Rail Engineer - Issue 171 - Jan/Feb 2019

by rail engineers for rail engineers

JAN/FEB 2019 – ISSUE 171

Queen Street

half transformed

CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR

A look back at some of the projects that closed the railways over the recent holiday period and kept 28,000 people from their turkeys.

RAIL SECTOR DEAL

CRITICAL DOORS

Launched in December, this latest industrial strategy aims to give the supply chain a greater voice in the future of the railway.

An interesting trial on the Victoria line reveals just how much difference 1.2 seconds can make to both passenger safety and timetables.

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RAIL ENGINEER MAGAZINE

CONTENTS

46

Infrastructure

22 26 33 34 38 42 46 54

Stations

10 18 20

Queen Street half transformed David Shirres reports on the latest progress at Glasgow Queen Street station.

Making the case for composites Tom Bowman of Dura Composites considers the benefits of composite platforms.

Get on track with LED lighting How replacing fluorescent tubes and incandescent lamps with Goodlight LEDs saves money.

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Systems Integration Nassar Majothi of WSP explains the benefits to be gained from applying SI to programme management.

An Orange Christmas It wasn’t a bumper year, but 28,000 people still gave up their Christmas to work on the railway.

Innovative structural drainage Alan Bamforth reveals that using ABG Deckdrain at Bermondsey saved 54 tonnes of CO2.

Christmas: Wellingborough North junction Chris Parker considers the latest improvements to the Midland main line.

Christmas: Weaver to Wavertree resignalling Paul Darlington on the project that took 30 years to reach fruition.

Christmas: Electrification renewals at Forest Gate Peter Stanton explains GEFF, and how it will make life easier for Essex commuters.

Christmas: Battersea Pier junction Bob Wright witnesses the renewal of some of the oldest and worst infrastructure on the Sussex route.

Christmas: Westbury North junction renewal Mark Phillips visits the site of a complex project that had its challenges.

Feature

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06 60 66 70 76

News Railtex, David Waboso, East West Rail, London trams.

One railway: digitally connecting the nation The new Rail Sector Deal is a big step forward for the industry - its instigators explain.

GSM-R – a migration strategy Clive Kessell ponders on how the current telecoms network will be migrated to its eventual successor.

Critical doors Just how much difference does 1.8 seconds make when the doors are about to close?

Using data to improve fleet maintenance Malcolm Dobell joined the discussion at a recent London conference.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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RAIL ENGINEER MAGAZINE

EDITORIAL

© iStock Photo

Projects for passengers Early last year, we stated that 2018 “will be a good year for many rail passengers as benefits are realised from projects started years ago”. We certainly got that wrong, as did many others who did not foresee the timetable meltdown which severely impacted a fifth of Britain’s rail passengers, many of whom incurred significant costs as a result.

May’s large-scale timetable changes were intended to deliver major passenger benefits from completed infrastructure projects and new trains. Instead, there was huge disruption as flawed timetables, produced in half the usual timescale, did not match train crew diagrams.

However impressive they may be, new trains and infrastructure enhancements are not an end in themselves. As last year’s debacle showed, they are part of a bigger project requiring successful timetable implementation, driver training and other operational issues before customer benefits can be delivered.

This raises the question of who is responsible for the effective co-ordination of everything needed to deliver passenger benefits. No doubt, this will be addressed by the Williams Rail Review, which could usefully consider how Transport Scotland fulfils this role.

As an example, Network Rail only gave fourmonths’ notice of the delay to completion of the Manchester to Preston electrification project. Hence, Northern had to produce its May timetable in 16 weeks, rather than the normal 40 weeks. The ORR’s timetable disruption inquiry found that there was “substantial pressure from within Network Rail to not defer works while there remained a chance of success, despite the risks”.

This illustrates why the ORR inquiry concluded that “everyone needs to be willing to give and receive bad news”. Hopefully, lessons from this inquiry, together with Network Rail’s new arrangements to manage the risk from timetable changes, will ensure that 2019 will not see a repeat of last year’s problems.

However, this year’s planned introduction of almost two thousand new coaches may be problematic. ScotRail’s refurbished HSTs, LNER’s Azumas and TfL’s Class 710s are examples of new fleets subject to late deliveries and problems with infrastructure compatibility and software. To an extent, such delays are to be expected and need not necessarily be problematic.

However, passengers will suffer if existing stock is cascaded elsewhere before new fleets can be introduced, as shown by the software issues that currently prevent new Class 710 electric trains operating between Barking and Gospel Oak. Here, passengers face a possible complete loss of service as their Class 172 diesel units are being transferred to West Midlands.

Moreover, from 1 January 2020, it will be illegal to operate the large numbers of coaches currently in service that do not comply with the Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations. It remains to be seen whether these vehicles will have been replaced by new trains before this deadline.

Although new trains may have teething problems with their software, the data it provides from numerous on-board sensors offers significant benefits. Malcolm Dobell explains how this supports condition-based maintenance with examples of cost-savings for bearing and door maintenance.

Getting the doors closed in a timely and safe manner to maintain the throughput of crowded underground trains is a complex issue. In his feature, Clive Kessell explains why the key factor is the door chime alert timing.

Modern trains have become ever more dependent on the radio link currently provided by GSM-R, which may not be supported after 2030. As we report, its replacement will probably be 5G. Migrating to this is a huge task, which requires urgent action now.

The huge amount of infrastructure work completed over Christmas and the New Year was valued at £148 million and involved

28,000 people. As Nigel Wordsworth describes in his comprehensive report, its 1,100 possessions were generally delivered on time, although there was a 23-hour possession overun at Westbury.

Mark Phillips explains how this delay was due to an interlocking issue revealed during signal testing which required a new design.

He also describes the complexity of the 12day Westbury blockade, which included the renewal of twelve point ends. Other complex track renewals were the 11-day Battersea Pier Junction blockade, as described by Bob Wright, and the nine-day Wellingborough blockade about which Chris Parker reports.

Christmas also saw the renewal of over 12 kilometres of OLE at Forest Gate in a 10-day blockade, as Peter Stanton describes, whilst Paul Darlington covers the eight-day blockade that saw the completion of the latest phase of the Weaver to Wavertree resignalling scheme.

We also feature the transformation of Glasgow’s Queen Street station and explain how this will provide more seats on trains between Edinburgh and Glasgow.

All this work is delivered by members of the Rail Supply Group, who now have a greater say in how they can work more effectively as a result of the Rail Sector Deal.

As we explain, this is intended to avoid ‘boom and bust procurement’, introduce innovation and improve skills in order to deliver more for passengers and drive economic growth.

As 2018 demonstrated, implementing improvements on a complex and crowded railway involves significant risks, which now seem to be better understood. Much good work was done over Christmas.

Let’s hope that 2019 will see this, and other enhancement projects, delivering significant passenger improvements.

RAIL ENGINEER EDITOR

DAVID SHIRRES

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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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

Visitor registration opens for Railtex 2019

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

asif@rail-media.com

Chris Davies

chris@rail-media.com

Jolene Price jolene@rail-media.com

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Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Organisations and professionals from across the industry are being urged to register their attendance at Railtex 2019, the 14th international exhibition of railway equipment, systems and services.

The event, which takes place between 14 and16 May at Birmingham’s NEC, is now officially open for registration and is free to attend for visitors who register in advance.

With the UK’s rail sector currently undergoing a critical period of investment and development, exhibitors recognise the high value of having a presence at Railtex, where they can demonstrate products, innovations and expertise, while meeting the industry’s key players, all under one roof.

A large number of high-profile names are already confirmed to be in attendance, alongside many new firsttime exhibitors on display in a unique networking environment. As well as providing a shop window for the UK’s leading suppliers of railway technology and services, Railtex 2019 will also confirm the appeal of the British market

for foreign companies, with delegates from more than 50 countries set to be in attendance.

Kirsten Whitehouse, exhibition manager for Railtex 2019, said: “With visitor registration now open for Railtex it is the perfect time to secure your place at the country’s premier rail industry event, so keep the dates free in your calendar!

“We are looking forward to welcoming hundreds of exhibitors from across the full range of infrastructure and rolling stock sectors to the NEC in Birmingham, as they provide valuable insights into their markets. We’ll also be providing a friendly welcome to the thousands of delegates who engage with the event over the course of three very insightful, inspiring and engaging days.”

Visitors can register for their free place at Railtex 2019 by visiting www.railtex.co.uk

NEWS

David Waboso to retire

coming soon...

David Waboso CBE, managing director of Network Rail's Digital Railway programme, has announced that he will retire in March, the same month in which he turns 63.

He joined Network Rail in 2016 from Transport for London, where he had been director of capital programmes, delivering a catalogue of major tube upgrades.

Announcing David’s upcoming departure, Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines paid tribute to his work, saying: “Through his skilful leadership and passionate advocacy, Digital Railway is now becoming a reality on ever growing sections of our railway system.

“He leaves a fantastic legacy of a clear direction for delivery through CP6 and beyond, integrating track and train to deliver benefits for passengers and freight users.”

The former maths teacher originally obtained degrees in

civil engineering from Coventry University and Imperial College London. After a spell of teaching in east London, he worked on water supply and transportation projects in Nigeria.

Joining the Nicholas Group, David project managed the Docklands Light Railway block resignalling upgrade. He was also instrumental in the integration and commissioning of the Jubilee line extension for its millennium opening.

Sir Peter Hendy, chairman of Network Rail, has described David Waboso as “one of the most talented project engineers in the world” and “a giant in his profession”.

A further announcement on the transitional arrangements and his replacement will be made in due course.

MARCH 2019 DIGITAL RAILWAY,

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, improved punctuality, quicker journey times and safer running in the future. Reports on the Digital Railway are balanced with others on more traditional forms of control and communications.

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

APRIL 2019 TECHNOLOGY, INNOVATION &

RAILTEX PREVIEW Trains, signalling, asset management, communications, and even station control systems, all have technology at their heart. Developing this technology presents its own challenges. In addition, Rail Engineer looks ahead to the UK’s major rail exhibition at the NEC, with details of companies to see and presentations to attend.

Academic Research, Advanced Thinking, Compliance, Innovation, Internet of Trains, Latest Technology, New Working Practices, Novel Techniques, Pilot Studies, Product Approvals, Research & Development, Testing.

RAILTEX: Displays, Exhibitor list, Floorplan, Innovations, Networking, Keynotes, Seminars.

MAY 2019 PLANT, EQUIPMENT &

RAILWORX PREVIEW As work on the railway becomes increasingly mechanised due to the pressures of productivity and efficiency, Rail Engineer looks at the latest equipment and techniques that are coming to or have arrived on worksites around the network.

The first ever RailWorx outdoor exhibition will take place in June and this issue previews what visitors will be able to see at the show.

Attachments, Excavation, Hand tools, Handling, Hire, Innovation, Lifting, Maintenance, Piling, Power Tools, Product Launches, Road-Rail, Safety, Surveying, Welding, Welfare RAILWORX: Demonstrations, Displays, Exhibitor list, Innovations, Networking, Site Plan Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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NEWS

Bedford to Cambridge development plans

The East West Rail central section is back in the news as the company seeks specialist development partners for this phase of the project.

Reinstating a rail route between Oxford and Cambridge, and on to East Anglia, has been under development for a number of years. The Western Section - Oxford to Bedford - is well underway. Phase 1, a doubletrack upgrade between Oxford and Bicester Village, was completed in December 2016.

Phase 2, reinstating and upgrading the line between Bicester Village and Bedford, with additional improved routes

from Oxford to Milton Keynes and Milton Keynes to Aylesbury, both via Bletchley which will get two extra platforms, will commence construction later this year. Services should commence in 2023.

The Eastern Section includes the services east of Cambridge through to East Anglia (Norwich/ Ipswich) and the east coast ports.

The route exists, but will need to be upgraded to meet the capacity and speed requirements of the new services.

The stumbling block for the whole plan is the central section.

Following the closure of the original line in 1968, the route was not safeguarded and is now taken up by the Cambridge, guided busway, the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory, housing at several locations and National Cycle Route 51. So a new route is needed.

On 30 October 2018, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced £20 million of funding for the development of a strategic outline business case. East West Railway is now inviting interested organisations to an engagement session in February.

East West Railway Company chief executive Simon Blanchflower said: “We want to hear from

organisations with wide-ranging expertise and experience who want to work with East West Rail to drive this crucial infrastructure project forward. It’s a unique opportunity to be involved in shaping the project from the outset.

“This is not the ‘same old’ approach - we want to build lasting partnerships and a motivated supply chain who will together help us deliver this exciting new railway line. Today we are kicking off genuine engagement with the market - not just briefing them on our plans but listening to them about how we can best unlock their expertise to support our project.

We are determined to learn the lessons of the past and harness new innovations for the future.”

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NEWS

New automatic braking systems for London trams London is set to become the first in the UK to have an automatic braking system that will automatically apply the brakes, and bring a moving tram to a controlled stop, if it exceeds the speed limit at designated locations.

The unfortunate accident at Sandilands on the London tram network in November 2016, in which seven people died, has been well reported.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) published its investigation report in December 2017, together with a further update in October 2018, which found that the tram had attempted to take a tight bend at well over the speed limit.

Commenting on the investigation, chief inspector of rail accidents Simon French said: “We are recommending action in five main areas. The first is the use of modern technology to intervene when trams approach hazardous features too fast, or when drivers lose awareness of the driving task.”

Consideration of how to avoid similar accidents commenced soon after the accident, with various systems, using both existing and new technology. As a result, a contract has now been awarded to ESG in Derby, a subsidiary of DB Systemtechnik, to install a new safety system alongside the driver protection device that has been in operation since September 2017 to detect any signs of driver distraction and fatigue.

Sella Controls has been awarded a contract from ESG Rail to provide the equipment necessary for the physical prevention of overspeeding (PPOS) system, which will initially be configured to priority high-risk locations, as suggested by the RAIB, but will have the flexibility to be introduced elsewhere on the tram network. It is expected to be operational by the end of 2019.

Some of the RAIB’s other recommendations - a permanent speed reduction across the tram network, speed monitoring and signage at significant bends, an enhanced customer

complaints process and the installation of the driver protection device that warns of driver distraction or fatigue as mentioned above have already been implemented.

In addition, a new emergency lighting system, which will operate independently of the tram’s battery in the event of an emergency, has also been procured and will be installed over the summer, addressing another RAIB recommendation.

Extensive testing on strengthening doors and windows, to help retain passengers inside the vehicle in the even of an accident, has also been progressed and a new higher

specification film that is 75 per cent thicker (from 100microns to 175microns) will be fitted to all doors and windows by spring.

TfL’s general manager of London Trams Mark Davis said: “Awarding the contract for a new automatic braking system is a first for trams in the UK, and not only will it improve safety for customers in London, but we hope it will lead the way for other tram operators across the country. We will work to have the new system, which will automatically apply the brakes if a tram is exceeding the speed limit, in full operation by the end of the year.”

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Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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STATIONS

Queen Street

half transformed

R DAVID SHIRRES

ail Engineer has reported on numerous infrastructure upgrade projects to provide the extra and longer trains needed for increasing passenger numbers. This extra traffic also requires station enhancements to provide space for passengers to move as well as providing a more attractive passenger environment and stimulating developments in the vicinity of the station.

Recent examples are London King’s Cross (2012), Birmingham New Street (2015), Manchester Victoria (2015) and Edinburgh’s Haymarket station, which had its passenger circulating area increased tenfold (2013). Now Glasgow’s cramped Queen Street station is about to be transformed. As will be seen, enlarging this relatively small city-centre station is a challenging project.

The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Queen Street station opened in February 1842 as part of the Edinburgh and Glasgow railway, which then operated four trains a day between the two cities with a journey time of 2½ hours. The railway company had originally intended to approach Glasgow by a bridge over the Monklands canal and build a station just north of the present station. However, the canal company’s opposition to this idea resulted in Queen Street station, which is approached

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

down one of the steepest parts of the UK rail network, a tunnel under the canal with a 1 in 44 gradient.

Although the canal is long gone, its legacy of a cramped station at the end of a steep tunnel remains. The original Queen Street station soon proved woefully inadequate for its increasing traffic and it was rebuilt between 1878 and 1880, with the tunnel being shortened by 153 yards to create a new station throat and platform extensions. The wrought-iron arched roof was also built at this time. As part of an EastWest line under the city, the low-level station was excavated underneath the original station and opened in 1886.

The nearby Buchanan Street station closed in 1966, which resulted in Queen Street becoming the terminus for destinations north of Glasgow as well as the main line to Edinburgh. Whilst this may not have been a problem at the time, the station is now

too small for its 16.4 million passengers each year who make it the third busiest in Scotland.

The capacity of the Edinburgh to Glasgow main line was significantly enhanced when, first, its train service was doubled to four trains an hour in 2000 and then, shortly afterwards, six-car Class 170 DMUs were introduced on the route.

Yet, just nine years later, this was still not enough as, in 2009, the Scottish Government published its Strategic Projects Review. This concluded that increasing rail capacity between Edinburgh to Glasgow was a high priority and proposed electrification and six trains an hour on the main line between the two cities.

However, this was a costly proposal that required significant infrastructure works including a grade-separated junction at Greenhill and a new chord at Dalmeny. In 2012, the then Scottish Transport Minister announced a revised scheme that did not require these infrastructure works as the required extra capacity was to be provided by longer trains rather than increasing service frequency and that this new approach was due to “new opportunities”.

STATIONS EGIP One of the new opportunities concerned the Buchanan Galleries shopping centre, immediately north of Queen Street station. In 2011, its developers unveiled plans to expand the centre that would provide the station with an opportunity to extend its platforms to accommodate eight-car trains.

Hence, it was decided that the required extra capacity would be provided by longer trains instead of by increasing service frequency. In addition to the Queen Street work, this would require platforms to be lengthened at four intermediate stations on the route. This work was done as part of the Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvement Programme (EGIP), which has also electrified the route, rebuilt Haymarket station and built a new train depot at Millerhill.

The EGIP programme required two major blockades on the route. In 2015, Winchburgh tunnel clearance work requiring the installation of slab track closed the tunnel for six weeks.

In 2016, the tunnel into Queen Street was shut for twenty weeks to replace its life-expired slab track, install OLE conductor bar and remodel the station’s track and platforms. This remodelling required 165 metres of new track, seven new switch and crossing units and 642 metres of new platform walls. At the same time, the new OLE infrastructure was installed within the station environment.

This work enabled Queen Street to accommodate seven-car units when electric trains started running on the Edinburgh to Glasgow line in December 2017. An eight-car service, however, awaits the completion of the Queen Street station rebuild. Before this work could start, an order under the Transport and Works (Scotland) Act (TAWS) was required to give Network Rail the necessary powers, including those to demolish buildings and purchase the land on which they stood.

View of station from Buchanan Galleries during 2016 blockade.

TAWS The redevelopment for which the TAWS application was sought extends the station southwards to front onto West George Street, on the corner of George Square, as well as the

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Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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STATIONS

Consort House and the Millenium Hotel extension before their demolition.

redevelopment of the east side of the station. This required the demolition of station facilities on the east side of the station, the seven-story Consort House office block of brutalist concrete appearance and a bedroom wing extension to the Millennium Hotel which was within the 20-metre overrun risk zone beyond the buffers - of particular significance as trains approach the station

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

down its steep tunnel.

The station is in the Glasgow Central Conservation Area and the train shed, with its iconic iron arch, is a grade A listed structure while the Millennium hotel is grade B listed. Consort House and the hotel extension were built during the late 1960s / early 1970s. The project’s environmental statement notes that these buildings were of “minimal architectural and

historic interest” and that “they are of a dated and generally poor appearance”.

Consultation for the TAWS application took place in 2014.

This resulted in changes to the draft order, which was submitted in September 2015.

It was then considered by the Scottish Government’s Planning and Environmental Appeals Division (DPEA), which had to consider objections to the order of which the most significant was from the owner of the Millennium hotel - concerned at the loss of 51 bedrooms from the demolition of its extension.

Published in October 2016, the DPEA’s findings concluded that the demolition of the hotel extension was unavoidable as the station works were necessary and had been clearly justified in the public interest.

The report included some minor changes to the order and various conditions, including the requirement for a Code of Construction Practice.

Following further consideration of responses to the draft, the TAWS order was finalised and came into force on 11 April 2017. This was nine months later than had been anticipated in the consultation leaflet, which had stated that the work would take three years. With the TAWS order now in place, Network Rail was able to start the Queen Street station enhancement works and announce that it would be completed in March 2020.

However, whilst the TAWS order was being considered, Land Securities, which owns the Buchanan Galleries, placed its £390 million development plan on hold “due to the increased level of risk generated by the simultaneous delivery of the EGIP programme”. As a result, the associated development of the east side of the station is no longer part of the current station enhancement work, other than its use for temporary ScotRail office accommodation during the work. Options for the use of this part of the station, including a possible Platform 8, are now part of a GRIP (Governance for Railway Investment Projects) study which is at stage 2 (project feasibility).

PHOTO: NETWORK RAIL

STATIONS

Work starts In April 2017, Balfour Beatty was awarded a £16 million enabling-works contract for the station’s redevelopment. In August, it was announced that the company had been awarded

a £63 million contract to demolish buildings and build the new station. This is a target cost contract in which any gain/pain is equally shared between Network Rail and the contractor and any exceedances over ten per cent are wholly borne by the contractor.

The project’s principle designer is Arup, with BDP architects acting as architectural subconsultants. Key sub-contracts placed were demolition (Dem-Master), scaffolding (Lyndon), piling (Roger Bullivant), steelwork (J&D Pierce), cladding and roofing (Curtis Moore), curtain walling (Charles Henshaw), railway and frangible decks (Story Contracting) and mechanical, electrical and plumbing (Balfour Beatty Kirkpatrick).

Demolishing the hotel extension.

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STATIONS

PHOTO: NETWORK RAIL

Over half-way there

Completed platform 1 extension.

The enabling works included the demolition of the accommodation block on the east side of the station and preparation for the demolition of Consort House and the Millennium hotel extension. At the same time, a pub on Dundas Street, by the west entrance of the station, was converted into ScotRail’s ticket office to be used for the duration of the work.

On 7 August 2017, the station work became evident to passengers as the ticket office was transferred to this temporary office, the station’s southern entrance was closed, and hoardings were erected around the demolition area. At the same time, traffic on West George Street was reduced to a single line with one lane becoming part of the worksite to be used for the receipt and despatch of lorries.

The old ticket office was part of the west-side office accommodation by Platform 2 that was demolished later that year to create space for the extension of Platform 1. Much of this was completed during the Christmas closure of the station in 2017.

Consort House was then fully scaffolded and covered with protective sheeting. In January 2018, lightweight excavators were craned 36 metres to the roof of Consort House to start the top-down floor-by-floor break up of its reinforced concrete and steel frame. At the same time, longreach excavators were used to demolish the hotel extension.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

By March, this enabled the station’s historic train shed to be seen from George Square for the first time in forty years.

However, this also exposed it to a wind loading for which temporary work was needed to stabilise the structure. Another revealed aspect of the station’s heritage was the words “North British” on the hotel’s newly exposed end wall, which was surveyed by drone in July.

By the time the demolition work was completed in October, 14,000 tonnes of material had been removed from the site, requiring around a thousand lorry movements.

A crushing plant was used to enable 94 per cent of this to be recycled.

The project achieved its first delivery milestone on 7 May 2018 when the extended Platform 1 was brought into service. This had been extended by 50 metres to accommodate four-car trains using the space created by the demolition of the west-side offices.

PHOTO: NETWORK RAIL

Completed demolition work shown in this view from above temporary ticket office in October 2018.

On 26 November, Rail Engineer was pleased to visit the project and meet Network Rail’s route delivery director Kevin McClelland, programme manager Tom McPake and project manager Joe Mulvenna, as well as Balfour Beatty’s senior project manager Barry Nicol. At the time, the project was on schedule and 86 weeks into its 154-week programme.

The project briefing included safety management arrangements, which included Network Rail’s involvement in briefing and reporting arrangements. Barry and Kevin emphasised how such close collaboration was typical of the project’s open and honest working arrangements.

Kevin advised that the subcontractors were generally based within a 30-mile radius of Glasgow. He noted that using local suppliers enables the project team to visit companies, such as Glengarnock-based J&D Pierce which is supplying the structural steelwork, enabling him to monitor progress much more easily than if he was working with someone based at a remote location.

There is also the associated environmental benefit of a reduced carbon footprint through shortened travel and delivery routes to site.

It was also stressed how the project had benefited from the single three-dimensional model produced as a result of working to BIM level 2. This had provided walk-throughs

STATIONS

In the worksite outside, there was a large amount of empty space around the train shed following the completion of the demolition works.

One aspect that was not evident to the public was the depth of the area south of the train shed.

In the two months since the completion of the demolition work, piling and basement works had created a level four metres below street level that will eventually accommodate the station’s toilets, left luggage office and plant rooms.

Also visible were tracks at the western end of the low-level station where an old concrete deck had been removed over Christmas 2017.

Basement under construction where Consort House once stood.

The remaining work Barry advised that visual progress of the work will soon become far more rapid as the steelwork around the train shed is built up. This started with the erection of the 74-metre-long west truss, which was installed in three parts by a 750-tonne crane on the night of 15 December. In January, a tandem lift by two 500-tonne cranes will erect the south truss. By April the remainder of the steelwork, 1,400 tonnes in total, will have been installed around these trusses.

Part of west truss being lifted into position.

PHOTO: NETWORK RAIL

using virtual-reality headsets, which had proved to be very useful for visualisation and consultations. It has also avoided both design and construction clashes, especially when planning the later stages of the project when different sub-contractors will be working in close proximity.

The sub-surface station on the low level is not directly affected by the works. However, its fire and evacuation arrangements must be maintained and there are weight restrictions above its tunnels. Joe Mulvenna described the challenges of working in such a constrained site, with only one entrance for vehicle movements, while maintaining the operational integrity of a station with 45,000 daily passenger movements.

To ensure effective liaison with the station, Network Rail has funded a full-time ScotRail representative who is dedicated to the project.

Joe also advised that there is excellent liaison with the Millennium hotel, with work being carried out in accordance with the Code of Construction Practice to minimise disruption to the hotel and other affected parties.

Tom described how community engagement is an important aspect of the project. He noted that the project’s Twitter account has nearly 3,000 followers, many of whom followed the demolition works with close interest. In July, the project commissioned local artist Gabriella Marcella to produce colourful artwork on the project’s hoardings that were inspired by the Glasgow coat of arms.

Rail Engineer’s tour of the station started on its cramped concourse, where a small area has been hoarded off at the end of Platform 5. This is being used for work at night for the removal of asbestos lagging from pipes that run along the buffer stop ends below the concourse. These pipes and other services must be moved to allow the extension of Platforms 2 to 5.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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STATIONS

PHOTO: NETWORK RAIL

BIM graphic showing west and south trusses.

PHOTO: NETWORK RAIL

Concourse when complete.

This will then enable cladding and roofing works to commence.

By October, all the cladding will have been put in place, comprising of the following types of cladding: Eurobond and Kingspan wall (3,200 square metres), stone (1,300 square metres) and anodised gold (3,000 square metres). The roofing is 3,100 square metres.

The curtain walling, which includes 500 square metres of glazing, will be completed by December.

By the summer, this station envelope work will enable the concourse to be extended to enable the platform extension work to take place. To avoid disrupting train services during the Edinburgh Festival in August, this will be done in two fourweek stages in July (Platforms 2 and 3) and September (Platforms 4 and 5). This work involves new

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

buffer stops and the frangible decking behind them, concourse substructures, drainage, service diversion and OLE work.

When complete, this work will extend Platforms 2, 3, 4 and 5 to accommodate eight-car trains - Platform 7 can already accommodate them. This will achieve the key milestone of having all extended platforms in use so that eight-car trains can be introduced with the December 2019 timetable change.

The last station work is the plant fit out and its associated mechanical and electrical work, which will be ongoing between April 2019 and March 2020. This programme is planned to meet the project completion date of Spring 2020.

EGIP phase 2?

The completion of Queen Street station will also mark the end of the Edinburgh Glasgow Improvement Programme, which has delivered 150 single track kilometres of new electric railway, redeveloped three stations and built one more, constructed one depot and remodelled another as well as extending platforms at four stations.

Before the EGIP programme, the main Edinburgh to Glasgow line carried four 6-car diesel

trains an hour in each direction between the two cities, each having 396 seats and completing the journey in a minimum of 49 minutes. The current seven-car electric trains have 479 seats (21 per cent more) and do the journey in a minimum 47 minutes. Once Queen Street’s platforms are extended, the December 2019 timetable will see eight-car trains with 546 seats (38 per cent more than the diesel train) covering the distance in 42 minutes.

In addition, Glasgow is to get an iconic city-centre gateway station to replace one hidden from view from its main square, which will no doubt provide a stimulus for further development. The station’s passengers will also benefit from improved facilities, including a concourse increased from 960 to 1,800 square metres.

Although it would seem that EGIP is almost complete, the planning and execution of this programme to deliver a 38 per cent increase in capacity has taken about ten years. Yet, in ten years’ time, passenger numbers between Edinburgh and Glasgow are projected to grow by a further 40 per cent, so maybe now is the time to start planning EGIP phase two to provide six trains an hour by 2030!

Glasgow Queen Street Station © Network Rail

Glasgow Queen Street Station 318 Arup staff, 62,808 hours

1 GREAT PROJECT “We are proud to have supported Network Rail on this iconic project since 2008, which will transform rail journeys for passengers in Scotland.”

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STATIONS

TOM BOWMAN

MAKING THE CASE

for composites T

he year-long independent rail review announced by Chris Grayling in October, described as a “root and branch” review into the rail industry and led by former British Airways boss Keith Williams, is set to focus on the effectiveness of the franchise system, infrastructure upgrades and how best to ensure that the government’s £48 billion investment programme delivers value for money over the next five years.

But with the latest half year ‘Network Rail Monitor’ report from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR - the independent safety and economic regulator for Britain’s railways) showing punctuality and reliability at their lowest levels since the current five year control period began in 2014, it’s critical that Network Rail, train operators, contractors and suppliers to the rail network work effectively together to ensure that innovation keeps pace with changing needs.

The ORR has now approved £24.3 billion to be spent in Great Britain on maintaining (£7.7 billion) and renewing (£16.6 billion) the existing railway during Control Period 6 (1 April 201931 March 2024), which amounts to a 17 per cent increase in renewal work from the £14.2 billion earmarked during CP5. Commenting on the decision, ORR chief executive John Larkinson said: “There is no time to lose; Network Rail and, in particular, the routes and system operators, must make sure they are ready to deliver from day one of the new control period.”

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Importance of material selection One way in which this can feasibly be achieved is through the appropriate selection of material for key infrastructure projects. Advanced materials such as FRP/ GRP (fibre or glass reinforced polymer) composites can provide major design flexibility, time saving benefits and significant life cycle advantages, and recent clarification of key standards areas such as fire performance have made them more accessible than ever.

It’s been almost 30 years since FRP composites were installed as part of Britain’s transport network within bridge structures, but the composite material innovation that the industry has seen since then has been staggering.

In the UK, the market for composites is growing rapidly as asset owners reap the benefits that a low-maintenance, lightweight, non-conductive and robust alternative to traditional materials can have on the modernisation of an aging infrastructure.

With over 4.7 million rail journeys made in the UK every day, the stations where people start and end their journeys

are a key focus for improvements to the passenger experience. Changes to rolling stock require longer platforms, and Victorian platform installations require replacement or refurbishment as they reach the end of their service life after more than a century of heavy use. Traditionally, remedial works using materials such as concrete can require long possessions and road-rail vehicles are required for the transportation of associated materials. Even when concrete is used, there is still no easy solution to fixing the problem of stepping distances between the train and the platform when subsidence means they have become outof-gauge.

Dura Composites entered the market with a viable and award-winning solution to the problem back in 2014, with the introduction of the patented GRP Dura Platform. Dura Platform allows contractors to replace or overlay onto damaged or subsided platforms with a low maintenance, height adjustable GRP structure that enhances safety with anti-slip surface options, in-built water management, integral lines, integral lighting, snow melting capability and that has similar or lower overall project costs than concrete.

The modular lightweight sections are suitable for lifting by hand and are designed to be assembled in hard-to-reach sites where large cranes or heavy machinery cannot be used.

STATIONS

Recent installations Of the 18 platforms completed, recent Dura Platform installations have included Platforms 1 and 2 at East Croydon station, where the existing brick paving and tarmac surface was causing issues with the passenger train interface due to a combination of platform curvature, track geometry and rolling stock. Efficiently designed and installed by Hammond ECS whilst the station remained open to passengers, the Dura Platform surface featured integral LED lighting strips and certain areas were installed with underfloor heating to minimise risk of frost and slippery surfaces in winter.

In Scotland, Livingston South station has also benefitted from the significant time and cost savings offered by Dura Platform.

Its non-conductive properties met

compliance requirements for electrified railway environments and the new sixcarriage trains that will be introduced on the route.

For 2019, Dura Platform now includes the option of a solid surface on the 600mm plank, which removes the need for longitudinal cover plates to cover the fixings and provides a more uniform, aesthetically pleasing finish.

And, what’s more, in recognition of the increased need for advanced fire, smoke and toxicity (FST) properties to enhance safety, Dura Composites has worked closely with Network Rail to update the GRP fire safety specifications aligned to particular test standards for common applications such as station platforms, bridge walkways and stairs and driver walkways.

Structural design & CAD services available, along with a FREE FEA Report (including design and component drawings) upon request.

Classifications have now been published that cover both structural and non-structural applications for GRP and include fire tests including flame spread, burn time and load bearing testing. All Network Rail projects are obligated to use products that meet these British and European Fire Safety Standards.

Commenting on the standards, Dura Composites commercial director Tom Bowman said: “Our GRP Rail solutions meet or exceed all of Network Rail’s upgraded test standards and Dura Platform performs better than any other product on the market. We’re delighted to have worked with Network Rail to bring clarity to the standards to help project designers and specifiers make an informed choice about the right materials that will accelerate improvements to the rail network”.

In addition to new-build composite station platforms, extensions and major redevelopments, Dura Composites is also instrumental in a raft of other cost-effective, non-conductive and time-saving station upgrade projects utilising its market leading GRP/FRP solutions including footbridge refurbishments, dagger boards, end-ofplatform gates and boundary fencing.

Tom Bowman is commercial director at Dura Composites.

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Rail

Marine

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Cladding

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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A

k c a r t n o WITH LED LIGHTING t e G

quiet but highly visible revolution is taking place in railway lighting. LED lights are slowly but surely displacing fluorescent and other antiquated technologies in stations, maintenance depots and other railway buildings.

As pioneers in LED lighting and wireless controls since 2006, Goodlight provides a comprehensive range of LED solutions for commercial, industrial, amenity, leisure and hospitality environments. Goodlight LED lights switch on instantly at full brightness with no warm-up required, they use much less power than traditional lighting technologies and are maintenance free.

Their 50,000-hour lifespan equates to eleven years if switched on for 12 hours per day and they are guaranteed for five years against failures.

The Goodlight range has proved popular with design, engineering and sustainability professionals. Rail clients include Network Rail, HS1, Siemens Mobility, Cleshar, Arriva Rail and Transport for London, which has added Goodlight to its approved product register.

The approved products include Goodlight T8 LED tubes, which are mandated for use where LED tubes are required, and Goodlight G360 LED SON replacements which can be used anywhere on the network.

Huge savings Adam Thackeray, works delivery manager for Network Rail, commented, “We decided to move to LED lighting to reduce our carbon output, reduce costs in terms of power consumption and to improve the lighting level and quality in public areas of the station. The opportunity to reduce costs for lamp replacement by moving from a two-year to a five-year cycle was a significant consideration.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

“LED lighting will also increase the efficiency of emergency lighting, reducing the load on the battery/generators and reduce the temperature signatures of lighting and heat related failures.”

Rail organisations looking for a quick win on their energy usage can achieve incredible savings of up to 85 per cent simply by upgrading to LED lighting. Instantly, maintenance overheads are eliminated and the return on investment can be as little as six months, so it can be funded from energy savings alone.

STATIONS Retrofitting is economical In a new building, or one that is being refitted, it is a simple matter to install suitable LED light fittings from scratch - but many of the current projects involve re-equipping existing stations and buildings. Ripping out entire light fittings is costly, but the Goodlight range of lighting and control solutions can be installed directly into existing light fittings, which has transformed the economics.

Products from this range have now been approved for use across Transport for London’s network in both Section 12 (underground facilities) and non-Section 12 areas, such as the tube, rail and bus stations, depots and bus shelters.

Safety and security Passenger safety and security is a high priority at any railway station, and lighting has a crucial role to play. A smart lighting system can mirror natural daylight during the hours of darkness, which fits in well with the 24/7 nature of many busy stations.

It can also illuminate accessed areas, for example walkways and car parks.

Eliminating pockets of darkness with a robust LED lighting system will give passengers greater peace of mind and a better overall customer journey.

Taking Control To maximise energy savings, owners can install a smart lighting control system which connects to luminaires wirelessly from a single interface, allowing any organisation to monitor, automate, control and report on all connected lighting.

Optimal energy savings can be achieved through occupancy and daylight detection while presence detectors will ensure that any area is only lit when it is in use.

Equally, a lighting control system can also dim lights when there is plenty of daylight.

Some smart lighting control systems, such as Light Boss, report on energy consumption and provide self-test emergency light monitoring, ideal for lighting maintenance facilitators and providers, allowing operators to check for faults remotely.

By operating lighting only where it is needed, rather than continually at 100 per cent, rail and transportation organisations can minimise energy consumption by up to 95 per cent, extend lighting lifecycles and lower maintenance costs. Payback can be from as little as 1.5 years.

Upgrading to LED lighting, and capitalising on these energy and maintenance savings, has allowed many railway stations to reap the economic rewards while improving working conditions and improving the environment for passengers to enjoy whilst travelling. With the emergence of smart wireless lighting control systems, there has never been a better time to maximise on energy consumption.

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INFRASTRUCTURE

Systems integration NAVIGATING INCREASING COMPLEXITY

NASSAR MAJOTHI

A

ll too often, major infrastructure programmes are subject to significant complications, which can delay delivery and breach the budget. In the rail sector, larger and more complex programmes are expected to deliver greater outputs in the face of limited resources. This means a step change in management capability is more important than ever.

To meet the demands of increasing urbanisation and population growth, the global railway sector has seen significant investment over the last few decades, both to build new and to upgrade existing infrastructure. Developing management approaches that provide more certainty in the delivery of economic infrastructure is key to instilling confidence from government and other investors.

Railway programmes, which are characteristically lengthy and complex, share delivery difficulties common with other major economic infrastructure. That they tend to be hundreds of kilometres long, cover varied geographies and environments, and usually require extensive line-side furniture to integrate with trains and the modern digital consumer, only adds to the challenges facing today’s railway programmes.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

The innovation in programme management and engineering management capabilities needed to manage this complexity has, for the most part, not kept up with the pace and scale of delivery challenges facing major programmes. However, systems integration (SI) is an increasingly popular solution, which seeks to solve a complex problem by dividing the whole into smaller parts.

Beginning at the end From efficiently coordinating technical development of missile defence programmes in the 1950s to the customerled delivery of today’s major programmes, SI is a fundamentally pragmatic approach to managing complexity.

An idea for a new product, system or service is often proposed in terms of the final desired outcome, whether that’s

meeting consumer needs, transporting people, saving time, or transforming a place. The SI approach begins with this end in mind, demanding that the operational outcome, the end user benefits and even how a system of people, processes and technology can achieve those outcomes, be determined from the outset.

Breaking down the grand idea into pieces that are understandable and deliverable, while maintaining the desired outcome for the end user, is the domain of the systems integrator.

SI structures the delivery of complex rail infrastructure programmes by enabling a holistic approach that can be practically applied throughout the programme or system lifecycle. This focus on delivering the desired outcome, be it increased railway capacity or another whole-system measure, is a step beyond the traditional ‘divide and conquer’ approach favoured by programme management, where delivery is broken down into discrete parts. SI gives a more holistic view, supporting decision making that priortises effort, and providing a ‘line of sight’ through the fog of complexity.

INFRASTRUCTURE

In the UK, WSP has been applying systems approaches to programme delivery since the mid-2000s, beginning with the Victoria line upgrade, for which the company was programme manager, and the East London line. These projects were the genesis of a tool that is still used today - SI:D3 (System Integration: Develop the strategy, Define the system, Deliver integration). It can be adjusted according to complexity and risk, and as a result, continues to be applied to a wide range of programmes in the UK and internationally.

Clear vision from the start SI can connect the overarching vision with the need for technical development and delivery at the front end of a given programme. This, often ‘fuzzy’ front end usually includes aspirational objectives, which are sometimes politically driven, and can be difficult to translate into operationally and technically tangible outputs.

Experience has shown that the earlier that an SI approach is implemented, the greater is the liklihood of getting to the point of clarity and defining the journey

of transformation. On projects such as the Thameslink Programme, Northern Hub and TfL’s Deep Tube Upgrade Programme, WSP has found it is the only approach that works. On all of these projects, interactive system architecture diagrams have been used to understand the overall transformation, including that of people’s roles in the system, and the construction phasing.

For example, one of WSP’s many roles on the Thameslink Programme was as part of its systems integration team. The company’s System Migration Plan (SMP) choreographed the intricate dance that all parties needed to perform so they could deliver this enormous upgrade without disruption and ensure the railway could remain in use throughout. It defined a series of configuration states - changes to the railway associated with greatest risk establishing them as the primary milestones in the SMP. A series of systems architectures - physical, geographical and operational linked to the configuration states defined in the SMP, described in detail how the railway needed to change.

WSP’s systems engineering and integration team is embedded across projects on Northern Programmes, where it manages the technical design integration activities across its entire portfolio. This has included facilitating design integration between engineering disciplines during design, development and construction, which has assured compliance to the project requirements, standards and procedures. Using an Action Tracker database, the team logs and tracks actions from design reviews and records the status of design documents to manage requirements and outputs on key projects such as North West Electrification.

Holistic system design When conducting system design, it is important to consider how the design fits into the whole and how one element impacts another.

This is not always obvious. For example, a goal may be to run trains closer together to improve capacity. This would, of course, involve designing the signalling control system accordingly. However, plans would

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INFRASTRUCTURE also have to consider the rolling stock braking capability, platform re-occupation, track layout and additional demands on the traction power supply system.

Careful system design, modelling and simulation are also essential in designing a safe and high-performing tunnel ventilation system. After all, in order to consider the impacts of heating and cooling on passenger safety and comfort, one must also consider the impacts on the signalling system, train aerodynamics, train regulation for both efficient running and safe separation of trains, walking and escape routes, installation, logistics and the reliability of assets.

The railway systems requirements that were developed on High Speed 2 (Phase 1) were embedded into HS2’s standards and mandated for use. A unique railway project for the UK, these requirements had to surpass the current industry standards.

For example, track alignment criteria for 400km/h line speeds required a review of track alignment design criteria, including a thorough review of international standards and best practice examples of high-speed rail from around the world. This ensured that the resultant designs provide for future technology and consumer changes and meet the key project requirements of journey time and capacity, augmented with a series of models that demonstrate that the high capacity and speeds needed can be realised without compromising passenger comfort and safety.

The system of systems SI can also be applied at route level, bringing together multiple projects and programmes across a control period for the coordination of ongoing benefits realisation, through both asset owner and train franchise.

The Greater West Programme Industry Systems Integration (TGW ISI) pulls together disparate and discrete projects to update and electrify both a railway built by the Victorians and train services that run from the west of England to London.

This programme, estimated to be worth £5.6 billion in total, represents the biggest rail enhancements portfolio in the UK and introduces new classes of rolling stock in the form of Bombardier Class 387 commuter trains and Intercity Express Programme (IEP) Class 800/802 units from Hitachi.

SI was used to manage big changes to the programme, and a unique collaborative approach was adopted to account for all consequences and deliver every service change on time. WSP will continue this successful approach in its new role as industry system integrator for the East Coast main line and Midland main line.

The future of systems integration SI capability will need to mature quickly if it is to handle the software, IT and connectivity elements that have become a feature of our more complex railway systems. Software is less tangible and harder to visualise than physical assets, and software developers work to a more iterative lifecycle, so the problem of

software components not talking to each other is not always apparent until the testing and commissioning phase, when the stakes are higher. SI labs could reduce this risk by re-creating the physical, software and data assets through the programme lifecycle.

BIM tools and methods are now common and showing practical value. A robust SI approach could develop an end-to-end digital project that unites each lifecycle stage using tools that map requirements to designs, schedules and contracts in a highly visual and accessible format.

To get the return on investment for major railway projects, investors will want to maximise ridership opportunities and revenue streams. To this end, a programme needs to deliver a system that is aligned with the needs and wants of people at the initial transport planning phase, even detailing how people will interact with the technology. Accordingly, human-centred design is a focus for WSP, which is already building a human factors team and sees it as central to the development of a ‘future ready’ railway.

With the rapid trend towards global urbanisation there is a greater role for rail as an agent of mobility, and global investment in rail solutions is expected to reflect this.

Rail’s green credentials continue to provide a good option for modal change that reduces emissions and, with urban land use planning enabling over-site developments that integrate with smart cities, highways and automated vehicles, rail is also a good platform for the next generation of integrated transport. It follows, then, that more requirements will be put on railway projects, making the technological and operational challenges greater still.

The scene is set for the system integrator to play a larger role in infrastructure development, ultimately determining the success or failure of programme delivery.

Nassar Majothi is director of the rail specialist services group at WSP London.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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INFRASTRUCTURE

NIGEL WORDSWORTH

AN ORANGE CHRISTMAS

Wellingborough.

A

s usual, Network Rail took advantage of the Christmas and New Year holiday to undertake some of the lengthier and more onerous projects that the renewal and enhancement of the railway network demands.

Christmas is therefore a good time for Network Rail. The 50 per cent drop in demand for rail travel, coupled with the closure of the network on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, means that routes can be closed for substantial work with train replacement bus services only having to cope with half the number of passengers that they would at other times of the year.

However, Christmas is also a bad time of year for Network Rail. Those same closures spark the usual “Travel Chaos over Christmas” banner headlines in both the tabloid press and in publications that should know better.

The timing is also not good. The timetable changes mid-December - this

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

time it was on the ninth - and of course any teething trouble with the new arrangement is always Network Rail’s fault.

And then new fares come in at the start of January, and that’s Network Rail’s fault too! So the nationalised infrastructure owner gets plenty of stick in the press at the turn of the year.

The public understands However, not everyone blames Network Rail for it all. A recent YouGov Omnibus survey found that a majority of Britons (56 per cent) say that ensuring commuter journeys aren’t disrupted by scheduling repairs on bank holidays and

the days after Christmas is the best option - even if it risks disruption for those trying to get home to see friends and family.

Fewer than one in five (18 per cent) took the opposing view - that repairs should take place so as not to disrupt people during holiday periods, even if that impacts regular commuters.

Even the majority (57 per cent) of those travelling by train in the post-Christmas period backed making the repairs that could hold them up. That being said, this group was more likely than the public as a whole to think that commuter journeys should be disrupted instead (27 per cent).

Unsurprisingly, rail commuters answered in their own interest. Two thirds (66 per cent) of those who commute by rail thought repairs should take place at this time of year and in bank holidays. So at least some of the population understands Network Rail’s point of view.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Felixstowe.

Mobilised workforce So, as usual, a small army (actually, quite a large army!) of men and women in orange forsook their Christmas turkey to work on the railway. Over 28,000 people worked at 4,000 worksites across 1,100 possessions and 330 projects to deliver major enhancements, core renewals and maintenance works across the rail network.

Some, of course, were larger than others, and some were more critical.

Approximately 30 jobs contained worksites identified as ‘RED’ through the Delivering Work Within Possessions (DWWP) standard, defined as carrying a greater risk of overrun and/or having a

more significant impact in the event of an overrun. These included signalling, OLE and track works at King’s Cross and Holloway, overhead line renewals at Forest Gate junction as part of the Great Eastern main line upgrade and station works at Edinburgh Waverley.

Overall, 383,000 hours were worked and £148 million spent, with 98.7 per cent of all possessions handed back on time. At Preston, there was a two-hour overrun on 27 December owing to an RRV break down and at Westbury on 4 January, significant complications experienced in the signal testing period, requiring signalling modifications and issues with the wiring interlocking,

resulted in 2,208 delay minutes, the worst of any project over the holiday period.

Safety, as always, was a top priority. A total of 12 accidents that resulted in injury were reported, of which three resulted in lost time injuries.

One was at Westbury, where the injured person was struck by a dropped panel, resulting in four broken bones - the team was stood down to be re-briefed on the site safety messages.

Another notable accident occurred when the two front wheels of a Mobile Elevated Working Platform (MEWP) derailed whilst in transit at Camden carriage sidings on the LNW route due to a track twist fault.

The linesman and operator were clipped to the basket at the time and sustained soft tissue damage.

Two road traffic accidents were reported during the period, with no resulting injuries.

Around the country Five projects stood out from the others, and these have their own reports in this issue of Rail Engineer. All of them are outlined below, running anticlockwise from Greenhill Lower, at the top left of the map shown here.

Map of RED Sites planned for Christmas & New Year 2018.

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INFRASTRUCTURE Preston Fylde.

Greenhill Lower S&C - During two possessions over the holiday period, 23:00 on 24 December to 05:20 on the 27th, then 23:00 on 31st until 05:20 on 3 January, S&C North Alliance (Amey, Rhomberg Sersa and Network Rail working together) was to reballast points using a vactor and engineering trains, and laid 500 yards of plain line track. The S&C was handed back as planned, but a roadrail vehicle failing during the digging out triggered the contingency plan so only 400 yards of plain line was completed to ensure that the site was handed back on time and at the planned 50mph TSR. Salkeld Street PLTR - In two mobilisations over Christmas and the New Year (24-26 December and 31 December-2 January), Babcock Rail replaced 313 yards of plain line track at Salkeld Street, Glasgow. A troughing route was discovered in the dig on the second possession, preventing full dig depth being achieved over a 40-metre distance. Both possessions were handed back on time at 20mph line speed.

York IECC Re-control - As the old York IECC was life expired and unalterable, this project called for the re-control of the existing the VDU-based signalling control system (VSCS) in York IECC onto a new VSCS in York ROC, as well as the re-control of the full geographical limits of York IECC, which will be updated from IECC Classic to Scalable. The Re-control area covers 250 miles of railway and 45 Stations. Over Christmas, all principles testing and confidence testing was completed ahead of schedule. IECC 1 was signed into use early for indication purposes to facilitate emergency track works at Thirsk. All workstations were signed in to use at 00:50 with the possession handed back early at 02:29.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Preston Fylde S&C - The LNW Works Delivery Unit delivered 90 metres of plain line track renewal and also renewed S&C. It was a full renewal, including replacement of all components and 250mm of ballast below sleeper bottom.

Nottingham station canal bridge Nottingham Canal underbridge is a twospan structure supporting the Up Newark, Down Newark and the Eastcroft Down Sidings lines. There is also a redundant deck carrying no lines, and the decks also carry several cable troughs, service/utility pipes and walkways. Nottingham station is to the east of the structure. The two Up Newark spans were replaced and the track reinstated. Minor S&T relocations were implemented to facilitate the new bridge and the redundant deck was removed during the Christmas blockade. All works were handed back on time at linespeed (15mph).

Weaver-Wavertree - The subject of a separate article in this issue of Rail Engineer, the Weaver to Wavertree project is replacing signalling assets along this route that were in poor condition, already life extended and no longer serviceable, as well as recontrolling the area to the Manchester ROC.

Hampton in Arden.

NWEP 5 - Phase 5 of the North West Electrification programme, due to be complete in time for the May 2019 timetable change, will provide new overhead lines around the Manchester Victoria area, with provision for this to be extended to Stalybridge. It will also provide power and high-voltage cabling for Phase 4, which runs from Manchester to Bolton. The possession limits changed a number of times, with the blockade being ten days long in total from 24 December to 2 January. OLE and wiring works were carried out at Manchester Victoria, along with installation of 95 yards of new track drainage at Ashton station and an HV cable route to supply power for Phases 4 and 5. The possession was also used to install approximately 55 yards of new track drainage at Bolton station, where 300mm diameter cess and 10foot drainage was tied into two existing outfalls with UTXs under the Platform 5 loop line and the Up and Down Bolton lines.

Birmingham New Street - Several sets of points (S&C) at and around Birmingham New Street station were converted over to SPX Clamplock operation as they are more reliable than the various legacy points machines currently in use.

Birmingham International drainage - A total of 420 metres of 300mm cess drainage was installed between Hampton in Arden station and Birmingham International station, directing water away from these stations in a heavily used area of the network, reducing the risk of flooding. In total, some 800 metres of cess drainage and off track/drainage outfalls are being installed in these locations.

Milton Keynes Platform 6 - The scope of work for plain line track renewal through Milton Keynes station Platform 6 consisted of two renewals: CAT 14 (Rerail, Resleeper, Reballast, Formation - Trax) for 600 yards and CAT 15A, the associated drainage renewal, for 417 yards. All of the

INFRASTRUCTURE

Milton Keynes. planned volume was completed, albeit with a reduced dig depth of 300mm.

The possession was handed back to operational traffic on time and at 125mph line speed (rather than the planned post-construction 60mph TSR). This site was Network Rail IP Track’s 100th higher speed handback on conventional plain line/S&C renewals this year.

Bletchley Flyover - OLE enabling works took place underneath and around Bletchley Flyover on the West Coast main line with the installation of nine piles and structures. Re-profiling of the OLE underneath the flyover, due to take place later in the spring, will remove current non-conformances through the area, improving reliability and reducing future maintenance.

Kentish Town slab track stabilisation One and a half miles north of St Pancras station, the Midland main line (and Thameslink) passes through Kentish Town tunnel. The track here is on an old Paved Concrete Track (PACT) slab, and that badly needed renewing. Over a 10-day blockade, 314 yards of the old slab was removed and replaced with ballasted track, two squaring-off precast concrete units supported on five 10-metre-long piles and a new pumped drainage system in the six-foot. To add to the challenge, the project experienced a high number of plant failures, an OLE contact wire was hit by an excavator bucket during excavation of the Down Fast line and the concrete slab also had a higher percentage of steel reinforcement than had initially been expected.

Wembley North S&C - S&C South Alliance was tasked with the installation of new OLE associated with the four crossover track renewal completed during August in order to lift the BTET (Blocked

to Electric Traction) for North Wembley Junction. All of the planned works were completed and the possession handed back on time to operational traffic at line speed (90mph Slows, 125mph Fasts).

Willesden North junction - During a 53-hour possession on the West Coast main line, between West London junction and Harlesden, the S&C Alliance south installed 525 metres of track drainage in readiness for three crossover renewals in CP6 - 250 metres on the Fast lines, including cross track drainage, and 275 metres on the Slow lines. All of the planned works completed and the possession handed back on time to operational traffic at line speed (75mph slows, 90/110 and 90/120 Fasts).

Euston HS2 enabling works - Established to deliver various requirements on behalf of HS2 in and around the area of Euston station, these enabling works also included approximately one mile of the operational railway north of the station. The site of the future HS2 station in Euston is

currently occupied by Network Rail platforms and other operational railway systems infrastructure. Clearing the site to create the necessary space required the decommissioning and recovery of existing operational infrastructure, carried out over the Christmas holiday to ensure the timetable can be maintained once Platforms 17 and 18 at Euston station are removed in May 2019.

Southall East S&C - To the east of Southall station, between Hanwell and Northolt stations on the line from Paddington to Heathrow Airport junction, the S&C South Alliance renewed four point ends and about 300 metres of associated plain line. The works involved renewing ballast, sleepers, rail, new points-heating equipment and OLE adjustments. The introduction of a HyDrive Backdrive points machine was also included within the project. With all of the work completed on time, the site was handed back at 90mph line speed on the relief lines and 90mph TSR on the main lines as opposed to the published 50mph TSR. Westbury North - This was actually two projects combined into one possession.

The S&C South Alliance renewed 12 separate switches, along with their associated crossings and 538 metres of plain line track, to allow trains from Newbury and Bath to get to all the different platforms at Westbury station. In addition, signalling and power equipment was moved out of the way in order to make Platforms 2 and 3 at Westbury station longer. The longer platforms, which will be built after Christmas, are to facilitate the introduction of new Class 802 trains for Great Western Railway. The possession overran to 23:57 on Friday 4 January, as opposed to the planned hand-

Westbury North.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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INFRASTRUCTURE back time of 04:00, due to complications experienced in the signal testing period toward the end of the possession requiring signalling modifications. A full report can be found elsewhere in this issue.

Factory Jn-Stewarts Lane - The team from Colas Rail replaced 372 yards of track using RRVs to dig out 200mm of ballast and replace it with new ballast on a geotextile layer. EG47 concrete sleepers and CEN56 rail was used, with the rails being welded and stressed. All of the planned works were completed and the possession handed back to operational traffic on time at 25mph line speed.

Upper Kennington Lane - Upper Kennington Lane bridge at Vauxhall station is a single-span structure consisting of seven decks supporting eight tracks and station platforms over the A3036 main road. The wheel-timbered and steel-bearer track support system on Track 6 (Brighton main line Down Main Fast) has been a significant performance risk which has been subjected to emergency speed restrictions and reactive repairs in CP4. Over Christmas, the wheel timbers and steel bearers were removed after preparation of the existing cross girders, thick steel deck plates and ballast boards were installed, waterproofing added and ballasted track laid, including welding of the running rails. The track opened up at linespeed (50mph).

Canterbury S&C - Another busy junction was renewed at Canterbury West over Christmas Day and Boxing Day, with five pre-fabricated track panels being carefully lifted into place by a road crane from the adjacent car park. The panels were constructed by a specialist contractor in Yorkshire and were delivered to site in advance, ready for installation.

Holloway Down.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Felixstowe.

Battersea Pier Junction - As is reported elsewhere in this magazine, the S&C South Alliance delivered the renewal of 12 point ends and a fixed diamond crossing, including 330 metres of plain line, at Battersea Pier junction to improve asset reliability and give a smoother ride over the section of renewed track. All of the planned works were completed and the possession handed back on time to operational traffic at 45mph line speed.

Felixstowe Enhancement - The works to enhance capacity on the Felixstowe branch includes a new 1.4 km ‘loop’ line in the area of Trimley as well as two new crossovers, a new bridleway bridge and an upgrade of barrier protection at four level crossings, with all pedestrian crossings on the line being closed.

Capacity will increase from 32 trains each way per day to 47. During a six-day possession over Christmas, the two new crossovers and a turnout were installed, linking the previously completed loop to the infrastructure but with the switches clipped and padlocked. The bases for the bridleway bridge were constructed, signaling power upgraded and new troughing installed.

King’s Cross remodeling - Planned for completion in March 2021, this remodeling of the King’s Cross throat area will ensure that standard S&C units are used rather than complex units. Life expired infrastructure will be replaced to ensure the station is operationally robust in time for the full deployment of the new Class 800/802 trains on the East Coast main line. The eastern bore of Gasworks tunnel will be reinstated to ensure enhanced capacity and operational flexibility. New interlocking will be provided to King’s Cross and Holloway in order for the first stage of ETCS to be implemented at a future date and panels 1-3 of Kings Cross Signal Box (Kings Cross, Holloway, Moorgate, Finsbury Park and Wood Green) will be re-controlled to York ROC. Passive platform provision for 12 car IEP sets will be provided.

Enabling works over the Christmas holiday included the installation of four undertrack crossings (UTX) at Belle Isle and FTNx telecommunications network cable diversions.

Holloway Down S&C - Situated between King’s Cross and Harringay, the S&C North Alliance (Amey, Rhomberg Sersa and Network Rail working together) replaced S&C and plain line using a Kirow crane in a possession from 22:00 on 24 December to 04:00 on the 27th. All of the planned works were completed and the possession handed back to operational traffic on time and at line speed - 80mph on Fasts, 55mph on Slows (as opposed to the 50mph TSR previously booked on both lines).

Forest Gate - Another project to benefit from its own article in this issue, the Great Eastern Overhead Line Renewal project is replacing the old fixed termination, formerly DC, Overhead Line Equipment (OLE) from Liverpool Street to Chelmsford with a modern, high reliability autotensioned system. When complete,

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INFRASTRUCTURE to Glasgow via Falkirk route and the East Coast main line. Platforms 5 and 6 will be lengthened to accommodate new 10 car electric Azuma trains and Platform 12 lengthened to accommodate eight-car electric trains. A new train path, which has been previously unavailable, will be created out of Platform 10 to routes north of the station. Over the Christmas holiday, new OLE was installed on Platforms 5 and 6 as well as a new signal gantry on Platform 10, and Platform 19 was resurfaced. The crane that was to lift in the new signal gantry failed, so work had to be re-planned but was completed on time.

Eastfield Road. the project will have installed a total of 345 new OLE wire runs, including new support structures and associated registration assemblies. 11 wire runs were completed at Christmas, 12.5km of wire in total, created a continuous section of auto-tensioned OLE from Stratford to Chelmsford (42km).

Priory Lane bridge - Situated in a semi-rural area in the village of Little Wymondley, to the South-East of Hitchin and the North-West of Stevenage, Hertfordshire, Priory Lane underbridge is a single span, four deck structure with decks separated by air gaps. It carries four electrified, ballasted tracks of the East Coast main line. The Down Slow underbridge was replaced over Christmas, with the track and S&T equipment being reinstated. Collision protection beams were also added to help prevent damage from bridge strikes. The contingency plan had to be implemented (cold welded track joints) to ensure on time handback, meaning the Down Slow would require additional stressing and welding at a later date and necessitating a temporary speed restriction.

Fletton North junction - The Peterborough Down Slow (PDS) project will replace two units of switches and crossings, upgrade the signalling and increase the line speed along a stretch of track south of Peterborough station. The cumulative impact of these changes will mean that trains can enter Peterborough station more quickly, crossing from the Down Fast to the Down Slow to access Platforms 4 and 5, which will allow more trains to run in the same period. Christmas work included modifications to the 650V signaling power supply, OLE reregistrations and signaling testing.

Wellingborough North junction - The subject of a separate report in this issue, 10 point ends at Wellingborough North Junction were renewed using Network

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Rail’s Kirow 1200 rail crane. Approximately 600 metres of the new Up Slow line which will be used as the head shunt until the main commissioning in December 2019.

Sections of the Down Fast, Up Fast and Down Slow plain line, associated with the above points, were also renewed. To challenge the team, the tamper suffered a terminal failure of its drive shaft.

Eastfield Road bridge - Network Rail is undertaking a third-party funded project to provide W12 gauge clearance to the rail corridor between Doncaster (Marshgate) and Immingham Docks. At Eastfield Road overbridge (a three-span arch structure with a skew of 18 degrees, dated circa 1911), an assessment found the structure to have foul clearances to the W12. Over the Christmas and New Year holiday, two outer arches were infilled with concrete and the centre arch demolished ready for new Con-Arch installation. However, the concrete arches were unable to be installed as planned due to uncharted services being found within the footprint of the crane outrigger location the week before the possession.

This posed a significant risk to the lift that was unable to be redesigned in time for the possession.

Edinburgh Waverley station - Platform extensions are required at Edinburgh Waverley to accommodate longer trains being introduced on both the Edinburgh

Edinburgh Waverley.

Overall success In all, it was a successful holiday work programme. One major delay and three lost-time injuries out of 330 projects undertaken by 25,000 people working over 380,000 hours, costing Network Rail £148 million.

Commenting on these figures, Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines said: “I’m so pleased that we have delivered for passengers and freight users over the Christmas period, safely completing more than 300 improvement projects around the network.

“I realise that it has been cold and wet out there, and that many colleagues have missed out on time at home with their families, so I’d like to thank everyone who has played a part in keeping the railway running this Christmas and New Year, completing crucial maintenance, renewal and enhancement work on the railway network and being part of the successful handback.

“Our decision to do work at this time of year is entirely based on the fact that many regular passengers take this time as holiday, so it causes disruption to the smallest number of people. We really appreciate the patience of those who have been affected by this essential work, which will lead to better and more reliable train services.”

INFRASTRUCTURE

Innovative

Structural Drainage ALAN BAMFORTH

R

ailway infrastructure has retaining walls and bridge

Introducing geosynthetics

abutments. Inherent in the design of these structures is the

Innovation since 1990 has led to the proven use of geosynthetic drainage for these back-of-wall applications. At the forefront in the UK is ABG, manufacturer of the Deckdrain geocomposite range, which consists of a cuspated high-density polyethylene (HDPE) highstrength core bonded to a specific non-woven geotextile. It has a BBA (British Board of Agreement) certificate of Fitness for Purpose for structural drainage.

ABG Deckdrain was installed recently on the Bermondsey dive-under for Thameslink - a project that achieved a CEEQUAL Excellent rating.

This project was particularly interesting as it involved both existing Victorian brick arches and new concrete structures.

Installing traditional crushed-stone drainage to the rear of structures that were six metres high and 100 metres long would normally require 600 tonnes of crushed stone. Instead, principal contractor Skanska chose to use ABG Deckdrain that was supplied in ten rolls weighing, in total, just 600kg.

The reduction of 30 deliveries to just one was not only a great logistical benefit but also saved over 54 tonnes of CO2 . In addition, the fast installation of the ABG Deckdrain also led to a safer working environment.

requirement for adequate water pressure relief behind the wall. This is provided by a drainage layer at the rear of the

wall that safely directs water from the retained ground to a collection pipe and/or weep-holes at the base of the wall.

Traditionally, the drainage layer is constructed using granular crushed stone, typically 500mm thick. Technical studies of highway structures for the Transport Research Laboratory in the 1980s identified that this traditional drainage was often failing due to: »» Cracks in the face of masonry retaining walls, often identified by tell-tale calcium staining; »» Clogging of the drainage stone due to infiltration by the backfill soil; »» Poorly graded drainage stone; »» Damage to the water proofing on the rear of the wall by the sharp angular drainage stone.

Proven performance The real innovation, however, is the development of test methods and research by ABG to provide the reassurance that engineers need to trust in something they have not used before.

ABG Deckdrain is manufactured from HDPE, a polymer with a life expectancy in excess of 120 years. To ensure that Deckdrain can withstand the long-term ground pressure, extensive SIM (Stepped Isothermal Method) creep testing at pressures of 250kPa has demonstrated 80 per cent retained performance after 114 years.

The drainage flow performance is also accurately tested to BS ISO12958, using soft foam in contact with the Deckdrain to replicate the soil backfill and ensure that the geotextile surface of the Deckdrain is loaded exactly as it would be when installed in the structure.

Being UK based and specialising in geosynthetic drainage, with a 30 year history, ABG has a focus on engineering for engineers, which means ABG have a great deal of experience and are always willing to help.

Alan Bamforth is managing director of ABG Ltd

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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INFRASTRUCTURE

CHRIS PARKER

Wellingborough North Junction

O

ne of Network Rail’s bigger Christmas jobs in 2018 was that at Wellingborough North Junction, 57m 0ch to 69m 40ch on the Midland main line (MML). The main works here took place between 22:20 on Sunday 23 December 2018 and 04:00 on Monday 2 January 2019.

Within those timescales, there were two sets of works, the first stage involving the Fast lines and the second the Slows. Prior to the first of these, some significant enabling works were needed.

These works were a key part of the improvement of the MML between London St Pancras and Kettering, and through to Corby. Essentially, the overall scheme will provide additional track capacity by re-instating an Up Slow line between Sharnbrook Junction and Kettering. The second track between Kettering and Corby was installed and commissioned in Feb 2018. Electrification to Corby will follow and is underway.

In addition, significant signalling improvements are being made.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

So, here we are with the double track being re-instated on the Slows, to give a four track railway north of Wellingborough. To tie this in properly with the existing three-track layout at Wellingborough and to the south, it has been necessary to remodel the North Junction in preparation.

Prophecy fulfilled As I spoke to Network Rail’s Chris Buxton, I had to smile to myself as I recalled how, years ago, I criticised the Corby/Kettering singling scheme, then being implemented by British Rail, because the new signalling installations for the single line were being installed in the trackbed of the track being removed.

I thought it short sighted, as this would obstruct any future re-doubling of the route, but was laughed at by colleagues.

“It will never happen” was the comment.

Enabling works The first works in preparation for the Christmas job involved the installation of a new signal gantry - LR34/LR36 - north of the junction at about 66m 15ch. This was undertaken during week commencing 13 October and the associated new signals on the gantry were installed and tested so that they could be commissioned during the Christmas works.

De-vegetation works were carried out on the Down side of the line adjacent to the GBRF Neilson’s Sidings and a site where Bovis Homes are undertaking groundworks in preparation for a new housing development. A temporary fence was also installed adjacent to the line here.

These works, undertaken between 8 and 10 October, were crucial to the main project, as will be discussed later.

Delivery of new ballast and sleepers for the main works on the Down Slow line side commenced on 2 November, these being stored in the GBRF sidings.

The S&C for the Fast line works was delivered to the lineside on weekend 36.

All this meant that the vast majority of the materials required were available on site before the Christmas works began.

INFRASTRUCTURE

A significant further preparatory task was completed with the removal and relaying in plain line of 701B Points, the connection in the Down Main that serves the Down Goods Loop.

Preparatory signalling and points heating works, such as running out and pre-testing cables, installing transformer bases and the like, also took place.

The final and critical preparatory job was the construction of a formation for a temporary rail ‘haul road’ on the Down side along the intended path of the future headshunt north of the main worksite. This was to allow the laying in of a temporary track here, along which the materials for the Slow lines works would be hauled from the sidings to the junction worksite. The formation was constructed to main line standards in order that it can serve as the formation of the Up Slow when that is installed later.

The site was previously a headshunt for the reception line of the GBRF sidings.

facing crossover from Down Fast to Down Goods Loop (701A/B) and a trailing turnout (703B) in the Up Fast that was to form part of the crossover from the Up and Down Slow (future Down Slow) to the Up Fast.

All of these involve ‘F’ switches and, in due course, the speeds through them will increase from the present 25mph to 40mph. The speed increase is a part of the reason for the renewal of the junction, though for signalling reasons it will not be implemented until the full scheme is commissioned at Christmas 2019.

However, the main reason for the renewal was that the S&C was approaching the end of its operational life.

The Fast lines S&C work was all delivered in modular panels to the trackside prior to the main works, being delivered by road from manufacturers Progress Rail. Installation was carried out using Network Rail’s Kirow 1200 rail crane, working at nights from 23 December to 2 January.

Fast line works

Slow line works

The main works began with the relaying of the Fast line connections of the new junction layout. These comprise, working south to north, a facing crossover connecting the two Fast lines (702A/B), a

The Slow line works used modular S&C units delivered to site on tilting wagons. Once again, working from south northwards, these were the second end of the Down Slow/Up Fast crossover (703A),

a facing crossover (704A/B) that connects the future Down Slow (now the Up and Down Slow) to the future Up Slow. All of these again employ ‘F’ switches. Finally, there was a crossover to connect the sidings into the future Up Slow (currently a headshunt).

These Slow line works were completed on the nights of 27/28 and 28/29 December. The remainder of the slow line works, renewal of 800 metres of the Down Slow and installation of the new Up Slow 800 metres, were completed between 00:20 on 24 December and the 04:00 on 2 January, with the last 24 hours being ‘wheels free’ for Siemens to commission the signalling.

The new Up Slow is to be used as the current head shunt until final commissioning of the project during December 2019. Materials stored at the GBRF sidings were hauled to site along the rail haul road by Unimogs pulling rail wagons. All the spoil was taken out by the same means.

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INFRASTRUCTURE Programme changes The original programme for all of this involved nine different stages due to the constrained track access originally available. However, in early 2018, new access arrangements became possible, permitting the staging of the works over Christmas and New Year, as described.

Since this new programme permitted all of the S&C works to be tackled in one hit, the future programme of work becomes much easier to complete in the planned timescales. These works include the necessary new signalling installations, the completion and connection of the additional track between Wellingborough and Corby, and the completion of the electrification scheme through to Corby.

and it ensures that the bearers are not damaged by being less well supported at certain points than at others.

The two tampers were employed thus between 20:35 on Christmas Day and 05:35 on Boxing Day. Tamping shifts involving one tamper then followed over the night of 30/31 December.

Additional Works & Project Statistics

Finishing works The track works were finished by S&C tampers supplied by VolkerRail and Babcock Rail. The crossovers were parallel tamped by the two machines working in tandem. This is important, as it is the most efficient and effective way to ensure that the support under the through bearers of the layouts is consistent. This avoids the risk of twist faults in the track and the potential derailments this may cause,

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Additional works, besides the signal gantry already discussed, included capping air shafts of a culvert under the line, installing under track crossings and installing, testing and commissioning point heating on all the new S&C. A significant workload was undertaken

by Siemens, which was responsible for the signalling works including the commissioning of all the new sets of points, the speed signage for the new layout, signalling alterations and commissioning as well as some signalling recovery works.

The statistics for this work programme are impressive. 10 point-ends were installed, and about 1,600 metres of plain line, necessitating some 3,235 concrete sleepers/bearers. 13,000 tonnes of spoil had to be removed and 10,750 tonnes

of new ballast was laid. Nine engineering trains were used, in addition to the Unimog haulage used on the Slow lines works.

To the great credit of all concerned, particularly the main contractor, Amey and signalling contractor, Siemens, these 10 days of works were completed without any accident or incidents. The Slow lines were handed back at line speed and the Fast lines with a 50mph planned temporary speed restriction. Some 100 individuals gave up their Christmas/New Year holidays to work on the site, allowing the work to be undertaken at a time when the railway was in significantly less demand from users, minimizing disruption to customers.

The completion of these works leaves the project in excellent shape to complete the whole scheme next Christmas.

Thanks to project manager Chris Buxton and media relations manager Amy Brenndorfer, both from Network Rail’s LNE & EM region, for their assistance in compiling this article.

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Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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INFRASTRUCTURE

Weaver to Wavertree resignalling PAUL DARLINGTON

W

eaver to Wavertree resignalling is one of the latest resignalling schemes to be completed and involved new signalling between Edge Hill station, just outside Liverpool, and Winsford station in the south. Weaver Junction, the oldest flying junction in Britain, is located on the West Coast main line between Warrington and Crewe, connecting to Liverpool via the Runcorn Railway Bridge and Wavertree junction.

Resignalling requirements The signalling between Weaver and Wavertree junctions was a mixture of mechanical, relay and solid-state interlockings (SSI).

The condition of the lineside infrastructure was very poor indeed.

There have been a number of attempts to carry out a line-ofroute resignalling and control point rationalisation over the years.

The Inter-City business sector of BR developed a scheme in the late 1980s, but railway privatisation got in the way and it never happened. Railtrack’s priorities were elsewhere, although they had to carry out some resignalling at Ditton and Halewood to deliver the West Coast upgrade.

Between 8 and 18 December in the year 2000, a new NX panel box at Ditton was commissioned, leading to the closure of Ditton No.1 and Ditton No.2 lever frame signal boxes. It was planned that this would eventually result in the closure of Halton Junction, Runcorn, Speke Junction and Allerton Junction signal boxes, but it took another 18 years for this to be delivered, such was the scale of the signalling work required in the North West with other routes having priority due to their condition.

Finally, in control period five (CP5), a line-of-route scheme to resignal and recontrol the route has been successfully delivered.

The scheme was part of Network Rail’s £340m Liverpool City investment programme and the Great North Rail Project. Five signal boxes have been removed, with control moving to the Manchester Rail Operating Centre (MROC) as part of Network Rail’s wider modernisation programme in the region.

Having the ROC available as a control point was one factor to enable the scheme to proceed, along with the availability of the IP-based FTNx telecoms network core, together with the resignalling of Liverpool Lime Street also taking place in CP5.

Along with improved asset condition, better reliability and more efficient operation, the scheme has also improved connectivity to Allerton train maintenance depot and facilitated the Halton Curve connection to Chester.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

The project was classed as the resignalling of Allerton, Speke, Runcorn and Halton interlocking areas, a ‘re-lock’ of Garston, and a ‘re-control’ of the Ditton and Halewood interlocking areas.

In simple terms, a ‘re-lock’ means a new interlocking and lineside train detection, points and signal equipment, while a ‘re-control’ involves the existing interlocking and signalling being controlled from a new location, in this case the Manchester ROC. Allerton, Speke, Runcorn and Halton signal boxes were mechanical frames with a mixture of 1962 P-Style and 1980s 930-style relays.

The lineside assets were in very poor condition, not surprising given their age and extensive use on a busy main line.

Garston area was a relay interlocking controlled from Speke signal box. The interlocking was renewed in 2005 following arson at Garston signal box. Control was by means of individual function switches (IFS) on an illuminated diagram at Speke. The interlocking and lineside assets were in good condition but required modification or replacement in order to make them suitable for recontrol to the ROC. With IFS, a separate button/switch is provided for each signal and for each set of points, and the assets are operated in a similar manner to a lever frame. The signalperson must move each set of points to the desired position before operating the switch or button of the signal controlling them. This type of panel needs the least complex circuitry but is not suited to controlling large or busy areas.

Ditton and Halewood interlocking areas were MkIII SSI areas and the equipment was in relatively good condition. However, with signalling technology improving all the time, there were benefits in upgrading some of the lineside assets as the replacement of the existing, obsolete SSI trackside equipment would facilitate an improvement in performance.

The fringe signalling arrangements to Carterhouse Junction had been informally recovered in the past, but they now needed to be recovered formally.

INFRASTRUCTURE Implementation The scheme was instigated just over six years ago. Since then, there has been a lot of effort by the many team members to develop the scheme, secure the funding, organise access for the blockade and integrate the works. Integration, in terms of design, construction and blockade management, is sometimes taken for granted, but no scheme can exist without this and the work involved should not be underestimated.

Siemens Rail Automation (SRA) is the framework resignalling contractor for the area, assisted on the Weaver to Wavertree scheme by Haigh Rail as a sub-contractor. Throughout the works, there has been a culture of collaboration with Network Rail and the other programme partners, enabling the project team to achieve high standards of delivery.

Buckingham Group Contracting provided all the civil engineering requirements, with Readypower Terrawise as a subcontractor. In one 48-hour period within a 199-hour blockade of Weaver to Wavertree, they recovered 132 location cupboards, 54 signals, nine signs and erected eight new signals and gantry droppers.

The interlocking is a Siemens Trackguard Westlock - a flexible, microprocessor-based interlocking that provides an advanced, digital signalling system but safeguards investment in existing infrastructure as it is fully retro-compatible with SSI. A Trackguard Westlock interlocking can manage an area equivalent to four original SSI interlockings, allowing interlocking cross-boundaries to be eliminated or repositioned and improves route setting times.

The architecture is a flexible design and permits the interlocking to be connected in a variety of ways, to provide the most appropriate architecture for each location. This flexibility allows it to be applied adjacent to existing SSIs, to recontrol existing SSI trackside equipment or to be applied directly in its own right.

Phase one of the Weaver to Wavertree re-signalling Scheme, between Weaver junction and Ditton East junction, entered into service at 23:55 on Tuesday 8 May 2018 as planned. This was the first deployment of the Siemens Westrace Trackside System (WTS) in a distributed configuration and under 25kV (which in itself is notoriously difficult for new technology, due to electrical noise), abolishing Runcorn and Halton signal boxes.

A new Westcad ‘Wavertree Workstation’ was located at the Manchester ROC to control the route.

WTS is an evolution in trackside-signalling control, providing a flexible, modern, network-compatible system which is capable of replacing trackside functional modules (TFMs), relays, and other legacy equipment in a wide variety of trackside applications, bringing all the previous benefits but with even better processing performance, input/output (I/O) options, availability and diagnostics than before.

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www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com www.frauscher.com Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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INFRASTRUCTURE Fast forward 100 years in 10 days

As an internet protocol (IP) network-based solution, rather than one that operates over a baseband datalink as traditional TFMs would, WTS makes use of the highly flexible, network-based communications network to allow a wide variety of architectures to be implemented. Complex station layouts can be signalled using a centralised architecture and, for lower density areas, I/O modules may be spread along the trackside. This enables the applications engineer to mix both architectures to optimise the solution.

Through the use of optical fibre cables on the trackside, the IPnetwork can also be used for other system communications such as remote condition monitoring, automatic power reconfiguration and axle counter systems.

Train detection on the route has been provided via the Frauscher Advanced Axle Counter (FAdC) and a Westrace Network Communication (WNC), using auto re-convergence via a Signalling Private Network (SPN) communications design and trackside fibre.

Network Rail Telecoms (NRT) commissioned the required lineside IP communication links back to Manchester ROC, which provided data communication links for Liverpool Lime Street resignalling as well as Weaver Wavertree.

The WTS with integrated FAdC is the result of nearly 10 years of development and moves the railway away from the equivalent of low speed ‘dial-up’ internet speeds to the fast broadband internet.

Prior to this solution, SSIs (the devices that control signals, points and other lineside equipment) from the eighties were connected along the trackside with a bespoke copper data cable running at 20kB (dial-up internet was about 56kB - remember how slow that was!). WTS uses CISCO IP technology, amongst other things, and integrates with FTNx and a trackside fibre cable running at 100MB (as a guide, domestic superfast broadband is about 75MB).

The solution is more than ‘Digital Ready’. It is the future and its first full use (and under 25kV) is in the North West. Not only is the control from Manchester ROC lightning fast, there is capacity for much more future functionality and, just like domestic ISP (Internet Service Provider) Broadband, the system uses IP routing and switching so that, if a key part fails or requires maintenance, there is always another path available. It feels like the railway really has moved into the 21st Century.

Phase one also enabled the reintroduction of a bi-direction route to Chester via the Halton Curve. This will allow a new service between Liverpool and Chester, serving Liverpool Lime Street, Liverpool John Lennon Airport, Runcorn, Frodsham and Helsby. The plan in the future is for a two-way hourly service with connections to North Wales.

At Edge Hill the Weaver to Wavertree project team integrated with Siemens’ Liverpool Lime St team to provide a Westronic 1024 TDM to replace a life-expired Electronic Route Setting Equipment (ERSE) installed in the 1980s. This entered into service at 20:26 on 26 of December 2018.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Finally, phase two, Allerton/Speke, was entered into service earlier than planned at 21:36 on Tuesday 1 Jan 2019. This six-mile section incorporated the railway between, but not including, Halewood West junction and Wavertree junction, abolished Allerton and Speke signal boxes and transferred signalling control to the Manchester ROC. Alterations to fringes at Edge Hill, Ditton (Halewood) and Hunts Cross were also undertaken. New manually reconfigurable signalling power supply points (PSP) were also created at Edge Hill PSP, Allerton ASP, and Halewood PSP. As part of the project, the 100-year-old signal box at Speke near Liverpool was replaced with the same cutting-edge technology as described in the phase one works. Which, by coincidence, was the 100th and 101st Westlock signalling interlockings which Siemens have installed in the UK. This complex and challenging phase saw the new signalling system introduced without incident whilst also enabling Northern Trains access into the strategic Allerton train maintenance depot.

Situated near Liverpool South Parkway station, Network Rail took control of the depot in 2011, transforming it from its near-derelict state into a modern electric train maintenance facility, servicing Northern Rail’s fleet of trains. Prior to the Weaver to Wavertree resignalling scheme, not all the signalling routes were available, but full signalling access has now been provided along with electrification.

Listed building Plans are in place to demolish the Allerton and Speke signal boxes over Easter in 2019, but Runcorn signal box is a listed structure and so it will remain untouched until a new use can be found for it. With the redundant signal box being close to Runcorn station, could the local community or a local business find a useful purpose for it? Time will tell.

Ditton signal box is a relative new structure so it will also remain, although its location is such that finding a new operational or community use for it will be a challenge.

The project created a depot and compound on Network Rail land at Speke, consisting of a two-storey site office located on what was effectively waste land, which received a sustainability award early in the project. This was achieved due to a number of creative initiatives that included using refurbished secondhand cabins and material to construct the depot. Discussions are now under way for the benefits of the site to be used by the maintainer in the future.

Thanks to Jillian Buckley, Steve Whelan and Chelsea Green for their assistance with this article.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Multi-Disciplinary Rail construction services include: • Rail engineering; civil & structural engineering • Stations and Passenger Area construction and refurbishment • Platform construction and extensions • Permanent Way, Construction, Raising & Lowering • Bridge Structures & Retaining Walls, including Piling • Lineside Structures, Foundations, Culverts • Earthworks, Embankments & Cuttings • Embankment construction, stabilisation & protection • Railway track beds & ballast operations • Major re-signalling schemes • Troughing Route • Station car parks; at grade, decked & multi-storey • Depots & Trainwash facilities All Operations are undertaken under a full, Network Rail approved, Principal Contractors Licence (PCL) and all appropriate Link-Up product code registrations.

Buckingham Group Contracting Ltd. Silverstone Road, Stowe, Buckingham, MK18 5LJ Tel: 01280 823355; E-mail: bd@buckinghamgroup.co.uk

Structural Precast for Railways

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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PETER STANTON

Electrification renewals

at Forest Gate

T

he London and North Eastern Railway started to electrify the Shenfield to Liverpool Street line during the 1930s; civil engineering work had started before the Second World War but the conflict delayed completion till 1949. The electrification system was 1,500 volts DC, which had been the standard at the time. However, British Railways switched the line to 25kV AC, its new standard, in November 1960.

The converted system continued to give service for many years but, as a fixed tension system, it was very vulnerable to temperature changes - the contact wire could sag severely at high temperatures, resulting in speed restrictions and severe capacity reduction in hot weather.

The system would also be under excessive stress in cold weather leading to failures and poor current collection performance. As the configuration was that of ‘compound equipment’ (with a third conductor in the contact system), the installation was heavy and slow to work on, parts were scarce and expensive, and catastrophic and complex failure modes were regularly experienced - the DC arrangement was designed before modern section insulators.

Essential upgrade In the 21st century, the decision was made that the existing converted system was no longer fit for purpose and designs were drawn up to install modern overhead line equipment (OLE).

The philosophy behind the renewal programme was far reaching. The new arrangements were to include full mechanical independence, with registration arranged so that each wire would have its own individual catenary support and registration arm with knuckles removed.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

A further characteristic, which would befit complex sites such as Forest Gate, would be to segregate main line and crossover wire runs with crossover wire runs to cover one pair of tracks only, where practicable.

As a final contribution to reliability, the new design would remove multitrack spanwire registrations and section insulators would be removed and replaced with overlaps where practicable.

Rather than traditional tensioning devices, in the form of balance weights, the new installation incorporates automatic tensioning equipment in the form of Pfisterer’s Tensorex spring tensioning system. This allows suitable

contact system performance to be maintained within a normal range of temperatures and requires minimal maintenance compared with the balance weight system.

The contact system performs with near constant tension and there is no need to run cross-track wires, nor is there a need to build additional masts to support weights on an A frame.

It is worth noting that the system has been proven in Switzerland for approximately 15 years with, reportedly, zero failures.

Introducing GEFF The system developed for the Great Eastern conversion was designed by Furrer+Frey, which has been involved with the general works for more than ten years. The generic name for the system is ‘GEFF’ and the Network Rail certificate of acceptance for the design was issued in 2012.

INFRASTRUCTURE

The conversion is technically an extremely challenging programme of works due to the complexity of the existing infrastructure and its interface with the operational railway. In total, 345 wire runs and associated structures for a new auto-tensioned overhead line system are to be installed.

In summary, the Furrer+Frey design delivers enhanced electrical clearance, reduced wind loading and mechanical simplicity. Structural life costs will be reduced and even future renewal will be simplified. In addition, the new configuration results in improved signal sighting - a welcome bonus on such a busy piece of railway. There is easier adjustability/repair and the equipment is faster and safer to work on.

Progress has been maintained on the system renewal and only a relatively small part of the system remains to be completed. There has already been a significant improvement in OLE performance with a reduction in faults and service disruptions - there has been a direct correlation between wire runs renewed and a reduction in delay minutes.

Coupled with the contact system it is the question of structures and foundations.

Replacements have been built to recent Eurocodes with a standard choice of side-bearing concrete foundations and a generic range of tubular piles. However, there have been a high proportion of custom foundations due to inner London build constraints, with examples being gravity pads, piles and special shapes.

running of the Great Eastern services, with the potential for any problems to cause major delays for the travelling public.

James Hill of Network Rail described the works and emphasised that, due to the nature of the normal intense service through the site, the works were planned to be undertaken in a ten day Christmas blockade between the twenty third of December 2018 and the second of January 2019. Under the management of Network Rail Infrastructure Projects, with design by Furrer+Frey, contractors and plant were mobilised and site work commenced following the last services before Christmas.

The opportunity had been taken to ensure robust preparation for the works and, as well as materials management issues, a small number of electrification structures were replaced before the blockade. The construction main contractor was Network Rail’s OCR team while stage work design was supported

by OLE Limited at Derby, which also provided site design support; essential to ensure that, where adjustments were required to preconstruction approved design, in the light of emerging physical situations, the installation complied with required design standards.

James mentioned that some structures were reused where the positioning was suitable and that the new GEFF design allowed quantified choices to be made.

The new equipment weighs approximately 50 per cent of the original DC equipment and the radial and wind loads are also less than the earlier DC installations.

GEFF anchor loads are also around 60 per cent of those for DC, so, in theory, all of the old structures can be reused.

Furthermore, there are generic decisions still to be made regarding crossovers and, as that is the nature of the Forest Gate situation, those choices came into play.

The old DC equipment is heavy with low uplift and high rise and fall, whereas the GEFF is light with a higher uplift and no rise and fall. So, the design had to be assessed with this in mind.

The decision was made to undertake as much preparation and pre-build as possible, aiming for 90 per cent preparation prior to wiring. However, germane to the preparation planning process were the drivers that, when compared to the older DC installations, GEFF cannot carry some high ex-DC radial loads, the catenary height is lower, the contact height is different and catenary sag is considerably less. A hybrid installation philosophy was therefore carried out during preparation works, leading to reduced in-possession time when finishing off.

Christmas at Forest Gate One of the areas still to be completed was the strategic junction at Forest Gate on the Great Eastern main line. At this junction, the multi-track main line is joined by the route from Barking which also continues over over the main line on a bridge. Thus the site is complex and strategically important to the reliable

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Project support

Successful conclusion

Across the total Great Eastern renewal scheme CPMS (Collaborative Project Management Services) has been active in a project support role. CPMS has successfully supplied the client with a full project delivery solution including programme, project delivery, planning, document control, engineering, procurement and commercial management services. It has also developed and successfully discharged a principal contractor competency on behalf of the client.

Mat Baine of CPMS explained that his organisation has an extensive team of engineering and construction industry experts and delivers on-the-ground construction works, backed by full RISQS accreditation. He emphasised that work does not end once construction is complete, follow-up was by an experienced and efficient ‘entry into service and handback’ team.

In order to support the project, CPMS worked directly for clients and third parties progressing alongside the railway.

The company’s railway experience helped to translate and ease the path towards the successful delivery which was achieved at the rewiring site.

Of great value was the recognition of the benefits of a close collaboration between engineering and construction throughout a project’s lifecycle. Expert and early involvement during development helped to incorporate value engineering and streamline buildability into the scheme.

A culture of ‘safety first’ has been effectively embedded on the whole project along with the implementation of a full suite of project controls, including schedule adherence, unit cost modelling and KPI reporting metrics. Across the programme, to date, the delivery solution provided by CPMS has been seen to generate efficiency improvements of 25 per cent for the client.

The Christmas work at Forest gate has benefitted from a focus on instigating a significant change in the safety performance of the GE project. Starting with a focus on getting the basics right through to seeking new and innovative ways to deliver the works in a safer, more efficient manner, CPMS has worked with the supply chain and site operatives to understand and improve how the project is delivered. A measure of the success has been a new and highly targeted safety campaign, CPMS has increased the volume of close call reporting on the GE project by over 300 per cent.

All of these measures have been successfully implemented to bring safety to the forefront, culminating in the effective performance in the delivery of the Forest Gate works.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Central to the planning, accompanied by the vital materials and plant management task, was that, to achieve renewal, it was necessary to remove and replace nine wire runs with severely restricted staging options. James explained that works were purely OLE related with no permanent way remodelling. The track layout, however, is complex, with four crossovers in the junction configuration.

In all, some twelve and a half kilometres of overhead contact system were replaced during the planned blockade and normal services resumed, as planned, on the second of January.

This heavily trafficked piece of railway will assume even greater significance when the existing services are joined by the full Crossrail service when the route will be upgraded to an auto transformer 25-0-25 kV system; passive provision having been created at Forest Gate during the works.

With Forest Gate complete, there is now a continuous section of autotensioned GEFF OLE on the electric lines from the country end of Stratford station to Chelmsford, a distance of 42km. There remains only one major section of renewal to undertake, in the very complex Stratford area. Once that has been finished, the Great Eastern Route will be able to deliver massively improved reliability in all weathers, for the advantage of railway customers.

All in all, it adds up to a successful nearconclusion to a complex project.

INFRASTRUCTURE

10

Furrer+Frey FACTS

❶ Founded in 1923 – over 90 years of Electrification ❷ Over 5,000km of electrification in service ❸ 120 Depots with moveable conductor bar ❹ Designs for up to 400kmph ❺ 3,300km of tunnels ❻ Design tools used in 14 different countries ❼ OLE-Scanner used in 8 countries, including new Tours-Bordeaux TGV line ❽ Electrification consultancy on over 300 projects in 30 countries ❾ Furrer+Frey rapid charge stations for battery powered public transport already available in 10 countries ❿ Electrification Simulation Software: the only TSI complaint high-speed tunnel software

gb@furrerfrey.co.uk

@furrerfreyGB

www.furrerfrey.ch

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Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019 17/01/2019 13:34

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BOB WRIGHT

BATTERSEA PIER JUNCTION

T

his Christmas, Battersea Pier junction became the latest focus of intense activity as it was renewed over an 11-day blockade. Battersea Pier junction is one of London’s busiest junctions. Located one mile south of London’s Victoria Station, it is used by 240,000 passengers each day. It is located at the junction of the routes to Chatham and Brighton immediately to the south end of the Grosvenor Bridge across the Thames. It also provides the access into Thameslink’s Stewarts Lane maintenance depot.

The junction contained some of the oldest (dating from 1970s) and worst infrastructure on the Sussex route. There were deteriorating geometry issues with poor top and poor alignment, which were affecting ride quality and could have resulted in potential speed restrictions. The site also included 19 priority rail defects.

These problems would have been very difficult to remove through the routine maintenance regime in this very busy location. As a result of the junction’s conditions, an £8.5 million renewal was approved

by Network Rail in 2015 with the objectives of reducing maintenance, providing a 35year life, significantly improving asset reliability and enhancing the passenger journey experience.

Complex plans The S&C South Alliance (Colas Rail, AECOM and Network Rail working together) was tasked with the project, which was not going to be a simple one to plan, given its location bounded by the Thames, the site of Battersea Power Station, 10-storey blocks of flats and a hotel. In addition, the main access point for the site was through Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

The extent of the works was clearly going to be a challenge, as this would comprise the replacement of 12 point ends and a fixed diamond crossing, 1,300 metres of plain line track and 1,800 metres of conductor rail, together with replacing 10 point machines and associated cabling and power supply.

Being in an urban location, largely on elevated structures, storage and access were very restrictive and the site was surrounded by residential properties. The project’s procurement list included 4.5km of rail, 3,750 concrete sleepers and 8,000 tonnes of ballast.

The replacement of the junction’s track was designed on a like-for-like basis, with minor changes to enhance its alignment. The existing layout was on a mix of concrete and hardwood bearers but the replacement was to be entirely in concrete, with exception of a few timbers above the Grosvenor Bridge’s abutment.

To validate the ground survey, the AECOM design team made use of a Vogel R3D unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) to undertake a 3D topographic survey, outputting to a point cloud and orthophotos (true to

INFRASTRUCTURE

Grosvenor Bridge Dn Stewarts Lane

River Thames 729b

Dn Chatham Fast

Dn Chatham Main

725 726b

Up Chatham Fast

Up Chatham Main 729a

Dn Chatham Slow

Chatham Reversible

730 726a

727

Up Chatham Slow

ALO Barrier Train

Battersea Park

Grosvenor Bridge

P1 OOU

River Thames

Atlantics

Battersea Pier 11yds

255

259

P2

121yds

267

FD

30yds

Down Brighton Slow 258a/b

254a

257a

100yds

264

312yds

24yds 257b

15yds

P3

P2

FD

Up Brighton Slow

268a/b

P4

265a/b 269

186yds Cat 16 (Mid November) 445yds

250a 260

Down Brighton Fast Up Brighton Fast

273b

266

308yds Cat 16 (Mid November) 251a

P5

Brighton Reversible

252a

273a

250b No. 1 Siding

Grosvenor Bridge River Thames

scale images) of all five route kilometres of the affected track.

The use of this form of highaccuracy survey is still relatively unusual at this scale but saved many weeks of traditional surveying. Plowman Craven, which undertook this work, had to satisfy the requirements of the Civil Aviation Authority, Police, Port of London Authority as well as avoiding affecting the peregrine falcons on Battersea Power Station.

252b wheelstops No. 2 Siding 251b wheelstops

Residents were pleased to be informed and involved and were hungry for more information over the weeks leading up to the project. The team monitored noise and dust throughout the course of the work, and both were, at all times, within agreed limits. As a result of the teams’ engagement and site management, no complaints were received, a remarkable result given the location and season.

Closing such a major junction was clearly going to have a significant impact on services and travellers. The team worked closely with Govia Thameslink to plan diversionary services and to maintain access to Stewarts Lane depot for fleet maintenance. It was agreed to begin the blockade on Sunday 23 December as Saturday was rightly foreseen as a day of heavy traffic with people heading off for the holiday.

Stakeholder management With the site surrounded by residential properties and a hotel, the 11 days of intense activity on the site had great potential to result in complaints. As a result, there was significant public engagement with local residents through meetings with the Battersea Residents Association, as well as direct communications including letter drops and press releases.

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Due to the complexity of the layout and the need to plan the delivery and storage of track panels, a detailed installation plan was needed.

As a result of the blockade, Victoria’s Platforms 9 to 19 were closed and there were no Gatwick Express services from Victoria Station, with replacement services running from Blackfriars and London Bridge.

Most Southern services were diverted to London Bridge, with a limited service to Clapham Junction. Buses were used to replace train services for local journeys between Clapham Junction and Victoria.

An extensive information campaign took place during the autumn with posters, press releases and social media being used to inform travellers of the revised services.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Through close cooperation and coordination, the revised service pattern worked well, and there were no issues reported on the regular gold command calls. There had been concerns about potential crowding at Clapham Junction as a consequence of the revised services but, due to the major advance communications campaign to passengers, this proved not to be a problem.

During the autumn, the maintenance team paid special precautionary attention to the diversionary routes to ensure that they would not be adversely affected by the greatly increased traffic of diverted services over the

blockade period. They also had resources on standby for any defects that might occur.

Establishing access Being a landlocked site, access was not straightforward.

Battersea Dogs & Cats Home is located in the vee between the two routes. The team had built a good relationship with staff at the Home during a previous project at Battersea Park and, as a result of their continued cooperation, was able to use the Home site as the primary means of access for both people and plant. The road/rail access point was at the far end of the Home and pedestrian access was via steps up to the

Proud to be a part of the Battersea Pier Junction Project “The success of this renewals project demonstrates the importance of building key business relationships as the industry moves into Control Period 6.

As a long-term supplier to Colas Rail, RSS Infrastructure have worked on a variety of projects whose aim has been to improve reliability, productivity and has structured its Signalling division around providing experienced and reliable staff who we continue to invest in and develop. “ David Hersey – Head of Signalling RSS Infrastructure Ltd

Our RSSI Signalling team can provide a wide range of services including; SMTH & G110 support, installation, S&C delivery, Project Management, IRSE licencing and delivery support.

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INFRASTRUCTURE

track level from its car park.

Given the large volume of activity through their site, the Home were unaffected by the works, even on Boxing Day, the busiest day in the calendar. (It’s the most popular day to collect a dog, apparently).

A second RRAP (road-rail access point) was available in Battersea Yard and pedestrian access was also available from Battersea Park Station, providing multiple access and evacuation points.

The project compound was within Cory Environmental’s yard in Wandsworth Road, with a mini-welfare site at Havelock Terrace close to the site. Each shift across the blockade had 50 to 100 people on site and a fleet of four buses ferried them to and from their place of work.

Preparing the panels The new S&C was manufactured by VAE at Worksop as 90 separate components and delivered by tilting wagon over a threeweek period. Conventionally, these would have been offloaded alongside the work area for simple craningin during installation. At Battersea Pier, the dense track

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

layout precluded this and, as a result, the components were laid alongside the Battersea Reversible and Stewarts Lane lines.

Prolonged track access to make these deliveries was initially seen as a severe constraint to the project. As a result of collaboration with the operators, this problem was overcome by their offer of 08:00-20:00 possessions of these routes, apart from occasional access requirements for empty stock movements.

This greatly eased the delivery activity and enabled the luxury of daylight working too.

Following vegetation and site clearance, together with levelling works to the wide cesses alongside these routes, the components were delivered to site in early December. Each was unloaded

by Kirow crane and placed in its designated location, ready for collection and installation during the blockade. A quarter of the new S&C units were too large to transport in one piece and were delivered broken down into components. These were re-assembled as part of the delivery operation.

To reduce the volume of work to be carried out in the blockade, the plain line between the crossovers on the Up and Down Brighton Fast were re-laid in a 27-hour possession in mid-November.

In addition, some advance S&T works were carried out at the end of November. Before the commencement of the renewals, RSS Infrastructure (RSSI) was tasked with relay room works, onsite installation, LOC builds and the build up of points operating equipment.

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INFRASTRUCTURE 11 days of Christmas The 11-day blockade began at 01:05 on 23 December, with the project’s 13 engineering trains already stabled in Victoria station and the 13 RRV excavators and two RRV dozers at the RRAP. Small tools and geotextile were brought to site by the RRVs, the trains brought ballast and removed spoil, equivalent to 675 lorry movements.

The project was managed as three sites, site 1 on the Up and Down Brighton Slow, site 2 on the Brighton reversible and site 3 the Up and Down Brighton Fasts.

During the blockade itself, the Up and Down Brighton lines were blocked but the Up and Down Chatham lines remained open throughout, except for Christmas Day and Boxing Day. To provide a safe site on the Down Brighton Slow, an engineering train was stabled on the Chatham reversible as an Adjacent Line Open barrier.

The full depth excavation exposed a number of historic signal bases and cabling. These could have delayed progress but had been foreseen from the team’s experiences on its previous project at Battersea Park in 2016 and resources and time had been allowed for this.

Once the geotextile and bottom ballast had been placed, spread and compacted by the excavators and dozer, then the S&C components

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

were brought to site from their temporary storage and placed by the Kirow crane.

Works to power supply and signalling cabling were restricted to dis- and re-connections. A future improvement will be to enhance the power supply to the switch heating.

During commissioning, RSSI carried out four-foot installation, relay room changeovers, final points setup and handover. Following completion, the team also provided after care support and cover for follow up works.

As part of the contingency planning, the team had a standby RRV and fitters available at the access point, together with a spare Kirow crane and locomotive on standby at Hoo depot.

The first priority was to hand back access into Stewarts Lane depot to allow public services to recommence. Contingency planning was meticulous for the three sites should there be any delay. However, the project was

completed on time, accident and incident free, and handed back to operational traffic at 45mph line speed at 23:00 on 1 January. Empty stock proving runs between Victoria and Clapham then took place before traffic recommenced at 04:00.

As works were completed, part of the RRV fleet was re-deployed south to Factory Junction to deliver a second, smaller project there, delivered by the same team.

As a high-profile project, it received several senior visitors over the blockade - Rail Minister Andrew Jones on 24 December and Network Rail CEO Andrew Haines accompanied by John Halsall, route managing director, on 27 December. All were delighted with the progress in carrying out such a complex project and praised the team delivering it.

Thanks to Network Rail’s Paul Harwood and Adam Kotulecki for their help in preparing this article.

Award winning railway specialists

There are many exciting opportunities that lie ahead in creating tomorrow’s railway High-speed rail, light urban systems, high-output automated track maintenance and commercial rail freight are all areas that have become increasingly important to the UK transport industry. Thinking, investing and operating at the forefront of industry trends ensures we have the capabilities to meet the future demands of our customers.

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www.colasrail.co.uk

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INFRASTRUCTURE

MARK PHILLIPS

C

hristmas and New Year at Westbury saw the station and its associated routes closed for 12 days to carry out some long-awaited major works in one fell swoop. The main work was the reballasting and renewal of 12 switch and crossing units, along with associated plain line, to resolve some track quality and maintenance issues. At the same time, the Westbury station platforms were modified to accommodate the new rolling stock being progressively introduced on Great Western services.

Westbury station lies on the main route from Paddington to the West Country.

Whilst many of the faster Great Western services to Plymouth and/or Penzance bypass the station itself by using the avoiding lines, about half the services do call at Westbury.

There are interchange possibilities with services between Cardiff/Bristol and Southampton and, eastwards along the coast, services to Weymouth, and there is also a developing service to Swindon.

In addition, there is heavy freight traffic from the stone quarries in Somerset. All of this makes Westbury a busy railway node.

Train service arrangements Planning the alternative provision of services throughout the 12-day Christmas closure was, therefore, something to which careful consideration had to be given. For inter-city stopping services between London and the West Country,

nearby Frome was deployed as the alternative calling point to Westbury. It is quite a rarity nowadays for Frome to be privileged with such trains!

Frome also became the starting point for Weymouth services. The Bristol to Southampton trains had to be terminated at Trowbridge and Warminster, either side of Westbury, with a replacement bus connection in between. Trains to Swindon were replaced completely by a bus alternative.

To prepare rail travellers for all this, a carefully thought out publicity campaign was mounted by Network Rail’s communications team, in association with the affected train companies.

Advance warnings of the altered transport arrangements were prefaced by explanations of the longer-term benefits to accrue from the project works. Some of these warnings included letters to season ticket holders, use of social media, on-

train and station announcements, press releases to local media and the holding of local awareness sessions.

Project scope One of the primary drivers for the project was the need to address the condition of the track layout at the north end of Westbury station, which provides routes to and from three platform lines and two non-platform lines towards Trowbridge and towards the main line to Newbury, Reading and Paddington.

The existing layout, dating from the early 1980s, was in 113lb rail on timber bearers and was becoming difficult to maintain, with some evidence of cyclic top, and as a consequence there had been temporary speed restrictions in place for some time.

Proposals for the renewal and reballasting of the whole layout had been reviewed since early 2015 and three

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INFRASTRUCTURE

alternative variants were evaluated. The option selected and approved in February 2018 was to carry out a more or less likefor-like renewal in terms of the facilities and layout, using NR56V rail on concrete bearers.

The designed scheme did take the opportunity to shorten the overall length of one crossover, which, whilst lowering the design speed through it from 40mph to 30mph, had the benefit of avoiding bearers interlaced with another unit, as in the previous layout.

Apart from that, and the realignment of some curves was necessary in conjunction with short sections of plain line renewal, there was little change to the layout. however, gauging checks had shown the need for minor modifications to the end sections of the platforms, which was achieved by adjustment of 170 metres of coping slabs.

To have carried out this renewal of the overall layout in piecemeal fashion would have required several weekend possessions, still involving complete closure of all routes through Westbury and with the necessary revised passenger arrangements as described previously.

Also, it would not have been easily possible to create the new layout in its improved design form, with repositioned switches and a shortened crossover, without elaborate staging and a temporary loss of facilities between each weekend possession. Therefore, the scheme lent itself ideally to the “blockbuster� approach of an all-in-one extended closure.

Having determined the economic benefits of the long possession for the trackwork, it was evident to Network Rail that the opportunity could be taken to prepare the way for the platform extensions needed to accommodate the new fleet of Class 802 IET (intercity express) trains being introduced.

The platform extensions at the south end of the island Platforms 2 and 3 required the rearrangement of signalling, telecoms and

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

power supply infrastructure, the relocation of three signals and the removal of a foot crossing. This work is continuing, but use was made of the major possession over Christmas and the New Year to carry out much of the preparatory civils work for the platform extensions.

Implementation and resourcing Just to the north of Westbury North junction, there is an area of unused railway land, in the triangle between three routes, which was ideal for both the delivery of materials and pre-fabrication of the switch and crossing units. This was used to great advantage from September 2018 and in the weeks leading up to the Christmas closure.

The trackworks were the responsibility of the S & C South Alliance, a partnership of Network Rail, Colas and AECOM, with the latter carrying out the design being carried. The subcontractors for plant were AP Webb and Readypower.

In total, 11 road-rail vehicles supplied

by AP Webb were in use for the removal of the old trackwork and ballast and for the relaying of the new track layout three JCB JS175 excavator/cranes, two Terex Schaeff HR42 excavators for loose sleeper laying and lighter excavation, four Rail-Ability Railmax excavators for heavier digging and spoil loading (also capable

of lifting a 30ft concrete track panel) and two Cat D4 dozers. Altogether, these machines handled 9,300 tonnes of spoil.

In addition, a small mini-digger, not rail-mounted, was available for digging an undertrack crossing. A Kirow 1200 crane, supplied by Colas, handled 78 prefabricated switch and crossing sections.

They also supplied two S&C tampers for the project.

Platform work at the northern end of the station, carried out by MECX, involved removal of existing coping stones, tactile strips and the macadam surface as the last 30 metres of the platform required lowering to enable falls to go to the centre of the platform rather than falling towards the track. This would prevent any issues with prams, wheelchairs and other wheeled objects running away towards the tracks.

The works entailed lowering the levels of the platform oversails and reducing the macadam levels. New dish drainage and carrier drainage, including new catchpit chambers, were installed and this was then connected to the existing track drainage. A new macadam platform surface was laid and the copers and tactiles re-bedded and re-pointed.

MECX also constructed three new signal bases at the south end of the station, where the ongoing signalling work is being carried out by Linbrooke. The necessary civils works associated with the alterations, such as the foot crossing, drainage works and an undertrack crossing, were undertaken by Chris Francis Contractors.

OSL was responsible for the signalling testing and commissioning. RES was the E&P supplier, MacRail Systems provided site access control and DB Schenker was responsible for engineering train movements within the sidings.

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Labour was provided by McGinley, Ganymede and Vital. Patterns of three 9-hour shifts over each 24-hour period were established throughout, with some specialist staff working individual 10 or 12hour shifts. Overall, whilst there were wide variations in the actual number of staff present on site at any time throughout the blockade, depending on the particular activities happening, the staffing averaged out at approximately 40 per shift.

Main possession The possession commenced on schedule at 04:00 on Sunday 23 December 2018 and was scheduled to be handed back at 04:00 on Friday 4 January 2019.

Removal of the old trackwork and progressive reinstatement of the new was carried out in five stages, working broadly from east to west across the overall site. The new track layout, installed on bottom ballast, was completed on schedule by 23:15 hours on Friday 28 December.

Stage 6, the delivery of final top ballast and tamping of the site throughout, took place over the following 48 hours.

Everything ran according to the programme up until Stage 7 of the project. Stage 7, running from 19:00 hours on Sunday 30 December through to planned handback at 04:00 on Friday 4 January, comprised final welding and stressing, signalling testing and commissioning and handback procedures.

Within this overall period, nine hours had been allowed for handback and contingency and 48 hours was originally allowed for signalling testing. However,

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

a further review a few weeks prior to the blockade highlighted the projectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s challenges of carrying out the S&C renewal simultaneously, as there were a lot of point-locking and route- locking changes that would affect the S&C renewal side of the station, due to the changing track lengths and the fact that there are both main and draw-ahead routes into the platforms at Westbury.

An extended test period would be required to facilitate the signalling system at Westbury, which is a relay based system and so all testing had to take place on-site, as opposed to more modern software-based signalling systems that can be tested off-site on simulators before the commissioning. It was therefore decided to extend the testing to 72 hours.

Despite a detailed and fully checked design, the new signalling arrangements, as installed, would require thorough insitu testing. Many possible combinations of train movements and train starting

positions would have to be exhaustively tested before every possible situation had been proven and test logged.

The welding and stressing throughout the site was completed on schedule by 19:00 on Monday 31 December, which left just the planned 72 hours of wheels-free access for the signalling testing.

Unfortunately, at the start of the shift on 31 December, an issue with the interlocking from a shunt signal was revealed. This was highlighted immediately to the AECOM design team to resolve; with a formal test log being issued on 2 January. It proved to be especially complicated to design a way out of the problem and, in the event, the whole of the remaining time allocated for the testing and handback was used up by the time a solution had been found.

So, at about 20:00 on the Thursday, the new design was ready to be implemented, but, with a few extra snags encountered during this modified installation and with over 120 wires to be terminated, a 23hour overrun resulted.

Appraisal Sarah Fraser, project manager for Network Rail, commented that it had been a great disappointment for the project team to have experienced this overrun after such careful planning, which included â&#x20AC;&#x153;a generous time allocationâ&#x20AC;? for the signalling testing and commissioning.

She was obviously also very sorry for the disruption to passengers, with the temporary arrangements for services having to continue for another whole day.

However, overall, the team should be pleased and proud to have planned and renewed a complex track renewal, making excellent and economic use of the major closure opportunity, which will now bring improved reliability and maintainability for many years to come.

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FEATURE

NIGEL WORDSWORTH

One Railway:

Digitally Connecting the Nation

A LOOK AT THE RECENT RAIL SECTOR DEAL

W

hen the government and the rail industry recently agreed a new Rail Sector Deal, intended to deliver more for passengers, create jobs and drive economic growth across the country, it was hailed as a key milestone in the government’s modern industrial strategy.

The Rail Sector Deal is intended to help increase the exchange of ideas between the rail industry and other sectors, predicting problems on the network before they arise and solving them through innovative working.

It all sounds like a good idea. But how does it work?

And why does the railway need such a deal now when it never had one before?

Rail Engineer sat down with the three people who have been instrumental in developing, co ordinating and agreeing the deal through to ask those

questions, and others.

Gordon Wakeford - industry chair of the Rail Supply Group and also chief executive of Siemens Mobility UK, Philip Hoare - chief executive officer of SNC-Lavalin’s Atkins business in the UK and Europe, and Anna Delvecchio commercial account director at Amey and the winner of the Woman of the Year award at the 2018 FTA Everywoman in Transport & Logistics Awards, who had all arrived at the Institution of Civil Engineers fresh from a meeting at 10 Downing Street.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Strategy launch The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) introduced its new Industrial Strategy on November 2017.

This was built on five foundations - ideas, people, infrastructure, business environment and places.

Each ‘foundation’ had three key policies. For example, the first policy under Ideas was to raise total research and development (R&D) investment to 2.4 per cent of GDP by 2027. Under business environment was the policy to launch and roll out Sector Deals - partnerships between government and industry aiming to increase sector productivity.

FEATURE The bigger picture

The first Sector Deals were in life sciences, construction, artificial intelligence and the automotive sector. Creative industries and nuclear followed, and then aerospace and rail were launched on the same day - 6 December 2018.

Speaking at the launch of the Rail Sector Deal, Gordon Wakeford recalled the government’s green paper ‘Building on Industrial Strategy’, which was issued in January 2017 and challenged industry “to provide government with compelling and detailed proposals of how, working in partnership, both sides, government and sector, could agree a sector deal to further the competitiveness of the sector”.

He went on to explain that, after a long and sometimes bumpy journey to reach a conclusion, government and industry had developed a sector deal that “will be transformational”.

“One word that shines through this document,” he continued, “is collaboration. We will increase productivity, we will reduce costs as an industry, we will move from ‘boom and bust procurement’, we will introduce new technology, release data as an enabler, improve the skills of our workforce, and not only increase local ‘value add’ through import substitution but also refocus on ways to double exports.”

Graham Stuart, Minister for Investment at the Department for International Trade, spoke on behalf of government: “Much of the network is bursting at the seams. When things go wrong, as they have this year following problems introducing the new timetable and widespread, and often unnecessary, industrial action, passengers endure poor performance, which means the railway faces greater levels of public scrutiny.

“We all know that we can do better, and that we must raise our game. This collaboration and cooperation that we are launching today between government and industry is one way of responding to that.”

The intention is that, through improved engagement between industry and government, the supply chain will understand future demand better. This will both enable companies to invest with confidence to increase skills and innovation and will also help the industry reduce the cost of building and maintaining the railway, support the sector to increase its exports, attract small businesses to the market and encourage more young people to pursue a career in the rail industry.

Since that day in early December, the rollout of the new Rail Sector Deal has continued to involve both industry and government.

Gordon Wakeford started by outlining what the Rail Sector deal actually is. “It is a coming together of government and industry to look at the bigger picture, looking five years hence and even beyond that. It asks what we can do, as British industry and government, to make a real go of this industry - this rail industry of ours.”

As Anna Delvecchio explained, a sector deal is a partnership between government and industry on sector-specific issues that can create significant opportunities to transform sectors, boost productivity, innovation and skills. It is not a commitment to engage in a contract favouring individual suppliers or an offer that may preempt or prejudice a contract.

“But the essence of the deal remains the opportunity to transform the railway through digitalisation, enhanced customer experience and sustainable business models,” she continued. “Over the last 18 months, we have held numerous roundtables, had meetings with key stakeholders in Government and across industry and engaged the supply sector from train operating companies and OEMs through to the smallest of SMEs. We had over 200 companies come forward to help us, including new entrants, to develop the deal.”

Philip Hoare was keen to point out what the deal meant for the supply chain: “The sector deal requires the industry to come together and have a conversation. I think the supply chain had too quiet a voice for too long, in terms of how policy is set and how decisions are made in the rail industry, and the big advantage for the supply chain is that this deal enables us to have a voice with government we have not had before.”

“It’s government in its widest sense as well,” Anna emphasized, “so not just the Department for Transport but BEIS (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy), the Department for International Trade and also the government-owned bodies such as Network Rail…”

“And that’s what sets it apart, certainly from our perspective,” Philip Hoare broke in. “We haven’t gone to government asking for lots of money. We’ve asked them to come and join a conversation to help us improve our lot as a rail industry - that’s what the deal’s been about.”

A greater voice Readers might say that the industry did ask government for lots of money - just over £53 million for CP6 (including Scotland). But it wasn’t the industry - under the current mechanism, it is Network Rail, a government-owned organisation, that negotiates the Control Period funding with the Department of Transport and the ORR, including the detailed plans for how the money will be best spent.

“In developing the settlement for CP6,” Philip Hoare continued, “there was little supply chain engagement in how to deliver best value best and how we could help drive efficiency, working closely with Network Rail to optimise what could be delivered - the supply chain was not engaged in that discussion.

“And that’s the difference. One of the things here is that, as we develop CP7, industry will have a voice in how best to spend that money for the benefit of the railway. We’ll be part of the team alongside Network Rail, advising them on how best we can deliver value and efficiency - the supply chain will have a much stronger voice.”

It must be remembered that the Rail Sector Deal is all about cooperation and collaboration. So, it wouldn’t replace Network Rail submitting an application for funding to government. However,

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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Rail Sector Deal agreed workstreams. the amount requested would have been calculated following wider consultation than at present.

“Fundamentally, we would have a much stronger voice in determining, with Network Rail, how to get better value from future investment in rail, although ultimately it will still be a settlement between Network Rail and Government,” Philip Hoare emphasised.

“The amount of engagement we’ve had from Network Rail has been phenomenal,” Gordon Wakeford stated. “Sir Peter Hendy has been an advocate right from the outset,” Philip Hoare added, “and we’ve now had two CEOs from Network Rail who have both actively supported what we’re doing.”

One conversation It might seem that there are two separate topics. One is the supply chain engaging more with Network Rail, which had already been happening with early contractor involvement and other initiatives, and the other is Network Rail’s conversation with government about the funding package.

“They’re not separate though,” Philip Hoare explained. “If you look at how the delivery structure for this has been set up, it’s about having 18 people in the room, representatives from government and from Network Rail and from HS2, as well as from the supply chain, working together to solve a problem.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

“So, if, for example, the discussion is about making significant reductions in the cost of Digital Rail, everyone is in the room. It’s about having that collective, collaborative viewpoint.”

Hands off, not hands-on As the new Rail Sector Deal will involve industry - the supply chain - working with the Department for Transport, one of the potential stumbling blocks will be the DfT’s propensity to micro-manage everything, driving up cost. It happened with the design of the OLE portals on Great Western electrification, and on the Hitachi-built IEP trains to run under it, so what will prevent the Department from trying to do the same with these new collaborative committees?

“Hopefully, the more we’re engaged, the wider industry - including Network Rail with government, this programme of work will be more effective,” Gordon Wakeford commented in response to that suggestion.

“It’s about better-informed choices,” Philip Hoare agreed.

“The Sector Deal alone is not going to fix the railway,” Philip Hoare expanded. “It’s a strand, an element, of a solution that will make our railway perform better for our customers. But it’s one strand of that, of which the Rail Review is another, ticketing reform is another, all working together to improve the industry as a whole.”

Work to do The Rail Industry Strategy is now published, and available on the Rail Supply Group’s website, and a number of workstreams have been agreed. Each will have an ‘Industry Champion’, two further champions - from government and from the client (usually, but not solely, Network Rail) - and a delivery team, which will be a mix of industry, trade associations and interest groups together with two or three secondees.

Jeremy Hotchkiss (DfT), Wendy Richards (DIT), Anna Delvecchio (RSG), Jamie Bend (DfT), Shamit Gaiger (RSSB/DfT), Patrick Malone (DfT). (not shown - Mike Noakes, BEIS)

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FEATURE

There are four main workstreams. Digital Railway will look at the transformation of the railway through digitalisation and seek to reduce unit costs, to agree a roadmap for asset renewal and to come up with a strategy and a delivery plan.

The second workstream is Mobility/Data, and this will look at the development of a data platform, innovation and opportunities for pilot schemes.

Sustainability is the third workstream, to concentrate on delivering a sustainable UK rail sector at home and abroad. It’s a big topic, and one of the first priorities will be to agree a mechanism to improve supply chain engagement through CP6 and beyond. This will include the smoothing of work pipelines (reducing ‘boom and bust’) and so facilitating investment decisions.

Government will need to be involved, as will Network Rail and HS2, which should have similar approaches, and the whole result must be in alignment with the national infrastructure plan.

Export and inward investment is one of the big goals of the whole investment strategy, so this workstream will look at capabilities and opportunities, assess overseas markets and monitor mentoring and secondment programmes.

These four industry workstreams will be supported by three more initiatives that will impinge on all of them. Skills & People will develop the skills base that the industry so badly needs, Productivity will look at ways to increase efficiency in everything that the railway does, and there will be a pilot scheme run in conjunction with the Rail Forum Midlands that will look to increase SME involvement, enhance the offering and

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

take-up of apprenticeships and develop engagement with schools and colleges.

So that’s seven workstreams in total.

Industry is now being asked to ‘volunteer’ to serve on those workstreams, with a list to be published by the end of February.

Moving forward The Rail Sector Deal is a big thing for the industry. Its foreward, signed by secretary of State for Transport Chris Grayling, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Greg Clark, and Gordon Wakeford as Chair of the Rail Supply Group, states: “The UK’s railways are critical to our country’s economic success, as they have been since the age of Brunel. The Government is determined to ensure our railways continue to be at the cutting edge of global trends and build on the enterprise that invented, innovated and advanced rail travel throughout the world.

“The private sector has a significant part to play - privatisation has reversed decades of decline and heralded the fastest expansion of our railways since the Victorian era. This Sector Deal looks to build on the strong partnership working between the rail sector and the government to exploit the opportunities of new technologies, improve the efficient use of our rail network capacity and enhance the experience of the passengers who use our railways, by improving the service they receive.

“The Sector Deal will enable companies to drive innovation, invest in research and development, upskill the workforce and look beyond the UK to export markets worldwide. This Deal provides certainty for the industry with clarity and involvement in shaping investment in our railways for the

first time and, through this collaboration between government and businesses, it will provide better railways for the country’s rail customers.”

Perhaps the last words should be left to Philip Hoare, Anna Delvecchio and Gordon Wakeford, who spearheaded the programme: “One of the things that’s been really important is - why are we doing this?” Philip questioned. “We’re doing this because we fundamentally believe that we have a great railway in the UK that could do better.

When I was working on the Rail Sector Deal, I didn’t think about the company I’m working for, I thought about how to make the railway better in the UK and I think that ethos, coming into it, is critical and I hope that we maintain that.

Anna Delvecchio added: “As a rail industry we should be proud about how far we’ve come and the role we’ve played in shaping the Sector Deal. Now it’s up to us to collaborate and work in new ways to make sure the rail sector deal is delivered.

Behaviours will play a key part in making this happen.”

“There’s no doubt that this is a genuine opportunity for the industry to take centre stage in the country’s push to boost productivity - let’s make it happen.” concluded Gordon.

Developing the Rail Sector Deal, which encourages collaboration and involvement, has been a collaborative effort in itself.

Gordon Wakeford, Philip Hoare and Anna Delvecchio would like to thank government department colleagues Mike Noakes (BEIS), Shamit Gaiger (DfT) Donald McNeill (DIT), Sir Peter Hendy and Andrew Haines (Network Rail) and Mark Thurston (HS2), as well as industry organisations and associations such as RDG, RIA, RFM, RA, UKKRIN, RSSB and NSAR, plus individuals too numerous to mention, all of whom played a key role in speaking with ‘one consistent voice’ to government and making the Rail Sector Deal a reality.

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FEATURE

CLIVE KESSELL

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a migration strategy?

T

he thorny question of what should replace GSM-R as the future radio bearer for track to train communication has recently been the subject of conferences, discussions and, yes, even articles in Rail Engineer. Considerations of 4G, 5G and Wi-Fi options are being assessed, all having their pros and cons, and a few commercial interests have emerged as well.

Whatever and whenever the decision is made for the replacement technology, a major consideration will be how to migrate from GSM-R to its successor. Very little thought seems to have been given to this but Kapsch, as one of the leading suppliers of GSM-R infrastructure, presented a paper in London recently setting out the challenges involved and how they might be overcome. The logistics are somewhat frightening, but they nonetheless will have to be tackled sooner or later.

The present UK position The GSM-R network in England, Wales and Scotland has been fully operational since 2015 and now comprises two MSCs (Master Switching Stations), 3,000+ masts and base stations, 9,500+ cab radios, 4,500 connected trains and 900 signaller terminals, all covering some 15,000km of railway. It’s quite an impressive portfolio, but having to change it all over to something else will need a very carefully thought out migration plan.

The GSM-R industry group has confirmed that it will support GSM-R until 2030, which sounds a long time off but, in reality, is only just over 10 years. In project terms, that deadline will come all too soon.

The Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS) study, being led by the UIC (Union Internationale des Chemins de fer - international union of railways), is making progress with developing a functional specification that the new radio network will need to provide, which is good news, but it offers little advice as to how this might be delivered.

It now seems likely that 5G will be the chosen way forward under the 3GPP R15/R16 (third generation partnership project) terrestrial coverage specification, but this has still to be confirmed. Some requirements are, however, sacrosanct - there must be bearer independence for railway applications, the system must have high robustness and high availability. Those requirements are easily said, but they are not so easy to quantify within a specification.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Functionality The emerging vision for the new radio system is looking at three areas: »» Critical communications - the bearer for ETCS and ATO operation, secure voice communication between driver and signaller, provision for emergency and group calls, real-time video imagery for any occurring incidents; »» Performance communications - on-train telemetry, maintenance of non-critical infrastructure, non-critical real-time video, wireless communication for on-train-staff, on-train voice announcements; »» Business communications - applications including information to the public and passenger communication connections.

These are listed in order of priority and it may not be possible to deliver all of them at the same time in any migration plan.

However, the FRMCS thrust is to have a single network under the railway infrastructure manager’s control for all safety critical application, but also to allow greater flexibility between dedicated rail and public network operators for performance and business applications. Indeed, it is seen as very likely that business applications will be entirely given over to public operators.

This mix of networks might entail having a ‘Mobile Communications Gateway’ as part of the on board system.

Radio spectrum GSM-R enjoys a European-led dedicated allocation in the 900MHz band, comprising both a 4MHz uplink and downlink bandwidth, which is now recognised internationally. Recent channel allocations adjacent to these have created some interference problems but improved filtering has largely overcome the problem.

© DB/Hartmut Reiche

FEATURE

Knowing the future challenges that a migration will cause and the wider use of radio for other purposes, the EU has made a declaration to allocate an additional 2 x 1.6MHz of spectrum adjacent to the present GSM-R uplinks and downlinks. This will be critical to any migration plan as it should permit in-band coexistence of present and future services.

The present GSM-R infrastructure is built around 900MHz operation, with radio masts and towers sited for the coverage patterns of that band. The possibility of having both multiband and wideband aerials on the same sites could cause problems with mast loading, so engineering calculations will be needed. Appropriate separation of aerials on the tower or mast will be sensitive to avoid unwanted interference.

Train aerials, which can be a challenge to fit on the different classes of rolling stock, should ideally be capable of being used for both old and new systems if the spectrum allocation is the same, but there are technical challenges to this which may mean more than one aerial. No change to the permitted radiated power limits is expected.

A special case for deploying 5G technology in the 900MHz band will be needed, as this is not currently permitted for public 5G usage. It may be necessary to provide some additional radio sites to minimise interference from neighbouring users and to create additional traffic-handling capability by having smaller cells.

There is also the potential for having FRMCS services moved to either the 1900-1920MHz or the 2.3GHz bands. These might end up as complementary bands to provide additional spectrum to the 900MHz allocation. There may be complications in using these bands as different countries (including the UK) have parts of them allocated for other users and purposes.

There is lots of competition for spectrum allocation and it may require the railways to co-exist with other users. However, this would almost certainly mean that new infrastructure would have to be to be planned and it would create fitment problems on rolling stock, so, for now, it is not a preferred option.

In view of these problems, Kapsch seems to be recommending a mix and match of duplication. Any plan must firstly concentrate on the critical communication need, primarily the bearer requirements for ETCS and voice communication to and from the driver. The former, although at first sight appearing to be the most important, will only have that status if ETCS with no lineside signals is the only control system for the line. If the ETCS is an overlay, then a more relaxed way forward might be adopted whereby, for a short period of time, trains are driven traditionally to whatever aspects are showing on the lineside signals.

By 2023, it is difficult to assess just how many rail routes in the UK will be operating with full ETCS Level 2 and no signals.

Certainly, the Cambrian line, as that is already equipped in that fashion, and probably the southern part of the East Coast main line. Beyond that, it is anyone’s guess and much will depend on the roll out programme of the Digital Railway team.

It must be said that predictions for ETCS adoption over the past five years have been wildly optimistic, so any dates into the future should be treated with a degree of caution.

The Kapsch recommendation is that radio infrastructure would need to be duplicated in as short a time as possible, but concentrating on the ETCS-equipped routes as a priority. This will mean the provision of new core network elements, new base stations and, possibly, new aerials, with the necessary redundancy to meet the high availability requirements of the railways.

The next generation of network design will be much ‘flatter’ than at present, meaning that MSCs and base station controllers may disappear. Whatever the outcome, the new network must operate alongside the existing GSM-R network. Assuming the 900MHz band is continued, then the existing masts and towers would be suitable, subject to loading limits for new antennae.

Where coverage is provided in tunnels by radiating cable, then a means of mixing the old and new radio signals will need to be devised, but this should not be a major problem.

The new radio infrastructure will require a separate land-based network that, logically, will be based on IP communication, including all the backhaul links to and between the base stations. Clearly this network will need full resilience, synchronisation for both frequency and phase (PTP - Phase and Time Protocol), path asymmetry, accuracy of time stamp and packet delay variation, plus, of course, minimising the threat of cyber attacks. With regard the latter, the security offered by 5G should be markedly improved over GSM-R.

Planning for migration It is clear that any migration of this magnitude cannot be achieved overnight. The development of a 5G railway network is unlikely to produce new systems before 2023 at the earliest.

Assuming all goes well, there will then need to be several years of co-existence of both old and new networks.

These sorts of challenges have happened before when planning changeovers involving both track-based and train-borne equipment.

It is usual to either duplicate the infrastructure or duplicate the train kit, which is fine for a self-contained line such as a metro but much more difficult for a main line railway with many interconnecting lines and different types of rolling stock.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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FEATURE Even when decisions have been made on duplication, a carefully planned migration strategy will be required to manage the actual changeovers. Kapsch has come up with what is termed a ‘whitespace’ plan, whereby a wideband carrier is superimposed on to the GSM-R channel to enable the continuance of GSM-R services plus up to 5.6MHz of 5G operation. This would allow the gradual introduction of FRMCS services on to the existing GSM-R spectrum but assumes at least an additional 1MHz of bandwidth is allocated.

Included in this plan will be the smooth decommissioning of GSM-R frequencies, which can then be immediately used for FRMCS services, giving much more flexibility to the migration programme.

reprogramming of balises to reflect the new condition will be an unwanted burden and therefore it is more likely that some on-air signal will need to be devised.

Rolling stock considerations

Capacity and priorities

The retro fitting of rolling stock is both complex and expensive, regardless of what equipment is involved. The cab radios do not take up much space, so having to have two radios in the cab may not be as onerous as some retrofits.

As well as the cab radio, there will need to be provision of the train aerial(s), additional power supply requirements and a second train data radio associated with the ETCS kit. None of this will be straightforward and significant expense will be incurred.

The Kapsch view is that, once the decision on the new radio standard is finalised, then fitting the equipment to the trains should become a franchise requirement. It would also be advisable for any new rolling stock procured following the radio decision to be made ready for (or even provided with) two train radio configurations, including multiple aerials along the train.

The question is posed as to whether the existing 900MHz allocation, without any additional bandwidth being provided, could support both the GSM-R and FRCMS systems. This seems unlikely, hence the negotiations with the CEPT to obtain the additional 1.6MHz of spectrum.

Although the ETCS operation requires near constant reception, the bandwidth required for individual trains is low - about 4kbps.

Even with many trains operating within one radio cell, the now proven and adopted use of packet switched data has considerably eased the problem for both old and new to be contained.

However, should any voice communication take place at the same time, and possibly from multiple trains, it is quite likely that insufficient spectrum will be available. In very busy areas, such as city centres where radio signals will spill over from one line to another, this is already recognised as a problem with GSM-R. One solution would be to re-engineer the cell structure so as to create smaller cells but, even with this, it is a complex engineering and coverage challenge and the chance of spill-over remains.

To provide all the services envisaged in the FRCMS specification would be unrealisable, so priority will have to be given to the critical communications services, with other usage being restricted. The business and passenger communication requirements might have to wait for another chunk of spectrum in another band to become available and/or agreement with other network operators to provide these.

As such, the case for additional spectrum is reinforced. Much will depend on how usage works out in practice and some traffic modelling will be necessary.

Changeover en-route With a mix of both infrastructure and train-borne kit, there will then be the challenge of which radio is used on the train depending on where it is on the journey. For the voice radio in the driver’s cab, this should not be too much of a problem as both radios will be powered all the time and it will be obvious which one is active to transmit or receive messages.

For the train radio provided for the ETCS equipment, however, the problem will require more thought since the ETCS movement authority (MA) will require a near-constant transmission of confirmation data from the control centre. In the event of nonreceipt of the data within a few seconds, the MA will be lost and the train will automatically brake to a standstill until the MA is restored.

Thus, the continuance of the radio signal must be guaranteed during any changeover from GSM-R to the FRCMS and vice versa.

The use of eurobalises to achieve this may be one solution, although it is a clumsy one as the changeover point will be altered from time to time as the radio infrastructure is updated. The

Some final thoughts That someone is giving consideration to how GSM-R will be migrated to a new radio standard is commendable. It is not going to happen tomorrow and the first migration will probably not be until 2023. However, that falls within Network Rail’s CP6, which leaves no great time for the planning process.

There is a significant risk that this advice will be ignored. Many signal engineers have a real problem in understanding the importance of the radio link within the overall ERTMS provision. It is as if they think ‘it will always be there’, a dangerous assumption.

Even radio planning authorities have been known to publish papers that state “the railways have GSM-R so all is sorted”.

The harsh reality is that, however much ETCS equipment is installed on both trains and control centres, if the radio link is unavailable and/or unreliable, then it is all a waste of time. Which should provide network planners with food for thought.

Thanks to the IRSE London & South East section for organising the presentation and to Pierre Tane from Kapsch for delivering the paper.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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FEATURE

CLIVE KESSELL

© iStock Photo

M

uch has been written and said in recent times about efforts to improve the throughput of trains on metro and inner suburban railways.

Using CBTC has enabled 36 trains per hour (tph) to be achieved in each direction on London Underground’s Victoria Line. A dramatic improvement to passenger comfort has resulted and much of the severe overcrowding has been eliminated. Similar predictions are made for other LU Lines and also the full Thameslink and Crossrail (Elizabeth line) services when they reach full fruition.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

the closure process whilst people are still squeezing in, otherwise the train would never get underway.

A further factor is now influencing the process, this being to take account of the needs of disabled people, with legislation

© iStock Photo

However, a crucial factor in all of this is the ‘dwell time’ at stations to allow travellers to alight and board the trains. If the time taken for this overruns by more than a few seconds, then very quickly the delay to following trains builds up and the intended throughput becomes unachievable.

A service gap of more than three or four minutes means that crowds increase on the platform, extending the dwell time at every station as they attempt to board the first train, compounding the problem.

Although, in theory, drivers are not supposed to initiate door closure until everyone is safely on board, in practice, they occasionally have to start

potentially increasing the dwell time period. Whilst the Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations (RVAR) of 2010 (its forbear being the Disability Discrimination Act) is intent on allowing additional time to board, the basis of this prescription may not have been scientifically derived, with perhaps a less than optimum situation developing.

London Underground was concerned that a negative impact could result and initiated a trial to establish exactly how passengers behave when boarding tube trains. Rail Engineer went along to learn the facts.

FEATURE

When a train arrives at a station, providing it is proved stationary and at the right location, door opening is initiated by the driver. After passengers have alighted and boarded, a door closure alert signal (known as a Chime) sounds for a period before the doors begin to close.

Providing nothing is trapped in the doors (see later paragraph), the driver’s door close pilot light illuminates and the train start buttons can be pressed for ATO equipped lines or the driver engages traction power if driving manually.

The chime signal time is crucial. The LU standard is 1.75 seconds ± 0.25 seconds, whereas the RVAR (aligned to the Equality Act) requirement is three seconds. This difference, whilst small, can accumulate to several seconds for an end-to-end train journey and, if applied to every train, can significantly reduce the overall service throughput. More importantly, however, does changing to three seconds make any detectable difference to either non-disabled or disabled passenger behaviour?

One important element is the ‘hustle’ effect.

When the door chime sounds, a regular occurrence is for passengers to hurry into a nearby door so as to avoid waiting for the next train.

Regular commuters are adept at knowing which door is nearest to the exit at their destination station, so they will not always board a train when it arrives but instead continue to

© TfL

Door closure sequence

walk along the platform to the preferred door.

If the chime sounds before they get there, they jump in through the nearest open door.

Equally, travellers who are not regular underground users and who may be tourists from another country, on hearing the chime, will rush to the nearest door, often with large amounts of luggage.

Any instance of incomplete boarding will result in a door obstruction situation and potential train delay. As a door obstruction takes a minimum of five seconds to resolve, the delay impact can be significant if compounded along the route. On the Victoria line, any door obstruction incident is automatically flagged within the train software and sent by Wi-Fi to the server, available for review by engineers within 20 minutes.

Two groups of risks associated with the door closure sequence.

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© TfL

FEATURE

A schematic of how the balance of the two types of risks can result in the lowest overall risk.

Different marques of Underground train have differing solutions to this situation. The most modern trains (Victoria line 2009 stock and the S stock units on the sub-surface lines) have obstruction detection whereby, should an obstruction occur, the door will reopen part way to allow the obstruction to be pulled clear.

They also have sensitive door edges where any deformation of the door edge will cause an emergency brake application should the train have started to move. This deformation can be caused by even very thin items which, when caught, would be pulled on as the train begins to move.

Older trains are designed to ensure doors are fully closed before traction power can be applied. However, this system is not foolproof and thin items such as bag straps or coat belts can be trapped between the doors and are not always detectable. Unfamiliar users often expect the doors to re-open if an obstruction is detected, much as they do on lifts, but this is not true for Underground trains or indeed any UK train with sliding doors.

All of this presents a complex set of circumstances that, when combined with the differing views on chime time, meant that a comprehensive trial was necessary to understand more completely the impact on passenger behaviour and minimising the ensuing risks.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

The trial To be meaningful, plans for any trial must define what it sets out to do, the way it will be measured and how the results will be analysed. The intent of this exercise was to assess the impact of different door chime timings with respect to the following aspects of door usage and passenger behaviour: safety, accessibility and capacity (in that order).

The trial, which took place on the Victoria line, consisted of a number of investigations within the context of both a 1.8 sec and 3.0 sec chime duration, covering: »» Door obstruction data, collected from the rolling stock; »» Platform observations; »» Reported safety incidents; »» Passenger survey; »» Service data (dwell times, lateness).

The door obstruction data ended up being the most meaningful in terms of assessing safety: it was used as a proxy for the number of passengers being struck by the doors, an indication of items that could be trapped (risk of dragging), and an indication of the number of passengers running (risk of slips and trips).

If LU’s concerns about the hustle effect were correct, an increase of door obstructions would be observed.

To be effective, the trial needed to ascertain the before and after situation, so data and observations were obtained prior to August 2017 after which the chime duration was changed to three seconds for a period of six months. The whole Victoria line fleet of 37 trains, each of eight cars, was altered so as to get consistency and to accurately observe passenger behaviour. The results have proved interesting.

Results The door open and close sequence was found to be well disciplined at peak hours, with regular travellers standing clear of the doors before getting on in order to allow passengers getting off to disembark more quickly. During off peak periods, however, unfamiliar travellers tended to block the door egress, thus slowing the whole process. A longer chime

duration did allow more time to get out of the way of the doors, but equally gave more time to try and board.

The sounding of the chime has always been known to prompt late boarders to run for the nearest door. With 1.8 seconds, the time was insufficient for this to be successful unless very close to a door. Extending the time to three seconds saw an increase of the hustle effect with the result that noticeably more door obstructions occurred. This worsened the safety risks as more doors were striking or trapping passengers, the numbers of trips/falls increased and more pushing/obstruction of other travellers took place.

Clearly there is a linkage between door obstructions and passenger demand, with the number of obstructions using a 1.8 sec chime remaining fairly constant throughout the year, rising slightly between October and the year end. Introducing the three second chime saw a marked increase in obstructions during the lead up to Christmas, during the January sales and at public holiday weekends.

The overall finding was that off peak, more people ran for a door once the chime sounds as the platforms are less crowded, whereas in the peak more people tried to squeeze in.

Not surprisingly, the highest number of door obstructions occurred at the busier stations.

The northbound platform at Victoria was by far the worst, with an average of 245 obstructions happening each day during the three-second chime period, an increase of 60 (32 per cent) over the 1.8 sec time. Oxford Circus and Kings Cross also recorded high numbers of around 150, in all cases the longer chime time being marginally worse.

At less-busy stations, the effect was more prominent - at Highbury and Islington southbound in the morning peak, the

Š TfL

FEATURE

obstructions rose 80 per cent with the extended chime time and an overall increase was noticed throughout the day.

The door obstructions were also markedly different down the length of the train. At Oxford Circus (northbound), the problem mostly occurred at the doors in the second and third front cars, close to the exit for the concourse and interchange for the Bakerloo line, and at the rear end where people change for the Central line. The number of door obstructions were significantly increased with the three-second timing.

The total number of 'door # not closed' events recorded between 01/09 and 22/12 at Highbury & Islington platform 5 for both 2017 (trial) and 2016 (baseline).

Analysing the trial Clearly the increase in chime time had a detrimental effect on obstruction occurrences and, due to the safety impact, the Victoria line fleet has since reverted to a 1.8 second timing.

That said, it has been necessary to submit the findings to vested interest groups. Presentations have been given to the London Underground hierarchy (DRACCT - Directorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Risk Assurance Change Control Team), to Transport for London (TfL), the Department for Transport (DfT, in effect - the government) and the Office of Rail and Road (ORR - the rail regulator). The DfT has forwarded the results to the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) and other stakeholder groups.

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© Muhammad Junaid

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number of stations and large projects underway to improve accessibility.

Factors for the future It may be asked how this trial impacts on other metro/ light-rail operators and, indeed, mainline suburban services.

Main line operation is different in that it provides timetabled departures rather than a highfrequency, turn up and go service, and as such passengers have more time to plan their journey and associated timings at a station. That said, the likes of Thameslink and Crossrail (Elizabeth line) may be more akin to LU operation in the central London sections.

The eventual adoption of fully automatic trains (Unattended Train Operation - UTO) may well become reality. They exist already on the Paris Metro (Lines 1 and 14) where door operation is programmed automatically, dependent on the particular station and the time of day. When the

programmed time has elapsed, the doors will begin to close regardless of whether boarding is still taking place or not.

Centralised CCTV monitoring of conditions takes place both on platform and train so that remote intervention can happen should anything untoward occur. Travellers have got used to this and it is now part of normal life.

The current modernisation of the Glasgow Subway will adopt UTO when completed in the early 2020s.

In all, this trial demonstrated the many complex interactions that take place at the platformtrain interface. As the population of London increases, so the pressure to provide more and more public transport services will mount and the need to be up-to-speed with technology and optimum routines will become ever more vital.

Thanks to Zoë Dobell, LU’s project engineer for the trial, for this fascinating insight. © iStock Photo

A passenger questionnaire has been conducted in an attempt to establish what passengers believe are the safety risks associated with their journey. Approximately 150 responses were received, which is considered sufficient to gain some understanding but is a very small sample compared to the approximate 75 million passenger journeys made on the Victoria line during the period of the trial.

Of these respondents, 60 per cent considered themselves to have a disability. Oddly, the time to board and door closure time feature less than the fear of interaction with other passengers who might, in their urgency to board, push people both on the train and on the platform. There was little difference in the responses from both disabled and non-disabled passengers.

Overall, the trial findings have been well received, since there is now hard proof that the three-second chime offers little improvement to accessibility and has a negative impact on safety. The recommendation from LU is that the standard should remain at 1.75 ± 0.25 secs, and this is being considered by the aforementioned bodies.

London Underground stresses the point that it is totally committed to improve accessibility across the entire network, with step-free access being provided at an increasing

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FEATURE

Using Data

to Improve

MALCOLM DOBELL

Fleet Maintenance

R

ail Engineer has reported on the use of data analytics before (issues 136 and 148, February 2016 and February 2017) following attendance at Rolling Stock Maintenance conferences organised by London Business Conferences.

The latest conference on the same topic was held recently in a new venue in west London that enjoyed a lot more space.

So what has changed over the last few years?

Perhaps it is best to start with a recap.

Despite the general title, this series of conferences has tended to emphasise the use of data to improve rolling stock performance and maintenance efficiency. It focuses on a number of approaches to maintenance that rely on data: predictive maintenance, where sensors send data to help analysts predict when maintenance is required; Reliability Centred Maintenance - a process of analysis to determine the optimum maintenance approach for each component; and Remote Condition Monitoring, leading to Condition Based

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

Maintenance (CBM) where maintenance is carried out with knowledge of condition.

The recent conference included 25 presentations, a panel session (in which your writer unexpectedly participated) and a small exhibition including Perpetuum, Trimble, Humaware, Lucchini, NEM Solutions, Nomad Digital, RSSB, Siemens, SKF, UBIMET, and Unipart Rail.

What follows is a selection of the highlights.

Optimising resources Inevitably, in a conference with so many papers, there was a certain repetition, albeit with differences of emphasis.

The overall objectives were probably summed up best by Lee Braybrooke of Trimble who highlighted that fleet managers should be seeking higher utilisation of their fleets, seeking to optimise the use of their resources - both people and facilities, monitoring leading indicators to identify failure points, reduce risk, minimise unscheduled maintenance, and deliver cost savings. He added that fleet managers should also be moving to condition based and predictive maintenance.

FEATURE

Mark Johnson, South East Trains’ engineering director and chair of the RDG Fleet Reliability Focus Forum, opened the conference. He highlighted the large number of new trains being introduced onto the railway and which are generally equipped with data systems that bring the opportunity to implement CBM. That was the good news.

However, he explained that many of the new trains are replacing comparatively modern trains that perform well, compared with the more usual situation where new trains replace those that are life expired. Fleet Focus has encouraged a general improvement in fleet performance and, over the last 10 years, the distance between technical incidents (MTIN) has increased from 5,000 miles to roundly 10,000 miles. The bad news was that, with the influx of new trains, Mark was forecasting a dip in MTIN results whilst the new trains “bed in”.

With that sobering thought, the conference moved to a case study from Paolo Masini from Trenitalia’s rolling stock technology and maintenance engineering department.

His organisation’s aim is to get to the most appropriate maintenance for the component concerned. He illustrated this with the examples of doors.

There is no point maintaining doors on a distance-run basis as doors usually only work when trains are stationary, resulting in doors on nonstopping services being over-

maintained compared with those on stopping services.

If the maintenance planner knows the frequency of door operation, then maintenance can be organised based on that frequency, but if more information is available, such as speed of door operation, then maintenance might be delayed until performance starts to degrade, provided no prior safety checks are required.

Extending life Moving on to a practical example, Pedro Conceição from Nomad Digital highlighted work on a customer’s fleet over a period of nearly 15 years, which has seen over 70 per cent of maintenance tasks redesigned following comprehensive Reliability Centred Maintenance studies.

Some 50 per cent of tasks are still preventive, with three quarters of these based on condition or to find hidden failures (those failures that are only evident if something else fails). Around 45 per cent of components are allowed to run

to failure and about five per cent of components needed re-engineering following the failure modes and effects analysis carried out as part of the Reliability Centred Maintenance process.

As a result, availability has grown from about 70 per cent to over 90 per cent and the failure rate has reduced by two thirds from about nine failures/ million km operated to less than three. He did make the point that no condition-based or predictive maintenance programme can overcome fundamentally unreliable systems or components.

Justin Southcombe of Perpetuum has featured in the previous articles. The company makes vibration energy harvesting devices that power an accelerometer that transmits its data wirelessly to the train, enabling simple retrofitting. It is also maintenance free. It was originally sold to monitor the condition of bearings, but since then has been used to monitor wheel-tread condition and track condition.

Nomad Digital - The increase in peak availability and the decrease in failures per million km operated over time.

Perpetuum Monitoring the wheel health index over time.

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Leo Express operates Flirt trains in the Czech Republic and Poland.

Unpart Rail – Remote Condition Monitoring systems can inform the depot of spares requirements before the train even arrives.

Perpetuum has embarked on a £1 million project with the University of Southampton and TWI (The Welding Institute) to use tri-axial accelerometers which will exploit the natural frequencies of axles, excited by wheel/track impacts, to measure load and detect cracks with the prospect that, one day, routine non-destructive axle testing might be eliminated.

Justin highlighted a commercial innovation introduced through a partnership between Perpetuum and Shaeffler, the parent company of FAG bearings. Shaeffler is offering the opportunity for railways to pay a flat rate per month for the use of both Shaeffler’s bearings and Perpetuum monitoring devices.

The rationale for this offer is as follows. Rolling stock bearings do not, in general, wear out, indeed they are generally replaced at a defined point in order to ensure they do not wear out.

The overwhelming majority of the population of these conservatively rated bearings might last a great deal longer than the nominal life assigned to them, whilst a minority

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might fail prematurely (often causing service disruption). The proposition is that monitored bearings that give ample warning of failure could be allowed to run for an extended service life. This is the basis of the Shaeffler offer.

In return for the monthly fee, Shaeffler will guarantee that a large percentage of the bearings, for example 90 per cent, will reach an extended target life, and will supply replacement bearings for fitment at the extended interval. The supplier provides fewer bearings over the life of the train and the train operator saves money by replacing them less frequently.

Bearings that fail prematurely will warn of impending failure and replacement will be carried out “funded” by the “savings” on routine replacement.

Shaeffler said that the savings for a legacy five-car train over 20 years amounted to €0.09 per train/km as, effectively, at least one bogie overhaul is eliminated.

In a different solution to the same bearing monitoring task, Maurizio Giomavelli presented the SKF Insight “totally wireless” sensor to monitor

bearing condition. It is battery powered and uses a 2G/3G Internet of Things data service to transmit data “directly from sensor to cloud” and into SKF’s Bearing Application Knowledge Back End. Maurizio made the point that all bearings solutions are designed, calculated and tested for a specific bogie application: bearing manufacturer engineers are involved in the whole OEM process. The notable difference between SKF’s sensor and Perpetuum’s is that the SKF product is somewhat smaller.

Logistical challenges David McGorman, digital director of Unipart Rail and managing director of Instrumental, spoke about a world where the supply base is linked into the Remote Condition Monitoring system and is able to dispatch a spare part to a depot almost before the train has got there to have the defective component changed. Several speakers echoed the benefit of the entire supply chain having access to all the data for their respective components. This would allow much more useful data/ information exchange than, for example, blue card labels with fault symptoms and paper reports of the repairs.

Philippe de Leharpe from SNCF spoke about the challenge of a large, but dispersed, fleet where any one depot only sees a few vehicles. Data systems add value by allowing managers of small fleets to measure the performance of their vehicles against the overall fleet performance. He also reported

FEATURE that they were gaining value from adding RCM technology to older vehicles. The Corail trailer coaches from the mid 1970s have had sensing and data transmission fitted to warn both train staff, via their mobile phones, and control room staff of issues with the train doors open/close status, pressure of door closing cylinder and status of the doors closed lamp.

Gerald Schinagl of ÖBB, the Austrian state operator, introduced their process. He summed up his presentation in a few words, that “this is a journey, not a pre-determined destination; although it’s increasingly evident that it’s a worthwhile journey”.

He said that ÖBB had set up a team of 12 diverse people under the brand DIGI@ttack, reporting directly to the managing director. They were referred to as agile and holistic in activity with an evolutionary organisation and a challenging mindset. They had to deal with enormous expectations from people who expected instant results and who thought it was just a new tool.

Emphasising the importance of looking at the rolling stock and infrastructure holistically, Gerald warned his audience not to assume that, “just because one rolls on the other”, models or algorithms for rails will work for wheels.

He added that this is not an IT topic, but it is very technological; that supplier solutions might be limiting. He said it is a mindset and culture programme and, although a project is a good way to start, it needs to move into business as usual. Technology and Data Science competences are located in DIGI@ttack but are organised as a joint team with ÖBB’s Engineering Technical Services team.

The aim is to keep knowhow inside the company and respond to day-to-day challenges, including the deployment of “minimum viable products” to address those challenges. Gerald particularly emphasised the importance of providing management with information about the impact on job roles three to five years ahead, for example so that people are not

recruited for roles no longer needed!

He also spoke about the use of “sexy” devices such as virtual or assisted reality as a good ice breaker when introducing new ways of working.

UBIMET – Local weather forecasting can help predict the possibility of disruption.

Something completely different Stefan Eisenbach of UBIMET, a meteorology company specialising in high-resolution and very local weather models and severe weather alerts, introduced how local weather forecasts, specific to an area or route, could be used to optimise operation and maintenance.

Creating specialist weather forecasts for railways started in 2005 when the Austrian Federal Railways asked UBIMET to implement a nationwide meteorological monitoring and warning system in order to face the challenges of climate change and more frequent extreme weather events. He said that general weather forecasts, which provide information about areas, are unsuitable for railways as they require information about routes and, particularly, local features such as cool valleys or cuttings or exposed embankments or bridges.

UBIMET has developed algorithms to provide precise weather forecasts along all railway lines, severe weather warnings for the network and critical assets and special risk predictions for a safe operation (icing risk, trees on tracks).

Leo Express operates Flirt trains in the Czech Republic and Poland.

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

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FEATURE

Chilten Railways - A one-eighth scale model of a train cab has been developed

by Cranfield University and Garrandale Rail to assess the possibility of using robotic solutions for train maintenance.

The objective of this is to reduce safety risk whilst improving network availability together with improved efficiency and reduced cost.

Nguyen Manh Phuc from Leo Express described some of the challenges affecting a small open access operator.

The company operates three million train kilometres per year using a fleet of five new fivecar Stadler Flirt EMUs in the Czech Republic and Poland and second-hand locomotives and carriages in Germany.

The five Flirt units, which are operated intensively, were the basis of his case study. He said that, during their first two years, the company relied on the manufacturer for maintenance, but thereafter recruited its own team, reducing costs by over 40 per cent.

A further cost saving is made by buying spares directly from the original producer rather than from the train manufacturer, although Stadler still overhauls the bogies. This needs careful planning - the maintenance frequency is every one million kilometres, which for Leo Express is every two years. The company has thirty bogies (six on each train due to its articulated design) plus three spares. Three bogies are dismounted and swapped for the spares, then sent away for overhaul - half train by

Rail Engineer | Issue 171 | Jan/Feb 2019

half train. The overhaul takes two weeks and the whole programme takes six months.

Equally, Leo Express were proud of the work carried out in house to make the Flirt units suitable for operation in Poland, which included modifications to the safety systems, energy consumption meter and to lights. The first unit took one month to modify and the rest were completed over three months. It was reported that the supplier estimated three months to modify one train at much higher cost.

The final challenge reported was that Leo Express does not have its own depot and has to “fit in” others’ depots. Plans are in hand to build a dedicated depot in the Czech Republic near the Ostrava-Prague corridor.

And finally Simon Jarrett, head of technical services for Chiltern Railways, talked about robotics in train

maintenance, specifically cabfront cleaning and replenishment of fluids (Issue 159, January 2018). Since then, a one-eighth scale model has been completed

by Cranfield University and partners Garrandale Rail and this was being demonstrated. Simon said that the motivation for developing robotic solutions is to reduce the number of people that have to work trackside around moving trains and that it is increasingly difficult to recruit staff to carry out these comparatively low-skilled jobs.

Reflecting after the conference, it was clear that speakers had generally recognised that Remote Condition Monitoring is largely a people and process issue, enabled by the IT. This is a significant change in the four years that Rail Engineer has covered this series of conferences, when one might have concluded that all one needed were sensors, analytics and “sexy front ends”.

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