Coventry to Nuneaton stations go-ahead

[OwlMan]

The construction of Bermuda Park & Arena Coventry stations along with improvements to Bedworth station will start in May and be completed in 12 months.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-stations-for-coventry-to-nuneaton-rail-line
£4.75 million investment will build two brand new stations and upgrade another.

The Department for Transport will invest up to £4.75 million to build 2 new stations and improve another on the Coventry to Nuneaton rail line. The new stations will be built at Coventry Arena and Bermuda Park and the platforms at Bedworth Station will be extended, boosting local people’s access to this crucial transport route.

This upgrade will provide enhanced travel links to major new developments along the line including Friargate business district, next to Coventry railway station.

The Department will fund up to £4.75 million of the £13.6 million scheme.

Local Transport Minister Baroness Kramer said:

These rail improvements are great news for passengers in the West Midlands who will now have easy public transport access to tens of thousands of jobs in Coventry, Bedworth and Nuneaton.

The £4.75 million funding put towards this project shows our commitment to investing in the infrastructure this country needs to drive economic growth, both locally and nationally.

The main works are scheduled to start in May 2014 with completion in May 2015.

 

[gordonthemoron]

will this include electrification?

 

[swt_passenger]

will this include electrification?

Eventually, but not in the same timescales. The electrification will be part of the electric spine project, and is tied up with other routes such as Oxford - Leamington - Coventry. So extra services will have to be DMU operated for a couple of years at least.

 

[The Planner]

There are no extra services as part of this, just calls at the new stations in the existing service. You can't run extras until the bay platform and other infrastructure is built which is still a way off yet.

 

[swt_passenger]

There are no extra services as part of this, just calls at the new stations in the existing service. You can't run extras until the bay platform and other infrastructure is built which is still a way off yet.

Ah yes, I remember you pointing that out in an earlier thread.

Yet more phases. But I suppose the advantage is it ought to help develop passenger numbers to prove the case for more services anyway...

 

[TSR :D]

There are no extra services as part of this, just calls at the new stations in the existing service. You can't run extras until the bay platform and other infrastructure is built which is still a way off yet.

Is it possible to build a bay platform slightly left to platform 1 in London direction? It seems there's enough space under the bridge to allow it.

 

[swt_passenger]

That's exactly where the bay platform will go, when it is confirmed. It allows the Nuneaton service to run completely independently of the main lines.

 

[YorkshireBear]

Note from modern railways this month later phases now look in doubt due to costs...

 

[Tubeboy]

Any freight use the Coventry to Nuneaton line?

 

[matt]

Any freight use the Coventry to Nuneaton line?

Yes mainly Freightliner workings to and from Southampton

 

[wasi]

I once got the Cov > Nuneaton train......... NEVER again.

Single carriage, half an hour late, dirty seats, joke of a service.

 

[YorkshireBear]

I once got the Cov > Nuneaton train......... NEVER again.

Single carriage, half an hour late, dirty seats, joke of a service.

To know the seat was dirty you must have got a seat therefore the single carriage comment is hardly relevant. The rest i cannot comment on.

 

[Joseph.bevan96]

I use the Bedworth- Nuneaton service every Monday in order to get to Nuneaton, it's very rare that the train is running late and I normally manage to get a seat.

When there a problems on the line, recovery isn't too bad with a combined time of half an hour spent at both extremities of the line.

Freight workings on the line aren't to bad:

Intermodal Traffic: F.Liner Soton Maritime/ Millbrook to Crewe/ Garston/ Trafford Park/Lawley Street/ Hams Hall.

DBS Trafford Park/ Bescot to Soton Docks.

Tank Traffic: DBS Lindsey/ Robeston to Bedworth MWFO.

Car Traffic: DBS Halewood- Soton Docks. Didcot- Mossend.

Engineers Traffic: Colas Westbury- Bescot M-ThO.

Also Colas Llanwern- Washwood Heath MO Q working.

Not too bad really.

 

[evergreenadam]

I use the Bedworth- Nuneaton service every Monday in order to get to Nuneaton, it's very rare that the train is running late and I normally manage to get a seat.

When there a problems on the line, recovery isn't too bad with a combined time of half an hour spent at both extremities of the line.

Freight workings on the line aren't to bad:

Intermodal Traffic: F.Liner Soton Maritime/ Millbrook to Crewe/ Garston/ Trafford Park/Lawley Street/ Hams Hall.

DBS Trafford Park/ Bescot to Soton Docks.

Tank Traffic: DBS Lindsey/ Robeston to Bedworth MWFO.

Car Traffic: DBS Halewood- Soton Docks. Didcot- Mossend.

Engineers Traffic: Colas Westbury- Bescot M-ThO.

Also Colas Llanwern- Washwood Heath MO Q working.

Not too bad really.

Is the existing service well used, it is a worthwhile project from your local knowledge?

 

[Joseph.bevan96]

Is the existing service well used, it is a worthwhile project from your local knowledge?

The existing service does seem to be well used- quite a lot of students who go to the Nuneaton colleges use it whereas I use it the other way in order to get to the station to go spotting. I don't know how well the service is used later on in the evening as I get a lift back to Bedworth.

On Saturdays there tends to be a good turn out- passengers going to London and Birmingham in both directions.

During the German market in Brum, the service is even better used and could really do with a pair of units.

I think that the proposed station at the Ricoh arena will be best used as a lot of locals will take the opportunity to travel to the Arena retail park for shopping etc. The station at Bermuda Park will be interesting as I can't think what it will serve as the cinema/ food complexes are the other side of a 4 lane bypass and will require at least a 10-15 minute walk.

Once we get a bay at Coventry and 2 trains an hour in each direction (one starting from Leamington), I hope that one of the 2 trains will miss out the new stations so the new service could essentially be:

Train 1: Leamington Spa-> Kenilworth-> Coventry-> Bedworth-> Nuneaton.
Train 2: Coventry-> Ricoh Arena-> Bedworth-> Bermuda Park-> Nuneaton.

Alternatively:

Train 1: Leamington Spa->Kenilworth-> Coventry->Ricoh Arena-> Bedworth-> Bermuda Park-> Nuneaton.
Train 2: Coventry->Bedworth->Nuneaton.

Of course once the trains start from Leamington, they will have to be timed to miss out the Bournemouth-> Manc trains that use the branch to reach the West Midlands Portion of the WCML.

Hope nothing misses out Bedworth as we really could do with the extra train an hour!

Hope this information is useful to you.

Regards,
Joe.

 

[The Planner]

I will say it again and will put it in my signature as well at this rate, there will be NO service that crosses the station at Coventry.

 

[TSR :D]

I will say it again and will put it in my signature as well at this rate, there will be NO service that crosses the station at Coventry.

I concur. 2 trains crossing the station per hour isn't feasible, especially how often LM, VT and XC trains are late.

However, I don't think Coventry - Leamington Spa service can survive on its own. I may suggest extending one of those International terminators to terminate at Leamington spa? This could use one of the same path they use during the peak hour to terminate at Coventry.

 

[ivanhoe]

Just a pity that the dive under as proposed in PUG2 was never built.Could have given more options.

 

[The Planner]

However, I don't think Coventry - Leamington Spa service can survive on its own. I may suggest extending one of those International terminators to terminate at Leamington spa? This could use one of the same path they use during the peak hour to terminate at Coventry.

It is going to be massively subsidised as it is anyway. Ignoring the fact of electric traction on the International shuttles, you would have to find another unit to run it. You couldn't get to Kenilworth and back in the layover time it currently has at International of 23 minutes. Those peak hour paths run on to Northampton in the rest of the day anyway.

 

[MK Tom]

Of course the other option would be to run a Coventry-Oxford local or something like that, or one that reversed at Leamington towards Warwick.

 

[The Planner]

What would it do at Warwick? reverse? You would need lot more than one unit to run a Coventry - Oxford local as well.

 

[paddy1]

What would it do at Warwick? reverse? You would need lot more than one unit to run a Coventry - Oxford local as well.

Coventry - Stratford upon Avon would make more sense operationally and commercially rather than reverse at Warwick, which I don't believe is possible anyway. Would link four main towns/cities to each other and also provide a more frequent service between Stratford and Leamington.

 

[MK Tom]

Yeah by 'reversed at Leamington towards Warwick' I meant in the direction of Warwick, leaving it open to being either Stratford or Solihull directions.

 

[The Planner]

It all goes back to rolling stock again though. Considering the Cov Leamington shuttle is probably going to end up as a 153 you are not going to be able to get it anywhere else in the timescales for it to be a one unit operation.

 

[swcovas]

What a shame Coventry City are, at the moment, scandalously playing their home games at Northampton Town. What a great loss of potential business for the new stadium station!

 

[Bald Rick]

What a shame Coventry City are, at the moment, scandalously playing their home games at Northampton Town. What a great loss of potential business for the new stadium station!

Blessing in disguise really, can you imagine the scenes when it tips out after a game and an hourly 153 rolls in.

It's unquestionably better for the railway for the Sky Blues to be playing at Northampton, lots of Cheap day returns!

 

[Class 170101]

Blessing in disguise really, can you imagine the scenes when it tips out after a game and an hourly 153 rolls in.

It's unquestionably better for the railway for the Sky Blues to be playing at Northampton, lots of Cheap day returns!

But don't forget when the line is wired as part of the Electric Spine it will probably be handed over to a Class 323 unit with more capacity. I doubt disability regulations will see 153s stay single for much longer.

 

[Bald Rick]

But don't forget when the line is wired as part of the Electric Spine it will probably be handed over to a Class 323 unit with more capacity. I doubt disability regulations will see 153s stay single for much longer.

Potato / potarrrto. 400 people crush loaded vs 120. Not much use with 5,000 people trying to get on.

 

[Cherry_Picker]

I'd hope they have a turnback facility at the Ricoh when the station is built.

 

[The Planner]

It is planned but not part of the initial station opening, it comes later with the bay etc...