£11.5m track upgrade will mean three-week closure for rail line north of Dingwall

[nuts & bolts]

The Far North Line will be closed north of Dingwall for a three-week period this summer so that an £11.5 million track upgrading programme can be carried out.

Highland Far North Line to get £11.5m summer upgrade

Refurbishment or replacement will be carried out on about 15 miles (25km) of track in total.

www.bbc.co.uk

The work will see a five-mile (8km) stretch between Brora and Helmsdale refurbished and almost nine miles (15km) of track between Invergordon and Fearn replaced.

To allow the work to be carried out safely, the line will be closed with no trains running north of Dingwall from Sunday 8 June until Monday 30 June.

Dalchalm level crossing will also be temporarily closed during the work, with traffic diverted via the A9.

 

[Ships]

5 miles of refurbishment and 8 miles of full renewal for 11.5 million on single line is very good going!

 

[Bald Rick]

5 miles of refurbishment and 8 miles of full renewal for 11.5 million on single line is very good going!

Whilst I don’t know the details, the ‘full renewal’ is actually ‘replacing track’ in the press release. That almost certainly means rail and sleepers only, and I would expect that to be steel sleepers given the line’s usage. That means not much plant required, and a unit rate of about £1m a mile when you take into account that it includes daytime working and a long block meaning low costs for taking the block itself. The refurbishment could be spot resleepering, rerailing, stone drops + tamping, changing some components, or any combination.
Probably the most expensive bit will be collecting the old materials, and hotels for the crew doing it!

Add that all up and the cost feels about right.

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

Whilst I don’t know the details, the ‘full renewal’ is actually ‘replacing track’ in the press release. That almost certainly means rail and sleepers only, and I would expect that to be steel sleepers given the line’s usage. That means not much plant required, and a unit rate of about £1m a mile when you take into account that it includes daytime working and a long block meaning low costs for taking the block itself. The refurbishment could be spot resleepering, rerailing, stone drops + tamping, changing some components, or any combination.
Probably the most expensive bit will be collecting the old materials, and hotels for the crew doing it!

Add that all up and the cost feels about right.

Plenty of daylight hours that far North as well that time of the year

 

[Bald Rick]

Plenty of daylight hours that far North as well that time of the year

Yep, perhaps 2 gangs, double shifts; assuming all the materials are placed in advance they could do up to half a mile a day at a push. Albeit the weather will intervene up there!

 

[Harpo]

Big bang jobs are good for the economics of social railways by doing their renewals efficiently. They’re also good for the railway as a whole by using expensive kit on weekdays.

 

[Bald Rick]

Big bang jobs are good for the economics of social railways by doing their renewals efficiently. They’re also good for the railway as a whole by using expensive kit on weekdays.

Indeed. Albeit there are limits - getting lots of engineering trains in the week can be tricky, as the locos and drivers are usually off doing commercial freight. Thats one reason Christmas and Bank Holidays is popular for engineering works, as commercial freight winds down then.

But a job like this won’t need many engineering trains. Materials can largely be dropped in advance (indeed will have to be as it is single line), and it will just need a few top ballast trains through the block as work progresses. Picking up the old track wil be fun - I wouldnt be surprised if much of it ‘self disassembles’ in the process.

 

[Put Kettle On]

Not steel sleepers on the renewal, going to be using composite ones apparently

 

[Bald Rick]

Not steel sleepers on the renewal, going to be using composite ones apparently

I did wonder if that was the case. Heavier than steels, so more than a 2 person lift. Will also need more work to the ballast. But will last for a long time!

 

[DynamicSpirit]

Is this really an 'upgrade'? From the description, it sounds like a like-for-like replacement of the tracks.

 

[Harpo]

Is this really an 'upgrade'? From the description, it sounds like a like-for-like replacement of the tracks.

Use of the term ‘upgrade’ is usually PR guff.

Most renewals are like for like returning the same (or reduced) configuration, line speed and capacity with 100% of the money coming from the renewals budget too and no additional ‘enhancement’ spend.

 

[E27007]

5 miles of refurbishment and 8 miles of full renewal for 11.5 million on single line is very good going!

Single lines are the hardest to renew, on a double-track line , one road is used to deliver and disperse materials, sleepers rail ballast hopper trains , while the other is torn out and renewed, so for a single-track line, without the benefit of the "other road", more effective for the single line to operate a multi-week blockade and not a series of weekend renewals

 

[Bald Rick]

Is this really an 'upgrade'? From the description, it sounds like a like-for-like replacement of the tracks.

Whilst I don’t know, I imagine that what is coming out is jointed, and what is going back in will be welded, so it will be an upgrade in terms of reduced noise and bumps for 99% of the travelling public and 100% of the (few) neighbours.

 

[The Planner]

Single lines are the hardest to renew, on a double-track line , one road is used to deliver and disperse materials, sleepers rail ballast hopper trains , while the other is torn out and renewed, so for a single-track line, without the benefit of the "other road", more effective for the single line to operate a multi-week blockade and not a series of weekend renewals

Which I wish people would understand when "why isnt single line working used" when work takes place.

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

Yep, perhaps 2 gangs, double shifts; assuming all the materials are placed in advance they could do up to half a mile a day at a push. Albeit the weather will intervene up there!

Get Balfours TRT up there easily get a mile day if they have all the materials and rail laid out beforehand but that maybe part of the logistical challenge being so far North to spare a long welder.

 

[Bald Rick]

Get Balfours TRT up there easily get a mile day if they have all the materials and rail laid out beforehand but that maybe part of the logistical challenge being so far North to spare a long welder.

Given the usage of thenline (and therefore lost revenue from closing it*) a couple of gangs of blokes would be rather cheaper to hire per shift than the Balfours NTC!

* Closing the line for 3 weeks will save Scotrail a lot of money!

 

[mcmad]

Given the usage of thenline (and therefore lost revenue from closing it*) a couple of gangs of blokes would be rather cheaper to hire per shift than the Balfours NTC!

* Closing the line for 3 weeks will save Scotrail a lot of money!

Sadly since the nearest gangs are now Glasgow based at closest and they're few and far between it usually work out cheaper for the NTC. Not sure what plant is planned for this blockade but the NTC was up for the last round of works at Mallaig line. I believe that given the costs of the new plastic sleepers (2 or 3 times a timber I was told) that its likely to be serviceable concrete installed on the 'renewals'.

 

[Class 170101]

Disappointing its being done in the summer, thats when the line is busiest. I bet its made getting hotels for ordinary folk more challenging and arguably not the best use of capital where NR might have got cheaper hotels in the off season and also extending the occupancy rate of said hotels

 

[InOban]

Are you sure that they'll be using long-welded track? Only a few years ago they specially imported bullhead rails from Austria into Scrabster to replace old rails.
And as for the loss of summer traffic, I don't think it fills a 2 coach set even in 'peak' season.

 

[Bald Rick]

I bet its made getting hotels for ordinary folk more challenging and arguably not the best use of capital where NR might have got cheaper hotels in the off season and also extending the occupancy rate of said hotels

But had to work in winter conditions, in the dark, and therefore take longer.

Are you sure that they'll be using long-welded track?

I‘ve no idea, but I would be very surprised if it wasnt given that 8 miles of track (sleepers and ballast) is being replaced.

 

[John Bishop]

Are you sure that they'll be using long-welded track? Only a few years ago they specially imported bullhead rails from Austria into Scrabster to replace old rails.
And as for the loss of summer traffic, I don't think it fills a 2 coach set even in 'peak' season.

Yes it’s long welded track, some of which has already been dropped.

 

[Sealink]

Given the usage of thenline (and therefore lost revenue from closing it*) a couple of gangs of blokes would be rather cheaper to hire per shift than the Balfours NTC!

* Closing the line for 3 weeks will save Scotrail a lot of money!

They are putting on 4 coaches a day each way though (1 on Sundays).
That will make some coach firms very happy!

 

[Ploughman]

Any details on the Composite Sleepers?

 

[hexagon789]

They are putting on 4 coaches a day each way though (1 on Sundays).
That will make some coach firms very happy!

Quite possibly, but it's one of those routes where people actively choose the train for being a train, rather than for speed or convenience.

 

[Bald Rick]

They are putting on 4 coaches a day each way though (1 on Sundays).
That will make some coach firms very happy!

Indeed, and that will be a small fraction of the cost of running the train service.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Plenty of daylight hours that far North as well that time of the year

What a great point - I had not thought of that.

Any details on the Composite Sleepers?

Well here is the NR article on composite sleepers. I do have access to material science Journals (also it is the field I work in) and I will post more detail later. Essentially it will be a polymer matrix composite. The polymer bit will be recycled polymer/plastic.

A greener railway: more environmentally friendly sleepers - Network Rail

We’re using environmentally friendly sleepers to reduce our carbon footprint and build a more sustainable railway for you. Find out more.

www.networkrail.co.uk

Composite sleepers are made of recycled plastic materials like bottles, food packaging and other unwanted plastics that may otherwise end up in a landfill.

We started using them on our main line tracks in 2021, when we first installed them on the track across the Sherrington Viaduct in Wiltshire. More recently, we replaced more than 1km of track at Laggansarroch Viaduct, near Girvan in Scotland, with 200 composite sleepers.

They’ll help us achieve our net-zero emissions target by 2045 in Scotland and by 2050 in the rest of Britain.

Composite Sleepers | Plastic Railway Sleepers For Railroad Use

Composite sleeper is a kind of plastic railway sleepers made by new material. It can replace wooden sleepers and concrete sleepers, performance is better.

www.rail-fastener.com

Composite sleepers are made of a new material called continuous glass fiber reinforced polyurethane foam. Concrete sleepers have been popularized in countries around the world, but lack of flexibility is also a serious drawback. Although the wooden sleepers are flexible, the total amount of forest resources in the world has decreased sharply in recent years. In addition, the wooden sleeper is easy to be corroded. If it is treated with anticorrosion, it will cause certain influence on the environment. For these reasons, the era of heavy use of wooden sleeper has become a thing of the past. Due to the use of new materials, the composite sleepers not only inherit
the advantages of the two types of railway sleepers, but also avoids their drawbacks. Our composite sleepers are more and more popular in the world, and have been exported to the United States, India, Chile and other countries.

And here is the AI overview.

Composite railway sleepers are increasingly used as an alternative to traditional timber or concrete sleepers, offering benefits like durability, environmental friendliness, and reduced maintenance. These sleepers are typically made from a combination of recycled plastics, glass fibers, and other materials, forming a strong and durable material that can withstand the stresses of railway tracks.

 

[Cowley]

There’s a new thread for discussing the wider issue of rural routes below.

Should some longer rural routes be sacrificed and the money spent elsewhere on the network?

Indeed, and that will be a small fraction of the cost of running the train service. mods note - split from this thread https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/%C2%A311-5m-track-upgrade-will-mean-three-week-closure-for-rail-line-north-of-dingwall.283885/unread You do have to wonder whether in...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[Meerkat]

What a great point - I had not thought of that.


Well here is the NR article on composite sleepers. I do have access to material science Journals (also it is the field I work in) and I will post more detail later. Essentially it will be a polymer matrix composite. The polymer bit will be recycled polymer/plastic.

A greener railway: more environmentally friendly sleepers - Network Rail

We’re using environmentally friendly sleepers to reduce our carbon footprint and build a more sustainable railway for you. Find out more.

www.networkrail.co.uk

Composite Sleepers | Plastic Railway Sleepers For Railroad Use

Composite sleeper is a kind of plastic railway sleepers made by new material. It can replace wooden sleepers and concrete sleepers, performance is better.

www.rail-fastener.com

And here is the AI overview.

How do the polymer sleepers fare if there is a fire, would the gap between them prevent spread? Just a boardwalk in a nature reserve helped spread a fire by flaming molten plastic going everywhere.....

 

[GRALISTAIR]

How do the polymer sleepers fare if there is a fire, would the gap between them prevent spread? Just a boardwalk in a nature reserve helped spread a fire by flaming molten plastic going everywhere.....

1. The gap would help prevent spread
2. The ballast surrounding the sleepers would help prevent spread
3. A composite can often have aluminium trihydrate as filler and flame retardant
4. A composite could even have antimony oxide in as a primary flame retardant
5. The remoteness of the location in this case would mean even if the flame spread it would not be a big deal imho

 

[Struner]

[…]
5. The remoteness of the location in this case would mean even if the flame spread it would not be a big deal imho

As in the Flow Country?