Norman Baker still in post

At least plans for tram trains may have some continuity.

Bwahahahaha!

That is all.

Stormin' Norman bulldozes TramTrain through

According to the Department for Transport...

Transport Minister Norman Baker today gave the green light to a £58m pilot scheme to run revolutionary Tram Trains on both rail and tram networks, making them ideal for the eight mile non-stop journeys of no more than 25 minutes between, suburb and city centres from Sheffield to Rotherham.

As well as providing a boost to the regional economy thanks to improved connections across the region, the project is also expected to create 35 new jobs locally as well.

Full marks to Norman Baker for championing this, no doubt to the delight of local MP and DPM Nick Clegg.

And with Tram Train due to "commence in 2015" what a fitting memorial it will make to the ConDem government, as it leaves office...

UPDATE: This from Captain Deltic...

According to Stormin' Norman:

The knowledge that we obtain from the pilot will enable us to understand the technical and operational challenges involved in this project so that the concept can potentially be rolled out elsewhere in the UK.

Presumaly these are the same 'technical and operational challenges' that had to be understood before the successful operation of Tyne & Wear Metro cars over Network Rail infrastructure to Sunderland? (shurely 'already mastered by LUL's Met and District lines, whose stock have long shared routes with 'heavy' rail operators'? Ed).
 
Still, however dodgy the justification, who cares if the Treasury buys it and a lot of people should benefit - unlike the original bonkers proposal back in 2008 to run diesel tram trains as Pacer replacement over the Penistone Line. 

Light Rail can proceed at caution

Good news for fans of the bleedin' obvious! (shurely 'Trams'? Ed)

The much delayed review into Light Rail has finally been published.

According to the DfT press release announcing the publication the recommendations from the review include;

• to implement a new project design of light rail systems which is uniform across the industry;

• to look at lower cost schemes overseas to see whether they could be adopted in this country;
  
  
• to set up a ‘centre of procurement excellence’ to advise on the best procurement options.
  
  
• caution hot surfaces; and
  
  
• may contain nuts

Light Rail champion and Transport Minister 'Stormin' Norman Baker welcomed the report from the LibDem's Party Conference in Birmingham:

“In the past light rail systems have been seen as expensive and an unaffordable option for local authorities to pursue – I initiated this review so we can get to the nub of the problem.

“I now urge all parts of the light rail sector to work together on implementing these recommendations and I look forward to working with them towards these exciting opportunities."

The report, Green Light for Light Rail, can be found here.

UPDATE: This from a weary sounding Captain Deltic...

Is a 'Centre of Procurement Excellence' a rare example of the triple oxymoron?

Cascaded D stock for Community Railways?

How very like the western branches of the District line.

You wait for one D stock story and then two turn up at once.

Interesting news from Harrogate Chamber of Commerce...

Harrogate Chamber of Trade & Commerce is now bidding for a complete upgrading of the Harrogate Line train services between Leeds, Harrogate, Knaresborough and York.

The Chamber’s solution is a modern low-cost ground-level electrification system, similar to that used on the Docklands Light Railway.

The proposed rolling stock is a fleet of around 20 six-car light rapid transit electric trains, originally built by Metro-Cammell in Birmingham, which have been totally refurbished within the past few years, with 280 seats per train and lots of proper standing room as well.


If this idea gets any traction then it may catch on elsewhere. The Harrogate proposal envisages using only 20 of the 78 six car D stock fleet.

Could this be a better private sector inspired solution for Community Railways rather than Tram-Train which remains mired in the usual DafT treacle?

UPDATE: This from a Mr Tony Miles...

Harrogate Chamber of Commerce appear to suggest that the juice rail should sit about 2' above the running rails…

Happy badgers, unhappy farmers.

Where the axe will fall...

This with a bowler tip to Sir Herbert Beeching...

Eye's readers may be interested in the following savings agreed by my colleagues...

• A £309m reduction in the Department's specific grants to local authorities

• The Secretary of State is consulting the Mayor on a proposed £108m reduction in the Department’s grant to TfL, the same percentage reduction proposed across local government.

• Network Rail will reduce spend by £100m

• The Department is also making £112m savings in its direct expenditure.

• The Department will not be going forward in 2010-11 with planned spend on the HLOS rolling stock schemes that have not already been contractualised.

Wither IEP, Tram-Train and new fleets for London Midland & Thameslink?

Farewell Messrs Hall and Green, Stationers to the late Lord DafT Vader, and their Better Stations Programme?

Who knows?

One piece of good news.

Happily my First Division colleagues have confirmed that the entire £683m saving will no longer be achieved by simply cancelling Stuart Baker...

IEP to become Tram-train! Official, no really!

Ixion - Railway Eye's resident louche traction and rolling stock engineer has just spotted this table in the InterCity East Coast franchise consultation document.

Table 5.1 SET Train configurations
			Seating capacity
	Type	Formation	Total	First	Standard
HST replacement	Bi-mode	Full	630	132	498
Class 365 replacement	Electric	Half	331	27	304
Class 313 replacement	Electric*	Third	250		250
Tram-train	Bi-mode	Quarter	150		150
Class 180 replacement	Bi-mode	Half	273	27	246
IC225 replacement	Electric	Full	688	132	556
Spares	Bi-mode	Full	630	132	498
*Dual voltage

It casts shocking new light on DfT Rail's aim of gaining economies of scale by maximising the range of applications for the Super Express Train...

UPDATE: This from Underground Ernest...

Can we get a variant to replace our Piccadilly line stock?

UPDATE: This from our man at 222 Marylebone Road...

Surely, if DfT is seeking economies of scale and IEP is seen as a Class 365 replacement, the new Thameslink stock would be a logical application for an ultra-high density variant?

With that massive acceleration 30 trains an hour would be possible... probably...

Watford - St Albans to be 'tram line'?

Via Twitter

@transportgovuk: Adonis launches a consultation to convert Watford and St Albans railway into a tram line.

Let's hope this is more successful than the abandoned conversion of the Penistone line.

DafT phones a friend

This from the Railway Gazette...

Rotherham tram-train replaces Penistone scheme

Now there's a surprise!

Penistone too difficult so DafT changes the question.

Will the dysfunctional Department ever see a rolling stock procurement exercise through to a successful conclusion?

UPDATE: This from Steve Strong...

Look on the positive side.

At least Sheffield to Huddersfield passengers won't have to stand cross-legged on a train with less seats and no loo (cf the current pacers).

UPDATE: This from Sir Humphrey Beeching...

The Fact Compiler is losing his touch!

Has he not noticed the following paragraph at the end of the Department's press release:

The project partners are still planning to test tram-trains on the Penistone Line between Sheffield and Huddersfield via Barnsley at a later date after work concluded that, electrically-powered tram-trains are more economically viable for use in the UK than the diesel equivalent which was being proposed for trial on the Penistone line

Interesting.

Electrically powered tram-trains.

And yet the freight line upon which these are now supposed to run is not electrified.

And as the spec' for the tram-trains appears to have changed does not this mean the procurement process will have to be rerun?

Either way it would have been cheaper to cancel the entire project.

Unless, of course, you have the mindset of an 'insurgent'...

Germany calling #2

Telegrammed by Lord Tee Hee
Having spent the past two days whizzing around the Karlsruhe tram/train network I can only wonder at the honesty of the Germans.

I haven't had my pass checked once in over 20 trips.

So, either the country is so scrupulously law-abiding that no one fare evades, or KVV see it as such a small problem that it's not worth employing anyone for revenue protection.

I wonder how this will translate to our own tram/train experiment?

Caught short

Good news for Community Rail lines.

According to the Yorkshire Post plans to introduce Britain's first "tram-train"appear to have stalled.

Network Rail is nervous about granting the light weight vehicles access to routes used by heavier passenger and freight trains. At the same time Stagecoach, operator of the Sheffield Supertram, is proving distinctly lukewarm to suggestions that abstractive Northern tram-trains should run through city streets on their network.

Less ACoRP accuse the Fact Compiler of being unusually Κασσάνδρα-like he feels compelled to point out that the introduction of new rolling stock generally results in a dramatic increase in passenger loadings

Therefore he is at a loss to understand why the proposed tram-trains have a third less seats than the Pacers they are due to replace and will also have no WCs aboard..

The muesli-munchers continue to keep fingers and other parts of their anatomies crossed that these obstacles can be overcome.

Intending passengers will need similar skills as the journey between Huddersfield and Sheffield takes a prostate challenging 70 minutes!