Back on Track

By David Einstein
Photographs by Terry Lowenthal/Bechtel

The West Coast Main Line is the major transportation artery in the United Kingdom. It stretches from London to Glasgow and Edinburgh in Scotland, a distance of more than 640 kilometers. Each day, more than 2,000 trains ply its rails, carrying passengers and freight destined for Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, and dozens of smaller towns that dot the route. It also carries the history of Great Britain, whose economy and very identity have been linked to its railroads for more than a century and a half.

Construction of the route began in 1827, and the initial segment—from London to Birmingham—opened in 1838, a year after Victoria’s accession to the throne. It was the first railway to connect two major cities.

In recent years, however, much of the romance and shine have drained out of the venerable West Coast Main Line, replaced by the wear and tear of time and the enormous problem of maintaining one of the world’s busiest railways. The last major renovation work was done in the 1970s. In 1998, three years after the privatization of the British rail system, the West Coast Route Modernization project was launched. But due to a number of issues, including unproven technology, the original deadline slipped. Change was needed, and it came in the shape of the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA), the governing body for the U.K. rail network. Working with the rest of the rail industry, the SRA produced a strategy document for the project, including delivery of a 200-kilometer-per-hour, tilting railway in 2004.

Playing a key role in the formation of that strategy was Bechtel. The company had proved its ability to manage challenging projects in the United Kingdom, including the Channel Tunnel and the Jubilee Line Extension. Bechtel also supported the National Recovery Program following a derailment at Hatfield in October 2000. In 2002, Network Rail, which now runs the nation’s railroads, invited Bechtel to program-manage the West Coast Route Modernization project.

“Bechtel brought world-class skill to the project,” says Network Rail Project Director James Martin. “They also brought a self-belief, and had the confidence of the government.”

The total cost of renovating the West Coast Main Line is now pegged at $16 billion—although cost-saving initiatives, including Six Sigma, could help to reduce that figure.

Why so expensive? Largely because renovation and upgrades to tracks, electrical lines, signal points, and switches must be accomplished without disrupting the flow of railway traffic. That means most of the work must be done at night and on weekends. During any given week, some 7,000 workers are upgrading 75 to 100 small sections of the system.

“It’s all about how you get work done and keep trains running, and it adds up to the largest and most logistically complex construction program in the world on an operating railway,” says Bechtel’s Tom McCarthy, general manager of the modernization project.

The West Coast Route Modernization is so big, in fact, that it requires an entire 10-story building at Euston Station in north London to house its headquarters. In addition, there are regional operation centers in Birmingham, Manchester, Milton Keynes, and Glasgow.

“Communications is key to being a deployed project,” says McCarthy. Regional leaders hold monthly progress meetings, while senior managers sit down once and sometimes twice a week to share problems and lessons learned, and to implement best practices.

Safety is paramount at every Bechtel project, but officials of the West Coast Route Modernization are positively obsessed by it. And with good reason, because work routinely is carried out within a few yards of trains that streak past in excess of 160 kilometers per hour. At that speed, it would take a train nearly 2½ kilometers to stop even after the brakes have been applied. There’s also the matter of overhead electrical lines that power the trains. When tracks are taken out of service for work, the lines above them are turned off, of course. But lines over adjacent tracks are live, carrying 25,000 volts. Moreover, the electrical current has the potential to arc.

Rigorous procedures are in place to ensure the safety of all those working on the project. Because of the multiple safety issues, a lot of time is spent on site preparation before actual work can begin—and work stops each time a train passes on immediately adjacent tracks. That adds to the duration and cost of the project.

In an effort to speed things up, and with the support of the SRA, Bechtel has initiated a plan to take possession of larger sections of track for up to four months in areas where traffic can be diverted and an acceptable level of service can be maintained. Such closures will cost 40 percent less than doing the same work at night and on weekends.

All told, the project will modernize the line in 38 tunnels, on more than 10,000 bridges and on 118 level crossings. Some 85 percent of the work will be upgrades to existing track, electrical lines, and switches. In some cases, a wholesale replacement of tracks, ties, and the bed of rocks beneath the line is necessary.

The remaining 15 percent of the project involves enhancements to track and signals that will enable Virgin Trains to run new Pendolino trains at 200 kilometers per hour—up from the current limit of 177. Pendolinos achieve higher speeds by tilting into curves—the same way you would lean into a turn on a bicycle. That requires installing special “tilt activation” sensors along the tracks.

The project also includes upgrading century-old manual switching—where an operator switches a train to a different track by throwing a lever—to a computerized system with a centralized digital control center in Birmingham.

Two years ago, it seemed as if the West Coast Route Modernization was in real difficulties. Thanks to the commitment of Network Rail, the SRA, and the expertise and determination of Bechtel, the end is now in sight. By September 2004, the first high-speed Pendolinos will be running between London, Birmingham, and Manchester. From there it will be on to Scotland and completion of the project in the spring of 2006—improving travel for millions of passengers a year, and restoring the glory of a British institution.

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