On May 22, 12:57*pm, Basil Jet wrote:
On 2012\05\22 10:47, Jamie Thompson wrote:



I doubt those tunnels would be of much use. In truth, the 3 mile
shortest option between Euston and Waterloo is the minimal case. The
greatest benefits would
probably be to tunnel between Willesden and Clapham Junctions as it
would relieve the terminal approaches as well as the platforms.

If there is that much need to relieve Waterloo, why are the Eurostar
platforms sitting there gathering dust?

I think the main issue is that the need to relieve Waterloo mainly
affects the 'main' (ie via Woking etc) lines rather than the
'Windsor' (ie via Richmond or Houslow) lines.

Transferring these services to the former Eurostar platforms would
involve crossing the Windsor lines on the level (if the pointwork
allows it).

I gather that transferring them to the Windsor Lines platforms and
transferring the Windsor Lines services to the former Eurostar
platforms would mean some platform length issues, as many of the
services on the main lines are 12-car and the Windsors are only 8
(currently in the process of being lengthened to 10?)

That's not necessarily to say that it couldn't (or shouldn't) have
been done by now, but it's not a trivial change.

AFAIK the approaches to Waterloo
are underused: the Richmond lines have hardly any trains on them.

They might not be the heaviest used of lines, but I'm not sure I'd
call it 'hardly any' - every half hour, off-peak, there are trains on
these lines from Waterloo to Reading, Weybridge, Windsor, Kingston
loop service, and one each way round the Houslow loop. There are some
extras in the peak.

Martin L