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  1. Q

    Potential timetable for the Leeds - Huddersfield - Manchester route once TRU is complete

    Useful update at a recent TfN meeting: https://democracy.transportforthenorth.com/documents/s10675/Transpennine Route Upgrade TFN Summer 25.pdf It includes this slide showing the proposed service:
  2. Q

    How should the additional Leeds - Sheffield Northern service be operated?

    Moderator note: Split from: https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/leeds-station-improvement.170747/page-46#post-7340344 It would be better for the new fast Leeds-Sheffield service to take over Nottingham duties. In fact, wasn't this the Northern Connect plan?
  3. Q

    Milton Keynes after EWR opens

    Milton Keynes will offer significant interchange opportunities when EWR opens later this year, with the potential to significantly improve journey times from the North to the Thames valley and relieve crowding elsewhere e.g. Birmingham New Street. Additional long distance through services may be...
  4. Q

    Skipton-Colne again... sorry!

    I've tended to dismiss the potential of reopening Skipton-Colne, lumping it within other "hardy perennial" basket cases like Bradford crossrail, Woodhead, Okehampton-Tavistock and so on. My skepticism may have been increased by the overblown claims made about the reopening by its proponents -...
  5. Q

    Suggestions for new short-ish lines

    There are lots of campaigns focussed on reopening closed railway lines. But what short-ish lengths of new line (up to about 15 miles long, as per the Selby diversion) could be built to give major improvements to the rail network? A couple of suggestions to kick off: 1. Morpeth bypass - not a...
  6. Q

    Laura Shoaf appointed as GBR chair

    https://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2024/10/03-new-great-british-railways-chair.html I hadn't heard of her previously, but I think it's a good call for the GBR chair to have an operational background rather than infrastructure, and good that it's someone with experience of non-London urban...
  7. Q

    Northern unit reallocation

    3-car Class 331s are now running on the Leeds North-West routes. My understanding was that this was going to happen when the platform extensions currently underway were completed, allowing 2x3-car services to run. Unfortunately it seems the units are being run already, before the platform works...
  8. Q

    How might the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) affect the route around Cross Gates?

    Moderator note: Split from https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/transpennine-route-upgrade-and-electrification-updates-cp6.88054/ The topography from Google maps seems to match the sketch. No way you're getting four tracks through there without widening the cutting. All doable of course, and...
  9. Q

    Has the UK lost the ability to do large engineering projects post WW2?

    moderator note - split from here. Yes - although the problem is largely psychological. The whole "Germany was bombed to smithereens which enabled them to start with a fresh slate" argument seems philosophically unsound to me. Winning the war (or more accurately being the junior partner on the...
  10. Q

    Weakest link on the intercity network

    What is the weakest intercity link between two places on the network, considering capacity, service frequency, speed and size of places served? For the purposes of this exercise, let's only consider the current network, ignoring connections that we think should exist but don't. Intercity...
  11. Q

    Advance notice of advance ticket availability

    I'm looking to do some long distance journeys in June involving multiple operators. Is there a facility anywhere that allows you to see when operators release their advance tickets, or do I just keep checking a journey planner until they appear?
  12. Q

    History of Transpennine services

    I'm familiar with the evolution of Transpennine services from the early 90s following the introduction of the Class 158s. But what was the Leeds-Manchester service like prior to this? I vaguely remember loco-hauled services in the 1980s, but which cross-Pennine line was considered the...
  13. Q

    How important is OOC to HS2?

    Thought this comment in another thread was an interesting point (although I disagree). My view is that Old Oak Common is significantly more important than merely offering a connection to Heathrow (although that is a significant benefit on its own). Connecting the GWML and HS2 at OOC also...
  14. Q

    Airedale / Wharfedale line history

    Mods: Please put in history section if appropriate. Quick question for the Railforums hivemind: The Airedale line used to be four-track from Leeds to Shipley (and also Bingley to Keighley), and the Wharfedale branch was double-tracked throughout. At some point the four-track sections were...
  15. Q

    NPR - the shambles continues

    Government doesn't know how derided Integrated Rail Plan 'will work on the ground', Transport minister admits | Yorkshire Post Isn't this the first thing you do when planning transport? You determine what capacity you need to provide, and then you come up with options for delivering it.
  16. Q

    Transport for the North - NPR funding stopped

    The DfT has removed NPR from Transport for the North, which will now be developed by the DfT. Looks like a classic Whitehall powergrab. Labour attacks ‘Whitehall power grab’ over northern rail policy | Transport policy | The Guardian
  17. Q

    British Rail early 90s Intercity Plan

    I remember reading in some rail magazine many moons ago about Intercity's upgrade plans in the 90s once the ECML had been electrified. It went something like: Upgrade WCML, then electrify the GWML, then a further ECML upgrade including a bypass tunnel under York station. Was this an actual plan...
  18. Q

    How long will the Class 810s stay on Midland Main Line

    With momentum building for the electrification of MML to Sheffield and Nottingham, should we expect to see the Class 810s replaced by new electric-only trains once electrification is complete, and then a cascade to XC?
  19. Q

    HS2 Euston - number of platforms... again...

    This surprisingly informative piece in NCE about the number of platforms needed at Euston is the best explanation I've seen in print to date: Explained: Why 11 platforms are needed at HS2's Euston terminus | New Civil Engineer I've a few questions and thought I'd bring them here given the...
  20. Q

    HS2 Eastern Leg updates

    If news reports are to be believed it appears the HS2 eastern leg has been given the go-ahead: HS2 will go to Leeds, promises transport secretary Grant Shapps - Leeds Live (leeds-live.co.uk) Sounds pretty definitive - doesn't sound as if they are preparing to row back on it.

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