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East-West Rail (EWR): Oxford-Bletchley construction progress

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II

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Refreshing to see. You might have expected to see three or four identical expensive massive green bridges lined up a few yards apart!
 

Trainee9

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Bletchley Viaduct: The new high level station continues to take shape. On Monday, concrete was being pumped onto the roof. On the refurbished viaduct sections, new permanent safety fencing has been fitted on most sections to replace the temporary fencing which replaced the concrete fencing removed a year ago. (My photo unfortunately does not resolve the temporary fencing - its position is marked by the red band in my photo.)
 

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swt_passenger

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Looks like it - I can't find a really nice set of docs that were around last year, but this map has the detail:
Network Rail rights of way doc
Page 9 of your linked pdf, and another TWA drawing I found, have details of another road bridge “Manor Farm Launton OXD/35B” that should be about half way along the way to the new green footbridge, (as seen in the last pic in #298), but there’s no sign of any foundations yet so maybe it’s been taken out of the scheme?
 
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Mark24

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Refreshing to see. You might have expected to see three or four identical expensive massive green bridges lined up a few yards apart!
As someone who does a lot of walking, I’m not a fan of footpaths being closed. Once they’re gone, they’re gone. They’re something we have to protect.
 

The Planner

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As someone who does a lot of walking, I’m not a fan of footpaths being closed. Once they’re gone, they’re gone. They’re something we have to protect.
In the cases here and in the document in post #301 it looks like the vast majority have had diversions added and are not lost.
 

ashkeba

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In the cases here and in the document in post #301 it looks like the vast majority have had diversions added and are not lost.
Diverting many footpaths over the same bridge is losing the vast majority (all but one) really, no?
 

Elecman

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Diverting many footpaths over the same bridge is losing the vast majority (all but one) really, no?
No as they still all exist over the rest of thier length and are effectively just lengthened to get to and from the bridge
 

swt_passenger

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No as they still all exist over the rest of thier length and are effectively just lengthened to get to and from the bridge
Doesn’t a hub and spoke (of footpaths) at the new footbridge give greater flexibility? Bit late to be worrying about footpaths though, we’re in the build phase now and footpaths were already sorted out a couple of years ago during the TWA inquiry…
 

bspahh

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A link to a recent newsletter I had not seen before:
The Branch Line Society newsletter has a link to new issue of the East West Rail project newsletter: EWR2 Project Newsletter - Autumn 2021

It has some embedded videos and multiple images images/slides if you swipe or click left/right
 

snowball

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Network Rail press release (with video) re Bletchley flyover:


Network Rail and the East West Rail Alliance are restoring the Oxford-to-Cambridge line by removing and replacing a flyover which crosses the busy West Coast main line at Bletchley - all while keeping trains and passengers moving safely.

The new structure, on the line between Bicester and Bletchley, is being built to last 120 years with minimal future maintenance required.

Instead of replacing the old flyover like-for-like - which would involve closing the West Coast main line below to build five supporting columns in between the tracks - East West Rail project engineers have used modern methods of construction to build a protective ‘box structure.’

It acts very much like a rectangular railway tunnel, removing the need for separate supporting columns and providing a platform for the flyover to sit on.

This means the West Coast main line - which is one of the busiest mixed-use passenger and freight railway routes in Europe - doesn’t have to be closed during the flyover replacement taking place above as the box structure provides a protective, physical barrier.

This keeps both passenger and freight trains safe below and the workforce safe above.
 

Trainee9

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#310 and #311 contain some most interesting posts and videos, including an overhead view of the new viaduct deck sweeping diagonally across the Box.
 

Yindee8191

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Network Rail press release (with video) re Bletchley flyover:

So if EWR is something like 250stkm (by my rough estimate) and we assume a somewhat optimistic £300,000 per stkm for electrification… that 70m saved would very nearly cover it!
 

Bald Rick

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So if EWR is something like 250stkm (by my rough estimate) and we assume a somewhat optimistic £300,000 per stkm for electrification… that 70m saved would very nearly cover it!

Optimistic in the extreme! You need to multiply by 7 as an absolute minimum.
 

Dr A.Johnston

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Here are a few interesting updates as posted via other forums that may have been missed by the group here:

Waddon Road Bridge

More pictures from RM web source

Handover from Constrction to track team 10 Nov

Rails laid ready for track installation at Bletchley 19 November

Video from Youtube on Bletchley station update

Has anybody got any pictures or videos of the work progressing where HS2/EWR meet at/nr Calvert and the construction depot as to what will become the new TMD linked to EWR/Aylesbury line? This is an important bit that seems to be overlooked as we have great coverage of both ends of the EWR line and Wilmslow and some bridges inbetween. Thanks.
 

swt_passenger

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Has anybody got any pictures or videos of the work progressing where HS2/EWR meet at/nr Calvert and the construction depot as to what will become the new TMD linked to EWR/Aylesbury line? This is an important bit that seems to be overlooked as we have great coverage of both ends of the EWR line and Wilmslow and some bridges inbetween. Thanks.
I‘ve completely missed the possibility of a new TMD, where is this proposal coming from?
 

edwin_m

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It's an infrastructure maintenance depot. There is a connection to the classic network so it can accept deliveries and send out waste materials in bulk, and a connection to HS2 so engineering trains can get to worksites. I strongly suspect, though I don't know for sure, that it's being built before a lot of the route itself so it can be used in a similar way during construction.
 

Baxenden Bank

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It's an infrastructure maintenance depot. There is a connection to the classic network so it can accept deliveries and send out waste materials in bulk, and a connection to HS2 so engineering trains can get to worksites. I strongly suspect, though I don't know for sure, that it's being built before a lot of the route itself so it can be used in a similar way during construction.
There is a similar depot near Stone, Staffordshire, with a link to the classic line between Norton Bridge and Stone stations.
 

Dr A.Johnston

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OOP's Sorry I did mean IMD. Here is the document of interest below (its not marked confidential/restricted). I asked a question as coverage of the EWR line is fantastic with really good input from several people, but an area on the line that has the potential of impacting the EWR time scales is the bit involving the ever changing plans of HS2. HS2 is of course providing the delivery of a short section for EWR and partly changing the course of the Alesbury link line just north of Quainton and hence the provision of the new junction and under/over pass bridges - So with this in mind, there does not seem to be any coverage unless I missed something - The work going on there is likely to be very interesting/complex. Is anyone planning a flyover the area with one of those drones or can point me in the right direction, Once EWR finally opens it will time to park the car up as it will much easier to travel via the line.
 

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Mark24

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Verney Junction looking west towards Claydon, Bicester, Oxford.
I wonder if they’ll ever consider reopening the line to Buckingham and Brackley? Both expanding towns.

1638047549595.jpeg
 

zwk500

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Verney Junction looking west towards Claydon, Bicester, Oxford.
I wonder if they’ll ever consider reopening the line to Buckingham and Brackley? Both expanding towns.
AFAIK not looking at either in any current plans. The question of whether they could or should is for speculative ideas.
 

Mark24

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AFAIK not looking at either in any current plans. The question of whether they could or should is for speculative ideas.
I would imagine Banbury to Milton Keynes may also be popular, and another route into London.
I suppose the cost might not justify linking up 2 towns.
 

CyrusWuff

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I wonder if they’ll ever consider reopening the line to Buckingham and Brackley? Both expanding towns.
Not a chance. The LNWR route through Brackley - including the site of Brackley Town station - has been lost to development, as has the route through Padbury (again, including the station site), and Buckingham isn't much better.

Brackley Central isn't viable either as HS2 will obliterate most of the former Great Central route between Claydon LNE Junction and the outskirts of Brackley.
 

mr_jrt

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Brackley Central isn't viable either as HS2 will obliterate most of the former Great Central route between Claydon LNE Junction and the outskirts of Brackley.
A shame - I always thought Chiltern's one-time Evergreen option of reopening to a parkway near Rugby had some merit. I guess that will largely be met by HS2 freeing up capacity on the WCML though, although if desired you could restore via Banbury instead, which would probably work out better anyway given there is nothing to serve aside from Brackley heading towards Aylesbury.
 

Mark24

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Who is “they”?

Good point. Either the newly set up East West Rail Company (Privately owned, Government backed) or Network Rail.
Ultimately, the decision will rest with the Ministry for Transport in either case.
 
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