Medway Council gets funding for Hoo/Sharnal Street station

[eastwestdivide]

Just been looking at the master plan for a lot of housing development around Hoo St Werburgh, as well as the industrial estate + Amazon warehouse by Kingsnorth. The conclusions of the plan are that:

It is highly unlikely to be viable to provide new rail infrastructure along the peninsula

and that the new developments would be better served by an increase in the existing 191 bus service to every 10 minutes:

Arriva has expressed an early commitment to provide services every 10-minutes between Hoo St Werburgh and Strood station. This level of provision should not only be attractive to existing and future residents but would warrant bus priority measures along the A228 such as bus lanes and bus priority signals.

- from the PDF available at:

https://www.medway.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/2240/file_5.pdf

 

[eastwestdivide]

Just found a couple of things:
1) from https://www.medway.gov.uk/news/article/485/central_government_awards_major_funding_boost_for_medway

On Friday, 1 November 2019, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced that Medway Council had been successful in its bid to secure £170million for major infrastructure developments on the Hoo Peninsula

2) and from https://www.medway.gov.uk/homepage/275/housing_infrastructure_fund

If more homes are built on the Hoo Peninsula there will need to be improvements to roads, transport and environment to support this.
It is essential that the necessary road, rail and environmental infrastructure in and around the Hoo peninsula is put in place for residents.
This will be funded by the £170 million Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) programme.
...
£63 million will be used for rail improvements to support new housing on the Hoo Peninsula.
There will be a new rail station at Sharnal Street, just off the A228 and a new passenger service connecting the Peninsula to a London terminal (possibly London Victoria) and other Medway stations.
The service will also enable people to change at Gravesend to join the HS1 to London St Pancras. All will be in use by 2024.
The station will be accessible by road and new cycle ways.
The new passenger service will operate alongside the existing freight activities.

(my bold)

3) Newspaper article on the new station at https://www.kentonline.co.uk/medway/news/first-look-at-new-63m-station-225386/

An artist's impression shows the new £63m railway station destined for £170m town redevelopment scheme.
...

 

[yorksrob]

That looks a bit more substantion than the original South Eastern Railway clapboard version:

Disused Stations: Sharnal Street Station

www.disused-stations.org.uk

 

[topydre]

Interesting. A couple of observations:
Is that 2 platforms I see at Sharnal St? Surprising...
Will they run through to Grain stopping at Lower Stoke I wonder?
How will the trains serve both London and "other Medway stations"? They're in opposite directions as you leave the branch! They wouldn't split the trains at Hoo Junction would they, that would be silly?
I assume the trains will be 3rd rail with batteries for the Hoo line
That looks like a Javelin in the station, yet the services would only operate on the classic lines. But it's only an artists' impression I suppose. The Javelin will need a thunderbird loco to tow her back to the electrified railway!

Also, maybe this topic is perhaps now better suited to the infrastructure and stations forum

 

[eastwestdivide]

Recent article (31 Jan 2020) on the railfuture site about the proposals here:

Railfuture | Hoo - rail victory

The Hundred of Hoo branch that last saw services pre-Beeching in 1961 is set to see new services introduced to the Hoo Peninsula, a victory for this Railfuture campaign in North Kent, with £67m...

www.railfuture.org.uk

including this on service proposals, partly speculation:

The provisional services are for a two trains per hour peak service to London (via Gravesend/Dartford/Lewisham) via the existing chord on the North Kent Line and an all-day service to Strood (via a reinstated chord). Ideally this service would be extended* to the Medway towns. As the branch is not electrified, the solution will be key to the service that can be offered. Diesel has been ruled out, and as the Southeastern rolling stock is third rail, overhead electricity would be very expensive as it would need new rolling stock, likewise any battery solution. It is possible that third rail could be a practical solution as it is only 6-8 miles of branch line to reach Hoo and this could lead to the Strood services being combined with the Maidstone/Paddock Wood (Medway Valley Line) services.

Also a Medway council brochure (undated but post-Nov 2019) here:

https://www.railfuture.org.uk/display2285

including:

The Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) will be supporting the provision of new transport infrastructure including the building of a new rail passenger station at Sharnal Street, which will provide new access to both London stations and Strood.

Also, the proposed site for the new station appears to be to the E of the A228, while the old station was to the W.

(edited for extra info and clarity)

Moderator note: to discuss any possible extension of he Medway service, please use the following thread:

https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/could-the-medway-valley-line-be-extended.205521/

 

[Dr Hoo]

As a former resident of the area it is worth pointing out that until relatively recent times there were major power stations at Kingsnorth (fed by seaborne coal) and Grain (oil fired). The area is thick with major electricity transmission lines and probably one of the easiest to 'hook up to' for any system of electrification. A Kentish equivalent of the Aire Valley.

 

[eastwestdivide]

Here’s two shots from the old main road Sharnal St (just beside the current A228) of the site for the proposed station. Both looking E.

It was the site of a branch down to Kingsnorth, hence the second bridge in the shot without the big pylons.

 

[eastwestdivide]

New thread spun off from earlier "Nostalgia" thread here:

Isle of Grain

Just read an article in the River Thames Society magazine about the Isle of Grain and Port of Tilbury. This area has always given me the impression of Dickensian desolate marshland. However I read the Port of Tilbury Grain terminal currently handles over 2m tonnes of grain wheat and barley. On...

www.railforums.co.uk

Medway Council had been successful in its bid to secure £170million for major infrastructure developments on the Hoo Peninsula, including a new station at Sharnal Street, serving new housing developments around Hoo St Werburgh.

I've asked the mods to move the relevant posts over

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I did a railtour that went down the Isle of Grain branch some years ago, it was not as I was expecting it to be either, It was very rural and quite scenic, there used to be another branch to All Hallows, which they were hoping to develop into a holiday resort.

Would this proposed new station be on the line between Gravesend and Strood?

 

[jnjkerbin]

Interesting - all the info seems to suggest this station is actually on the Grain branch itself and mentions a direct connection to London, with the suggestion of a chord being built to link the branch to allow a direct train to Strood as well. Also suggests the provision of some passing loops on the single line.

 

[Kettledrum]

Interesting - all the info seems to suggest this station is actually on the Grain branch itself and mentions a direct connection to London, with the suggestion of a chord being built to link the branch to allow a direct train to Strood as well. Also suggests the provision of some passing loops on the single line.

This sounds a lot for £170m. What am I missing?

 

[pdeaves]

This sounds a lot for £170m. What am I missing?

Wild guess: the £170m is just for studies.

 

[Mikey C]

First look at new £63m station

This artist's impression shows the scale of a railway station destined to be built in the middle of a £170 million peninsula development.

www.kentonline.co.uk

£63m is meant to be the sum for the new station. £170m is for the general town improvements

 

[eastwestdivide]

For clarity, here's google maps link to the site of the planned station at Sharnal Street on the branch:

51°26'16.0"N 0°34'28.5"E · Hoo St. Werburgh

Hoo St. Werburgh

goo.gl

The site is shown as being there in the brochure linked from post 5 above. The Railfuture article suggests a new chord to make direct services towards Strood possible. Presumably this chord would be at Hoo Junction, where there appears to be space at the E end of the down-side sidings.

 

[Horizon22]

I imagine, service wise, this station opening would be an extension of Gravesend terminators at least until a chord is built. Also might be scope for solving Southeastern's chronic depot shortage problem in the area.

 

[eastwestdivide]

More details and consultation on the "New Hoo" plans for road, rail, housing and leisure at

Future Hoo | Medway Council

Hoo Peninsula – Housing Infrastructure Fund

www.medway.gov.uk

And linking through to a brochure (PDF, ~12MB) at

Future Hoo consultation documents | Medway Council

Medway Council download - Future Hoo consultation documents | Business, licensing and regeneration | Regeneration | Future Hoo

www.medway.gov.uk

In the PDF, there's a whole section on the rail part of the plans, including 3rd rail electrification to the new Hoo station at Sharnal Street (my bold):

(p32)

The existing single line will also be provided with passing places at Cooling Street and between Canal Road and Cliffe junction to improve the frequency of trains and provide flexibility in the service
A half hourly service is proposed. There is scope for the frequency of the service to be increased in line with demand in future national timetable updates as the patronage at the station increases.
Should demand increase, there is the opportunity for the service to be extended beyond Sharnal Street with additional stations being included further down the line. This would be the subject of a separate scheme and does not form part of this project

A lot on rebuilding level crossings (mostly just foot crossings) from p37:

A rail passenger service to Hoo will be electrified using 3rd rail electrification to provide compatibility with the main line, increase the number of trains on the line, and their speed. Consequently, existing footpath and vehicular crossings over the railway will need to be segregated to ensure the safety of users.

and p45:

Key to the works on the line is to provide power for the trains. Several solutions have been considered including battery and hydrogen powered trains, but these have already been discounted due to their requirements for a new form of rollingstock. The proposed solution is therefore to extend the existing third rail electrification system onto the Grain Line
...
The land within the existing railway corridor is therefore wide enough to allow for dualling of the track and associated enhancement of the track bed and embankments without the need to acquire adjoining land. All of the original railway structures were also constructed with dual track in mind, but some of these will need enhancement to bring a dual track into service.

 

[Horizon22]

My understanding ORR have banned any future 3rd rail expansion, but this could be an interesting case as it would be a diesel island otherwise and there'd be no way to run a passenger service without it.

 

[eastwestdivide]

The other interesting thing that's not in that PDF is the previously-discussed option of a curve to allow a direct run off the branch towards the Medway Towns.
From the PDF (my bold), p31:

Our proposed railway works will reinstate a passenger service on the Grain branch line and create a new station south of Sharnal Street. This will improve connectivity and help to support sustainable growth on the peninsula by providing a reliable link to London and an interchange option at Gravesend to link to locations across Medway

and p36:

The station itself will provide an access to a direct link to London to facilitate both work and leisure travel into London with an option to change at Gravesend for services to locations across Medway

 

[cle]

My understanding ORR have banned any future 3rd rail expansion, but this could be an interesting case as it would be a diesel island otherwise and there'd be no way to run a passenger service without it.

That crops up a lot - no it won't be added to a diesel line like Chiltern - but the reality is it gets done when it's operationally obvious or being renewed. For example, the new platform at Reigate will be, as was Redhill.

The only instances where it might seem more contentious than some bitty works are the gaps on the North Downs, Ore-Hastings and Uckfield.

 

[eastwestdivide]

Using the Mapometer website, I make it more or less 6 miles from Hoo Junction to the Sharnal Street station site.

 

[Gloster]

Using the Mapometer website, I make it more or less 6 miles from Hoo Junction to the Sharnal Street station site.

The second edition of Volume 5 of the Quail diagrams gives it as 5 miles and 70 chains. Allowing for Sharnal Street probably being a mid-point, that is probably getting on for six-and-a-quarter miles once you allow a bit for safety.

 

[Horizon22]

That crops up a lot - no it won't be added to a diesel line like Chiltern - but the reality is it gets done when it's operationally obvious or being renewed. For example, the new platform at Reigate will be, as was Redhill.

The only instances where it might seem more contentious than some bitty works are the gaps on the North Downs, Ore-Hastings and Uckfield.

That's an addition to an existing station - You obviously wouldn't extend Reigate without electrification - this would be converting a line to electric. The line still exists for freight traffic

 

[30907]

The other interesting thing that's not in that PDF is the previously-discussed option of a curve to allow a direct run off the branch towards the Medway Towns.

Much more economical as it saves trains and new-build railway.
I wonder if someone will suggest a housing estate and station at Hoo Junction...?

My understanding ORR have banned any future 3rd rail expansion, but this could be an interesting case as it would be a diesel island otherwise and there'd be no way to run a passenger service without it.

AIUI not banned but requiring risk assessment and mitigations (of which closing all footpath crossings, as mentioned, would be one).

 

[eastwestdivide]

I wonder if someone will suggest a housing estate and station at Hoo Junction...?

There's been plans for redevelopment at the old Uralite asbestos works there.
Local paper story from Jan 2021 here:

Asbestos fears prompt factory demolition bid

An application to demolish a centuries old former asbestos factory on the green belt is to be put before councillors for approval.

www.kentonline.co.uk

A centuries old former asbestos factory is set to be demolished and transformed into new industrial units under proposals submitted to town planners.

The Nuralite industrial estate in Canal Road, Higham, has been earmarked for "systematic redevelopment" in a move which would see the historic landfill site sealed

Also mentions that it's green belt land, and the redevelopment/making safe of the factory is an exception to the rule.

 

[cle]

That's an addition to an existing station - You obviously wouldn't extend Reigate without electrification - this would be converting a line to electric. The line still exists for freight traffic

Point being, there is no other realistic way it would be done. Like Reigate. Where there is a realistic choice, it won't be 3rd rail.

It's not like there is a big SE stock order, with any type of bi-mode capability. Nor would this be viable as a shuttle. So it was always going to be this.

 

[Horizon22]

Point being, there is no other realistic way it would be done. Like Reigate. Where there is a realistic choice, it won't be 3rd rail.

It's not like there is a big SE stock order, with any type of bi-mode capability. Nor would this be viable as a shuttle. So it was always going to be this.

I agree there's no other way but it will be an additional obstacle to overcome.

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

Couldn't find a thread on this as it can't be new but from an item in New Civil Engineer this week

Contractors wanted to restore passenger services to Kent freight line | New Civil Engineer

The £63M rail upgrade and restoration scheme is part of a wider £170M investment in the Hoo Peninsula from the government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund to

www.newcivilengineer.com

Medway Council has put contractors on notice for £48M worth of works to return passenger services to the freight-only railway in the Hoo Peninsula for the first time since 1968.

No mention of electrification or what services are to operate so sounds a bit bizarre to me.

 

[telstarbox]

It would have to be third rail surely?

 

[Nicholas Lewis]

It would have to be third rail surely?

good luck with that

 

[Peregrine 4903]

I heard rumours of battery trains, if this actually happens of course.