The Newmarket Vision Potential Network and Service Improvements
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The Newmarket Vision Potential Network and Service Improvements Presented at meeting at Newmarket Jockey Club on 6 September 2019 By Philip Smart and Peter Wakefield of Railfuture East Anglia www.railfuture.org.uk Twitter: @Railfuture and @RailfutureEA Better services over a bigger rail network The Newmarket & Chesterford Railway Incorporated: 16th July 1846 Authorised Capital: £350,000 Length of line: 17 ½ miles Engineers: Robert Stephenson and John Braithwaite First sod turned (amid much celebration !): 30th September 1846 Opened for freight: 3rd January 1848 Opened for Passengers: 4th April 1848 Rolling stock: 6 Locomotives 88 Coaches 40 Horse Boxes! 2 The second ‘railway age’ Contrasting fortunes of Rail and Road since late 1990s Rail growth in last 20 years Road traffic stagnation 3 Why the change? (1) Car ownership saturation Company car taxation Rail service provision improved Fewer young people drive – Insurance – Education • Cost • Location Road congestion and environmental concern 4 Why the change? (2) Urban living * Price of road fuel * Opportunity value of time * – Eat & Drink – Comfort break! – Use phone – Work! (Trains are now banks, cinemas, shops and offices!) * Likely to continue long term ! 5 Future transport policy influences • Environment • Congested Roads – Climate Emergency! • Housing – Carbon Neutrality – Supply • Economic Growth – Location • Logistics and – Greater commuting distribution distances Increasing role for Rail! 6 Newmarket – Growing but underperforming similar towns Miles from Population Rail Footfall Departures London (2011) (2017/8) per hour Ely 70 20,256 2,281,710 9 Newmarket 70 20,384 358,798 2 Stowmarket 80 19,280 935,244 5 Footfall per head of Population 120 100 80 60 40 113 20 18 49 0 Ely Newmarket Stowmarket 7 Nottingham & Liverpool East Anglia – Existing Network and Norwich Kings Lynn Services 2019 Wymondham To Leicester & Attleborough Birmingham W’sea March Thetford Brandon Diss Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Stowmarket Cambridge North Dullingham Cambridge Needham Mkt Hourly service Ipswich Hitchin Alternate hour service Other services Stansted Electrified route 8 Nottingham & Derby East Anglia – Franchise Award 2016 Norwich Kings Lynn (not yet introduced) Wymondham To Leicester & Attleborough Birmingham W’sea March Thetford Brandon Diss Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Stowmarket Cambridge North Dullingham Cambridge Needham Mkt Hourly Colchester-Ipswich – Peterborough ! Ipswich Hitchin Stansted 9 Nottingham & Derby Step 1. East Anglia – Franchise Award Norwich Kings Lynn Can we do better? Wymondham To Leicester & Attleborough Birmingham W’sea March Thetford Brandon Diss Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Stowmarket Cambridge North Dullingham Cambridge 1. Transfer intermediate stops east of Bury Needham Mkt to Colchester - Ipswich – Peterborough service Ipswich Hitchin 2. Transfer intermediate stops west of Bury to new Cambridge-Bury shuttle Stansted 3. Cambridge-Ipswich becomes ‘semi-fast’ 10 Requirements for Step 1 (not in current franchise!) Step Infrastructure Rolling stock Turnback at Bury with 2 x additional trains Transfer intermediate stops associated signalling (BMU = bi-mode unit) east of Bury to Ipswich- Peterborough service Independent running line Coldham Lane Junction Create new Cambridge – Bury into Platform 7/8 at service all stations Cambridge Ipswich-Cambridge train to Lengthen passing loop at stop at Stowmarket, Bury and Dullingham westwards Newmarket. Journey time 1 and/or dual Coldham Lane hour! Junction eastwards 11 Nottingham & Derby Step 2. Additional Stations in Norwich Kings Cambridgeshire LTP and 2 tph Lynn to Ipswich Wymondham To Leicester & Attleborough Birmingham W’sea March Thetford Brandon Diss Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Soham Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Dullingham Stowmarket Cambridge North Fulbourn Cherry Hinton Cambridge Cambridge South Needham Mkt Soham only served by Ipswich- Peterborough trains ! Ipswich Hitchin Stansted 12 Requirements for Step 2 Step Infrastructure Rolling stock Additional stations east of Stations constructed at 1 x additional BMU Cambridge and 2 trains per Soham, Cambridge South (above step 1) hour (tph) to Ipswich and Cherry Hinton/Fulbourn as required Double track Soham-Ely and Coldhams Lane- Newmarket Haughley junction doubled Additional platforms at Ipswich 13 Nottingham & Derby Step 3. Second train Norwich Kings Norwich to Cambridge Lynn Wymondham To Leicester & Attleborough Birmingham W’sea March Thetford Diss Brandon Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Soham Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Dullingham Stowmarket Cambridge North Fulbourn Cherry Hinton Cambridge Cambridge South ‘Fast’ service to Cambridge Needham Mkt Norwich-Liverpool omits call Ipswich Hitchin at Ely to save 4 paths and shorten journey time Stansted 14 Requirements for Step 3 Step Infrastructure Rolling stock Second train Norwich- Trowse swing-bridge 2 x additional BMU Cambridge semi-fast doubled at Norwich (above step 2) NB both Ipswich and Norwich now Additional platforms at have 2 x tph to Cambridge. One Cambridge and Norwich semi-fast and one stopping (will be required at Cambridge for EWR and Thameslink) This is where we want to be by 2027 to get the Eastern Section ‘Central section ready’! 15 Nottingham & Derby Step 4. East West Rail Central Section Norwich Kings Opens! Lynn Wymondham To Leicester & Attleborough Birmingham W’sea March Thetford Diss Brandon Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Soham Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Dullingham Stowmarket To Bedford Cambridge North Fulbourn Cherry Hinton M. Keynes Cambridge & Oxford Semi-fast services from Ipswich Cambridge South and Norwich extend to give Needham Mkt 30min. Frequency west of Cambridge. They form part of Ipswich Hitchin 4/6 tph service pattern along EWR Stansted 16 Summary – EWR Interventions • Double track Cambridge to Newmarket • Additional platform capacity at Ipswich, Norwich, Newmarket and Cambridge • Double Trowse swing bridge (Norwich) • Electrification? – Felixstowe to Birmingham (incl. Cambridge to Newmarket) – Ely to Norwich? Should we give ‘East West Rail Company’ a broader remit? (Currently limited to building Oxford to Cambridge only with little freight capacity) 17 Beyond East West Rail What next for Newmarket? Nottingham & Derby Step 5. Felixstowe to Birmingham Norwich Kings Electrification Lynn ? Wymondham To Leicester & Birmingham Attleborough W’sea March Thetford Diss Brandon Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Soham Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Dullingham Stowmarket To Bedford Cambridge North Fulbourn Cherry Hinton Business case based on Freight M. Keynes Cambridge & Oxford (see later section on ‘freight’) Cambridge South Needham Mkt Should include Newmarket-Cambridge and EWR (and Norwich?) Ipswich Hitchin Up to 20 DMU diagrams converted Stansted Between Ipswich & Birmingham 19 Newmarket ‘West Curve’? • Suggested in Network Rail ‘Improving Connectivity’ consultation 2014 • Flawed proposal was widely criticised! • Ipswich-to-Peterborough passengers forced to change at Newmarket! 20 West Curve – a better business case? 1. Soham (new station to open!) - Direct link to Newmarket and Cambridge 2. Newmarket - Direct link north to Ely and beyond Ely Ipswich Former Snailwell Junction Chippenham Formation of Junction former west curve (mostly intact) Newmarket & Former Warren Hill Cambridge Junction 21 Nottingham & Derby Step 6. reinstatement of the ‘west curve’ Norwich Kings Lynn Wisbech Wymondham To Leicester & Birmingham Attleborough W’sea March Thetford Diss Brandon Peterborough Manea North Jcn. Ely Soham Chippenham Bury St. Jcn Kennet Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Haughley Jcn Waterbeach Newmarket Dullingham Stowmarket To Bedford Cambridge North Fulbourn Cherry Hinton M. Keynes Cambridge & Oxford Cambridge South Needham Mkt • Cambridge to Wisbech via Ely • Newmarket call on Ipswich-Birmingham Ipswich Hitchin • London to Ely via Newmarket Stansted To London Liverpool 22 Street Requirements for Step 6 Step Infrastructure Acquire West Curve Lengthen platform at Newmarket (not in Network Rail ownership) Station facilities and car parking (not in Network Rail ownership) Reinstate track on former track bed along west curve Create junctions at Snailwell and Warren Hill NB ‘Portion Working’ Stansted and Ipswich to Birmingham requires franchise re-mapping (if we still have franchising!) 23 Newmarket – a bigger station? Fig 1. Looking towards Ipswich showing the Fig 2. Towards Cambridge showing the disused alignment of the former up line on the right section of the down platform on the right Might not appear to be space, but there is… 24 Newmarket – existing layout diagram Former down platform Current Platform Dullingham Kennet Cambridge Bury St Edmunds Thurston Elmswell Stowmarket Needham Market Ipswich 25 Newmarket – double track option (both platforms available to up & down trains) Platform 1 Platform 2 Dullingham x 2 Kennet Fulbourn x 2 Bury St Edmunds x 3 Cherry Hinton x 2 Thurston Cambridge x 3 Elmswell Bedford Stowmarket x 3 Milton Keynes Needham Market Oxford