Work on Okehampton Line: progress updates

[fgwrich]

As I suspected, the NTC is on it's way up to Okehampton. It's bought a load of sleepers with it but I'm sure it'll be loaded with the Okehampton stack as well.

Some nice pictures of it on Flickr:

Goosed.....

youtu.be/YUEMTw9t-nI 56302 is seen at Brampford Speke crossing the River Exe en route to Okehampton with the 1436 from Westbury. She ran into Riverside yards to run round her train which gave me a chance to get ahead of her on the Barnstaple branch. She is going to be on the Meldon Quarry line...

www.flickr.com

56302 Westbury

Colas 56302 'PECO The Railway Modeller 2016 70 Years' with the Balfour Beatty NTC train in tow gets away from Westbury on 18/04/21 forming a 6F27 14.36 Westbury-Crediton.

www.flickr.com

 

[Cowley]

56302 en route to Crediton (then onto oke branch) with Balfour Beattytrack renewal train

70808 en route to Crediton with a train load of new sleepers , assumed for Crediton ....

Well I must admit that I completely missed that one even though I heard it go past and one of the girls said that Cowley Bridge looked like every railway enthusiast in the area was camped out there...

 

[Devonman2014]

Just stumbled across the track renewal train .....

 

[Cowley]

Just stumbled across the track renewal train .....

Excellent. Thanks for posting these.

 

[Devonman2014]

Excellent. Thanks for posting these.

Still watching it - enthralled in it working ... surprising how quick it is at doing its thing

 

[Bald Rick]

Pedantically, It’s the New Track Construction Machine / Train (not Track Renewal Train).

It is quick. I’ve had it working at 10 sleepers a minute, and I’m sure that’s not the quickest it’s been. Even at 10/min it runs out of sleepers in about 5 hours if there’s no hitch (it has to slow down a little at each new rail string), having laid 2km of track.

 

[Devonman2014]

Pedantically, It’s the New Track Construction Machine / Train (not Track Renewal Train).

It is quick. I’ve had it working at 10 sleepers a minute, and I’m sure that’s not the quickest it’s been. Even at 10/min it runs out of sleepers in about 5 hours if there’s no hitch (it has to slow down a little at each new rail string), having laid 2km of track.

Ha learn something everyday as I thought it was only a renewal train.

Took some video of it at work so will play some back and count sleepers per minute as an indication.
Operator of it at front when it stopped (stopped a few times) said they expect to finish at about 5 in morning.

Two colas trains up there tomorrow in the early hours - would assume that be ballasting what was done tonight ?

 

[fgwrich]

Ha learn something everyday as I thought it was only a renewal train.

Took some video of it at work so will play some back and count sleepers per minute as an indication.
Operator of it at front when it stopped (stopped a few times) said they expect to finish at about 5 in morning.

Two colas trains up there tomorrow in the early hours - would assume that be ballasting what was done tonight ?

It’s an impressive piece of kit, that’s for sure, and gets used on both new railway laying and renewals (it’s previously seen use in Devon on the Barnstaple branch renewals and track renewals in the Matley Tunnel area). I’ve watched it at work on the A2B project laying rails in the Bathgate and Caldercruix area’s - there is a video of it on YouTube:

 

[Devonman2014]

Went from Penstone to Bow last night and at Coleford Junction the Okehampton line has been relaid and looks complete with all temp lighting removed as per photo below. The bridge on the Barnstaple line as expected is now in place with Gilpin demolition dismantling the old bridge. Photo of new bridge with 158 crossing below (as close as you can get as roads closed)

Bricks bridge now has a compound established with welfare facilities and Temp floodlights, machinery and personnel were working on track at time I was there. Temp track lighting was being switched on as I was leaving.

Nymets bridge - as per previous posts track relaying was well underway

Bow station - line towards Okehampton was complete and ballasted, the line towards Crediton yet to be done as has the crossing. All materials are on site and lights are all on so must be imminent.

 

[Llandudno]

Pedantically, It’s the New Track Construction Machine / Train (not Track Renewal Train).

It is quick. I’ve had it working at 10 sleepers a minute, and I’m sure that’s not the quickest it’s been. Even at 10/min it runs out of sleepers in about 5 hours if there’s no hitch (it has to slow down a little at each new rail string), having laid 2km of track.

Wow, amazing bit of kit, how many of these machines are there on our rail network and how much does each one cost?

 

[Dunfanaghy Rd]

When it's good it's very, very good - when it's bad it's horrid
Seriously, when I last saw one working (Maiden Newton) torrential rain caused all manner of (electrical) problems.
Pat

 

[swt_passenger]

Wow, amazing bit of kit, how many of these machines are there on our rail network and how much does each one cost?

There are just the two, both operated by Balfour Beatty.

No idea how much they cost, but the company may have a press release about it somewhere.

 

[Bald Rick]

Wow, amazing bit of kit, how many of these machines are there on our rail network and how much does each one cost?

Balfours bought their first one back in 2003 - it was several million.

It is ideal for this sort of job, and also for long renewal jobs in big blocks. It’s less ideal for standard renewals in shorter blocks at weekends, as the time saving isn’t great due to the parallel activities that can be done on such sites. For example on a, say, 1400 metres long worksite, typically done in a 52hr possession, you can be digging out old ballast, laying new bottom ballast, compacting it, laying sleepers and rails all at the same time, moving sequentially through the site. The speed of the NTC means that you have to have all the job dug out and almost all the bottom ballast laid and compacted before you start laying the sleepers.

 

[DDB]

Running regular stone trains out of the quarry is clearly going to require significant layout and signalling changes such as adding loops etc.

What is possible with the existing setup for the odd test train or leaving failed trains at the end until later. Can a train be locked into the quarry section beyond Oakhampton and the rest of the line released?

I think what I'm asking is there a token machine or similar at the Oakhampton end?

 

[uglymonkey]

It used to be one section, between Crediton and the quarry. When the supporters started running the dartmoor pony, they split it at Okehampton ( there are big boards near the old signal box " start of token section" or similar). This was to allow the dartmoor pony to run from okehampton and back on days when a GWR unit was shuttling backwards and forwards between Okehampton and Crediton ( Exeter)
There is a picture on one of the pages of the Dartmoor Railway Supporters group of the token from Crediton to Okehampton. Think the token is just handed over - no token machine?

 

[Devonman2014]

It used to be one section, between Crediton and the quarry. When the supporters started running the dartmoor pony, they split it at Okehampton ( there are big boards near the old signal box " start of token section" or similar). This was to allow the dartmoor pony to run from okehampton and back on days when a GWR unit was shuttling backwards and forwards between Okehampton and Crediton ( Exeter)
There is a picture on one of the pages of the Dartmoor Railway Supporters group of the token from Crediton to Okehampton. Think the token is just handed over - no token machine?

See pic below of the stop board which is still on the end of the platform as of 3 weeks ago.
Think you will find the token is still in the old signal box that now acts as a office.

 

[DDB]

Is it a token from Credition to Oakhampton with a machine at each end or is it a staff? Presumably without a machine at each end someone would need to transport the token/staff by road back to the other end to make it avaliable again once a train had left Oakhampton and gone into the Meldon section.

 

[uglymonkey]

I've just zoomed on the notice and it says " staff" so I think just a "Physical Thing" to have with you as your section ( bit similar to Topsham - Exmouth which back in the day had a wooden staff , like a relay race baton with a little brass plate on it). Crediton- Okehampton must be similar, as the signaller hands over and collects something each time to the driver as they pass ( making the unit slow to almost a stop - very 21st Century !) - not sure if the Barny line is similar or they have a much more high tech system until they get to Eggesford.

 

[Gloster]

The Sectional Appendix, which might not be fully up to date (it should be), seems to show that the line is worked by train staff. This means that there is one train staff for each section with no token machine or signal box at the other end. I think that there are two train staff sections: Crediton-Okehampton and Okehampton-Meldon. If one train has to follow another through a section, then the staff has to be returned to the entry point by road. It is possible that one train can shuttle up and down in one section, and a second can do the same in the other (but ne’er the twain shall meet). I suspect that the signalling will be modernised in some way, at least between Crediton and Okehampton.

 

[Ashley Hill]

It's like a large Annetts Key so it can unlock the GF at Okehampton. It's brass plate is stamped Crediton-Meldon and riveted onto the key. I made it years ago and was only meant to be very temporary. The hole drilled in it was not my work though.

Found a picture of it by RichA on a similar thread on here.

 

[red cuillen]

surprised there have been no updates, though plenty of tweets fortunately!

and from down below, the lane to Belstone, just after the Fatherford viaduct!

 

[24Grange]

Thanks very much for the update ! Is that wheelflat damage on the right hand rail ( bottom right) in the last picture?

 

[bishdunster]

Looks more like wheel burn to me !

 

[red cuillen]

Thanks very much for the update ! Is that wheelflat damage on the right hand rail ( bottom right) in the last picture?

I must have rearranged the pictures whilst you were posting so guess you mean first pic

 

[Brissle Girl]

Is it a token from Credition to Oakhampton with a machine at each end or is it a staff?

Presumably a wooden staff?

 

[24Grange]

Yes, close up of the track. -

There is a picture of the token further up the thread
Whats the difference between wheel burn ( slip?) and wheelflat damage? wheel spinning whilst stopped and heating up?

 

[Bald Rick]

Yes, close up of the track. -

There is a picture of the token further up the thread
Whats the difference between wheel burn ( slip?) and wheelflat damage? wheel spinning whilst stopped and heating up?

Wheel flat damage is most apparent on the (flat) wheel. It won’t do much visible to the rail except possibly break it and then only if it is a very severe flat and (usually) old rail.

A wheel burn is where wheels spin and effectively deform through friction a small part of the rail head. In this case, whilst if does look a little like one, I’d be surprised, as there is nothing on the opposite rail. For understandable reasons they usually happen in pairs.

 

[Dunfanaghy Rd]

Looks to me as though some dunnage was lying on it last time it rained.
Pat

 

[SouthernOne]

Spotted yesterday Colas 56302 with sleepers heading towards Meldon from Okehampton.

 

[red cuillen]

That bridge I pictured in 471 is now closed. Would this be because they plan to work on the bridge, or just in case of falling debris??

It's the bridge to Belstone, just up from Okehampton itself, I believe that is the section they plan on relaying.