Cambridge Redevelopment

[richard]

Well I'm back in the 100F+ heat of Texas, but yesterday morning I noticed a lot of work going on at Cambridge. Looks like they are finally putting an island platform in?

I'm sure it will greatly improve operational efficiency and probably avoid passenger confusion a little bit too, but another Victorian idiosyncrasy will be lost.


Richard

[Dave]

Richard
Glad you got back to the Colonies ok, did you get to the NRM, sorry to hijack your thread.

[cambois]

Richard

You are correct a new island platform is being provided at Cambridge, and in case you have missed it a grade separated junction at Hitchin and freight line/platform upgrades in the Alexandra Palace area to increase passenger capacity

[giner]

It's many, many years since I was last at Cambridge. Has that long, really long, main platform gone? Is there a site to view progress of the reconstruction going on there?

[StevieG]

Well I'm back in the 100F+ heat of Texas, but yesterday morning I noticed a lot of work going on at Cambridge. Looks like they are finally putting an island platform in?

I'm sure it will greatly improve operational efficiency and probably avoid passenger confusion a little bit too, but another Victorian idiosyncrasy will be lost.

Richard

Victorian idiosyncrasy possibly not to be lost : The new island will be an additional facility (both lines 2-way signalled) - no change to the signalling or present possible working of the long platform (Nos.1 / 4), the adjacent two-way Through Line, or the scissors crossover in the middle that connects them.

[StevieG]

It's many, many years since I was last at Cambridge. Has that long, really long, main platform gone? Is there a site to view progress of the reconstruction going on there?

Long platform still there (see previous post); the 1980s resignalling didn't really change the facilities offered by the previous layout and signalling.
Still with two bays at each end, when one is there, it can seem that the long-platform and the south bays are fairly intensively-worked these days :
[off-peak services per hour, in each direction, are something like: -
- 2 x non-stops to/from King's Cross (one of which is through from/to Kings Lynn
- 2 x semi-fasts to/from KX (different stopping patterns)
- 2 x to/from Liverpool Street (1 about 10 min. faster than the other)
- 1 x Stansted Airport / Birm. New St.s
plus (every two hours?) 1 x Cambr./ Ipswich.]

[richard]

Yes it looked like a lot of services were scheduled for Sunday morning to Kings Cross or Kings Lynn. The one I took was actually four coaches (well a Class 365 set) from somewhere (I assume Kings Lynn) which picked up four new coaches (another 365) at Cambridge and continued non-stop to Kings Cross. Despite being about 9:20am on a Sunday it was still standing room only. Large numbers of international students and tourists who looked to be going in to London for the day.

The long platform and cross-over might stay, but I assume the cross-over will be used much less frequently: otherwise why do it?

I didn't see the other works, although Kings Cross is experiencing a major renovation/rebuild of course.
One of the main bays boarded over as a pedestrian walkway (+a replacement Platform '0'), and a rather temporary waiting room. The concourse seems busier than ever, even during the off-peak times that I went through.

Dave: No, I didn't get to make it to the NRM. In fact very little LNER at all. I'll be posting photos or a link later in the week, but we did get to ride the WHR, Great Orme Tramway, and Ravenglass & Eskdale; plus see working locomotives on the Snowdon Mountain and Ffestiniog lines. So the LNER/GNR would be the very LNER/GNR looking boilers of River Mite and River Esk; plus I saw a Deltic on Friday. One of those chance looking out of the window at the right time whilst speeding down the ECML events. It was on a siding, and I think it may have been Royal Scots Grey? It was a very quick view, but the end view of a Deltic is unmistakable. This would have been early/mid afternoon and I think it was south of Doncaster (definitely between Doncaster and Stevenage).


Richard

[StevieG]

" .... The long platform and cross-over might stay, but I assume the cross-over will be used much less frequently: otherwise why do it? .... Richard "

Well I think the point of doing it is to facilitate the station in general being able to handle more trains being 12-car length (to Liv.St & KX), and to ease peak period congestion and recovery from late running [there's possibly provision also in mind for whatever change may come with 'Thameslink' trains serving the GN via the built but currently still(?) track-less tunnels between St. Pancras sub-surface platforms and KX Goods Yard(site of) / Freight Terminal Jn./Copenhagen Jn.(new) ].

But as the new platforms will only be accessible over a new footbridge (from just beyond the north end of the main station building, near the plat.5 buffer stop), and there will presumably need to be extra station staff when the new platforms are in use, the amount by which use of the 'scissors' crossover will reduce may be less than one might expect, especially if common sense is used in keeping as many trains using the present through platform(s) as is reasonably practicable, for passenger convenience.
Whether common sense will be used...... , 'the proof of the pudding may only come with the eating' ....