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| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 05/10/2018 at 12:53 #112474 | |
58050
2659 posts 
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This morning I walked over Bromham Road(A428) bridge which is the bridge at the north end of Bedford station & noticed that the OLE masts have now gone up on the Down Fast side heading north towards Wellingborough. Bromham Road bridge is closed now on nights so work can be carried out re-modelling the arches so the OLE can fit under it. There are also some bases in place on both the Down Fast & Up Slow between Bromham Road bridge & Bedford station. Despite getting letters through the door on an almost weekly basis from Network Rail regarding the noise during the night over weekends it's the first time I've noticed something actually being done. The Midland Main line north of Bedford won't be the same again now the OLE is going up.
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| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 04/11/2019 at 21:59 #121485 | |
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58050
2659 posts
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This has taken a big step forward. The weekend just gone saw the demolistion & removal of Bromham Road bridge. According to someone I met on the temporary walkway for pedestrians to walk over had stood since 1859 & was the last bridge which needed changing prior to the wires being errected north of Bedford. There is a massive crane now errected in the railway station car park appearently at a cost of £125,000 for the next 9 weeks to re-build the new bridge over both the fast & slow lines north of Bedford station. There are some official drawings been ttached to the walkway where pedestrians can look at the carious stages of the construction of the new bridge over the 4 tracks will look like. For those of you interested in obtaining the famous 'blue brick' which is exceptionally strong from what the old bridge was made of was removed by lorry on Sunday. Nothing of the old bridge remains as the pillars which will hold the new bridge have been re-built from the ground upwards are new & are already in situ. I remember standing on that bridge when I was 5 years old watching the trains go under it next to the DMU sdgs controlled by Bedford North Junction signalbox. Some excellent photos takenfrom Broham Road bridge in the BR days pre 1980 on this websirte:- http://ukrailways1970tilltoday.me.uk/Bedford_station_br__page3.html It won't be long now before the wires go up north of Bedford & the Cl.700s will be en route to Corby. Log in to reply |
| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 05/11/2019 at 04:50 #121487 | |
JamesN
1607 posts
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Thameslink isn’t extending to Corby, EMR will operate electric Corby trains using Cl360 EMUs cascaded to them from Greater Anglia
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| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 05/11/2019 at 14:35 #121489 | |
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58050
2659 posts
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JamesN in post 121487 said:Thameslink isn’t extending to Corby, EMR will operate electric Corby trains using Cl360 EMUs cascaded to them from Greater AngliaI suspect in the fullness of time all will be revealed, but fom some driver I know based at Bedford there's been talk of through services from Corby/Kettering to Brighton & VV. Bedford drivers back in BR days used to operate the services between Bedford & Corby. I would imagine that as they are wiring the slow lines as well as the fast lines between Kettering & Bedford as well as putting back the slow line that was liftedduring the late 1980s there's going to be a higher number of trains between the 2 locations, plus the proposed construction of a new station at Souldrop which would only have platforms on the slow lines as the fast lines are significantly elevated at that location going over the top of Sharnbrook summit. Last year I was told by a railway insider that East Mids Trains as it was would be fast from Kettering to London & VV, whereas Thameslink would cover Kettering - Wellingborough - Bedford etc. There were alot of complaints in the local press & I even saw the Wellingborough MP on TV going on bout the fact that his commuters were also complaing that they didn't want to lose there fast servixces to London to be left with Thameslink services which stop at all stations to St. Albans. In today's privatised railway do you not think that Thameslink would be missing a trick if they didn't extend there services to Corby. Thameslink go all the way to King's Lynn & Peterborough these days so running to Kettering & Corby would hardly be beyond there means. Log in to reply |
| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 05/11/2019 at 16:28 #121491 | |
ajax103
1120 posts |
Thameslink won't be going to Corby anytime soon, just because in BR days you had Bedford drivers learn the route between Bedford and Corby doesn't mean that we will see a Class 700 at Corby, times have changed! What will happen is that Bedford and Luton commuters will be using the Class 360s in 12 car formations with a more IC interior I believe thus freeing up more seats for stations in between. The other point to bear in mind is compared to Northampton or Huntingdon, the likes of those using Wellingborough, Kettering and Corby pay IC fares eg a LOT more then the likes of those using Bedford. Also Class 360s have been stated that they are covering the existing Corby service but expanded to be running half hourly and also calling at Luton Airport Parkway which means the existing service to Nottingham can be be speeded up by running non stop between Kettering and London. EMR have already stated this will be the case with the launch of 3 brands eg EMR InterCity, EMR Regional and EMR Electrics the last one being the Corby service. I suspect that the railway insider was either telling porkies or has no idea of what they're talking about! Also can you point out what TL service I can get to Kings Lynn please as the furthest they run is Cambridge, north of Cambridge it's in the hands of Great Northern and Greater Anglia neither use Class 700s. Also the idea of wiring up the fast and the slows is nothing to do with more trains running north of Bedford but simply means if I understand it correctly that the bimodes will use OHL south of Kettering and Diesel north of Kettering but also because if you have engineering works blocking the fasts you still have the slows and vv this is simply the same with the OHL. Log in to reply The following user said thank you: JamesN |
| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 05/11/2019 at 21:06 #121496 | |
Peter Bennet
5402 posts
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Para 5.9.6 of the invitation to tender says: Quote: 5.9.6 Notwithstanding the requirements in paragraph 5.9.1, bidders areThe minimum service level between London and Corby from December 2020 is 32 trains a day each way. Peter I identify as half man half biscuit - crumbs! Log in to reply The following user said thank you: JamesN |
| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 05/11/2019 at 22:46 #121499 | |
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JamesN
1607 posts
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I don't know who you're sourcing your "gen" from Pascal but unfortunately they are wrong. Thameslink have neither the resources, authority or desire to operate services north of Bedford. The Class 700 fleet was ordered the size it was to provide adequate units for the services they are contractually obliged to cover. There aren't any more 700s coming, more of which would be needed to extend the service further north. EMR meanwhile are contractually obligated to operate electric Corby services from December 2020 as Mr Bennet indicates above. They have leases signed for appropriate additional electric Rolling Stock; and are actively recruiting a new depot of drivers to man the trains at Kettering. The locals can complain all they like about perceived changes to train service patterns; there should be no net increase in journey times from any of the MML stations to St Pancras; indeed journeys from most stations are due to be sped up - by virtue of the Corby service taking all the Bedford/Luton Airport/Luton calls out of the longer distance diesel MML workings. Assumptions by members of parliament and their disgruntled constituents that services from stations south of Wellingborough will in future be all stations to St Albans are unfounded and incorrect. Electrification of Fast and Slow lines is just good common sense - Network Rail are learning from the mistakes of their predecessors that partial electrification of necessary lines only (EG Longbridge - Kings Norton with SL only wired) is a huge operational constraint, particularly during disruption. Log in to reply The following user said thank you: ajax103 |
| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 06/11/2019 at 06:09 #121505 | |
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ajax103
1120 posts |
Also to add that EMR are actively recruiting for Train Managers at Kettering too to go with the driver recruitment there as well.
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| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 06/11/2019 at 10:15 #121507 | |
lazzer
634 posts |
Reading this thread I notice that you said Bromham Road bridge was closed so they could work on the arches underneath, and then one month later it was demolished! I assume they changed their minds about remodelling the arches, and just decided to rebuild it? Log in to reply |
| Midland Main Line Upgrade Progressing 06/11/2019 at 20:10 #121525 | |
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Peter Bennet
5402 posts
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lazzer in post 121507 said:Reading this thread I notice that you said Bromham Road bridge was closed so they could work on the arches underneath, and then one month later it was demolished!They needed to do preparatory work to divert utilities and the like. Peter I identify as half man half biscuit - crumbs! Log in to reply |