Stewarts Lane Viaduct

[Tubeman]

Hi All

I started a thread about this a while back, but it's been time-locked

I enquired about usage of this feature (Linford Street Junction to Nine Elms Junction, the former Eurostar passenger curve from the LCDR Chatham Main to LSWR Windsor lines) since diversion of Eurostar to St Pancras, and was kindly told that it sees regular NR test trains, and this was corroborated by the fact the rails were reasonably shiny when I posted the previous thread.

That's all well and good, but as I passed Linford Street Junction yesterday en route from Peckham to Victoria, it was clear a section of left hand running rail a couple of metres long had been removed from the 'up' road (but the entire chord seemed otherwise intact), and the rails on both roads were very rusty.

So does anyone know the story? Has the curve finally been formally abandoned (if yes when)? Has it been converted to single line working using the down road (this would entail wrong road working along the down Chatham main all the way to Voltaire Road Junction)?

Any information gratefully received

Joe Brown (London Railway Atlas)

 

[Hydro]

I've not worked a test train over it for a while now, I'm not sure what the status is. It used to be a bit of a semi-regular move. Maybe the memory is going a bit rusty, but I can't remember actually testing it, only using it for transit moves or as a "dead" ( equipment switched off) part of a recording run.

 

[Waddon]

There was so much infrastructure built for the initial channel tunnel services which was abandoned after only about 10 years of use when HS1 came on, what a waste! All those passing loops, not to mention the abandoned depot and Waterloo international... think of all the useful long term railway improvements it all could have funded

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

There was so much infrastructure built for the initial channel tunnel services which was abandoned after only about 10 years of use when HS1 came on, what a waste! All those passing loops, not to mention the abandoned depot and Waterloo international... think of all the useful long term railway improvements it all could have funded

I think charter trains go over it from time to time, infact I was on one a year or so ago that did that. Agree with above comments about Waterloo International Platforms remaining unused, those 2 bits of infrastructure if reused could be so useful.

 

[swt_passenger]

Today's Railway UK current issue confirms the cut rail and reckons it has been taken out of use by NR.

There doesn't seem to be a Network Change notification online though, so no real evidence it is permanent...

 

[shinkansen1966]

Think they should run a 'parliamentary' eurostar train over the chord.

 

[OxtedL]

That sounds like an excellent way to needlessly throw large amounts of money down the drain. One service a day or less would be pointless as it would have limited appeal and simply be expensive to run. There is no need at all since HS1 started up for real.

 

[507 001]

That sounds like an excellent way to needlessly throw large amounts of money down the drain. One service a day or less would be pointless as it would have limited appeal and simply be expensive to run. There is no need at all since HS1 started up for real.

Its also impossible as AFAIK euro* have no DC equipment anymore?

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Its also impossible as AFAIK euro* have no DC equipment anymore?

Correct. And there is no equipment left at the Waterloo terminal either - all the X-ray machinery etc etc was removed to St Pancras.

 

[Hydro]

Does anyone like coincidences? Because I've just received a diagram that shows the train I'm working on Monday transiting into Waterloo; via Linford St Jn - Up Waterloo Curve - Nine Elms Jn.

Time will tell if this is genuine, or a mistake!

 

[Tubeman]

I'd be very interested to hear whether you make it, or unceremoniously hit the deck!

As I said before, I could only see the rail removed from the 'up', so maybe the 'down' is being used bi-directionally (although it isn't signalled for this).

Please let me know, and if it is definitely decommissioned, if anyone could hunt around for the official date, that would be much appreciated. To my recollection, the removed running rail straddles the right hand running rail of the Down Chatham main (i.e. at the diamond crossover of the junction), so I'd have thought there would have been a possession of the Chatham main line to remove the section of rail from the chord... have there been any engineering closures in the vicinity recently?

 

[chuffchuff]

By the looks of it only the down line has been plain lined,
where the right linford crosses the left vic line. The up
looks ok

 

[Hydro]

Definite mistake in the timings, we took the Ludgates and will reverse at Clapham Jn.

 

[shinkansen1966]

That sounds like an excellent way to needlessly throw large amounts of money down the drain.

As opposed to money being thrown down the drain on maintaining Waterloo International in its current state.

 

[Tubeman]

Me again.

A couple of weeks ago I passed Linford Street Junction for the first time since October (when I started this thread), and although I was looking out for it, I couldn't see the same break in the running rails than I saw back then.

If anything, the rails of the curve looked a little shiny.

It could have been my imagination... is the curve back in use again?

Hydro / anyone?

 

[Hydro]

Yes, the curves back in use, I tested it a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Tubeman]

Great, many thanks!

I'd marked them as closed on the atlas... I can now re-open them!

Test trains only, I presume... no other use? Roughly how often does it get used?

 

[MidnightFlyer]

It's been used for a couple of railtours too, I was on one last November both ways over it.

 

[Hydro]

Anything that needs/requests to use it I suppose. The only reason it's not regularly used is because there's no day to day use for it service wise. I'll bet on engineering trains using it, ballasts/tampers etc. As Matt says, railtours can still use it, it's tested to standard requirements and also used as a transit route for test trains coming from Grove Park to Waterloo.