub, marked by the gantry crane and store of concrete tunnel segments, ready to be delivered into the logistics tunnel. The ramp into the logistics hub portal can be seen at the OOC end of this area. There’s a good view of it near the end of the video, as the drone returns towards Willesden. In the Victoria Road crossover box, you can see the two TBM’s being assembled. The first to set off will be “Emily”, the shield of which can be seen at the bottom of the circular ventilation shaft Sections of the Down tunnel TBM, “Anne”, are still to be lowered into the box. These remaining TBM modules can be seen, stored in an area close to Victoria Road. Anne’s cutting head and shield are already in place, in the already constructed lead in tunnel. I found it fascinating to see the workers moving around, down in the crossover box. They look tiny down there. It certainly gives some idea of the scale of this giant hole in the ground. .

.

It looks like the Phase 2a land sell-off is coming sooner than feared..... Quote: "The lifting of safeguarding is separate from the programme for disposing of any property no longer needed for the HS2 project which will begin shortly." Repeal of the enabling bill, or not, the aim appears to be, to dispose of the land ASAP. .

Just beaten to it by Phil, as I was typing..... Today, the safeguarding of the land required for HS2 Phase 2a (Handsacre to Crewe) was formally removed. Land covering the Phase 2a route can now be developed and built on. The official communication... https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/hs2-safeguarding Media reports..... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjrgregpg1do https://www.itv.com/news/central/2024-01-18/land-on-axed-birmingham-to-crewe-hs2-leg-can-now-be-developed .

The diagram is an image. Right click on the image and depending on your type of browser, there should be options to open the image in another tab, or save it, etc, etc. In Safari, I can right click on the image and can then do all sorts with it. .

Really helpful, clear, understandable and well drawn wiring diagrams for the MP1 motors, from Harlequin (Phil). However, multiply that for 15, 20, 30 or more point motors !!! Do the math, as the Americans say. That’s an awful lot of wiring running out to the layout and back. …..or, you could just use the 2 wires of an accessory bus. .

I think you are describing the Cobalt Alpha Mimic, which is a different device to the Alpha Encoder and Alpha Switches that are used to create a Cobalt Alpha control panel. Alpha Mimic does as you say, it reads the DCC commands being sent to the point motors via the Power Bus (track or accessory) and illuminates the matching LED’s on a mimic panel. That’s not what the Cobalt Alpha encoder, used to drive a control panel (track diagram or not), does. It operates on the cab bus and generates DCC commands, to be sent to the addressed point motors. If using the Alpha Switch panel mounted buttons on a mimic control panel, these buttons have LED’s built in, illuminated by electrical contact. .

Cobalt Alpha, as well as the DTM-30, LW150 and (for NCE users) the NCE MiniPanel, all do what you want. Physical switches or buttons with LED's.....even point levers with Alpha.... No screens and no automation. .

Glass screens being the most flexible solution, but not everyone wants a computer screen, or to have to run a computer, just to run their layout. (Kudos to the ECoS and Z21 here…) Others prefer the idea of tactile, physical buttons or switches, rather than touch screens, using a mouse or touchpad. Incidentally, Bachmann’s new wireless Kinesis DCC system comes ready bundled with their RailController layout control software, all for a lower price than most, if not all, other wireless DCC systems on the market. .

Both the DTM-30 and LW150 are good options, but neither offer a full range of additional items (switches, plug & play cables etc,) to allow a convenient and relatively simple installation. The Cobalt Alpha kit offers all that and is much closer to a plug & play solution. To answer Nigel’s point about price, the DTM-30 isn’t cheap either, at £71 just for the module. Cobalt Alpha can work out fairly pricey if more components to the system are needed for a large number of points. However, for a stand-alone arrangement, with a separate DCC accessory system, the £29.95 Power Bus driver and Sniffer adapter is the cheapest “DCC Command Station” you can buy to do the job. So why would you want a stand-alone DCC accessory bus, not connected to the main DCC system? If you never need, or want to set routes or points through your DCC handset or console, this may be an option. It allows continued use of your DCC control of points, when running the layout under DC. .

There's a very simple, non-complicated solution to combine the Cobalt iP digital motors with a physical mimic panel. DCC Concepts Cobalt Alpha. You can power and control your point motors either via the main power (track) bus, via a dedicated power (accessory) bus, or on a stand alone DCC bus, not connected too the main DCC system. There are a few videos online, demonstrating how these options work. (p.s. I have no connection with DCC Concepts)

Progress on all 5 currently active TBM's on the main railway tunnels, was updated yesterday (15th Jan). 3 more TBM's are due to start off in the next few weeks.