Remodelling Carstairs

[woodenhead]

 

Anyone got a link to the new track layout?

[lmsforever]

Brilliant vidio  NR are really replacing everything fantastic.

[Tom D]

Earlier video of the planned remodelling.

 

 

 

[2251]

Whenever the subject of Carstairs comes up, I always find myself wondering why the cut-off line from north of the Clyde bridge to the Edinburgh line was closed in the first place and not rebuilt since. It seems far more suited to high-speed running than the current alignment. 

[woodenhead]

33 minutes ago, 2251 said:

Whenever the subject of Carstairs comes up, I always find myself wondering why the cut-off line from north of the Clyde bridge to the Edinburgh line was closed in the first place and not rebuilt since. It seems far more suited to high-speed running than the current alignment. 

Not the first time this has been mentioned, apparently it's a flood plane and marshy, though the track was on an embankment, last used in 1860 after which it became a couple of sidings.

 

Seems that even now the current junction is preferred over re-opening that route - maybe the cost benefit of elevated speeds does not add up for the number of services using the curve from South to East, whereas the awful North to East reverse camber justifies investment and realignment.

[woodenhead]

Some more reading suggests that it has been looked at again more recently and HS2 may one day play a part, but it was going to be difficult to get higher speed points in at the location without affecting line speed and the Scottish Government are also not concerned with helping Network Rail i.e. they will pay for infrastructure that benefits Scots but not London - which kinda makes sense.

 

So it may be that when HS2 finally looks at services beyond the border they may again look at realignment of the South junction at Carstairs when it comes out of national budgets.

[298]

I've seen some basic plans on t'interweb, but nothing that explains how the sleepers wil continue to split/combine or if anything will replace the current down main or up Edinburgh loops...

[luckymucklebackit]

 

Theses and the official diagrams which I believe are now in the public domain.  It appears to me that there is no loss of capability to split or combine compared with the old layout.

 

Jim

[298]

19 hours ago, luckymucklebackit said:

 

Theses and the official diagrams which I believe are now in the public domain.  It appears to me that there is no loss of capability to split or combine compared with the old layout.

 

Jim

 

Turns out what I thought were official drawings were actually blank sheet thinking using Google earth and the unlimited time and money that passengers think should be done instantly instead of building HS2, and no way achievable for the budget quoted. 

[GordonC]

On 17/03/2023 at 22:12, luckymucklebackit said:

 

Theses and the official diagrams which I believe are now in the public domain.  It appears to me that there is no loss of capability to split or combine compared with the old layout.

 

Jim

 

Have you got a copy of the equivalent previous diagram? What was the current speed on the Up Main through the platforms?

 

I always thought it odd how the South to Edinburgh curve went into a single junction but opened out into double track fairly quickly where the Glasgow to Edinburgh curve was essentially single track all the way round when I would have expected that to have the busier side of the junction

[luckymucklebackit]

3 hours ago, GordonC said:

 

Have you got a copy of the equivalent previous diagram? What was the current speed on the Up Main through the platforms?

 

I always thought it odd how the South to Edinburgh curve went into a single junction but opened out into double track fairly quickly where the Glasgow to Edinburgh curve was essentially single track all the way round when I would have expected that to have the busier side of the junction

If you go to https://www.networkrail.co.uk/industry-and-commercial/information-for-operators/national-electronic-sectional-appendix/

and download the Scottish Sectional Appendix, you will find the old layout with speed restrictions  it hasn't been updated yet.  Carstairs is on page 178.

 

Jim

[keefer]

This is the layout shown on TRACKSY at the moment:

 

Link: TRACKSY Live Map

[melmerby]

Open to through trains today.

The new diagram, that has been on Railcam for weeks, is now active.

[melmerby]

The Traksy map needs amending, it doesn't look right and there are no signal berth numbers.