Work is well under way to fix one of the biggest rail chokepoints in England. In the Trent Valley northwest of London, tracks narrowed from four sets to two in two spots. With only one track heading north and one heading south, all trains were at the mercy of the slowest train on the line.
Widening the line to four tracks and making the center pair reversible will let operators segregate slower local and freight trains from faster trains. It also allows crews to work on one pair while reserving the other for traffic.
In addition to 19 kilometers of new track and 81 kilometers of overhead line equipment, the four-tracking scheme includes complete resignaling, 22 new bridges, two new high-speed junctions, and a major noise mitigation effort.
Now that two tracks are carrying trains at 200 kilometers per hour near construction crews, signal sighting is crucial for everyone’s safety. A virtual reality design tool simulates the driver’s viewpoint, allowing safety issues to be resolved at the planning phase. The modeling software also lets stakeholders and the community get a realistic picture of the proposed changes.
A double-track bridge over the River Tame was finished in June 2006, and the four-tracking scheme is set to be complete by the end of 2008.
