Network Rail Freedom of Information the Quadrant Elder Gate Milton Keynes MK9 1EN

Network Rail Freedom of Information The Quadrant Elder Gate Milton Keynes MK9 1EN

T 01908 782405 E [email protected]

24 July 2020

Dear S Barrow

Information request Reference number: FOI2020/00752

Thank you for your email of 3 July 2020, in which you requested the following information:

Follow up to request FOI2020/00650, related to Sectional Running Times (SRTs) on the Preston to Blackpool South and Preston to Colne lines:

Thank you for the informative reply.

The only thing missing would be a further breakdown of the SRT times and how the timings / figures are established. Is this possible for the routes noted in the original request?

For example a train leaves Huncoat Station on a rising gradient, gets to a certain speed then has to slow right down to 10mph and then has to crawl at 10mph for a few hundred yards into Accrington Station Is there a breakdown of the 4 minutes allowance itself (and the other allowances)?

If it is any easier (and possible) a breakdown for these sections would suffice Burnley Barracks to Rose Grove / Rose Grove to Burnley Barracks Huncoat to Accrington / Accrington to Huncoat Kirkham & Wesham to Moss Side to Lytham.

I have processed your request under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).

Network Rail Infrastructure Limited Registered Office: Network Rail, 2nd Floor, One Eversholt Street, London, NW1 2DN Registered in England and Wales No. 2904587 www.networkrail.co.uk

I can confirm that we hold some of the information you requested. I will address each of your questions you have asked; I have reordered some of your request wording to try and address your points in the best order.

The only thing missing would be a further breakdown of the SRT times…Is this possible for the routes noted in the original request?

The breakdown of SRTs previously provided to you in response to request FOI2020/00650 (for the Preston to Blackpool South and Preston to Colne lines) is the only SRT information we hold in response to your request; there is no further timing information held by us for these lines.

I can explain that we don’t break down the SRTs into smaller components than those already given to you - this is because an SRT is measured between a pair of timing points (such as junction to junction, station to junction) and accounts for the activities completed in that section, for example, a train accelerating from a stand or slowing to a stop or for a speed restriction that applies to all trains between those points.

and how the timings / figures are established. Is this possible for the routes noted in the original request? For example a train leaves Huncoat Station on a rising gradient, gets to a certain speed then has to slow right down to 10mph and then has to crawl at 10mph for a few hundred yards into Accrington Station.

You will be able to find how we establish and calculate SRTs in our published information in our Timetable Planning Rules (TPRs). This information is published on our website at the following link:

https://www.networkrail.co.uk/industry-and-commercial/information-for-operators/

The process for establishing SRTs is set out in Section 6.4 of the National TPRs and in section 5.1 of the North West & Central TPRs. For ease of reference I have extracted the relevant explanations for you and attached them to this response letter; please see the document called FOI202000752 Timetable Planning Rules SRTs.1

These sections in the TPRs cover the guiding principles for reviewing SRTs that are used by Network Rail, Train Operating Companies (TOCs), Freight Operating Companies (FOCs) and other timetable participants; this is a national process. This section explains how technical minimum running times are converted into SRTs and what performance uplifts might be applied to the base value. Network Rail or any of the timetable participants proposing new SRTs or amendments to existing SRTs may use a number of different methodologies and most commonly this would be computer modelling, observed data

1 Under section 21(1) of the FOIA we are not obliged to provide information in response to a request if it is already publicly available.

Network Rail Infrastructure Limited Registered Office: Network Rail, 2nd Floor, One Eversholt Street, London, NW1 2DN Registered in England and Wales No. 2904587 www.networkrail.co.uk

either collected from industry systems such as TRUST and Control Centre of the Future (CCF) or from stopwatch timings on trains, Global Positioning System (GPS) data, performance data or any combination of these methodologies. New or amended SRT proposals are consulted by Network Rail with all affected timetable participants and there is an opportunity to review, comment and counter-propose changes. The agreed values are then uploaded to “Bplan” and this feeds into the Train Planning System (TPS).

You may also be interested to know that the SRTs for Class 14x and Class 150 trains on the Blackpool South to Preston route were last reviewed during 2016/early2017. This was in connection with the electrification of the line to Blackpool North, and resignalling and remodelling of Kirkham & Wesham station. At this point, an additional timing point of Kirkham West Junction was introduced on the Blackpool South line. The SRTs were modelled using a computer simulation called “Railsys”.

The answer to this question is the same as that given in response to your first question about a further breakdown of SRT times as we do not break this detail down any further. All trains via Accrington are subject to a 10mph speed restriction through the station and this is already built into the SRTs. We do not break down the SRTs between a pair of timing points into any smaller detail.

I should add that when you have mentioned ‘other allowances’, it is not clear to our experts to what other types of allowances you may be referring but I hope that the explanations given in this response are helpful and sufficiently address this point for you. If not, please do feel free to make a new request, confirming exactly for what allowances you are seeking information.

I also note that you have asked for a breakdown of specific sections. As explained above, the information we have provided you with is the information we use and record; we do not hold any further breakdown of the SRTs in these locations beyond those already supplied in response to request FOI2020/00650.

I hope the information and explanations provided in this response are helpful. If you have any enquiries about this response, please contact me in the first instance at [email protected] or on 01908 782405. Details of your appeal rights are below.

Network Rail Infrastructure Limited Registered Office: Network Rail, 2nd Floor, One Eversholt Street, London, NW1 2DN Registered in England and Wales No. 2904587 www.networkrail.co.uk

Please remember to quote the reference number at the top of this letter in all future communications.

Yours sincerely

Emma Meadows Information Officer

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Network Rail Infrastructure Limited Registered Office: Network Rail, 2nd Floor, One Eversholt Street, London, NW1 2DN Registered in England and Wales No. 2904587 www.networkrail.co.uk