by rail engineers for rail engineers
JULY 2018 – ISSUE 165
FUNDING
station improvements TO BENEFIT CUSTOMERS RETURN OF THE RAIL PARTNERSHIP AWARDS Three years after Network Rail’s last Partnership Awards, a new tranche of suppliers is recognised for its outstanding work. DERBY STATION REMODELLING
CP6: A GAME OF TWO HALVES
Work to improve the layout and reliability of Derby’s rail hub is now well underway with blockades due to commence on 22 July.
The ORR’s draft determination for CP6 is broadly supportive of Network Rail’s proposals, but there are a few suggestions.
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RAIL ENGINEER MAGAZINE
CONTENTS
30
Feature
06 30 34 54 56 60 62 66 68
Stations
10 16 22 27
Funding station improvements to benefit customers Graham Coombs talks with Network Rail director of stations Norrie Courts.
Looking back on London Bridge David Carter explains how WSP, Network Rail and others delivered a major upgrade.
Derby station remodelling Peter Stanton meets Galliford Try and the contractors upgrading an important Midlands hub.
Shedding light on Wigan Everlast has replaced the glazed canopy of a Grade II listed station with Twinfix polycarbonate.
News CP6 payment terms, Seaton station, South Esk bullet holes, GOBLIN trains.
CP6: A game of two halves Marc Johnson considers the ORR’s draft determination for the next control period.
Out twice in May Network Rail takes advantage of having two bank holiday weekends in the same month.
London Underground Deep Tube Upgrade Malcolm Dobell suggests how the new Siemens Piccadilly line fleet may look.
Two great saves SPL Powerlines picked up the pieces on two electrification projects after Carillion collapsed.
Low-cost, lightweight rail vehicles for low density routes The Railway Technical Strategy’s Radical Train has led to a revolution in Very Light Rail.
To close a crossing (or reroute, replace, divert or extinguish it) Chris Parker explains the difficulties encountered when removing a level crossing.
New ODP for Wales and Borders Grahame Taylor considers the ramifications of Transport for Wales’ first franchise award.
The Queensbury conundrum Graeme Bickerdike finds that reopening a disused tunnel for cyclists is hard work.
Rail Partnership Awards Review
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Return of the Rail Partnership Awards Stewart Thorpe reveals all the winners, the highly commended and the runners up.
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Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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RAIL ENGINEER MAGAZINE
EDITORIAL
Never again The May timetable changes have caused extreme disruption to passengers on Northern Rail and Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), with some commuters reported to have lost jobs as a result. Many claim that Britain’s railways have never failed their passengers so badly before. The sad irony is that the May timetable was to provide significant improvements, made possible by the completion of a huge investment programme. Hence, itw had four times as many changes as previous timetables. Many competent experienced individuals were involved in the preparation and delivery of this timetable. Yet no one anticipated the impending debacle until a week or so beforehand. Headlines such as “Rail Chaos Fury” did not exaggerate. Understandably, politicians demanded answers, some of which came from a recent House of Commons Transport Committee’s hearing. This highlighted the complex nature of large-scale timetable changes on a crowded railway and the interaction between different train operators’ timetables. Yet, in this situation, train operators found themselves having to produce amended timetables in 16 weeks instead of the usual 40 weeks. These were finalised days before the introduction of the new timetable. Only then was it appreciated that, whilst there were sufficient drivers, their locations and skillsets could not deliver the timetable requirements. On GTR, the late timetable changes were due to changed DfT requirements and the decision to phase the introduction of the 24 trains per hour Thameslink service over a longer period, which ironically had been intended to reduce the risk from trying to do too much when the timetable changed. Late-running projects were the cause of both Northern’s late timetable rewrite and its inability to resource the May timetable. In January, it was announced that the Bolton line electrification (originally scheduled for December 2016) would not be completed by May as planned. This required Northern to
change its rolling stock plans at short notice and undertake additional driver training. The 19-week Blackpool electrification blockade, scheduled for completion in March, overran by three weeks. As a result, 450 drivers had to relearn their route knowledge, adding two thousand training days to an already demanding training programme. No doubt the reasons for these project delays will be subject to further scrutiny. Questions also need to be asked about mitigation measures to minimise the impact of potential overruns. For example, did the Blackpool blockade have contingency arrangements to avoid expiry of the driver’s route competence and could notification of the Bolton electrification overrun have been given earlier? It seems it should have been, as recent advice is that the Bolton line will not now be electrified until November. Whilst the intricacies of producing and delivering the timetable are not usually a concern for rail engineers, they need to understand the potential impact of their projects on the process. This would seem to be one of the lessons from the May timetable failure which must never happen again. When the timetable issues are eventually resolved, the capacity benefits from the huge investment programme will be realised. Notwithstanding the timetable debacle, it is right to celebrate the suppliers that deliver these projects. As Stewart Thorpe describes, the 2018 Rail Partnership Awards did just that as Network Rail worked in partnership with Rail Media to recognise those delivering a better railway. Over the two May bank holidays, work to the value of £168 million was delivered to enhance and improve the railway. Nigel Wordsworth shows how project teams took advantage of these long weekends to deliver a wide variety of work. This included ongoing remodelling and resignalling work at and around Derby station prior to an eleven-week blockade
starting in July. Peter Stanton explains the complexity of this work and the collaboration needed to deliver it. In September it will be fifteen years since the opening of Britain’s first high-speed railway to the Channel Tunnel. As Chris Parker describes, this is now starting to require track renewals for which a novel approach is required. With the next five-year control period, CP6, starting next year, Marc Johnson explains the process to determine the funds available for renewal and enhancement work and how the ORR’s draft determination broadly supports Network Rail’s proposals to spend £47.8 billion over CP6. In a separate feature, Graham Coombs describes arrangements for funding station improvements. Services on the Wales and Borders rail franchise are set to be transformed with the award of a 15-year £5 billion contract to KeolisAmey. Grahame Taylor reveals how all trains will be replaced by 2023, with new ones provided by CAF, Stadler and Vivarail. Another recent train order was the £15 billion contract awarded to Siemens for 94 Piccadilly line trains. As Malcolm Dobell explains, these will be the first articulated tube trains. Although Britain has a good level crossing safety record, more needs to be done to reduce this risk, which can be eliminated where crossings can be closed. We show the various options that enable a crossing to be closed. The closed 2,501-yard Queensbury tunnel is the subject of Graeme Bickerdike’s article, which shows there is a good economic case to re-open it as a cycle path. It would be good to see redundant rail infrastructure used in this way. If so, this would be one project that would not have to consider timetable implications. RAIL ENGINEER EDITOR
DAVID SHIRRES
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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THE TEAM
NEWS
Editor David Shirres david.shirres@railengineer.uk
Production Editor Nigel Wordsworth nigel.wordsworth@railengineer.uk
Production and design Adam O’Connor adam@rail-media.com Matthew Stokes matt@rail-media.com
Engineering writers bob.wright@railengineer.uk chris.parker@railengineer.uk clive.kessell@railengineer.uk collin.carr@railengineer.uk david.bickell@railengineer.uk graeme.bickerdike@railengineer.uk grahame.taylor@railengineer.uk lesley.brown@railengineer.uk malcolm.dobell@railengineer.uk mark.phillips@railengineer.uk paul.darlington@railengineer.uk peter.stanton@railengineer.uk stuart.marsh@railengineer.uk
Advertising Asif Ahmed
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CP6: Improved payment terms for SMEs and subcontractors
Jolene Price jolene@rail-media.com
Network Rail is taking steps to change the way major suppliers working on the railway pay their subcontractors.
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Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
New contract terms for the next control period, CP6 commencing 1 April 2019, will commit suppliers to pay their subcontractors within 28 days and remove the use of retentions on those payments, something that has long been an area of debate across the industry due to the detrimental effect it can have on smaller suppliers. Having implemented a best practice ‘Fair Payment Charter’ and applying these principles to its own payments to suppliers back in 2011, Network Rail describes the decision to formalise this regime for CP6 as ‘the next natural step’ and something their major contractors support. Commenting on the changes, Network Rail commercial director Stephen Blakey said: “The Fair Payment Charter was about recognising that cash flow is the ‘life blood’ for every supplier by committing to pay for goods and services in a fair, predictable and timely way. Harnessing the support we
have already received from our major suppliers, we have simply taken the next natural step and formalised that approach for CP6. Culturally, it sends a huge signal as to the value we place on a sustainable supply chain and the way we want to do business. “We recognise the challenges faced by smaller suppliers and are in a position to influence the way work on our railway is delivered and paid for. It is in our interest to have a sustainable supply chain at all levels - they are vital to the successful delivery of our projects and the safe operation of Britain’s railway.” The changes are part of a number of improvements being made aimed at creating a healthier environment for suppliers at all levels. They will result in the rail industry becoming the first sector within the wider UK construction industry to enforce these payment measures, overhauling the way large contractors do business with their supply chain.
NEWS
coming soon...
AUGUST 2018 / FEBRUARY 2019 RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE Rail Engineer looks at what’s involved in maintaining and renewing the UK Rail Infrastructure and the latest technology and innovations making it faster, easier and more cost effective, especially in these areas:
New station at Seaton In this Stations issue of Rail Engineer, it is worth remembering that Network Rail is not the only company building and opening new railway stations. Seaton Tramway, which for the past 48 years has been running from the main car park in Seaton for three miles inland through Colyford to Colyton, has just opened a £3 million new station at Seaton in Devon. The fleet of 14 passengercarrying single and doubledeck electric trams was purpose-built by the company from classic designs based on heritage trams that served Britain’s towns and cities in the first half of the 20th century. The double-deck trams have open top decks, providing 360-degree panoramic views of the route, much of it along the former Seaton to Seaton
Junction branch line between the picturesque estuary of the River Axe and the Axe Estuary Wetlands. This is the first new station to be built by a heritage railway in many years and has seen highly complex railway engineering works take place, work not seen in the area since the tramway moved to Seaton in 1970. Work on the new station started last September. Almost 450 tonnes of ballast, 300 sleepers and over 190 piles have been used in the project to lift the station two metres above the ground. The new building will be home to four new platforms, which will house four trams each night, creating a showroom displaying some of the famous heritage trams. During construction of the new building, the service has been operating from the tramway’s Riverside Depot. Here visitors were offered a unique, previously unseen look into the inner workings of this heritage tramway.
Asset Management, Cable Hangers, Construction, Drainage, Examinations, Lifting, Modular Systems, Painting, Plant & Equipment, Precast Sections, Refurbishment, Replacement, Rope Access, Scaffolding, Spray Concrete, Surveying Equipment, Surveying Techniques, Tunnel Boring, Ventilation, Waterproofing.
SEPTEMBER 2018 / MARCH 2019 SIGNALLING & TELECOMS Three of Rail Engineer's writers specialise in this complex field that keeps the railway running and will provide the key to increased capacity and safer running in the future: Barriers, Broadband, CCTV, Displays, Driverless Systems, Equipment, ERTMS, GSM-R, Gantries, Hazard Warnings, IP Networks, Information Systems, Level Crossing Surfaces, Loudspeakers, Operating Systems, Protection Systems, Radio, Resignalling Schemes, Signalling Power, Software, Training, Warning Systems, WiFi
OCTOBER 2018 / APRIL 2019 ROLLING STOCK & DEPOTS With trains and their systems becoming ever more complicated, Rail Engineer’s specialist writers cover everything that improves performance, increases efficiency, and keeps customers happy: Components, Condition Monitoring, Depots, Equipment, Fuel, Inspection, Interiors, Lifting, LightRail Vehicles, Lighting, Maintenance, New designs, Passenger Information & Entertainment, Refurbishment, Train Washing, Tram-Train, Underground Trains, Wheel / Rail Interface
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London – November 2018
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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NEWS
Bullet holes discovered in Scottish viaduct Network Rail engineers working on the refurbishment of South Esk viaduct in Montrose have uncovered shrapnel marks and bullet holes on the structure consistent with a bombing and a strafing attack by the Luftwaffe during World War 2. The viaduct was completed in 1883 and was one of the last major bridges built in wrought iron using lattice girders - a Victorian design standard - in the UK. It was built by railway engineer William Arrol, who was responsible for the construction of many iconic bridges including the Tay and Forth Bridges. Montrose was bombed 15 times during World War 2, with the South Esk viaduct being attacked on several occasions. It is thought the damage is most likely to have occurred during a bombing raid on the bridge in August 1941 which saw a freight train attacked and several wagons damaged
and derailed when a bomb exploded below the girders. The raid also resulted in the deaths of three women and a child on Rossie Island at the south end of the structure. Following the attack in August 1941, the bridge was repaired and services resumed in just 14 days. Standing on 15 pairs of wrought iron piers above the River Esk at the mouth of the Montrose Basin, the 16 span, 440 metre, grade B listed structure is now being grit blasted, cleaned, repaired and repainted, section by section, by contractor Taziker Industrial in a £4.2 million project which will last 16 months.
Network Rail route delivery director Matthew Spence commented: “Seeing the bullet holes close up gives those working on the bridge today a reminder of the contribution made by everyone on the railway to the war effort - often in challenging, tragic and dangerous circumstances. “While the emphasis then was to patch up the damage and get the railway moving again as quickly as possible, we now take it as our duty to pick up the repairs started by those railway engineers in August 1941 and properly complete the job they started.”
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New trains for GOBLIN The first of the new Class 710 trains for the Gospel Oak to Barking line (hence GOBLIN) has been unveiled, prior to entering service this November. A fleet of 54 trains is being built by Bombardier in Derby, based on the Aventra platform that was also used for the Elizabeth line trains for Crossrail. The new trains, which will carry almost 700 people, feature a high capacity walk-through layout, Wi-Fi and USB charging points. Final approval of the work carried out by Network Rail to electrify the Gospel Oak to Barking route was completed recently. The new trains will now be tested on this new infrastructure over the summer to prove they meet TfL’s stringent safety and reliability requirements. The first eight new trains will be introduced on the newly electrified Gospel Oak to Barking by November, replacing the existing diesel trains operating on this line, doubling capacity on the route and helping to improve London’s air-quality. They will then be brought onto the Watford to Euston route and on services out of Liverpool Street to Cheshunt, Chingford and Enfield Town, replacing the current fleet, some which are over 35 years old.
The new trains will also be used on the extension to Barking Riverside when it is completed in 2021.
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Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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STATIONS
GRAHAM COOMBS
FUNDING
station improvements TO BENEFIT CUSTOMERS
I
f asked about their rail journey, most people will talk about their experience on the train, not unsurprisingly as that is likely to be where they will spend most of their time. Much attention is therefore drawn to the rolling stock, its design, performance and passenger facilities.
But if a journey is analysed in more detail, it is obvious that stations also have a considerable impact on passengers’ overall experience. They are, after all, the points at which passengers enter and leave the system, perhaps transfer between services or other transport modes, and where they might spend significant time when things go awry. Greater appreciation of this has led to a stronger focus on station improvements within Network Rail, which owns virtually all of the stations on the national rail
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
network and manages the largest and most important ones itself. Rail Engineer met with Norrie Courts, director of stations at Network Rail, to learn more about how the increasing profile of stations is driving future plans. Norrie explained that the key driver is to improve customer experience. As measured in Passenger Focus’ National Passenger Survey, overall satisfaction with stations in October 2017 was at 81 per cent, slightly higher than overall satisfaction with train services but still leaving much room for improvement.
Work in progress Network Rail has, in fact, been promoting improvements for some time. The National Station Improvement Programme covered investment of £250 million in Control Periods 4 and 5 (20092019), benefitting more than 450 stations across the country. But this is becoming a stronger element of policy. “Network Rail works closely with the Department for Transport’s station policy team, as well as with the Welsh Government and Transport Scotland”, Norrie explained. “The aim is to encourage TOCs to invest in stations for long-term benefits and to ensure we all get the best value from stations, whether you are a passenger, customer, stakeholder or member of a local
STATIONS community. Stations fit for purpose from an operational perspective will drive better customer satisfaction but can also deliver other opportunities such as housing, retail, local regeneration and jobs.” It is clear that many stations have not had sufficient investment in the past, with little incentive under older franchising deals for train operators to invest in stations during relatively short franchises. That is now changing, as is evidenced by the recent Welsh Government award of the 15-year Wales and Borders franchise to KeolisAmey, which included a commitment for £194 million improvements to stations, as well as opening four new ones. The current train service woes of the Northern franchise are also overshadowing the commitment for £55 million of investment in stations, including upgrades for even the remotest rural halts. The challenge, of course, is in funding such improvements. Some comes through Network Rail’s own budgets and from government initiatives. Schemes funded by the Department for Transport have included the Station Commercial Project Facility and two New Station Fund schemes.
'Access for All' at Godalming, Surrey. The Station Commercial Project Facility was a £16 million DfT facility to deliver commercially focussed investment to improve station environments and the passenger experience, while reducing the cost of the railway to taxpayers. Six projects, including car parking, booking hall and ticket line improvements, have been funded during Control Period 5, at Cheltenham, Exeter St Davids, Market Harborough, Newbury, St Albans and Weston-super-Mare. Norrie thinks it is likely that funds such as these may be rolled into one pot going forward, but time will tell.
New Station Funds The first DfT New Stations Fund supported six stations: »» Pye Corner, Wales (opened December 2014) »» Newcourt, Exeter (June 2015) »» Lea Bridge, London (May 2016) »» Ilkeston, Derby (April 2017) »» Kenilworth, Warwickshire (May 2018) Five more have been approved under New Stations Fund 2: »» Warrington West station, Cheshire »» Bow Street station, Ceredigion, Wales »» Reading Green Park station, Berkshire »» Hordon Peterlee station, County Durham »» Portway Parkway, Bristol 18 other new stations have opened during Control Period 5 using local and development funding, with a number of others under construction or planned (Issue 159, January 2018). A separate initiative is ‘Access for All’, an ongoing government programme launched in 2006 to improve accessibility for everyone, creating obstacle-free routes to platforms and installing lifts as well as smaller improvements such as automatic doors and information systems.
Open for business With limited government funds available, it is essential to unlock other sources of funding. Many larger projects are funded through joint ventures with property developers. But it is also essential to tap into local and regional funding, by broadening the scope of station improvements to achieve community, property and economic benefits. The key to this is through Network Rail’s eight devolved routes, each of which has a
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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STATIONS Wolverhampton.
»»
»» business development team and stationrelated colleagues focussed on improving the estate across the country. Working in collaboration with the system operator and the national stations and depots team, this facilitates a national overview combined with planning and delivery according to local priorities. One of the criticisms made by the Hansford report was that Network Rail’s organisation was too complex for external parties to progress joint projects. Norrie explains that the routes are the answer to this also, under Network Rail’s ‘Open for Business’ initiative. “The routes have that day-to-day opportunity to build working relationships with local authorities and other partners. It was clear at the recent Rail Delivery Group (RDG) Stations Summit that local partners also want to work with Network Rail to improve stations and each route business development director can act as that initial point of contact to get conversations moving about improvements, development and regeneration. If required, they can then call on specialist property advice and other services from central support teams.” “One of the challenges is to get local authorities to change their thinking of ‘that’s just a rail project’, seeing what else can be added to aid regeneration and improvements for the local community,” added Norrie. Part of the ‘Open for Business’ work was to identify projects that could be good for the railway but would also deliver wider economic benefits, so opening access to additional funding. The routes have also been empowered to work more closely with TOCs in the general aim of transforming stations,
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
especially looking at where there is scope for immediate improvements, for example in toilets and other facilities. In another expression of the changing focus, the RDG summit on stations had the Network Rail chief executive Mark Carne as the keynote speaker, along with Rob McIntosh, the LNE route managing director, talking about the importance of stations being part of the customer journey but also delivering benefits to the communities they serve. The one-day conference was expanded this year from just rail industry participants to include representatives from local authorities, Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and other bodies keen on improving stations.
Major stations Virtually all of the major stations that Network Rail manages have improvement projects in hand or planned. Here are some of the more significant ones: »» The magnificent rebuilt station at London
»»
»»
Bridge is now almost completely finished, with just a few final touches under way including upgrading the Western Passage entrance, which is closed until September. With the station itself complete, attention moves to opening further shops and cafes on the upper concourse and surrounding areas. At nearby Waterloo, work on proper integration of the former international platforms is well in hand and on schedule for coming into use in December. This will provide a dramatic increase in station capacity and will be followed by the opening of a new retail area in the former Eurostar passenger circulation area underneath the platforms. Another project well under way, and that has been featured previously, is Glasgow Queen Street, where removal of surrounding old buildings is enabling an impressive new ‘station front door’ for Glasgow to be constructed with improved retail and better station facilities. Liverpool Lime Street has been something of a building site in recent times as work continues on track layout remodelling and rebuilding the platforms. The most major part of this takes place this summer during an eight-week blockade, with train services terminating at Liverpool South Parkway, Hunt’s Cross or Huyton. New station facilities will follow as the remodelling is completed. At London Euston, work in readiness for the new HS2 station is starting to get under way in earnest. Lend Lease has been appointed as development partner for the project, which will lead to a major regeneration of the area with new homes and jobs. Phase 1 is the construction of the first six
Brent Cross West.
STATIONS platforms for HS2, to be followed by a further eight. Work has now started on moving the old underground taxi rank to a temporary site in the front of the station so that utility works can commence. The challenge, as with all the station works mentioned, is not only to keep the existing station operational throughout but also to seek and deliver improvements whilst ensuring customers are always safe and secure. »» Two major projects in the planning stage are at London Victoria and Edinburgh Waverley. At each of these, panel groups have been set up involving local and transport authorities and other key stakeholders to develop wide-reaching proposals that everyone can get behind. Edinburgh Waverley has strong heritage value but needs upgrading to be fit for purpose due to growing passenger numbers, as well as coping with events such as the Edinburgh Festival and international rugby matches. London Victoria is the second busiest station on the network and in great need of improvement. Major redevelopments outside the station are now almost complete and one challenge is to tie the station in to its new surroundings. »» Other large stations where big projects are being developed include Birmingham International, Bristol Temple Meads, Coventry, Darlington, Leeds, Newcastle, Wolverhampton and York.
Guilford. Taking in-house In April this year, Network Rail took over direct management of two further stations - Clapham Junction and Guildford. This was primarily as the development schemes here are so large that they are expected to extend well beyond the life of the South Western Railway franchise. Network Rail is now responsible for maintenance and renewal work as well as all commercial activities, excluding ticket sales. SWR, however, keeps most day-today responsibilities for running the two stations and staff roles will not be directly affected. At Clapham Junction, Network Rail has set up the Innova joint venture with partner Capital and Counties Properties plc (CapCo), which is also working with Transport for London on the Earl’s Court regeneration. Clapham Junction has long suffered from an awkward layout, with a wide spread of curving platforms connected by a footbridge and subway
Euston.
which struggle to cope at busy times and the vast site forms a major physical barrier in the local community. The aim is to straighten the platforms, construct a new station box for Crossrail 2, and then deck over much of the site, with a new station concourse provided as part of the scheme. The over-site deck would release development potential for up to 10,000 homes, public open spaces and retail - a huge opportunity but also a big partnership challenge which would heavily involve the Greater London Authority, Transport for London, the London Borough of Wandsworth and others. Achieving the whole planning and consent process and delivering the scheme could take 20 years, so in the meantime smaller scale improvements to the station are being sought. Guildford is one the busiest stations in the South East, but is surrounded by large areas of surface car parking and other under-utilised land. Here, Network Rail is working with Kier, the original partners in the Solum Regeneration joint venture. The plan is to build a multi-storey car park to release land for redevelopment. The £150 million 2.2 hectare scheme would produce 438 new residential units, 1,800 square metres of office space and 3,400 square metres of retail space creating some 300 jobs. The station itself would benefit from £2 million of Section 106 planning benefits and have spaces provided for 412 cars and 536 cycles. It is also hoped the station scheme will help promote the regeneration of Guildford city centre.
Smaller projects Smaller scale projects can also involve joint ventures. Regeneration experts BLOC and Network Rail have set up Blockwork LLP to maximise value from under-used property assets next to the railway. The first project is at Kew Bridge, where redevelopment of semi-derelict land is helping fund significant station improvements. Others being planned or considered include Lincoln, Nottingham and Henley.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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London Bridge. Twickenham is another joint venture through Solum, and work is well under way in creating a new station and a modern gateway to the area. As well as the wide-ranging transformation of the station itself, with a new entrance, accessibility improvements and more cycle spaces, the project will produce a new public plaza and 115 new homes. At West Hampstead, Network Rail worked with property developers Ballymore in a new retail and residential scheme to deliver 198 new homes, of which 45 are social housing units, in addition to creating a new town square with a convenience store and other retail and office space. At Elstree & Borehamwood, 15 residential units on unused embankment land are planned in conjunction with Taylor Wimpey. As well as funding station improvements, such projects can help significantly with local authority targets for new housing, especially in areas where available land is in short supply.
Retail Many years ago, British Rail changed use of the term ‘passengers’ to ‘customers’ as part of the drive to improve staff attitudes and become more customerfocussed. This still occasionally causes controversy, but one thing that is clear is that many visitors to stations are not passengers, especially at the major city termini. Network Rail has in fact declared that its major stations should become destinations in their own right. This is driven by the retail and catering facilities, which also make a substantial financial contribution to the railway. So, with tales coming from the High Street of shop chains entering administration and other gloom, is retail on stations being affected?
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Norrie’s immediate answer is no. “If not quite a captive audience, there is a guaranteed ‘footfall’ and, while not everyone spends, station outlets are an attractive proposition to retailers.” This attractiveness is naturally expressed in the lease costs, which tend to selfselect premium end retailers rather than discounters with low margins. Performance has generally been very good compared to the average High Street and none of the high-profile liquidations has affected station trading so far. There is also a greater level of management of the retail outlets than might be found on a High Street, with an aim to keep full occupancy, to keep improving and, so far as possible, to provide what passengers want. Charges are based partly on lease costs and partly on turnover, and there is considerable willingness to work with retailers, for example by changing locations if this would help. Retail can add significant value to the major station improvement and redevelopment schemes, however the need to consider the station as a whole is always present and, if surveys show a greater need for seating, toilets or other passenger facilities, these will take priority.
London Bridge.
In total, the Network Rail retail team manages over 780,000 square feet of prime retail space, with more than 600 different retail units and over 150 brands. All the Network Rail retail profits are reinvested back into the railway and total retail sales in 2017/18 were £779 million, up from £748 million the previous year. “Our figures show years of consistent growth and prove that investment in our stations and retail offer not only leads to increased customer satisfaction, but also improved sales,” said Norrie. The good relationship with retailers also offers potential for environmental and sustainability improvements. Network Rail is encouraging its retail tenants to look at such initiatives as reducing packaging and single-use plastic items and the initial response has been good.
Looking forward The final setting of Network Rail’s funding and expenditure package for Control Period 6 (2019-2024) is moving closer, with the ORR draft determination on financing issued on 12 June. This will, of course, have a significant effect on the scale, scope and speed of station improvement projects for the next five years, but there is undoubtedly a strong determination to continue the transformation of stations throughout the network. Greater and closer working with local and regional authorities, encouraging more input from train operators and achieving maximum benefits from property and joint ventures will also have a considerable part to play in improving the customer experience. In a final word, Norrie comments: “We also want to work more with our local communities and understand how smaller stations can be improved for the benefit of all and delivering nonmonetary social value where possible.”
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Worksop Station – Footbridge strengthening and refurbishment of the platform canopies at this Grade II listed heritage site ‘Highly Commended’ at the 2018 Rail Partnership Awards
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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A
s the final pieces of hoarding come down at London Bridge station, engineers, architects, rail operators and PR professionals across the city are thrusting their fists Shard-high in a shared gesture of triumph. It has taken over five years to complete the construction stage of this landmark project, which forms the final Key Output (2) of the £7 billion Thameslink programme, first conceived of way back in 1988.
L
king back on
London Bridge
A highly complex undertaking comprising civil engineering works, new rolling stock and signalling technology, this major capacity upgrade programme will reduce congestion on the Thameslink network by increasing services from 15 to 24 trains per hour. To accommodate 16 of these ‘through’ trains per hour, and enhance the commuting experience for its 49 million annual users, London Bridge station underwent a significant transformation, realigning 15 tracks and platforms and introducing a 92,000 sq ft retail concourse. As a veteran of the scheme, who oversaw WSP’s contribution to the construction planning, I believe that the success of the London Bridge Redevelopment Project, and the wider Thameslink programme, is due to two things: (1) the commitment to managing complexity through early systems integration, detailed planning and robust design, and (2) the unprecedented level of collaboration across teams, organisations and industries, sustained from the early days of the project through to its completion.
Bringing clarity to overwhelming complexity With every major milestone met along the way, the successful completion of the London Bridge Redevelopment Project may seem like a foregone conclusion. However, in 2008, when I first began feasibility work with Network Rail, the objectives and challenges of the project appeared to be irreconcilable. We had to find a way to upgrade the railway and achieve the desired capacity gains while continuing to operate the Thameslink, Southeastern and Southern networks, which provide connections to Luton and Gatwick airports, as well as access to central London routes. Developing the end state solution of reversing the number of through and terminating platforms (nine through to six terminating) at London Bridge to run the required 16 Thameslink trains per hour was relatively simple; the real complexity was in designing the migration path - a robust sequence of interim ‘configuration states’ and transitions that culminated in the final Key Output 2 system. To choreograph this intricate dance, the systems engineering team carried out system integration activities at programme and project levels, which integrated key interfaces, performance targets, operational concepts and nearby infrastructure projects. A comprehensive System Migration Plan was developed to show the interaction between the construction sequence at London Bridge, the new depots, rolling stock and train control equipment. This road map provided instant clarity for the highly complex Thameslink programme, and our approach of applying systems thinking earlier than usual was praised as innovative best practice in the Government’s 2011 McNulty Report ‘Realising the Potential of GB Rail’.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
DAVID CARTER
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1836 The first London Bridge Station is completed. 1839 It has become two stations in one, serving different train companies. 1923 A hole is knocked into the dividing wall and the two stations are united. 1945 Wartime damage has added to the confusing and congested layout. 1970s With the station at capacity, British Rail undertakes a major redevelopment. 2007-2011 A 30-strong WSP team is appointed by Network Rail to manage the GRIP 3 London Bridge station solution and rail system designs for Thameslink Key Output 2. 2010-2013 Appointed to the systems integration team for the Thameslink Programme, contributing to a migration plan that defines the approach to delivering Key Output 2 and London Bridge works. 2011 Appointed to provide detailed design services for the Electrical Track Equipment, we delivered every stage on time to support Balfour Beatty Rail’s track remodelling. 2012 WSP and JV partner Hyder (now Arcadis) provide design support to Costain during construction.
2013 The Shard completed.
2014 News Building completed.
2018 WSP supports delivery of station enhancements and a new concourse, marking a new beginning for London Bridge and one of the final steps on the Thameslink journey.
2008 Another transformation is needed as part of the ÂŁ7 billion Thameslink programme. WSP carry out early design feasibility and optioneering on behalf of Network Rail. 2010-2013 Appointed by Network Rail to provide early designs of the depot connections and the Approval in Principle design for seven stabling sites.
2011 A pivotal year for WSP, appointed as lead designer for the ÂŁ400 million project, which will reconfigure all the platforms and create easy, level access for passengers. 2012 WSP commissioned to design a high quality bus interchange for the London Bridge Quarter, integrating with WSP's adjacent design work on the station, the Shard, Shard Place and the News Building. 2013 The complex construction strategy is implemented to ensure the station remains operational during redevelopment works.
2014 The first new platforms open on schedule, following the programme concept devised in 2008.
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STATIONS Coordinating a magic carpet ride Our next challenge was to create a project programme that enhanced the Thameslink passenger experience without making it significantly worse during construction. For London Bridge, this meant keeping the station operational throughout in order to minimise disruption for passengers and other local stakeholders. The early staging process for the original Thameslink 2000 was nicknamed ‘Magic Carpet’, because there was no precedent for delivering a programme of this size and complexity within five years. Under the direction of Network Rail project director Mark Somers, the timetabling and passenger demand forecasting and pedestrian modelling teams collaborated with WSP’s track experts, systems engineers and constructability consultants from a very early stage, to explore construction staging options and understand how different scenarios would affect passengers. This included adjusting the operating schedule, stopping patterns, and train dwell times to provide an optimised construction programme with features such as ‘non-stopping’ platforms, which removed the need to create space for passengers where work was being undertaken. The resulting solution was a railway and station built in phases with a highly synchronised construction programme, organised into nine strategic milestones and over 70 sub-stages. While somewhat inefficient from a construction perspective, progressive handback enabled us to demolish old platforms and progressively
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
reconfigure the tracks, reducing the number of closed platforms to three out of 15 at any one time. This robust programme gave Network Rail certainty around timescales, minimising timetable changes to only three over the five years. It also contributed to a step-change in passenger communications, enabling operators to plan for and communicate all service disruptions to passengers over the fiveyear period via social and mainstream media. This much-needed continuity was appreciated by commuters, who could replan their journey ahead of time.
Collaborating to create a superior station From the very beginning, architects, designers, contractors and Network Rail personnel were co-located in a shared office. A system of single discipline and inter-disciplinary checks and reviews was used to manage all interfaces, with
formal and ad-hoc meetings, submissions and presentations at key stages and an integrated 3D MicroStation model covering all disciplines. This collaborative team was one of the first to achieve BS11000 certification for collaborative working (now ISO44001). As an organisation contributing to many different aspects of the London Bridge Redevelopment Project, WSP project team members, including myself, have seen how successful this framework is in enabling different teams and organisations to work together effectively on long, large and complex projects. In 2011, WSP was appointed to revisit the conceptual design for London Bridge in order to achieve planning permission and develop the scheme design to a level of detail that would enable the award of a design and build contract within 15 months. Conscious of the criticality of the railway construction sequencing to the overall project, the multi-disciplinary team developed ideas originally proposed by the constructability team, such as offsite construction for platforms and the canopied roofs, which would minimise the need for possessions and the risk associated with works near an operational railway. One of the most significant pieces of design was a new 150 metres x 75 metres wide concourse at street level, which provides the station with a common interchange for the first time in its 182-year history. This eases passenger congestion during peak times with two additional boarding options that allow free passenger movement through the station from street to platform level. A late stage request to introduce additional retail into the station also benefitted passengers in the long term but complicated our time-
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constrained design process. Through close collaboration between teams and organisations, and the use of a full multidiscipline 3D BIM model, we were able to design and achieve planning approval for 92,000 sq ft of retail into the concourse, providing significant development value to Network Rail. WSP’s involvement in designing for the wider London Bridge Quarter, including the Shard, Shard Place, The News Building and the new bus interchange adjacent to the station, enabled us to support a
unified vision for the area, providing a positive, integrated experience for local residents, workers and visitors. Strong collaboration also enabled the project team to achieve the highest ever CEEQUAL sustainability rating at the design stage for London Bridge station. The Thameslink Sustainability Strategy set out sustainability objectives with a number of targets under each objective, one of which was to achieve a CEEQUAL Excellent award for the station. To meet this requirement, WSP chaired a series of
workshops attended by representatives of all design disciplines and Network Rail in order to understand opportunities and risks. Designers from each discipline were responsible for demonstrating their achievement of the CEEQUAL requirements within the design. For example, the Thameslink programme has an aspiration to provide CO2 savings of 77 tonnes per year. However, heating and cooling the newly designed station would be highly carbon intensive if regular temperature control methods were used. Designers collaborated with Network Rail to update standards for lifts and escalators, enabling new, more efficient technologies to be specified. The canopies were also designed to allow flat, glare-free north light down into the concourse to reduce lighting energy demand during the day. Working with GI Energy, we also drove the use of innovative technology - installing geothermal loops into 145 of the planned piles. These geothermal piles consist of pile foundations combined with two closed-loop ground source heat pump systems which span the length of the pile - they support the building while acting as a heat source in winter and a heat sink in
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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STATIONS summer. The piles alone will generate 79 tonnes per year in carbon savings. WSP also supported Balfour Beatty Rail in its track re-modelling contract, which included 124 major track and signalling stages. We provided detailed design services for the electrical track equipment including 2.5km of new conductor rail, 750 metres of re-used conductor rail, 6.4km of new electrical cables and the equipment for eight new crossovers to facilitate the installation of the 3km of new track. On the signalling side, we are excited to be involved in the world-first deployment of Automatic Train Operation (ATO) on an ETCS/ERTMS platform. Overlaying ATO onto ETCS Level 2 for cab signalling will enable the network to eventually achieve 24 trains an hour through the central core in each direction - a legacy of the late Paul Bates, who was instrumental in introducing elements of Network Rail’s Digital Railway initiative to the Thameslink programme.
Concluding five years of complex construction Since construction began, WSP has remained involved in GRIP 5-8 (detailed design to project close-out) at the request of Network Rail. Working with Arcadis in a joint venture, we have provided design support services to Costain to help ensure that the strategic staging programme created for London Bridge station and Thameslink works is successfully delivered.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
The programme organised the work into three 18-month slots, delivered in a tightly planned sequence of possessions and blockades. Any break in the sequence would have a severely disrupted the schedule. Using Virtual Design and Construction in early construction stages enabled us to integrate the station design with the development sequence and track construction to reduce costs and schedule duration. This was critical for the safe and timely reconfiguration and progressive release of the 15 platforms at London Bridge, along with the concurrent completion of new viaducts on the approach to the station and enabling works like Bermondsey Dive Under.
The early system design and construction phasing strategy may have held the whole Thameslink Programme together but, looking back on the project with more than a decade’s worth of hindsight, I can see that it ultimately comes down to people. From owners to operators, contractors, engineers, architects, SMEs and the cooperative commuting public, this collaborative team was the super glue that kept London Bridge station from falling down. David Carter is a project director at WSP and is currently construction and logistics lead for WSP’s rail input into the hybrid bill development for HS2.
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Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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PETER STANTON
Derby Station Remodelling
B
ack in issue 155 of Rail Engineer (September 2017), David Bickell looked at the preparation for Derby remodelling in his article “79 days at Derby in 2018”, in which he explained the development of the plans and
the integration of the proposed works with the railway in the East Midlands.
That work is now well underway, with a considerable portion of the construction complete, so the time is now ripe to view what has already been done and examine the next steps.
Yet another remodelling The major strategic railway junction station at Derby is undergoing a wide-ranging and comprehensive remodelling process. This is not the first work undertaken on the station over the last half-century and the current structure is almost totally unrecognisable from the one built by the pre-grouping railways in the nineteenth century. Derby station opened in 1840 and traffic grew steadily through the following years. That growth has continued - for example, in 1969, over London Road Junction at the south, there were eight train movements per hour; by 2017 this had risen to 18. The current remodelling of the station is related to the Midland main line upgrade and allied to what has become known as the London to Corby electrification. The aim is to bring the station layout up to a robust condition with improved operational flexibility more suited to the traffic seen at Derby in the current century. Before the current scheme, the layout had a freightrelated heritage, which allowed for heavy coal traffic and other minerals movement in the East Midlands and facilitated routeing of trains in a pattern no longer applicable. However, freight traffic does remain in a modern form with container trains and some aggregate traffic, so this needs to be accommodated.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
The presence of the Railway Technical Centre (now the RTC Business Park), East Midlands Trains’ Etches Park depot and the adjoining Bombardier factory also contribute to stock movement around the station, as does Rolls Royce with deliveries of aviation fuel which are hauled on to the works at Sinfin, running round in the bay on the Birmingham side of Derby station. An opportune time to redevelop was provided by the requirement to replace the existing signalling equipment that had originally been commissioned in 1969 together with the adjacent signalling at Trent Junction - the major intersection south of the Derby area. The condition of these installations was giving rise to reliability issues while the equipment in Derby signal box was approaching the end of its effective life and was scheduled to become the last portion of the East Midlands signalling to migrate onto the East Midlands Control Centre (EMCC). Similarly, the permanent way and switch and crossing units had reached end of life condition. In summary then, the project is a £200 million investment to reconfigure both track and signalling in the Derby station area and to deliver a more efficient and reliable layout with a new 320-metre platform face on an island through-platform, effectively replacing the current short Platform 5.
STATIONS In terms of the station itself, the original canopies were destroyed during an air raid in the Second World War and the 1950s replacements were themselves replaced in the early part of this century. The footbridge was extended from the 1950s build configuration and then the structure over the platforms was replaced due to its condition. The main station buildings and concourse were themselves replaced in the 1970s. This has resulted in very little heritage to concern designers during the current works; one challenge less than there could have been!
Work in progress Rail Engineer was invited to site to see the works being undertaken by contractor Galliford Try. Project manager Matt Brown has wide experience of rail projects such as the Walsall-Rugeley upgrade and has come to Galliford Try from the infrastructure owner and a background in bridge reconstruction - very appropriate experience for the task in hand. Galliford Try was already successfully engaged with Network Rail through the framework contract for Control Period 5 and advantage was taken of implementing ‘Early Contractor Involvement’ with the designer, Jacobs. Work on the project commenced in 2016 at GRIP stage 4 (single option development) and the contract for GRIP stages 5 to 8 (detailed design through to project close out) was let in February 2017 with the basic scope for Galliford Try being the new Platform 6/7 as phase one and alterations to the other platforms as phase two. The works were required to be undertaken in line with the blockade proposals for the station remodelling, with phase one being pre-blockade and phase two concurrent with the blockade works. The timescale requirements were
exacting, requiring the completion of phase one by the end of July 2018 to enable the partial closure of the station. The project embraces the ‘Hub and Spoke’ philosophy promoted by Network Rail. Galliford Try forms a vital ‘spoke’, with Siemens undertaking signalling and operational telecommunications and Amey Sersa the track work. Operational telecommunications are under the wing of Galliford Try, being progressed by Optima, along with building services by Kemada, steelwork by Carver and structural work by MPB. The alliance, with Galliford Try firmly on board, was brought together in December 2017 Physical work on the new platform started in January 2018, giving six months to complete the work. The previous goods lines on the site had previously been removed by another project partner, in December 2017. Galliford Try is undertaking a significant portion of the station work and its major extension to meet the new track layout and operational philosophy. The new extra platform is of an island format but,
when complete, only one face will be used for commercial passenger work. Adjacent to the second face in the final scope will be the Etches Park maintenance depot approach. This latter adds a further challenge to Galliford Try, as access to the depot must be maintained during the platform works, curtailing access for construction as rolling stock moves on and off the depot. Most of this access, however, is needed at night, whereas the temporary passenger train services using this platform face during construction will be during the day.
Platform work in detail The scale of work on the new platform is impressive, being delivered to an exacting timescale of the end of July before the full blockade starts. The contractor will then move on to phase two, which will involve altering the balance of the station as the track layout is modified and brought up to appropriate operational standards. The physical scope of the platform includes 340 metres of pre-cast concrete construction, with 70 per cent of that platform covered by a steel canopy structure designed to match those existing on the adjacent platforms. The new construction, however, is to be compliant with the applicable European Technical Standards for Interoperability. Two new lifts are being provided on the new structure together with staircases and extra support for the footbridge carrying pedestrians from the Pride Park side of the station. Two lifts are necessary, as the new platform will not have the alternative subway access of the existing platforms. Three new buildings are also being constructed including a first-class lounge, a new staff building and a retail unit.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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SHEFFIELD
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Although the station has been heavily reconstructed since the war, there are still historical issues; though generally in the nature of obstacles rather than architectural preservation or conservation. Many of the services supplied to the site in the past were fed from the old locomotive works on the east side and there were very few records to assist, so dealing with these, mainly in the shape of old water pipes and electrical power cables, is a constant challenge. A culvert also crosses the site, and this has been incorporated into the quite considerable new drainage works. The new island platform will have many services – mainly ducts and cable routes - installed within it, accomodating both operational and building services needs. As described earlier, there are significant challenges with the need to allow access to the East Midlands Trains’ maintenance depot, but the project team also has to be aware of and allow for neighbours and local stakeholders. Derby College is adjacent to the site and Galliford Try has ensured it is in close contact with the college management. Some work has been undertaken on drainage within the college property, but Matt explained that the project has also worked cooperatively with the college, which is unsurprisingly very centred towards rail industry education. The project has provided speakers to the college to enable students to better understand the project engineering works. There are few local residents but those nearby have been engaged with and informed as the work progresses. The new drainage has required some environmental work as a discharge takes place into the nearby river and suitable interceptor arrangements have been required. Summarising, Matt felt that the key challenge was the timescale - and of course, quality - oh, and safety! The station is a long site and Galliford Try has treated the platform works as a flow process, with the work moving along the platform from North to South, thus preventing one trade from interfering with another as each phase follows on from the previous one. The site is also very public, as the audience on the adjacent island platform gets a grandstand view. The team has brought innovation to the project, specifically in the use of pre-cast concrete riser walls for the platforms and methods of dealing with extremely variable ground conditions. Although the general design of the new platform is as per the existing station design, the new works are being undertaken in compliance with the European Technical Standards for Interoperability, with all the extra challenges that brings. In terms of staffing, the Galliford Try support team numbers around 25 with around 60 staff on site. Matt was pleased to recount that around 150,000 hours of work have been RIDDOR incident free, and long may that continue.
STATIONS Wider works Whist Galliford Try has dealt with these high profile works on the station building and platform installation itself, the general reconstruction and remodelling of the station as a whole has proceeded under the management of the Network Rail Investment Projects (Signalling) organisation. Rail Engineer met with project sponsor Kevin Newman, who has a long history of project management within the rail industry, and he was clear in his explanation of the values of and justification for the scheme. The baseline rests on the requirement to resignal, as mentioned, and the cost is shared between renewal funding and Department for Transport enhancement investment. The benefits of the scheme are significant to what has perhaps been the lowest-profile North-South rail route, the Midland main line. In realigning the Derby station area, a modern and efficient track layout will enable services to be segregated and facilitate reduced journey times, partly through increased line speed (from 15mph to 30 and
SUNNY HILL LOOPS
40mph) for through trains. There will be improved platforms – including new canopies on platforms 4/5 - and modern electronic signalling with remote condition monitoring. The signalling around the station will be controlled from the EMCC and of great significance will be reduced barrier downtime at an upgraded Spondon Level Crossing - a historical barrier to good line performance. To optimise expenditure, the interlockings at Belper and Ambergate will be recontrolled to the new control centre.
Some physical statistics give a scale to the works. 15km of new track will be replaced and re-laid in the new configuration, upgraded signalling will be installed, tested and commissioned with improvements to nearly all existing platforms. 240 engineering trains will bring in materials and remove waste, 150,000 tonnes of ballast will be laid. Overall, the timing of main work and associated blockades takes place from 22 July to 7 October 2018. The programme will split into two distinct stages: stage 1 from 22 July to 2 September (six weeks)
2017 LAYOUT
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UP & DOWN GOODS MANUALLY-CONTROLLED MCB BARRIER WITH CCTV CCTV
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MANUALLY-CONTROLLED MCB BARRIER WITH OD OBSTACLE DETECTION
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and stage 2 from 2 September to 7 October (five weeks). There will be only one day with no trains (2 September) to provide wheels-free access for testing and commissioning of the signalling. It is important to note that as much work as possible will be done in advance of the blockades. This includes installing: »» The new signalling principal power supply point; »» Two kilometres of track (out of 17km in total); »» 11 sets of points (79 in total); »» Two new signal gantries (nine in total); »» 10 new signals; »» 50 piles (foundations for new signalling equipment); »» 300 metres of drainage; »» 18km of cable routing; »» 225km of lineside cable; »» The bulk of the work on the new 320-metre platform. Once work is complete, it will have removed most of the historical movement conflicts, giving a firm foundation for reliable operation and allowing a relatively dedicated allocation of the station to different passenger services. The new Platforms 5 and 6 will be devoted to the London and the North services, while Platforms 1 and 2 will be the normal home of CrossCountry Trains (plus being the basic freight route through the station). Platforms 3 and 4 will be the base for the reversing services across to the East and West as well as CrossCountry reversals. After short-term use during construction, the eastern face of the new platform will act as servicing access for East Midlands trains as that road is basically the “Pilot Road” - the route into Etches Park depot. That access will be facilitated by the retention of the line round to Chaddesden, which will, in fact, gain added capacity. Finally, the locomotive stabling, which has traditionally been within the bay at the north end of the station, will transfer to the south end bay by St. Andrews. On track plant will stable at Chaddesden.
Additional detail Peter Luniw (senior project manager) added to the vision of the scheme and proceeded to expand on the scope and technical content, highlighting the application of the latest technology. Care has been taken to ensure that standard components were specified and installed, allowing optimal repair and maintenance processes, particularly in the switch and crossing installations. The new goods lines on the Birmingham route were installed before any of the blockade work was undertaken and it was noted that torsional drives and in-bearer clamplocks had been specified and applied on the new switch and crossing units waiting installation in the blockade. As mentioned earlier, drainage works had been a significant challenge requiring careful protection of the outfall to the nearby waterway.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Junction lighting will be incorporated in the new layout, matched with lockout devices, thus facilitating more flexible access for maintenance outside normal daylight hours. As resignalling has progressed across the East Midlands, the scope controlled by the 1960s Derby Power Signal Box has diminished and the station remodelling phase will allow its final closure programmed for day 37 of the blockade. The level crossing at Spondon, while being remodelled, will also benefit from the latest obstacle detection technology. Standby diesel generators, necessary as, for the moment, no electrification traction supplies will be available, will provide further operational robustness. In reply to the question over electrification, it was confirmed that, while it was not in the scope, all works would take the opportunity to allow passive provision for electrification of the area.
Minimising disruption There is no doubt that the works will cause significant disruption to rail services through the site, but Kevin Newman emphasised that many lessons had been learned from the five-week Nottingham blockade and remodelling in 2013, and that these had been carefully applied at Derby. Enormous effort has been put into ensuring that customers are informed and that diversions will be clearly specified and brought to users’ attention. Much use is to be made of the Erewash valley line to bypass Derby as necessary and the service alterations have been planned into blocks to simplify understanding. Where necessary, rail services will be replaced by coaches, and it was emphasised that these replacement services will be of a suitable quality. The remodelling will also seriously impact on East Midlands Trains’ maintenance activities and arrangements so extra facilities are being made at outstations at Barrow Hill and Leicester, with some support from the Central Rivers depot on the Birmingham line. Temporary staff number increases have been authorised and allocation of maintenance has been bolstered at the Nottingham depot facility. Communications with customers, neighbours and other stakeholders are important, and much use has been made of social media and the Internet in supporting communication, together with conventional methodology such as mail drops and other advertising. Overall, Kevin cited the positive attitude of all involved, with the whole railway working together to ensure success, and he emphasised the enormous advantages to all to be gained from the works. “Collaboration” is the watchword! Many thanks to those mentioned in the article and to Amy Brenndorfer and Nick Sandham from Network Rail communications, project manager Matt Brown and Steve Cordwell, head of business development at Galliford Try, for their help in preparing this article.
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Wigan SHEDDING LIGHT ON
A
n innovative modular roof light system that can be installed in a fraction of the time of traditional split-bar glazing systems and is also non-fragile was the “cherry on the cake” for the refurbishment of a main line railway station’s Grade II listed entrance canopy.
The refurbishment of the Grade II listed canopy of historic Wigan Wallgate station in Lancashire, which had been leaking, included the redecoration of all steelwork, the liquid waterproofing of canopy gutters and the replacement of the traditional glass with a lightweight polycarbonate system.
Pre-assembled panels Network Rail specified the Multi-LinkPanel system glazed with Georgian wired polycarbonate from pioneering polycarbonate roofing supplier Twinfix for the entrance canopy element of this £1 million refurbishment. The glazing panels, each comprising fast-track “fix
and link” aluminium structural bars glazed with 6mm solid Georgian wired polycarbonate, were pre-assembled at Twinfix’s factory in Warrington, Cheshire, for delivery to site for installation by specialist contractor Everlast Rail. Everlast’s contracts manager Colin Duxbury said: “Though we had knowledge of this system, we had not previously installed it. Twinfix arranged the delivery of all components to our site compound behind the station. The components were all marked up and came with a layout drawing showing which piece fitted where. “The installation was relatively straightforward, aided by a couple of instructive visits by Twinfix installers. The relatively narrow gutters made for a tight fit for some components but, all in all, everything came together on time with thanks to Twinfix for making a couple of emergency deliveries.” He added: “Once our installation teams got into the swing of things everything went well and the finished roof looked very smart. Twinfix Multi-Link was chosen primarily because of its non-fragile qualities - its ability to remain intact when subject to impact loading.” Polycarbonate is typically 200 times tougher and half the weight of glass and at Wigan Wallgate, combined with the Multi-Link-Panels, which can be installed in two thirds of the time of traditional split-bar glazing systems, the system performed to Class B of the HSE’s recommended drop test ACR[M] 001:2014 'Test for non-fragility of profiled sheeting roofing assemblies.'
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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STATIONS
Sympathetic restoration The 120m2 canopy at Wigan Wallgate is a steel-framed structure with three central lantern bays, each with a pitched glazed roof approximately nine metres long by 3.5 metres wide, with similar but shorter bays each side, 3.5 metres in length. The Twinfix panels were installed at 600mm centres. Colin said: “The new roof had to be approved by Wigan’s conservation officer. For understandable reasons, he took his time reviewing samples of the proposed roof and needed a few site visits before finally granting his approval.” To comply with planning requirements, an additional detail was added to the standard design in the form of a small triangular fin at the
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
top of each glazing bar. The purpose of this was to keep the glazing bar looking similar to the original bar, ensuring a sympathetic restoration of the station. “This could only be fitted once everything else was in place and there’s a lot of them,” said Colin. “There was a lot of work to be done in a relatively short time and as the canopy works rolled into autumn, the weather began to turn, which affected the painting of the steelwork and the liquid lining to the valley gutters, all of which had to be completed before we could install the glazing. Fortunately, the glazing itself could be installed regardless of the weather. “The contract period for the whole scheme was 26 weeks, starting immediately after the Easter Bank Holiday 2017. The canopy refurbishment took place during the final six weeks and the Twinfix installation in the last three weeks of that - the cherry on the cake so to speak.” The new canopy was just one element of the station refurbishment which included a new main slated roof, replacement of all first-floor windows and suspended ceilings, and repointing of external brickwork and chimneys. Paul Childs, company secretary for the Railway Heritage Trust which part-funded the project, said: “The trust was most impressed with Network Rail’s recent sympathetic refurbishment of the forecourt canopy at Wigan Wallgate, particularly the use of Twinfix’s Georgian wired polycarbonate. “The Georgian wired glass effect and surface texture of the material offered an appropriate and practical alternative solution to traditional glazing for this railway heritage application.”
Georgian Wired Polycarbonate Non-Fragile Rooflights Twinfix is a family run business. As experienced innovators they offer a range of well-engineered glazing products, many of which are fitted on the roofs of Rail Stations and Depots. The Multi-Link-Panel is an aluminium framed modular rooflight system, designed with a unique ‘fix and link’ fixing method that results in incredibly quick installation, ideal for short possession times. The panels are non-fragile to ACR(M)001:2014 and available with different polycarbonate glazing variations, from clear solid (offering a glass like appearance) to Georgian wired and multiwall options.
The benefits of this system are: • Safe in use: All Multi-Link-Panels pass the ACR[M]001:2014 drop test, in accordance with HSE recommendations, with a ‘B’ designation. • The Twinfix Georgian wired grade solid polycarbonate is particularly popular as it mimics Georgian wired glass. • Polycarbonate absorbs vibrations without cracking, crazing or breaking. • The aluminium framework can be powder coated to a RAL colour to suit your project. • The light weight of the finished product results in less stress to the fabric of original buildings. • Sleek in-line access hatches (developed at the request of Network Rail) offer unobtrusive and safe access through the glazing for maintenance purposes. • Factory manufactured rooflight panels means no costly mistakes on site.
For more information contact us on:
Tel: 01925 811311
Email: enquiries@twinfix.co.uk
www.twinfix.co.uk
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FEATURE
CP6: A game of
TWO HALVES
MARC JOHNSON
An additional £80 million for safety, including at level crossings. (Attenborough nature reserve, Nottinghamshire)
R
ailway control periods are a lot like the World Cup. They come around every few years, cost billions to deliver and the performances aren’t always up to the high standards we demand.
The publication by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) of its draft determination for CP6 last month completed an important step in establishing what Network Rail will ultimately have to spend on maintaining and renewing the railway between 2019 and 2024. The process began with the ORR launching its Periodic Review for 2018 (PR18) in May 2016. Statements of Funds Available (SoFAs) were then produced by the DfT and Transport Scotland which helped to shape Network Rail’s Strategic Business Plan (SBP), which was published in February (Issue 161, March 2018).
What the ORR says In terms of investment in the railway, the SBP included £47.8 billion to operate, maintain, renew and enhance the network in CP6. This was split into £18.5 billion for operations and maintenance, £18.5 billion for renewals and £10.1 billion for enhancements. It was described as a budget that focused on reliability and efficiency, but Network Rail has said that it will continue to pursue major enhancement schemes.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
The majority of the CP6 plan (£34.7 billion) will come from the government, with the remaining £13.2 billion generated from train operators and Network Rail’s property portfolio. The ORR appears to largely support the SBP but, while it believes that Network Rail has improved the way it plans and costs work, the draft determination also suggests that some of the issues that Network Rail had in estimating future cost levels could still exist. Having reviewed Network Rail’s plans, the ORR has given the organisation a list of points it needs to address ahead of the final determination later in the year.
FEATURE
WHAT DOES THE ORR SAY? Expenditure & efficiency »» ORR is challenging Network Rail to find £660m of extra efficiencies over CP6. This would represent an increase in efficiencies of around three per cent on top of the proposed seven per cent CP6 efficiency; »» ORR proposes that Network Rail cut planned spending on R&D from £450 million to £100 million over CP6; »» ORR proposes that more of the money (£968 million) set aside to pay for risks in the Group Portfolio Fund is held in the routes; »» ORR wants Network Rail to increase the amount it earns from its property estate by £67 million over CP6.
Safety, asset condition & performance
In some cases, the ORR has been quite specific, directing Network Rail to add around £1 billion to its renewals budget by making savings elsewhere. The ORR has also suggested Network Rail allocate an extra £80 million for safety, including level crossings and workforce safety campaigns. Although the ORR has proposed a £10 million performance innovation fund, it has recommended that R&D funding should be reduced overall (from £440 million to £100 million) to focus on renewals. The ORR said it was also in discussions with the Department for Transport (DfT) to determine how an estimated £250-300 million from the Crossrail supplemental access charge could be spent. This income wasn’t included in the SBP but the ORR believes it could be used to improve ‘asset sustainability’.
Boom and bust The ORR also wants to see an end to the current peaks and troughs of the control period structure and has told Network Rail to smooth out its funding profile for CP6. The Rail Industry Association (RIA) welcomed the ORR’s stance and tentatively supported the announcement as a whole. Peter Loosley, policy director at RIA, said: “We understand that the £30 billion relating to operations, maintenance and renewals expenditure for England and Wales is consistent with both the SoFA and Network Rail’s Strategic Business Plans.
»» ORR wants Network Rail to spend an additional £80 million on safety initiatives; »» ORR suggests that Network Rail spends the money from proposed cuts from R&D and its extra efficiencies (around £1 billion) on investments that improve asset sustainability; »» ORR wants the routes to continue to work with their train operator customers on performance trajectories for CP6; »» ORR wants Anglia, Wessex and South East to change the level of passenger performance that they target (CRM-P) to prepare it on a consistent basis as the other routes; »» ORR wants Network Rail to address concerns with the profile of expenditure so that there is a smoother profile of work within in CP6.
Holding Network Rail to account »» ORR proposes applying new arrangements to manage changes to Network Rail’s plans; »» ORR proposes monitoring and reporting the performance of the routes and the System Operator against their CP6 plans; »» ORR says that Network Rail should improve governance arrangements for Digital Railway spend.
Access charges »» Variable usage charges will be capped for freight and charter operators; »» Fixed track access charges will vary depending on the number of trains that run on the network.
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FEATURE “It does not, of course, contain any provision for ‘Hendy Tail’ enhancements (those left over or delayed from CP5) which we understood to constitute roughly £9 billion of the £47.8 billion SoFA and which is a matter for the Department for Transport. RIA will need to examine the Draft Determination in detail and discuss with RIA members, ORR and others as necessary to inform our more detailed response. “We are pleased, however, to see the ORR commitment to increased renewals expenditure and that they have included a commitment for Network Rail to review its spending profile to smooth rail investment over the five years of CP6. This is something the Railway Industry Association and its members have been calling for over many years and, in particular, since the downturn in renewals expenditure over the last 18 months of CP5. “We therefore applaud this reaction from ORR. Aside from its damaging impact on rail suppliers, ‘boom and bust’ in the rail funding system results in a more expensive railway too. So we urge Network Rail, the DfT, Treasury and the rail supply sector to work with us and the ORR to deliver a smoother pipeline of work in the years ahead, to the benefit of the sector, the passenger, and ultimately the taxpayer as well.”
Freight has good news and bad news. Variable access charges
A number of projects will continue from CP6 as part of the ‘Hendy Tail’. Route performance Where CP6 will differ substantially from CP5 is the way it manages its newly devolved route structure. The network is now split into eight geographical routes, each with its own budget and performance targets. The ORR believes these targets need reviewing for the Wessex, South East and Anglia routes to “ensure they are robust and set consistently with other routes”. It has also recommended distributing £0.9 billion currently held centrally as contingency to the routes and allow them to determine how it should be spent. According to the ORR, Network Rail also needs to strengthen the monitoring and financial controls for the new Rail System Operator (SO) function - which is in charge of planning and timetabling. Joanna Whittington, chief executive of ORR, said: “The entire rail industry, including passengers, freight customers and train operators, relies on Network Rail to deliver a high-quality service. ”ORR’s initial assessment of Network Rail’s five-year plans shows that the transition from a centrally run company to one structured round eight geographic routes has improved the quality of the plans but we want to see £1 billion more spent on renewing the railway to improve reliability and boost safety. “ORR will be monitoring and enforcing delivery by each of the routes, so that passengers and freight customers will be able to rely on the railway for the essential service it provides.”
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
The draft determination includes good and bad news for freight operators. While the ORR confirmed that increases to variable access charges for freight and charter operators would be capped, operators carrying biomass for energy production will be subject to new charges in CP6 and some new open access operators will have to pay charges related to network costs. The ORR estimates that the average annual increase in the total variable charges over CP6 will be 2.1 per cent for freight and 1.2 per cent for charter, in real terms. Maggie Simpson, Rail Freight Group’s executive director, said: “We are pleased that the Office of Rail and Road have listened to the significant concerns of rail freight customers and operators, and propose to limit the increase in freight charges over the next control period. Although we need to understand the detailed impact on different markets, this should provide a stable framework for the next five years. “We are however disappointed that ORR have chosen to increase charges for biomass traffic. “In the longer term, Network Rail must now deliver on its efficiency targets so that the potential for further price increases in CP7 is reduced.”
What happens next? Network Rail’s response to the ORR needs to be submitted by 31 August. The final determination will be published in October and Network Rail will use this to produce its final delivery plan for CP6. Mark Carne, Network Rail chief executive, said: “We welcome the regulator’s general support for our plans for Britain’s railways, delivering a more reliable service that passengers can rely on. It has accepted the majority of our plans, strongly supporting the changes we have been making including our focus on bringing track and train closer together, supporting devolution, the creation of the System Operator and incorporating customerfocused scorecards into its monitoring during CP6. “We will consider the detail carefully over the coming months as there are still some areas of concern that we will need to work with ORR on before it publishes its final determination in October.”
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Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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FEATURE
Out twice in May Network Rail’s Team Orange misses two bank holidays in one month
NIGEL WORDSWORTH
E
veryone looks forward to a Bank Holiday. Unless they have to work through it, in which case they can be a bit of a pain. Still,
there’s often the ‘time in lieu’ to look forward to instead.
England and Wales, with eight public holidays a year, are amongst the least generous countries in Europe when it comes to public holidays. Scotland is better with nine, while Northern Ireland has ten. For those lucky enough to get the time off, there is usually plenty to do. Markets, fairs, historic re-enactments, canal festivals and, of course, shopping! Retail workers are amongst those unlucky enough to have to work through the holidays, but for others it’s a good way to spend (!) a day’s holiday. Network Rail falls into both camps. It works through the holidays – they are a good time to close commuter railways for maintenance while said commuters aren’t using them – but it also goes shopping. And it goes shopping in a big way. Over the two May bank holidays, it spent a total of £168 million on enhancing and improving the railway. That’s some spending spree. As the month of May has two holiday weekends, planning is key. Work can be scheduled from late Friday night
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
until early Monday morning. In a few circumstances, jobs can be done in two halves, three weeks apart, so long as the railway is restored to full working order in between times. And that’s the key these days. The travelling public is becoming increasingly intolerant of trains being cancelled due to overrunning maintenance or, frankly, for any other reason. To minimise the risk of overruns, every plan is subjected to an analysis through the Delivering Work Within Possessions (DWWP) standard. Those carrying a greater risk of overrun, or which would have a more significant impact on network performance in the event of an overrun, are designated RED. These need a clear set of contingency plans and project milestones so that work can be truncated early enough, if required, to prevent service-affecting overruns.
As these RED projects also tend to be the largest, or most taxing, or most critically required, they also tend to be the ones that Rail Engineer covers in its reports.
Early May For the first May bank holiday, known as May Day though that’s actually 1 May and the holiday was over the weekend of 4-8 May, 12 worksites were identified as RED. These included a signalling recontrol in South London to support the Thameslink programme, bridge strengthening and repair works to support the North West Electrification Programme and a large programme of both S&C and plain line track renewals across the country. The latter tend to attract RED status, as not completing track renewals on time is the easiest way to disrupt the railway.
FEATURE
The work at Bletchley station was a 573-yard ballast renewal on the Up Fast to improve stability and track quality through the platform, at the same time installing a new sand blanket and geocomposite underneath ballast. A fairly conventional renewal, it consisted of removing the old track and digging out the old ballast, treating the formation with geoxtile and new ballast, relaying the track, welding and stressing the rail, tamping to consolidate the ballast and finally testing that all the signalling equipment was functioning correctly. Handback was at 80mph, as opposed to the planned post-construction temporary speed restriction (TSR) of 50mph.
A 197-yard re-rail, re-sleeper and re-ballast of the West Coast main line between Carnforth North junction and Tebay North junction was carried out to improve stability and track quality. The existing rail and sleepers were scrapped out and the formation excavated to 350mm. Once a Tracktex blanket had been laid under new bottom ballast, the original G44 concrete sleepers were replaced by ones with under-sleeper pads and the CEN56 rail by CEN60. Top ballast was dropped from open wagons and the track was then tamped. After signal testing, the site was handed back on time.
365 yards of the Down Cambridge line, through Royston station on the Cambridge branch, were re-railed, resleepered and re-ballasted. The existing track, a mixture of pan 8 wooden and F27 concrete sleepers, was burnt off into sections and removed. Bottom ballast was laid from open wagons onto Tracktex geotextile, new G44 concrete sleepers were placed using a sevensleeper concrete beam, new rail was lifted in by road-rail vehicle (RRV) and then thimbled into place. Top ballast was added from autohopper wagons and then profiled and tamped. The scope of work at St Johns station, between London and Chislehurst, was a complete re-rail, re-sleeper and re-ballast for 282 yards with an extra 12 yards of re-rail only. The track ran through Platform 1, the Up Slow, where a rough ride had been reported. Once the old track had been removed and the formation dug out to 200mm, PW1 geotextile was laid, followed by new ballast, sleepers and CWR (continuous welded rail), with the conductor rail being the last element to be completed. Handback was at linespeed (60mph) rather than an anticipated 50mph TSR.
The location of RED sites over the two May bank holidays.
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FEATURE
The main objective for a 982-yard plain track renewal between New Cross Gate and Brockley was to upgrade the rails to harder-wearing CEN60 steel. Additional components, such as concrete sleepers and the latest Pandrol Fastclips, were also installed. Following a 250mm excavation, a layer of geotextile and new ballast was installed to shore up the formation to ensure longevity in lifespan for the new componentry. This was completed utilising RRV machines to panel out, dig and doze and replace track. This site was fully stressed and welded when it was handed back to operational traffic, on time. Two S&C projects took place between Heathrow junction and Reading. At West Drayton, the S&C South Alliance carried out work on behalf of Crossrail to install (but not commission – that was carried out three weeks later) two new sets of points (one crossover) between the Up and Down Relief lines. New panels were brought in using Network Rail’s tilting wagons and were installed by a Kirow 250 crane. Handback was at 90mph linespeed. Meantime, at Slough West junction, the life-expired S&C that formed two crossovers were replaced with modern equivalent components on concrete bearers. This renewal included associated power, signalling and overhead power line (OLE) adjustments. A Kirow 1200 crane was used for this one, and two tampers consolidated the ballast. Although all planned works were completed, the fast lines were handed back late on Tuesday morning, causing some delays to train services. However, as speed restrictions had already been put in place for the hot weather, the impact on passenger services was reduced.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Scotland The current enhancement of Glasgow Queen Street station includes platform extensions to increase its capacity and allow eight-car Class 385 trains to be run from December 2019. Work to allow seven-car trains to run was part of the 2016 Queen Street blockade. Further extensions to Platforms 2 to 5 await completion of the station refurbishment. During the early May bank holiday, work to extend Platform 1 by 50 metres to enable to accommodate four-car trains was completed. The majority of the preparatory work for the extension of Platform 1 was completed in advance of the disruptive possession. Over the bank holiday, the new track was connected and aligned with the existing one and the buffer relocated to its extended position. The platform was resurfaced and the copings realigned, while the OLE catenary wire was cut, a new wire spliced in and the wire run re-tensioned. The existing dispatch equipment and TPWS transmitter loop were relocated and the workstation at Edinburgh IECC (Integrated Electronic Control Centre) reprogrammed to take account of the platform extension.
Further north, the Aberdeen to Inverness route is being improved. Phase one of this work, between Inverness and Elgin, including a new station at Forres, was completed in October. Phase two will reinstate 24 kilometres of double track between Kittybrewster, just outside Aberdeen, and Inverurie, enabling a half hourly service to be provided over this part of the route. Over the early May bank holiday, phase two began in earnest with a weekend blockage of the line between Aberdeen and Dyce to start the redoubling work, with a bridge deck extension and waterproofing, as well as a bridge infill. On 14 May this section of the line closed for a 14-week blockade.
London North Western In August 2017, during enabling works as part of the North West Electrification Programme, a serious third-party water main leak resulted in a landslip on the line just outside of Farnworth, Bolton. Due to ballast contamination and formation issues, around 175 metres of track on the Up and Down lines needed to be renewed. Concerns around potential undermining of the bridge abutments required the installation of steel props to brace the bridge foundations in advance of the track renewal works, which were undertaken during a 72-hour block over the early May bank holiday. The steel props were installed in seven separate four-metre bays, excavated to a depth of 830mm. Each bay was back filled with fibre-reinforced concrete and allowed to cure before the laying of waterproofing and bottom ballast. Once all seven bays were complete and fully cured, the sleepers and rail were reinstalled on both lines, top ballast was dropped and both tracks tamped. Welding and stressing were to be completed a few weeks later.
Birmingham New Street.
FEATURE OLE and Signalling
Halton Curve. Signalling Park Bridge, New Beckenham, Elmers End and Hayes remote relay rooms were reconfigured onto new ‘Lewisham’ and ‘Grove Park’ workstations at Three Bridges ROC. Existing FDM (Frequency Division Multiplex) systems were replaced with Westplex through same area. Two new workstations were commissioned at Three Bridges ROC to replace part of panel 5 and all of panel 6 from London Bridge ASC (Area Signalling Centre). The relevant signalling and telecoms equipment was migrated to allow the train service currently controlled from the existing London Bridge ASC workstations to be controlled from TBROC. Signal plates and telephone number signs and labelling were re-plated within the recontrolled area to reflect the new signal box location Further north, the West Coast main line (WCML) between Weaver junction and Wavertree junction is a distance of 16 miles. The main running lines, all 25kV electrified, consist of a twotrack railway from Weaver junction to Runcorn viaduct (approximately seven miles), then a four-track railway from Runcorn viaduct to Wavertree junction (approximately nine miles). The railway infrastructure is being upgraded to support the introduction of a new, hourly passenger service between Liverpool and Chester via Runcorn in both directions. Extensive signalling, permanent way and power supply alterations are required to resignal the area and transfer control to the Manchester Rail Operating Centre (MROC). The area is controlled by five Signal Boxes (SBs): Halton, Runcorn, Ditton, Speke and Allerton. In a 99-hour possession, two of these, Runcorn and Halton, were recontrolled to the MROC. 31 signals were brought into use, 43 650V feeders were disconnected
and 13 changed over and energised. While the blockade was handed back on time, there were two residual train describer issues, although these were not commissioning critical.
Late May bank holiday Just three weeks later, and 19,000 members of Team Orange (the new name for the Orange Army) was out again for the late May bank holiday. This time, £78 million pounds of work was to be delivered across 600 work sites. Ten of the sites were classified as RED, as carrying a greater risk of overrun and/ or having a more significant impact in the event of an overrun. These included three bridge replacements in the South East and Wessex routes, re-signalling works in the Birmingham area, final stages of overhead line installation at Halton Curve and a large programme of both S&C and plain line track renewals across the country. As it happened, there was only one overrun - just over an hour at the Westdown Road bridge replacement owing to severe weather impacting the programme over the weekend which led to diversions for the first services on the morning of Tuesday 29th.
The Halton Curve connects the Chester to Warrington line at Frodsham junction with the Liverpool - Crewe line at Halton junction. During the four-day Easter blockade, works were undertaken to install a new crossover and renew the turnout at Halton junction. The works delivered by the S&C North Alliance OLE team over the late May bank holiday involved electrifying and section-proving a new wire run for the recently installed crossover at Halton Junction and overrun protection on the single line. Once the main conductor wire had been run and terminated, a new Arthur Flury type H125 section insulator was installed at the mid-point of the crossover. Prior to the blockade, a number of new OLE structures and small part steel had been installed in preparation for this weekend. This was the final commissioning stage in the project to support the introduction of a new direct passenger service between Liverpool and Chester via the Curve. Meanwhile, in the Midlands, the BNSAR (Birmingham New Street Area Renewals) project commissioned Phase 6, which included two hand-backs. The BNSAR signalling project combines a signalling renewal and a ‘relock’ transfer of existing interlockings. This will result in headway improvements, down from four to three minutes on non-stopping services, additional turn-backs for improved operational flexibility at Birmingham International station, autoreconfigurable power supplies and the transfer of operational control to WMSC (West Midlands Signalling Centre).
Birmingham New Street.
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FEATURE
During the bank holiday, existing SSIs (solid-state interlockings) were successfully ‘relocked’ from New Street Power Signal Box to the WMSC, the main lines between Adderley Park and Hampton-in-Arden were resignalled and redundant assets removed.
‘Down South’ Windsor Walk overbridge is a twospan structure which carries the two-lane Windsor Walk Road across four lines at Denmark Hill station - two ATL (Atlantic line – London Bridge to Victoria via Denmark Hill) and two CAT (Catford loop) lines. Its latest structural assessment concluded that the bridge suffered from significant defects and it had therefore been closed to vehicle traffic for the last four years. Work is now being undertaken to repair and strengthen the bridge and allow vehicle traffic once again, up to a limit of 7.5 tonnes. A beamed crash deck was erected above the ATL and crash deck scaffolding above the CAT lines. Shrink-wrap encapsulation was installed to the external facade of the parapet access scaffolding and concrete was broken out from the main girder lower flanges. As a result of stormy weather, some lifting activities were curtailed but this didn’t present a major issue as other activities could continue. Also affected by the inclement weather were the works at Westdown Road underbridge - a single span structure supported on brick abutments which spans the public highway and
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
carries two third-rail electrified tracks and a section of the platform at Catford station. The bridge superstructure was in very poor condition, with holing to the webs. Furthermore, the deck type was undesirable with sleepers sitting in troughs, which has caused track-circuit failures in the past. During a 74-hour possession, the bridge superstructure, including adjacent platform sections was to be reconstructed. The life-expired wheel timber bridge deck was removed, new precast reinforced concrete cill units and two U-type bridge decks installed, with ballasted tracks replaced on both the Up and Down CAT lines. New sections of platform were also installed and commissioned. A number of issues were encountered over the weekend, including severe lightning storms on both Saturday and Sunday nights, which meant works had
to be suspended for safety reasons. Issues were also encountered with the installation of the new platform sections. As a result of the delays caused by these issues, some non-critical activities were removed from the possession programme resulting in a 62-minute delay to the possession handback before both lines were reopened at line speed. Another bridge reconstruction fell victim to the same lightning storm. Bellenden Road underbridge is a single-span structure, supported on brick abutments, which spans Bellenden Road and carries two third-rail electrified tracks between Peckham Rye station and Peckham Rye junction. The bridge had failed its assessment and was assessed as having an overall safe load route availability capacity of RA0 at 60 mph. During a 74-hour possession, the bridge superstructure was to be reconstructed to give a 120-year design life with improved load carrying capacity. Over the holiday, the life-expired wheel timber bridge deck was removed, new precast reinforced concrete cill units and two U-type bridge decks installed, and the ballasted tracks replaced on both the Up and Down lines. However, as mentioned, the severe storm on Saturday night meant work had to be suspended for safety reasons. In addition, large voids were discovered behind the bridge abutments, which required additional works to be undertaken prior to the installation of the new bridge decks. As a result of the delays caused by these issues, some non-critical activities were removed from the possession programme so that the lines could be reopened on time to line speed.
FEATURE
A totally different problem, though still water-related, affected the replacement of Crompton Road bridge at Peasmarsh in Surrey. This carries New Pond Road over a two-track railway (WPH1 line) between Guildford and Farncombe, and One Team Wessex had been tasked with replacing this life-expired structure with a new precast concrete con-arch bridge on the existing abutments. As planned, 30 metres of Ekki Matt track protection was lifted in and then the parapets demolished onto the bridge. The fill behind the abutments was excavated and the brick arch demolished. However, Thames Water had failed to provide the correct buried service information for its assets and, as a consequence, during the demolition, a live water pipe was cut through which flooded part of the work site, fortunately with minimal programme impact. Thames Water attended site to cut and cap the pipe so that demolition could be completed and two new pre-cast concrete cill units, four conarch units, four riser units and two parapet beams installed using a 550-tonne crawler crane.
To improve stability and track quality on the three-line section of the West Coast main line over the M6 between Preston and Gretna, the existing CEN56 rail is being replaced by CEN60, G44 concrete sleepers exchanged for ones with under-sleeper pads and the whole ballast replaced to a depth of 300mm on top of a Tracktex blanket. The hard shoulders and adjacent M6 carriageway on each side were closed to enable safe renewal of the new ballast on the section spanning the motorway and both road and railway were reopened on time after the 47hour possession. Sevenoaks tunnel has featured in Rail Engineer a couple of times (issue 160, February 2018 and issue 148, February 2017), primarily due to a prolonged drainage replacement through the tunnel along the six-foot. The late May bank holiday saw the renewal of the Up Main line, a combination of two specifications with the majority of the renewal being within the tunnel limits. The scope included replacing 1,159 yards of track components - new
EG47s CEN60 sherardised concrete sleepers with under sleeper pads, new CEN60 rail, fastenings and ballast. There was also a formation treatment with a dig depth of 250mm and a layer of geotextile to be installed. In all, the possession lasted 74 hours and 45 minutes (01:15 Saturday to 04:00 Tuesday) and the line was handed back on time. Worcester Foregate Street station was the site of work to install new track from the Malvern side, through the station itself and ending on Worcester Curve prior to Shrub Hill station. This was to improve ride quality and to reduce both the need for maintenance and speed restriction. All of the planned yardage was completed, with a reduced dig depth on the Curve section as a mitigation invoked due to an early possession programme delay. The site was handed back on time and ready for the maintenance team to remove the temporary speed restriction over the next few weeks. So, after two holiday weekends in May, Network Rail came a little bit closer towards reaching its renewals and enhancement targets for CP5. As Martin Frobisher, route managing director for London North West, said: “There is never a good time to carry out work that affects services but we worked closely with the train operators for it to cause the least amount of disruption.” No doubt Team Orange will all be out again on Friday night, 24 August, for the Next bank holiday. It never ends…
Sevenoaks Tunnel. More track Unsurprisingly, the Infrastructure Projects Track team had its share of RED sites again during the second May holiday weekend. IP Track is supporting the IP Signalling Leeds-Halifax resignalling scheme, which will transfer control to the York Regional Operating Centre. This required the installation of two new crossovers; one just off Platforms 1 and 2 at Interchange Station and one at Ripley junction, just outside the station, where the lines split for Leeds, Halifax and Huddersfield. These will be brought into operational use in October 2018 during the overall resignalling commissioning phase and will enable greater operational flexibility and capacity for platform use at Interchange Station.
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NETWORK RAIL PARTNERSHIP AWA 2017
STEWART THORPE
Return of the
RAIL PARTNERSHIP Marc Carne speaking at the awards.
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From state ownership under British Rail to its break-up into more than 100 privately owned companies and the transfer back of infrastructure to the arms-length public body Network Rail, the control of Britain’s railways has a long and well documented history. Now, particularly over the last year, considerable effort has been made to harmonise this relationship between the public and private sectors to exploit the benefits from each. In October, the Rail Delivery Group launched ‘In Partnership for Britain’s Prosperity’, which saw Network Rail, its suppliers and train companies setting out a single, long-term plan to improve the railway. Following that, transport secretary Chris Grayling set out proposals to bring the operations of publicly owned track and privately run trains closer together in new regional partnerships, as set out in the Department for Transport’s (DfT) ‘Strategic vision for rail’, which was released in November. The East Coast Partnership will be the first such arrangement from 2020. Fast forward to March this year and - as well as the DfT’s call for private investors in the country’s railways - Network Rail announced the return of the Rail Partnership Awards to celebrate companies in its supply chain and encourage more innovation. Working with Rail Media, and in conjunction with Bollé Safety and Systra, this new-look ceremony took place on June 7 at the Vox Conference Centre in Birmingham. 15 awards were presented on the night - including the coveted ‘Supplier of the Year’. And the timing of its resurgence, as greater emphasis is placed on nurturing partnerships between the public and private sector, is no coincidence.
WORK RAIL PARTNERSHIP AWARDS 2017
AWARDS
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Tempered celebrations Following Network Rail’s National Supplier Conference in the afternoon, more than 500 representatives of companies of all sizes made their way to the awards ceremony in the evening in the hope of landing one of the prizes on offer. Outgoing Network Rail chief executive Mark Carne - who will be replaced by Civil Aviation Authority boss Andrew Haines in the autumn - introduced the evening with a keynote address following a handover from the host, television presenter Alexander Armstrong. The night of the Rail Partnership Awards was the result of months of work in the build-up but, as Mark Carne explained, events in the days preceding it framed the celebrations in a different context. He said: “It’s just wonderful to see so many people here tonight with a shared purpose of celebrating what we can achieve when we work together. “But, before I say any more about why partnership is so important, I also want to acknowledge this week in particular where we have fallen short. A colleague working for us in Scotland lost their life in an industrial accident, a young life, full of promise and opportunity lost, and a family, part of the railway family, left grieving. Like so many accidents, this seems likely to be the result of a combination of small, isolated failures that combined in the most dreadful way.
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“Together, tonight, we must resolve as leaders in our industry to learn the lessons from this tragedy and to make our mantra of everyone home safe every day a reality and not just an aspiration. We owe it to that young man, we owe it to the thousands of workers in our industry who look to our collective leadership. “The last two weeks have also been very difficult for many passengers on the network. As an industry, we did not fulfil the promises we made with the May timetable change. Now I’m not going to explore the reasons for this today, they are multiple, complex and interrelated across the whole industry. Just like in safety, small, isolated failings have combined in a way that has not delivered the performance customers rightly expected of us. “When we work together, we can eliminate the small isolated failings that can combine in ways that we had not expected or hoped for.”
Down to business After the speeches, it was down to the business end of the night. Each of the 14 categories were open to organisations, teams and individuals - excluding Network Rail - who had worked with ‘Team Orange’ from January 2017 until April 2018. Nominations were made online, with the option of submitting an entry into more than one category, and judged through two stages. Initially, a team of Network Rail specialists produced shortlists for each category, with companies such as WSP, J. Murphy & Sons, Buckingham Group, Amey and Siemens featuring prominently. A final judging panel, including senior representatives from Network Rail and third parties such as the Railway Industry Association, the Railway Heritage Trust and the DfT, then selected the winning entries, the runners-up and the highly commended submissions.
FEATURE
Raymond Smilie of the British Transport Police.
SYSTRA keeps the world moving through connecting people and places. By enabling mobility, our work strengthens communities, increases social inclusion and improves people’s access to employment, education and leisure opportunities. We deliver engineering, consultancy and specialist technical services that enable safe, efficient mobility and foster economic prosperity. Every day, more than 50 million people travel using transport systems designed by SYSTRA A recognised world leader in mobility and mass transit, SYSTRA employs 6,200 people and has an operational presence in 80 countries. Engineering News-Record ranks SYSTRA in the top three mass transit and rail international design firms and among the 50 largest engineering firms in the world.
Safety Mark Carne often describes safety as his number one priority and it was fitting that this was the evening’s first award. The British Transport Police was the recipient for its incident response stretcher project in Scotland. This piece of equipment runs on a single railhead and has been designed to support officers and staff deployed to fatalities on the railway to allow them to work in a safer, dignified and efficient manner when carrying out recovery duties. It stemmed from a particularly physically demanding recovery in 2016 when a team had to carry a deceased person in inclement weather over an extended distance to the nearest safe access point. Equipped with no budget but only goodwill and charm, a prototype was developed by folding bike manufacturer Kinetics using a stretcher donated from the Scottish Ambulance Service and a wheel from a disused sandite machine. The final product is now being used around the network. Not only does the stretcher help to reduce officers’ physical fatigue, it saves time, increases professionalism and provides more dignity for the deceased. Vital Human Resources was the runner-up in this category for its safety conversation vehicles. These vans, of which Vital has three, come fitted with seating space, TV screens, a personal protective equipment (PPE) store and an extendable canopy, allowing safety briefings to be conducted under shelter regardless of the weather conditions. Highly commended for the Safety Award was the S&C south Alliance (Colas Rail, AECOM, Network Rail) for its successful ‘Focus on Safety’ campaign in 2017. This saw safety performance improve by more than 80 per cent year-on-year.
High-Speed Rail HS1
Conventional Rail EGIP
Light Rail Aarhus, Denmark
Tram-Train Mulhouse, France
Mass Rapid Transit Crossrail
For more information please contact: Sarah White: swhite@systra.com
Images © SYSTRA and Crossrail 2018
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Community Engagement Formed in 2016, Friends of Ally Pally was established to create a community garden at Alexandra Palace station in the London Borough of Haringey. It started out by asking commuters to donate plants and pledge to look after them by emptying bottles of water into the station’s pots and planters on their daily commute. There are now more than 40 different planters at the station and the volunteer group has since organised various events, such as Christmas carol services and gardening parties, to make the station a hub for the local community. But it was the volunteer group’s ‘Sleepers Awake’ project that bagged them the Rail Partnership Award for Community Engagement. With the help of DIY enthusiasts, old railway sleepers and a supply of hot drinks, the project saw six new benches constructed for use at the station. Judge Caroline Murdoch, Network Rail group communications director, accepted the award on behalf of the Friends of Ally Pally who were not present on the night. BCM Construction was the runner-up for upcycling old cable drums into picnic tables for schools as part of the Sussex Route Traction Power Supply Enhancement programme. CrossCountry was highly commended for its Cub Scout Personal Safety project to educate youngsters on rail safety.
Sustainable Excellence Sustainability has a large remit and this was reflected in the category, with entries ranging from working efficiently with lineside neighbours to reduced waste and recycling innovations or, in the winners case, an off-grid, hybrid energy solution. This joint Panasonic Business, ADComms and PowerOasis project seeks to replace the decidedly eco-unfriendly diesel generators that are commonly used to provide power for trackside telecoms infrastructure in rural areas of the network with something that is cleaner, greener and quieter. Diesel generators require regular monitoring
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and topping up with fuel but this solution, which uses twelve 250W solar panels that are connected to a 235Ah Li-ion battery, supplemented with a 6kW diesel generator, can be monitored remotely. During a three-month pilot project for Network Rail in Worlaby, Lincolnshire, significant cost savings were reported. Elsewhere, Vinci Construction was the runner-up for its community work and for striving to reduce road traffic and noise pollution as part of the Filton Bank four-tracking programme. Q Sustain and NG Bailey were highly commended for contributing to Birmingham New Street becoming the first BREEAM-rated station as part of its Low Carbon Combined Heat and Power scheme.
Preserving the History of the Railway The work to restore or reconstruct the country’s great railway tunnels, viaducts and bridges, many of which were built during the Victorian era, features prominently in Rail Engineer. Eagle-eyed readers will remember a recent report on the “architectural gem” that is Carlisle Citadel station. Contractor Galliford Try has undertaken major work to rejuvenate the station’s ailing roof and the project pipped the competition to the top title in this heritage category. The recent roof improvements were possible thanks to a huge scaffolding deck that was installed nine metres above the tracks through the station. It protected the station's platforms and running lines, it provided safe access for the workforce and, with the glass removed from the roof, this waterproof deck also kept the station platforms dry. The result of this project has been a greatly improved station that retains its historic neo-Tudor and neoGothic characteristics and continues to provide a fitting gateway to the border city. Judges picked AMCO-Giffen’s work to maintain and ensure that the Grade IIlisted River Witham bridge in Lincolnshire - the only operational bridge with cast iron
box girders in the world - meets modern day specifications, as the runner-up. CML (Construction Marine Limited) was highly commended for the challenging strengthening and repainting works at Sleaford and Worksop’s ‘lattice’ main girder type footbridges.
Driving Efficiencies BCM Construction scooped the Driving Efficiencies trophy for establishing ENABLE, a consortium of SMEs that acts as a ‘onestop shop’ for small infrastructure projects. Launched in 2017, the association is made up of: BCM Construction, Equate Design, Credit Resourcing and CHS. BCM brought the group together to resolve challenges that face SMEs in the industry. One big problem is competing for scarce supply chain services when industry giants are demanding the newest and best plant, the best designers and the best labour resources. By vertically integrating key services, BCM is able to guarantee that clients’ demands can always be met. Aspin Group’s latest piling innovation, which tackles subgrade problems quicker, and Siemens’ low-cost, digital-ready signalling solution on the North West Coast, were the runner-up and highly commended respectively.
Panasonic BUSINESS
ADComms
A Panasonic Company
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR TEAM
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SUSTAINABLE EXCELLENCE AWARD FOR OUR OFF-GRID ENERGY SOLUTION
Panasonic Off-grid Energy Panasonic, working in partnership with ADComms and Poweroasis, jointly developed an off-grid hybrid energy solution that is ideally suited to meet demands of the railway in remote locations. It provides a more reliable, cheaper, greener and quieter alternative to traditional solutions.
To find out more visit: bit.ly/offgridenergy
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A Better Life, A Better World
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Best Use of Technology Best Use of Technology proved to be the first in a flurry of honours for Siemens. The implementation of the Thameslink programme was the one to steal the limelight. This £7 billion scheme was carefully phased to ensure that a reliable service would be maintained as new signalling and control systems were introduced, with Siemens - which is supplying all of the new rolling stock, train control and signalling systems - and Network Rail working in close collaboration to deliver the High-Capacity Infrastructure (HCI) programme. From contract award, this collaboration was identified as a critical factor in the delivery
of the programme, with passengers now benefiting from more connections and faster, more frequent journeys. The HCI programme provides the necessary European Train Control System (ETCS) and enhanced signalling control systems to support automatic train operation (ATO) and timetable management so as to reliably achieve the required 24 train paths an hour. On 17 March, operator GTR successfully ran the world’s first train operating ATO over ETCS on the mainline railway in passenger service. The southbound eight-car Thameslink train brought itself to a halt automatically at St Pancras station at 13:53, having transitioned into ETCS Level 2 Full Supervision and then ATO on its approach from Kentish Town. Cyberhawk Innovations was the runner-up for drone infrastructure inspection work, which has helped to keep technicians out of hazardous environments and has resulted in significant cost savings. Omnicon Balfour Beatty was highly commended for its in-cab flexible train arrival point.
Alexander Armstrong hosted the evening.
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Best Collaboration At the midway point of the evening, Great Western Railway (GWR) bagged Best Collaboration for the Western Alliance, which has seen large-scale improvements on the Great Western franchise by working more closely with Network Rail. Although two separate businesses, the Alliance between Network Rail’s Western route and GWR has seen the two align their priorities. 14 areas have been identified for specific performance improvement plans that explain what it is doing to tackle certain issues. The plans cover track, non-track assets, severe weather, structures and autumn, network management, external, engineering (fleet), drivers, onboard, train service delivery and train planning, stations and TOC on TOC, unexplained and subthreshold. In addition, January 2018 saw the culmination of months of hard work by the Western Alliance to launch a new timetable, with customers benefitting from additional capacity and new electric trains. Successful introduction was dependent on complex infrastructure enhancements, including testing and commissioning of the overhead line electrification between Didcot and Maidenhead, as well as the successful introduction of the new trains into service. These new services marked a major milestone in the modernisation of the Great Western main line and follows Network Rail's successful work to electrify rail lines between Paddington and Didcot. The S&C North Alliance (Amey, Rhomberg Sersa and Network Rail) was the runnerup and One Team Wessex (Osborne and Network Rail) was highly commended.
FEATURE
Dave Lowiss accepting the award for the Buckingham Group.
Investing in People To attract and retain high calibre members of staff, Buckingham Group created a class-leading learning and development programme to meet the specific needs of its growing construction division. Following the successful development and implementation of a competence assessment system in its rail sector, Buckingham Group decided to expand it across the whole business and introduced a tailored training programme to support long-term staffing needs. The Group then introduced an entry-level development programme to attract, develop and retain school leavers and college and university graduates. To appeal to school leavers, it developed an apprenticeship focused on civil engineers, which it has expanded to cover the wide and varied professions represented in its business. Buckingham Group also focused on working with higher education providers to identify and attract high calibre, self-motivated graduates from diverse gender and ethnic backgrounds. For this commitment to developing its rail staff, Buckingham Group was awarded the Investing in People prize. Amey, the first in the industry to gain ‘Leaders in Diversity’ accreditation, was the runner-up and WSP was highly commended for driving much-needed diversity in the sector.
THANK YOU ! Bollé Safety were delighted to have been a Gold Event Partner in conjunction with Network Rail at this year’s Rail Partnership Awards. We are very pleased to have developed so many new and exciting opportunities within the rail industry from our networking at the event. The organization and support from the team at Rail Media was outstanding! If you attended the event and missed the opportunity to see Bollé Safety’s permanent double sided anti-fog and unique and innovative anti-scratch K and N coating or the new Tryon trilogy, and would like more details and a free on-site audit and demonstration then please contact Becky and one of our local regional managers will be in touch to discuss your individual requirements. CONTACT: Rebecca Francis Bollé Safety UK and Ireland Tel: 0208 391 3194 Email: becky@bolle-safety.co.uk Web: www.bolle-safety.com
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Diversity and Inclusion
Putting Passengers First
SME of the Year
As mentioned previously, organisations were able to submit the same nomination in more than one category. Amey and its ‘Creating better careers’ submission might have missed out on the Investing in People trophy but its work stole the show in the Diversity and Inclusion category. One of the UK’s biggest public sector suppliers, Amey has proactively used its influence to drive change in the sector and has put diversity and inclusion at the heart of the business. Through the internal action group Women at Amey, as well as LGBTA, a disability group and mental health ambassadors, the company is working towards gender parity. Amey is also working with Girl Guiding UK to provide a bespoke engineering badge. Aimed at 5-14 year-old girls, the badge is designed to help young women explore different aspects of an engineering career with a focus on rail and road, so they can recognise the career options for engineers in the sector. A Royal Academy of Engineering 10-step signatory since 2015, Amey’s plan of engagement and investment is actively increasing the number of female engineers it employs, with 18 per cent of female employees now in STEM roles and three women appointed to the executive team - including the managing director of the rail division. Runner-up was BAM Nuttall for attracting, developing and retaining female members of staff in the industry and highly commended was Siemens for its Military to Rail programme.
London Bridge station has been one of the industry’s greatest success stories from the past year and it was inevitable that some of that work would feature at the Rail Partnership Awards. Lead design consultant WSP has had a comprehensive role in the station’s development, from early feasibility in 2008 to the final stages, as it has supported the contractor to re-open platforms and retail areas to the public. WSP has provided system migration planning for the entire Thameslink programme, track remodelling, station design and electrical track equipment. Its complex staging solution for KO2 (Key Output 2) enabled Network Rail to deliver a re-designed London Bridge station, with a throughput of 18 trains per hour, within five years and with minimal disruption to passengers. Through the early collaboration of its operations, constructability and systems engineering teams, it helped to give Network Rail certainty that the Thameslink programme could be delivered while keeping London Bridge station operating for its 54 million annual passengers. With all 15 platforms reopened on schedule to the public in January 2018, London Bridge can now serve 96 million people a year. WSP’s Birmingham team was the category’s runner-up for its work to upgrade Coventry station while STM Group was highly commended for its supply of safety and security personnel to the industry since 2008.
This new award has been added to the programme to recognise outstanding SME suppliers that have annual turnovers of less than £25 million. The first company to take the title was Rail Safety Solutions (RSS). In its entry, RSS said it has focused on technological innovations to boost safety and productivity since the business became a subsidiary of Auctus Management in 2012. RSS was the first company in the rail sector to use a specialist driver awareness warning system. This tool is a dash-mounted device that focuses on the driver’s retina and measures their blinking pattern, sounding warnings if signs of drowsiness, fatigue or inattention. RSS has fitted the system to all of its vehicles that are used for transporting labour to sites. Continuing on the theme of vehicle safety, the company unveiled a new seat belt cover design in response to passengers and drivers not using their seatbelt. These covers are made out of the same highvisibility material used for PPE. RSS says that these covers have acted as a reminder to drivers and passengers and the move has resulted in an increased usage. RSS is also one of the UK’s first rail agencies to develop a mobile app that allows drivers and workers to submit close calls and raise safety concerns. BCM Construction, which specialises in a combination of civil works and power systems, was the runner-up in this category while Train2Protect International was highly commended.
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FEATURE
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT OUR SERVICES, PLEASE VISIT: WWW.RAILSAFETYSOLUTIONS.COM
Rail RailEngineer Engineer | | Issue Issue164 165 | | June July 2018 2018
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Best Small Project of the Year Best Small Project of the Year was one of the most hotly contested categories. No fewer than 18 entries were shortlisted for this award but Story Rail and its work at Eden Brows pipped the competition. Network Rail set Story the challenge of saving the Settle-Carlisle line following a 500,000-tonne landslip that closed the route. The issue at Eden Brows was a complex one that required a robust ground model to be developed so that the correct solution could be designed, developed and delivered in a challenging location to challenging timescales. The railway is located some 200 metres away from and 60 metres above the River Eden. During the storms of 2015,
a historic landslide reactivated, with movement occurring at a depth of around 15 metres between the river at the base of the embankment and the railway. This resulted in large movements of the rail embankment and upside tracks, forcing the closure of the line. As the landslide on which the railway was constructed had reactivated, a solution was designed to allow the railway to be reopened whilst the landslide continued to move. This was completed in the form of an anchored, contiguous bored pile wall that was ‘socketed’ into the intact bedrock below the failure, allowing the structure and railway to be stable whilst the landslide continued to move. As the railway line could now be safely opened, the second phase of the project was to fix the failures at the toe of the landslide on the river bank and carry out deep drainage works to improve the stability of the lower slopes, reducing movement and scour into the River Eden. Spencer Group’s Finsbury Park Phase 2b project was highly commended and AMCO-Giffen was named runner-up for its Liverpool high-level neck repairs.
Network Rail judges included Francis Paonessa (main), Alison Rumsey (top right) and Susan Cooklin (bottom right).
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Best Medium Project of the Year Siemens was awarded best medium project for its work on Birmingham New Street (BNS) Phase 4&5. Between April 2016 and March 2017, BNS was one of the top-six busiest stations outside of London, with 62 million annual passenger entries and exits. It was also the busiest interchange station outside of London, with nearly 170,000 passengers changing trains daily. BNS’s power signal box handles approximately 80 per cent of the daily total services to Birmingham, including long-distance trains from Euston to the North, services from the South and South West to Scotland, Newcastle and Manchester/Liverpool and the East-West
Unlocking capacity and improving reliability Helping your passengers travel when they choose – safely and reliably.
As the need for capacity increases, Siemens’ digital solutions allow optimal use of infrastructure. Trains can run more frequently, data can be used to predict and prevent failure and disruption, and control centres can make decisions that improve service across the network. Passengers are given the latest information to streamline their journeys.
siemens.co.uk/digitalrailway
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services to the East Midlands, East Anglia and North, West and South Wales. Rail travel between Birmingham and London is predicted to more than double in 20 years. The transport system is becoming full, needing expansion of public transport - particularly railways - to help avoid more road congestion. BNS Phase 4&5 is a complex, multidisciplinary feat of economic and strategic engineering and represents the start of the flagship portfolio for renewals scheme on the Network. A £47 million project, it has enhanced and maintained the region’s status as the network’s central economic and operational powerhouse after London. To achieve this, the network required a 22nd century solution to a 21st century problem. With the ethos of the digital railway fast approaching, along with the push for technologic advancement and the coming of HS2, the infrastructure surrounding the central network city needed both updating to house the future of the digital railway and also renewable and interchangeable infrastructure to keep the railway and its operational capacity whilst allowing for avenues of expansion. Buckingham Group took the second and third spots for its Banbury depot and Blackburn depot work, respectively.
Best Large Project of the Year Francis Paonessa, Network Rail’s managing director for infrastructure projects, couldn’t resist the opportunity to announce that the musical, romantic comedy film “La La Land” had scooped one of the night’s biggest prizes. After much mirth, he announced the real winner was the REAL Alliance - for its ECML power supply upgrade work. As part of the InterCity Express Programme, Network Rail upgraded the traction power supply capability between Wood Green in London and Bawtry near Doncaster, on the East Coast main line (ECML). This prepared the line for the introduction of the new ‘Azuma’ fleet, replacing the existing HSTs and InterCity 225 rolling stock, as well as the new Thameslink rolling stock at the southern end of the route.
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To manage this four-year long scheme, Network Rail created the East Coast Main Line Power Supply Upgrade Project, to be delivered by the Rail Electrification Alliance (REAL) - a multi-disciplinary partnership of Siemens, VolkerRail, J. Murphy & Sons, TSP and Jacobs, with Network Rail as client participant. This collaborative approach removed the historic challenges associated with traditional contractual relationships. All partners worked to a common goal and were incentivised by sharing any of the financial gain or pain. The project is currently forecasting to make a £7 million saving against a £237 million programme. The Rail Electrification Alliance’s approach has seen it earn the accolade of being one of the only electrification projects to have successfully achieved its regulated milestone within Control Period 5. In addition to this, the project has paved the way for the adoption of the air-insulated switchgear containerised technology across the network. The Alliance’s cross-team value engineering approach is now being adopted by other projects across Network Rail’s portfolio as an example of best practice of collaboration. Balfour Beatty’s work to construct Abbey Wood station was identified as the third best large project and the London Bridge Partnership’s Thameslink programme work the second.
in all work areas. After winning Best Use of Technology, Best Medium Project and also finding recognition for its work as part of the REAL Alliance in Best Large Project, Siemens beat almost 20 organisations to be named Supplier of the Year. After much applause, and the obligatory photographs, Mark Carne brought the evening to a close. He thanked Rail Media, Network Rail, all of the judges and his ‘Pointless friend’ Alexander Armstrong for each party’s combined work to make the awards possible - a perfect example of the public and private sectors coming together in partnership. And partnership was embedded throughout, with the theme truly reflected in the line-up of winners: from community groups to SMEs, a police force, large businesses and major collaborations. In fact, although all of the awards recognised work between Network Rail and its contractors, a third of the awards were given to alliances, consortiums or, in the case of Ally Pally, a voluntary organisation, which was in the true spirit of the ceremony and what it seeks to encourage. With a buzz in the air and the theme of partnership served on the plates of all those who attended, the Rail Partnership Awards returned with a bang and a promise of being able to achieve so much more.
Supplier of the Year
For more information go to www.railpartnershipawards.com/winners
Last up was the most hotly anticipated award of the night. Network Rail’s Supplier of the Year was judged by Mark Carne and former Crossrail chief executive Andrew Wolstenholme, who picked from the winners of each of the preceding categories. Siemens was a standout in both the shortlists and award wins and the judges clearly recognised that the company has demonstrated excellence and best practice
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Some more images from the night.
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n 15 June 2018, Transport for London (TfL) confirmed its intention “to award Siemens Mobility Limited a contract of around £1.5 billion to design and build 94 new generation Tube trains that will transform the experience of millions of Piccadilly line customers”. The plan is to build the trains at a new factory in Goole, East Yorkshire, which will employ 700 people. In general, after such an announcement, there is the mandatory 10-day standstill period during which both parties say nothing. The technical details of the new trains will probably emerge just after this issue of Rail Engineer goes to press. In the meantime, what can we expect to see? The press release mentioned longer, walk through trains and air conditioning, and the accompanying illustration showed all double doors. These features were outlined in TfL’s 2014 New Tube for London (NTfL) Feasibility Report which showed clearly that an articulated configuration needed to be adopted to enable those facilities. The report stated: “NTfL has identified that it is possible to provide an inter-car gangway by altering the Tube train design to incorporate an articulated configuration with more, shorter carriages. By positioning the vehicle bogies under the ends of two adjoining cars, the relative vertical and lateral movement of the carriage ends is significantly reduced. This enables a shorter, wide gangway to be fitted without loss of train capacity or a reduction in the number of doors. “The repositioning of the bogies allows all train doors to be double doors. Double
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doors allow for rapid access and egress which reduces dwell times. Controlling dwell times becomes a dominant factor for achieving high frequency service levels…” An articulated layout also delivers a train with fewer bogies for a given train length, providing additional under-floor space for the air conditioning equipment. It seems highly likely that an articulated layout has been chosen and Rail Engineer’s view is that the Piccadilly line trains will have 10 cars. What other features might be delivered? There are some items that are shared by all modern tube trains and it is reasonable to assume that the following will be features: »» Most axles motored to deliver Victoria line traction and braking performance but with 100km/h top speed which will require motorised articulated bogies;
MALCOLM DOBELL
»» Electrically powered doors with obstacle detection and sensitive edges; »» Modern electronic train control with a monitoring system including data and events streamed to the depot for alerts about equipment with performance deviating from the norm; »» Interface for TfL’s chosen automatic train control (ATC) - Alstom, Siemens and Thales are on the shortlist; »» Provision to enable conversion to driverless operation in the future. More speculatively, there might be a means to independently power a train to the next station, possibly using the auxiliary battery, in the event of traction power loss. But the big news is expected to be the articulated layout, breaking the tradition started over 80 years ago with the first tube trains with all the equipment under the floor – the 1935/1938 tube stock, which is still in use on the Isle of Wight.
FEATURE
DEEP TUBE UPGRADE
London Underground
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Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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FEATURE
Two owT
great saves! T
he collapse of Carillion on 15 January 2018, strictly a ‘trading liquidation’, had a number of ramifications for the rail industry. Faced with the possibility of work on several key projects simply stopping, PwC, the Official Receiver’s special manager, and Network Rail came to an agreement which ensured that PwC could pay employees’ wages for work done on and supporting Network Rail’s projects until after Easter, and also made arrangements to ensure rail employees were paid as normal in January for work done in January. Carillion Construction employees working on and supporting Network Rail projects were encouraged to turn up for work as normal and continue to deliver their rail work and projects, secure in the knowledge that they would be paid by PwC for the work they did. This was a major step forward as it kept work going for the benefit, not only of Carillion’s employees, but also its subcontractors and supply chain.
Electrification joint venture A couple of the projects involved were electrification programmes being carried out by the 50:50 joint venture Carillion Powerlines. Both were relatively recent contract awards. In November 2017, a £260 million contract over three years was awarded to the joint venture to undertake electrification of the route from Bedford to Kettering and along the branch line to Corby. In Scotland, Carillion Powerlines had previously been awarded a £49 million contract to electrify the Shotts line between Holytown junction and
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Midcalder junction. To be completed in 2019, this would allow electric services to run between Edinburgh and Glasgow Central via Shotts, increasing capacity between Scotland’s two major cities. The Shotts contract was increased by a further £11.6 million on 13 December 2017, to cover enhancements to stations on the 74km route. Two stations - at Livingston South and Breich - were to be completely rebuilt and platforms were to be extended at Carfin, Shotts and West Calder, enabling the introduction of longer trains on the route. Work on the stations element of the project was due to complete in autumn 2018.
The collapse of Carillion left the other half of the joint venture with a decision to make. The Austrian-based Powerlines Group has local subsidiaries in Austria, Germany, the UK, Sweden, Norway, the Benelux states, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic and employs around 1,200 people around Europe. Having weighed up the options, Powerlines acquired Carillion’s 50 per cent shareholding and transferred Carillion’s employees to its UK subsidiary, SPL Powerlines UK. Gerhard Ehringer, CEO of the Powerlines Group, commented on the move: “The takeover of the shares previously owned by our former UK joint venture partner is an important milestone for Powerlines Group in general, and in particular for the sustained development and positioning of our business in the UK. “We now intend to work very closely with our customer, Network Rail, towards the successful completion of our projects. Personally, I am especially delighted to
FEATURE
note that this takeover will enable us to secure the jobs of our employees on a long-term basis. “SPL Powerlines UK managed to save almost 200 jobs that were at risk as a result of the liquidation of Carillion.” As the two teams had already been working together, integration was relatively painless. Even so, the focus during the takeover and transition was to ensure continuity of works and provide stability and commitment to Network Rail to deliver the two major projects. Indeed, the transition has only resulted in the loss of a single shift of works, highlighting the strength of project control and high levels of staff engagement and focus during this difficult time.
Martin Hawley, managing director of SPL Powerlines UK, added: “These are both challenging and exciting times and delivers SPL Powerlines as a major contractor with the UK electrification business.”
Focus on Midland main line The electrification of the Midland main line to Kettering and its Corby branch is intended to relieve over-crowding and reduce journey times on long distance services by reducing the number of calls at outer commuter stations, stimulating long-distance demand, both now and for the future, in order to deliver increased revenues. The introduction of highercapacity electric rolling stock on the
outer commuter services will make more efficient use of the new sixth train path per hour that will be introduced as part of the December 2019 timetable. In addition, the switch from diesel to electric traction will reduce rolling stock operating costs, improve air quality and reduce the carbon footprint of rail services on this route, whilst also delivering passenger experience and journey time benefits for passengers.
Visit us at InnoTrans 2018 Hall 26 Booth 226 Powerlines Group - The system supplier for rail electrification. Passion for Delivery www.powerlines-group.com Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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SPL Powerlines UK will deliver 56km of new overhead line equipment between Bedford and Corby. This will necessitate the installation of new and upgraded power distribution and SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) and telecommunications equipment along with signalling immunisation works. The main contract to design, construct and commission the electrification system commenced in October 2017 and the team is now deep into the design phase, with works progressing well on site. Enabling works are being completed, along with the installation of foundations and erection of OLE (overhead line equipment) masts.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Overall, the project scope for the electrification of the Midland main line includes: »» The installation of over 2,200 OLE foundations and masts; »» Erection of approximately 10km of lineside fencing; »» New troughing routes to contain 120km of new fibre optic cable and 90km of new return screen conductor cable; »» Running 200km of contact and catenary wiring; »» Full commissioning of the electrification system. Despite the ‘hiccup’ caused by the
Carillion liquidation, work is very much on track. As of June 2018, 584 mast foundations had been installed against a forecast of 578, 172 structures (masts) erected - exactly the number predicted - and 118 twin-track cantilevers, seven more than was planned.
Shotts line Work has also continued in Scotland. Over Easter, the Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow Central line closed for 10 days as engineers widened and extended both platforms at Livingston South. With the tie-in already completed at the western side of the project at Holytown junction, OLE equipment was installed in the Midcalder junction area, including 36 metal stanchions and other steelwork erected and multiple cables and wires run, the installation of PES (permanent earthing sections) and current jumpers, neutral sections and switches. The wire runs in the junction were energised to complete section proving but the lines will be blocked to electric traction until full energisation of the route takes place in October 2018. Through hard work, and a leap of faith by the Powerlines Group main board, the failure of Carillion has not markedly delayed the two important projects on the Shotts and Midland main lines. As work continues, Rail Engineer will be back again to review both in more detail.
“Excellence in Engineering”
Lundy Projects Limited 195 Chestergate Stockport SK3 0BQ Tel: 0161 476 2996 Email: mail@lundy-projects.co.uk Website: www.lundy-projects.co.uk
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FEATURE
MALCOLM DOBELL
Low-cost, lightweight rail vehicles for low-density routes
Y
ou want to reopen a disused rail line. You’ve got permission to do so, you have organised to close, re-route or otherwise deal with rights of way over the infrastructure and you have found a way to deal with the housing development that’s been built on the route and sorted out the design and construction or refurbishment of track and signalling systems. The challenges are similar if you want to improve mobility in a town or city. Once you’ve sorted the infrastructure, you need to choose trains to run on the railway. Currently, choices are limited to up-cycled ex-Underground trains, Pacers or other old diesel trains. However, you want the railway to have green credentials and you do not see why a rail vehicle should be three times the weight of a bus and cost at least five times as much and, at best, look like “something of its time”! There might be something different on the horizon.
Radical solution Rolling back a few years, the 2012 Railway Technical Strategy led to a competition called “Radical Train”, which was aimed at producing technology demonstrators – real things that people could see, feel and touch which would be inspirational and show the way ahead for the industry. Your author, before “retirement”, was part of a panel of judges assessing aspects of the short-listed entries. One of these was from a consortium of companies that was proposing a very light self-powered train. They won a modest award from the RSSB Future Railway Enabling Innovation Team, funded by the DfT, in November 2013, which led to further funding to develop a self-powered bogie with an integral, hybrid propulsion system and kinetic energy recovery system.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
In May 2018, Eversholt Rail, one of the UK’s rolling stock owners, announced that it had joined the Revolution VLR consortium and programme, the industry consortium that will develop, manufacture and market the Revolution VLR (very light rail) vehicle. The consortium, led by Transport Design International Ltd (TDI), includes WMG (formerly the Warwick Manufacturing Group) at the University of Warwick, Cummins, Unipart Rail and other companies from the automotive and rail sectors. The Revolution VLR vehicle is intended to deliver lightweight, energy-efficient system solutions for affordable service growth and extension of the UK’s rail network. A bi-directional, 18-metre-long railcar, with seating for 56 passengers and standing room for a further 60, Revolution
VLR will use lightweight materials and a modular structure to achieve a tare weight of less than one tonne per linear metre. This allows it to run on lightweight modular slab track. The vehicle will be self-propelled, achieve zero-emission launches from stations and be fitted with regenerative braking and optimised hybrid propulsion. The consortium and programme explained that they will benefit from Eversholt Rail’s market knowledge and extensive experience in rolling stock asset and project management, including the successful service introduction of many fleets of new trains. Mary Kenny, Eversholt Rail CEO, said: “Eversholt Rail has a strong record of innovation in the UK rolling stock industry through introducing new products, technologies and manufacturers to the market. Our investment in the Revolution VLR programme will extend this into the light rail sector and provide further opportunities for growth within the industry.”
FEATURE
New scheme In June 2018, a further step forward was taken with the announcement that Transport Design International, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, has won a contract to work with WMG to design and construct an innovative very light rail vehicle which will be part of a new transport solution for Coventry. They will create a state-ofthe-art, lightweight, batteryoperated, rail-guided vehicle which will ultimately be capable of operating without a driver. The project, funded by the Government’s Local Growth Fund through the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP) and the West Midlands Combined Authority Devolution Deal, is being managed by researchers from WMG at the University of Warwick in collaboration between Coventry City Council and Transport for West Midlands. The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) Devolution Deal funding has provided
£12.2 million to undertake the research and development required to prove the VLR concept. In addition, the WMCA has allocated specialist resource from Transport for West Midlands to provide technical support, advice and guidance to the project team as the scheme develops. The prototype vehicle will be capable of carrying 20 seated passengers and a maximum of 70, including standees. It will be tested at the Very Light Rail
National Innovation Centre in Dudley before a permanent tracked route is installed across Coventry and a fleet of vehicles manufactured. Politicians from Coventry City Council and members of the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership welcomed the initiative. The participants in the consortium were delighted by the politicians’ confidence in them, summed up by Martin Pemberton, managing director of Transport Design
International, who said: “As champions of sustainable, lightweight transport solutions, the TDI team is very proud to have been selected to undertake this exciting, flagship project for Coventry. We look forward to working closely with the City Council and WMG to bring their aspirations to reality.” Rail Engineer hopes to produce an in-depth article on the engineering and technology to be used on VLR in due course.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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FEATURE
To close a crossing (or reroute, replace, divert or extinguish it)
CHRIS PARKER
G
reat Britain has one of the best level crossing safety records in Europe. This is a commendable position, given that the rail network is one of the most intensively used in the world. Network Rail’s 20,000 miles of track directly interface with around 6,000 roads and footpath systems, therefore the challenge to manage public and passenger safety is immense. In spite of the improved safety record and targeted approach to managing level crossing safety, level crossings continue to present one of the biggest public safety risks on the railway. Accidental fatalities still occur each year across the network. These, coupled with a consistently high rate of near miss incidents and, less frequently, collisions with road vehicles, reinforce the potential risks which exist at level crossings. With the prediction of growth in both rail and road journeys and the addition of the localised pressure from population growth, further improvements to manage safety are still required. As with any risk, the best way to manage it is to eliminate it, so long as that is practical and the costs are not excessive. In the case of level crossings, elimination means one of three alternatives: the closure of the right of way, its diversion, or the substitution of an over or under-line bridge for the level crossing.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Options Closure is worth investigation, but often is clearly not feasible. It is usually the best and cheapest option where it can be done. Bridges are expensive, whether they go over or under the line. Their installation is also potentially very disruptive for the railway, for neighbours and for users of the right of way. They also leave a future liability for the maintenance and eventual renewal of the structure, and in the case of underbridges, may have implications for track and other assets. Land may have to be acquired to allow bridge construction, and this too, may be a challenge.
The railway has been an innovative institution for hundreds of years, and so advanced techniques have been regularly employed to permit the quicker, cheaper and less disruptive installation of bridges. These have included jacking subways under the tracks, building bridges alongside the railway and sliding them under it, and the prefabrication of overbridge superstructures so that these can be craned into place under relatively short possessions. Despite all of this, a bridge is not always the answer, especially in the case of footways, bridleways and the like. The costs and disruption of a bridge to meet the requirements of users who may
FEATURE include cyclists, horse riders, wheelchair users, wheeled-suitcase haulers and parents with baby buggies (among others), can easily be out of all proportion to the usage of the crossing. The Liabilities team at Network Rail’s LNE & East Midlands is on the case of the awkward crossings, and Rail Engineer met team member David Shorrocks to hear what they are doing. He explained that their biggest concern is with public level crossings, which bring the greatest potential for problems. Private crossings are more easily managed, since in each case only a limited number of people usually hold crossing rights. Often there is only one rights holder, typically the owner of lands that were severed when the rail line was constructed. This makes it relatively easy to negotiate with those rights-holders and agree some way to eliminate or manage down any risks.
Legislation Public crossings are a very different matter, being available for use by any member of the public who happens to come along, and being subject to statutory control and regulation. There are three principal sets of legal regulatory instruments that affect public crossings. These are the Highways Act 1980, the Town & Country Planning Act 1990 (T&CPA) and the Transport & Works Act 1992 (TWA). The Highways Act contains five sections that allow the variation or closure of a public right of way, each relating to different circumstances. The local Highways Authority administrates these matters, and Network Rail has to work with it and under its direction to make use of the powers available in this way. Furthermore, the Authority may have to apply to a local magistrates’ court, or a public inspector in some cases, in determining whether an application is approved or rejected.
If an application to affect a crossing is made under the TWA, then the Secretary of State becomes involved, as the works may only proceed if a Transport & Works Act Order is granted by him. This course is generally only followed when the closure of a crossing is being sought as a part of a larger scheme of works that rely upon closure of the crossing. On occasion it may be used when, as a part of the diversion of right of way, a bridge is to be constructed. If the landowner will not sell the required land for the bridge, a TWA Order may be used to overcome this. The Highways Authority can force a footpath onto a third party’s land but has no power to order the construction of a bridge. The T&CPA would be used where it was required to divert a public right of way as a result of the granting of planning permission. For example, if the planning consent was for the construction of a bridge that could not be constructed without such a diversion, an order could be made under the T&CPA for that diversion to be made. Section 247 of the Act would apply if the right of way was one for mechanically propelled vehicles; if it were a footpath or bridleway, then Section 257 would apply.
There is one further applicable Act of Parliament that may occasionally be used in addition to the three main ones already described. This is the Planning Act 2008, under which Development Control Orders (DCOs) may be made. A DCO would be used for a large-scale new railway development, typically involving more than 2km of new railway line. A DCO is similar to a TWA Order but with rather more stringent timescales.
Interest groups However the individual level crossing case is dealt with, Network Rail’s approach would always be to engage with stakeholders and endeavour to bring them into agreement with the proposals. Various of the statutory measures that may be used to alter or remove a right of way in order to eliminate a crossing include statutory requirements to consult. However, Network Rail always prefers to go further than the legal minimum, and to sound out opinion before formal consultation. In this way it hopes to forestall objections based upon inaccurate understanding, and also to be able to tailor proposals to remove aspects that are unpopular or impractical for affected parties. Other considerations affect level crossing removal schemes, particularly the Equality Act, which very often affects proposals for bridges replacing crossings. In urban areas, it is certain that any bridge will have to accommodate the needs of disabled persons and baby buggies. In rural areas, it is no longer the case that such needs can be assumed not to apply. There are such things as crosscountry wheelchairs and baby buggies, so crossings that might seem remote
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FEATURE could also be forced to comply with these regulations. Horse riders are another group whose needs have to be taken into account where a crossing is on a bridleway or other right of way that they are entitled to use. As well as needing to be accessible, any replacement for a level crossing would have to allow the required headroom for horse and rider. Over-line bridges must have suitably high parapets for these users. Underbridges (subways) may have to be sufficiently high that the rider doesn’t have to dismount as the right of way may stipulate that the rider may cross while mounted. David has a list of stakeholders who would typically need to be approached for any level crossing scheme. This runs to about a dozen, including public rights of way officers, landowners, ramblers, parish councillors, the Environment Agency or Internal Drainage Board (if a water course is involved), the Canal & River Trust (if a canal or navigation is affected), and other parties that are active in certain areas, such as the Open Space Society, a local association like the Lincolnshire Fieldpaths Association, or a Local Access Forum. Byways and bridleways bring in additionally specialist stakeholders, including the British Horse Society or the Byway & Bridleway Trust.
Diverse examples Generally the Network Rail approach is to try to assist in enhancing the network of public rights of way, to assist local landowners and to minimise effects on the environment whilst also meeting its own objectives of improving railway safety, reducing future cost and eliminating speed restrictions and other impacts of level crossings upon the railway.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
He described a number of examples where this approach has been applied, or is in the course of application: 1. Highway Act 1980 Section 116 - Cow Lane is used by farmers to access their land means that they have to drive large agricultural machines through narrow village streets and over a level crossing across the railway. The proposal is a new private roadway for the farmers, alongside the railway from a different highway to the field side of the level crossing. The crossing would be stopped up and removed. The result would be the removal of the large vehicles from unsuitable village streets and a private road access to their fields for the farmers. Engagement with stakeholders has taken place and the plans are being progressed. 2. Highway Act 1980 Section 118 - near Filey, a path crosses a level crossing to go only to one farm. The farm’s owners have no interest in using it. Network Rail has applied under the Act for an extinguishment order. 3. Highway Act 1980 Section 119 - at West Rounton, an existing level crossing on top of an embankment is approached by steep climbs up each side of the bank. The proposal is to re-route the path to an existing cattle creep
underbridge 20 metres away. It will benefit path users by eliminating the need to climb over the embankment. The farmer was unhappy about possible disturbance to his livestock, which like to shelter under the bridge. However, Network Rail has offered to divert another section of the path, routing it off one of his fields by taking it via a nearby lane. This approach looks likely to be successful. 4. Highway Act 1980 Section 118/118A - in Lincolnshire, a bridleway over a level crossing may be extinguished to allow the crossing to be removed. There is already a public footpath running parallel to the rail line from a private road part way towards the level crossing. Converting that into a bridleway and extending it to the crossing site would allow users to use it to reach an over-line bridge that carries a private road over the railway and then rejoin the existing bridleway route a little further along the road. 5. Highway Act 1980 Section 118A - in a similar way to the previous example, existing rights of way are to be used to allow a crossing closure at Kirkham Abbey and the extinguishment of a right of way that uses it. However, in this case, the use of the new route involves a public road and it is necessary to carry out improvements here to make the route safer and more convenient for walkers. This case involves the use of a Rail Safety Order, something that a Highway Authority may do under Section 118A if a crossing is unsafe for public use. Section 118A was added to the Act by the T&WA 1992 to allow such Orders to be made where rail safety demands it. Network Rail has to prove, to the satisfaction of the Highway Authority (or possibly a public inspector), that the route over the railway crossing is unsafe, and that it is not feasible or economically feasible to make it safe. If the case is made, an Order will be made, although it might
FEATURE not necessarily just permit Network Rail to divert the route. It might be required, for example, to provide a new bridge instead. 6. Highway Act 1980 Section 119A Section 119A is similar in concept to Section 118A, and was also added by the T&W Act 1992. However, this section provides for a brand new route to replace the one over the level crossing. On the East Coast main line (ECML) in Northumberland, where the diversion has already been completed and the crossing has been removed, the Rail Safety Order extinguished a barely used section of route and diverted it parallel to the railway, to an underbridge on a private road. 7. T&W Act - Network Rail is looking to reinstate a fourth track on the ECML near Abbots Ripton and increase the number of trains. For rail safety, it is necessary to divert a bridleway and close the level crossing. A previous British Railways Act had been used in the past to reduce this right of way from full public highway to bridleway. It will now be necessary to divert the route parallel to the railway to an existing underbridge some 375 metres away along the line, and back the other side of the railway to the existing route. David held a
“walkout” with stakeholders as part of the formal consultation, and the work is expected to be implemented in the next nine months. 8. Development Control Order - work on the Doncaster North Chord at Honeylands Lane involves the construction of a new chord line some 3.2km in length. Two level crossings are affected. One will be moved some distance, to take it from what will become a three-track section onto a two-track location. These nine examples are not a comprehensive review of the various
options, but give a good general indication of the possible approaches and scope available in seeking to eliminate level crossings by extinguishment or diversion. It can be seen that bridges are not the only options. Also, although some believe that the safest level crossing is a closed level crossing, David hastened to explain that Network Rail does not pursue closure of every level crossing that is looked at. As illustration, of the 1,715 crossings on the route, 114 have been closed since the start of CP5. Which means that 1,601 remain open (for the moment!).
Technical Excellence Whatever your rail crossing challenges, we’ll work with you to overcome them. Our team has built an unrivalled depth of knowledge and experience enabling us to provide solutions that are engineered to meet specific site and ground conditions, track use, variations in track gauge, fastener type, rail type and sleeper design. Rosehill Rail – Setting New Standards For more information, or to enquire about training, please call the Rosehill Rail sales team on +44 (0)1422 317 473, or email info@rosehillrail.com
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Road Crossings
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Rosehill Rail_Rail Engineer Half Page Advert JULY2018_Technical Excellence.indd 1
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Anti-Trespass
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | 12/06/2018 July 2018 10:54
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FEATURE
New ODP
for
Wales and Borders
GRAHAME TAYLOR
O
n 23 May it was announced that KeolisAmey had won the £5 billion contract to run the Wales and Borders rail franchise over the next 15 years as the Operator and Development Partner (ODP) - a new kind of combined operator and infrastructure manager.
At the start of the bidding process, which started two years ago, there were four contenders. Arriva Trains Wales the incumbent operator, MTR working with BAM Nuttall, Abellio working with Carillion and KeolisAmey - a joint venture between Spanish-owned Amey and French operator Keolis. In October last year, Arriva withdrew, while the Abellio bid ended with the demise of Carillion. No further details were announced in May as the process required a tenday ‘cooling off’ period to allow the remaining contender the opportunity to challenge the decision. A challenge has not been forthcoming and so the Welsh Government’s arm’s length transport company, Transport for Wales, was able to exchange contracts. The current contract operated by German-owned Arriva Trains Wales, will end on 14 October this year. The KeolisAmey partnership already holds rail contracts for London’s Docklands Light Railway and Manchester’s Metrolink tram network.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Moves and jobs Following award of the contract, Keolis UK has announced it will move its headquarters from London to a new office in Wales by 2019, and will relocate its global rail division from Paris to Wales by 2020. Meanwhile, Amey will open a new design hub in Wales where it will offer consultancy services and further jobs will be created when the companies open a shared services and customer contact centre providing services to the KeolisAmey businesses. These jobs are in addition to 600 jobs and 30 apprenticeships a year announced earlier this week. Major benefits of the new Wales and Borders rail contract include: »» £1.9 billion will be invested in improving passengers’ travel experience, including an £800 million investment in trains, boosting overall service capacity by 65 per cent; »» All trains will be replaced by 2023 when 95 per cent of journeys will be on brand new trains, half of which will be assembled in Wales;
»» £194 million will be invested to modernise all 247 stations and build four new stations: Gabalfa, Crwys Road, Loudoun Square and the Flourish; »» Stations will be powered 100 per cent by renewable energy, at least 50 per cent of which will be sourced in Wales. Investment in active travel initiatives will include the installation of new cycle lockers and a target to achieve Secure Station accreditation for all stations. Passengers will start to see improvements in service levels from December 2018, with increased capacity on the valleys lines and new services between Chester and Liverpool. By the end of 2023, passengers will be able to take advantage of an additional 285 services each weekday across Wales (a 29 per cent increase). This will include improvements to the Ebbw Vale and Wrexham-Bidston lines as well as the Cambrian and Heart of Wales lines. Sunday services will be boosted by 61 per cent with an additional 294 services across Wales, creating a true seven-daysa-week service. Smart ticketing will ensure that fares are more flexible and cheaper off-peak fares will be introduced including fare reductions in North Wales and at approximately 50 per cent of stations in the valleys.
FEATURE Greater capacity and improved services will also help to maximise the economic development opportunities provided by the new service, enabling people to take advantage of more and better employment opportunities.
New trains to come 77 new diesel multiple units will be built by Spanish firm CAF at the Celtic Business Park in Newport. Configured as 44 two-car units and 33 three-car units, they will be in traffic by 2022 and will be based on CAF’s Civity platform. They will release the current fleet of Class 175 DMUs which operate the longer-haul services - many of which serve English stations. Stadler are also to supply seven three-car and 17 four-car tri-mode units on the Valley lines from Cardiff. These will be able to operate on diesel, overhead electrification and battery power. In addition, Vivarail has been chosen to supply five three-car Class 230 D-Trains. These battery/diesel hybrids will be the first new trains to come into service as part of the new franchise when they are introduced in summer 2019. They will include universal access toilets, Wi-Fi, air conditioning, USB ports and plug sockets as well as bike and luggage space.
Vivarail D-trains will enter service in summer 2019. Vivarail was formed by Adrian Shooter in 2013 to buy and upcycle London Underground D-stock into Class 230s for use as local commuter-type trains. It has already secured a deal with West Midlands Trains to supply three new D-Trains for use on the Marston Vale line between Bedford and Bletchley. Welsh transport secretary Ken Skates has announced that nearly £100 million will be invested in a new Transport for Wales (TfW) train depot for the South Wales Metro. This depot will be used to house and service 36 new metro vehicles operating on the Taff Vale lines. Around 400 train crew, 35 metro vehicle maintenance staff and a South
Wales Metro integrated control centre employing 52 staff will be based at the depot. Clearance and construction work for the new depot is expected to start in 2019 and be completed by the middle of 2022. An existing South Wales depot at Canton will also benefit from a £5 million investment to modernise maintenance facilities so it can support new tri-mode rolling stock being introduced as part of the new service. There will also be investment in enhanced stabling facilities in Treherbert and Rhymney, and an upgrade of the station at Rhymney to accommodate more and longer tri-mode rolling stock.
Trimble GEDO IMS TMD Fast | Efficient | Accurate The Trimble GEDO IMS system, consisting of a Trimble GEDO CE 2.0 and a high precision IMU (inertial measurement unit), provides the basis for running an efficient track survey and asset data collection system. n
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Survey for track design, construction and tamping work
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User friendly
www.korecgroup.com info@korecgroup.com tel UK: 0345 603 1214 IRE: 01 456 4702
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VISUALISATION: FOUR BY THREE
Queensbury T
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Personal reflections on the campaign to secure a useful future for one of the country’s longest disused railway tunnels.
L
ost within the undulations of Britain’s varied landscape are upwards of 600 railway tunnels which were stripped of their operational status as circumstances changed. Some of these have great scale and a compelling story to tell.
GRAEME BICKERDIKE
(Above) A visualisation of the tunnel as a cycle path. (Right) The tunnel's south portal and approach cutting, captured during construction in the late 1870s.
By default, redundant tunnels tend to be looked upon as burdens. However, over recent years, around 60 have been rehabilitated as conduits for cycle paths - a role which fits very comfortably with today’s health and environmental responsibilities. More than 100 are owned by the Department for Transport (DfT) and looked after on its behalf by the Historical Railways Estate (HRE), part of Highways England. Queensbury Tunnel in West Yorkshire sits amongst that collection and presents the highest risk profile. Driven by the Great Northern Railway in the mid 1870s, the tunnel was explored by a newspaper reporter a few months ahead of its opening. He asserted that “the pyramids of Egypt sink into insignificance compared with such a work”. Hyperbole aside, the tunnel was a substantial feat by any measure. At 2,501 yards, it was the 11th longest on the railway network when traffic first passed through it and the difficulties imposed by the overwhelming influx of water caused the construction programme to overrun by two years. Use was made of an early rock drill, helping to justify its designation as a Historic Engineering Work by the Institution of Civil Engineers.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
Have your fill Excavated through millstone grit, the tunnel’s southern approach cutting was itself an undertaking of considerable proportions, extending for more than 1,000 yards and reaching a depth of 60 feet. Post closure, this would prove a convenient dumping ground for Calderdale’s waste materials, Halifax Corporation acquiring it for that purpose in 1967.
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Grand plan Perched 400 feet above the tunnel, Queensbury celebrated the 150th anniversary of its named village status in 2013, boosting interest in its heritage assets including the vast Black Dyke Mills complex - birthplace of the famous brass band - and the former railway. Awareness of the tunnel’s impending demise began to grow and a campaign group was started with the aim of preserving and eventually reopening it as a shared cycle/walkway. Not unreasonably, the group expressed the view that, if a large amount of taxpayers’ money was going to be invested in the tunnel, it should deliver some tangible benefit.
(Below) The larger of the two partial collapses. (Inset below) Blown brickwork faces where the lining is being overloaded.
PHOTOS: FORGOTTEN RELICS
The district engineer insisted that a ramp must be created so vehicles could enter the tunnel if needs must, but he neglected to stipulate that drainage had to be maintained. Tipping started in the seventies and it wasn’t long before floodwaters at the portal reached almost to the crown, a function of the tunnel’s 1:100 falling gradient and high levels of water ingress. In 2009, British Railways Board (Residuary), HRE’s predecessor, commissioned its consulting engineers to undertake a feasibility study into future asset management options. It recommended abandonment of the tunnel at a cost of £5.1 million, infilling 150 metres at both ends, together with seven ventilation/ construction shafts. To fund this work, damages were sought from a developer who, in 2002, had acquired the cutting and adjacent land with the intention of building industrial units on it. The action failed - being speculative and misguided - and, going forward, proved costly in more than just a financial sense.
Chain reaction Queensbury Tunnel kept the legal profession busy for four years, a settlement being finalised in 2015. To the developer’s benefit, a covenant was lifted that prevented any infilling immediately in front of the portal, whilst HRE secured a lease - the annual rent being £50 - allowing it to install pumps for dewatering purposes. These arrangements opened a ten-year window in which a long-term solution could be engineered to address risks presented by the tunnel, not least to the 70 dwellings built on or close to its centreline. The condition of the lining is locally poor, generally at locations where adjacent coal was mined in times past. To the south of No.4 shaft, compressive stress is causing the brick faces to blow in longitudinal strips at the haunches and crown, whilst two small partial collapses occurred in 2013-14 where patches of the brickwork’s inner ring were missing. Towards the north end, eccentric loading is causing a flattening of the arch on one side and associated pushing-up of the crown. In HRE’s view, “There is a risk, which grows daily, that one of the two known areas of collapse could unravel the tunnel lining back to one of the shafts causing a risk to properties above those shafts.” Although that’s a plausible chain of events in the longer term, there is nothing to suggest any immediate likelihood of such a failure: the nearest shafts are currently in fair condition and no major defects are recorded beneath them. The distance from the northern collapse to No.4 shaft is almost 150 metres. This is, however, the stated explanation as to why abandonment is now being actively pursued.
But two key questions had to be addressed: how much would repair cost and who would take on its ownership, given that the proposition, if progressed, would cause friction with HRE’s terms of reference. The only logical recipient was Bradford Council - a body with bigger priorities, a squeezed budget and no regime in place to manage such a large and difficult structure.
Bargepoles The task of establishing a repair cost was foisted on HRE by Robert Goodwill MP - at the time, Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the DfT - who was invited to visit the tunnel by the campaign group in June 2014. The work formed part of a new report by HRE’s consulting engineers, looking principally at options for abandonment. Some of the statements and conclusions in the draft version of this report were based on questionable evidence and hence wrong; this showed up in a couple of the costings.
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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PHOTOS: FOUR BY THREE
The preferred approach to abandonment involved backfilling the shafts but only 20 metres of tunnel at each end, the price tag being about £3 million. The repair proposal was developed through a high-level desk study, splitting the tunnel into four sections, with a generic form of remediation specified for each. Between Nos. 3 and 4 shafts, over a distance of 358 metres, the existing lining would be removed and replaced with precast concrete segments, for which a tunnelling shield would have to be procured. Much of the remainder would receive a sprayed concrete arch. Inevitably, with 80 per cent of the tunnel still in fair condition, such broad engineering brushes brought disproportionality. The plan to reline one section came with high levels of risk and suggested a perceived need to maintain structure gauge which, obviously, was not the case with an intended reuse for cycling. The repair cost put forward by the consultant was £35.4 million, including a 40 per cent contingency. Within HRE, although some expressed the view that this was “on the high side”, the draft report was not subjected to any formal review process - it was simply submitted for the Minister’s judgement. HRE told the DfT that the costing offered “certainty to some degree” but that “the final estimate would only go upwards” as no provision had been made for a tarmac path, ventilation, lighting and so on. Actually these items were included - to the tune of £5.9 million - but, either way, the figure was sufficiently high for the Minister to rule out any prospect of repair. Bradford Council made it clear that it would not consider taking on a structure with such high levels of potential liabilities. Suddenly the campaign group’s goal became hopelessly distant.
whether an alternative approach might allow the tunnel to be repaired at a sustainable cost. There was no budget for this work; instead I had to rely on the generosity of the tunnelling fraternity, many members of which I’d met during my ten years writing for Rail Engineer. Contributions came freely from a dozen or so specialists with deep collective expertise. HRE facilitated a brief incursion into Queensbury Tunnel in the summer of 2016, led on the campaign group’s behalf by a respected engineer and representatives from a contractor with experience of refurbishing collapsed tunnels. Our time inside was spent validating and adding to a pre-existing plan of the defects, but we were not allowed into the 125-metre section between the two partial collapses. PHOTO: FORGOTTEN RELICS
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(Top) The southern approach cutting during a period of flood. (Above) The same view taken during the Society's site visit in June 2016. (Opposite page) The north portal's likely appearance after abandonment. (Below) The large influx of water from No.2 shaft.
A pragmatic scheme was developed which specified a form of remediation for each recorded defect, adopting Network Rail Standard repairs where appropriate. The contractor put together a price and 44-week programme for the core civil engineering works, allowing an overall cost of £2.8 million to be established. It would have been about £0.5 million higher had the now-sharper picture of the tunnel’s condition been available to us at the time, but the prevailing circumstances imposed difficult constraints. A sum of £1.5 million was subsequently added for the cycle path and lighting, to allow a likefor-like evaluation against HRE’s cost.
From the ashes
Compare and contrast
It’s at this point the story gets personal. For a couple of years, I had been helping the campaigners with back-room support - looking after their website, videos and the like. But I was then asked to consider
The campaign group’s report - launched under the banner of the newly constituted Queensbury Tunnel Society (QTS) fulfilled its remit, although it was weak in some areas and could reasonably be
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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characterised as ‘cobbled together’. As we prepared for publication, I suggested to HRE that we met to discuss our report’s findings and implications. Their response could be summed up with two fingers, thus setting the tone for the two parties’ subsequent relationship. The QTS report was despatched to the DfT in October 2016 with a plea from the Society’s leader “to prevent the destruction of this valuable asset and to ensure the money [earmarked for abandonment] is invested for public good.” No response was forthcoming, although the DfT did commission its engineering advisors to compare the report with the one produced by HRE, with whom the advisors had an exchange of emails. QTS was not contacted, as a result of which a number of errant and occasionally patronising assumptions were made. This latest report found that HRE’s repair cost was “simply too high to be credible” and reflected an approach that was “perhaps too risk averse”. An allegation was made that the Society’s figure was “tailored to suit the previously published...cost of abandonment”, which was absolutely not the case.
Great emphasis was placed on the landownership issues at the south end of the tunnel - it was even stated that “engineering matters are...of secondary importance.” However, this unlikely observation was the function of a skewed viewpoint, not robust evidence.
Making the case There could be no justification for reopening the tunnel without a solid social and economic foundation. To this end, Sustrans was asked to carry out a study - funded by HRE, alongside Bradford
and Calderdale councils - into the likely health, environmental, transport and tourism impacts of a cycle network with Queensbury Tunnel as its centrepiece. A number of options were evaluated, with the most ambitious - linking Halifax to Bradford and Keighley - forecast to deliver a £37.6 million uplift over 30 years. The Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) would depend, in part, on the tunnel’s repair cost; it exceeded 3:1 using the QTS figure. Even a realistic ‘worst case’ cost would deliver better than 2:1, still representing high value for money.
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Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
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This report, along with that of the Queensbury Tunnel Society, dispersed the dark clouds sufficiently for Bradford Council to renew its interest in the proposal to reopen the tunnel. It recognises the potential benefits to the district and is working hard towards a positive conclusion. Funding has been secured from HRE for an independent programme of intrusive investigations, with their cost to be deducted from a dowry which would accompany any subsequent transfer of ownership. The level of this dowry is likely to match the sum allocated to abandonment - about £3 million. Based upon the investigations, the Council will make a final decision on the viability of taking on the tunnel.
The greater good
(Below) A diverse collection of campaign supporters gathered at the north portal. (Bottom) Robert Goodwill MP (second from the left) visited the tunnel in June 2014.
There are no cheap or easy solutions when it comes to Queensbury Tunnel, whichever way things go. But HRE’s failure to ever pay rent on the approach cutting - resulting in the recent termination of its lease - was a baffling, selfinflicted wound which inevitably brings more cost and difficulty. Given its previous misjudgements and their lasting negative impact, surely serious questions should now be asked of HRE. For the record, a spokesperson for Highways England stated: “We remain fully open to the idea of transferring ownership of Queensbury Tunnel to
PHOTOS: FOUR BY THREE
Rail Engineer | Issue 165 | July 2018
another public body. We would also look to offer the new owner the estimated £3 million funding we would need to spend on closing the tunnel. We have been working closely with Bradford Council for some time regarding the future of the tunnel. In December 2016 we agreed to provide the Council with funds in order to carry out a feasibility study. If a transfer opportunity to another public body cannot be found, for safety reasons we must begin work on closing the tunnel in September. We have now begun the necessary planning process to allow this to happen.” Indeed they have. In May, the Council was asked for a Screening Opinion on the need for an Environmental Impact Assessment. Evidence was offered on air quality, noise, ecology and heritage, but not one word on the risk of ground settlement. The outcome is still awaited. And what of the uncomfortable contradiction within the Department for Transport whereby one part of it invests enthusiastically in the development of new cycling infrastructure because that’s the right thing to do - whilst another funds the self-destruction of a structure which could link the evolving cycle networks in Calderdale, Airedale and Bradford? Surely the socially responsible approach would be for the DfT to see beyond its own narrow interests and work in partnership with Bradford Council, driving the proposal forward until an outcome emerges that everyone can buy into. Yes, this is just a grotty old tunnel: it’s hard to get excited about it if you only see in three dimensions. But times are changing and our outlook has to reflect that. The possible abandonment of Queensbury Tunnel says much about our strategic vision and commitment to sustainable forms of transport. In that context, the tunnel is an opportunity. The culture needs to evolve from one focused sharply on risk aversion into something more positive, enlightened and holistic.
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