On Sun, 1 Jul 2007, Paul Terry wrote:

In message , Tom Anderson
writes

There is another option - if trains didn't visit Clapham Junction at
all, they could go from Imperial Wharf to Wandsworth Road directly,
without reversing. I don't have a track map to hand, but ISTR that this
can be done without conflicting movements across other tracks.

That is certainly true, but loss of connection at Clapham Junction
(Britain's busiest railway station)

ISTR that's only if you count all trains passing through, rather than
stopping - and changing from one of those to an orbital train there would
be a rather hair-raising feat!

would be a serious loss and would need the retention of the now popular
Clapham-Willesden service, thus restricting the viability of an
'orbirail' service that by-passed Clapham Junction.

I'm not suggesting that all trains go that way, but if there is demand for
cross-CJ services, that would be a way to do them. Such demand, by
definition, doesn't require a stop at CJ, so it's not such a loss.

To answer Tim's question, Willesden and Canada Water (or Surrey Canal Road
if there isn't capacity past the junction with the Croydon branch) would
be the natural termini.

tom

--
Well we know where we're going, but we don't know where we've been