On 14 Dec, 22:51, "Peter Masson" wrote:
"Dan G" wrote

I live in Reading and I don't want Crossrail to come here. Why?
Because Crossrail will be a stopper service. I want to catch an HST to
Paddington, overtaking the slow Crossrail trains past Maidenhead, and
then change for the ride into central London (or beyond).

If Crossrail is extended to Reading the Main (Fast) Lines will still be
available for 125 mph trains running non-stop (or possibly calling at
Slough) between Paddington and Reading.

Network Rail are trying to remove stops on the fast lines twixt
Paddington & Reading. And I think they'll finally take this
opportunity should Crossrail make it to Reading, which I think it
might - although Ken Livingstone won't be able to spend any money on
it as it's outside his jurisdiction, as is Ebbsfleet.

Yes, I think Reading commuters are right to be worried about any
extension to Reading. With the relocation of the Paddington platforms
for Crossrail, there will certainly be an opportunity to charge extra
to Reading commuters to travel on the HSTs to Paddington, and a
cheaper option to use Crossrail all the way. Ken will definitely
ensure that Travelcards are usable on the cross-London section, so a
Crossrail plus all zones season that don't operate the main gates on
Paddington station will definitely be an option over a more expensive
HST plus all zones travelcard.

There are naturally plus points as well though - for those passengers
travelling from further than Reading - they won't have so many
commuters doing the short-hop & not removing their bulky coats before
sitting down! I do find Reading commuters a pain the a**e for that
reason....and the overcrowding that results as hundreds clamber on at
the last moment at Paddington....

There's a further benefit for Twford passengers too - see below.

But if it terminates at Maidenhead
how are London to Twyford/Henley passengers to be catered for, or passengers
travelling to Reading from intermediate stations? Will there be a
Paddington - Reading stopping service sandwiched between Crossrail trains
(using capacity which really ought to be kept for freight)? Or will
passengers have to use Crossrail, and change at Slough or Maidenhead for a
shuttle service?

The latter I suspect - a new fast cross-over before Maidenhead - the
Crossrail trains using the bay platform there will keep the down slow
platform clear for arriving trains - would allow fast trains run as
far as the crossover & then run slow from Maidenhead to Reading (and
possibly beyond - slow train to Oxford perhaps?)

24 Crossrail trains an hour leaves little or no room for extra trains
to fit in on the same tracks as Crossrail, so there's little room for
any other way of running slow (non-Crossrail) to Reading - even if you
remove, say, half of those (12) that would probably terminate at
Heathrow. I doubt it would be as many as 12 trains to Heathrow though
- I can't see the customer levels for heathrow needing a train every 5
minutes (12 an hour). So maybe 6 Heathrows and 18 to Maidenhead would
be a better assumption? Still no real room to insert slow Readings in
between the CRossrails after Hayes though.

Or will Main Line capacity be used up with 90 mph trains
calling at Slough, Maidenhead and Twyford (perhaps crossing to the Relief
Lines at Dolphin, Maidenhead East or Ruscombe once the Crossrail service has
thinned out - and the crossing move eats capacity)?

As I said earlier, those stops that would be necessary on the fast
lines are, I think, unlikely and those passengers would be on the
Crossrail trains to wherever they terminate to change trains.

With these fast to Maidenhead trains, commuters from there and Twyford
will get a faster service....which is something that they've been
after for some time now - viz Theresa May's campaign.

While Crossrail can be justified as a stopping service within Greater
London, as Acton Main Line and Hanwell would undoubtedly get much more use
if they had a decent service) stopping all Maidenhead trains at Iver and
Taplow is daft, as in population terms these two stations at least are in
the middle of nowhere.

Indeed - maybe only half of those Crossrails travelling beyond
Heathrow junction could miss those stops out? That would still give
these stations a train at least every 15 minutes....

The argument that saddling Crossrail with the cost of rebuilding and
resignalling Reading would make Crossrail unaffordable is sound, but the
argument that even if these necessary improvements are funded separately, as
they will be, Crossrail still can't go there is weak. However, it has to be
realised that although Reading is only two stations further than Maidenhead
it is actually half as far again as Paddington to Maidenhead.

I suspect for these reasons Crossrail will get to Reading, even if
only half of them do, with the others terminating at Maidenhead as
planned - indeed, there are extra platform(s) in the Reading
remodelling to allow for this, just in case the decision is taken.
This would then allow for passenger expansion west of Reading on the
long distance services, which is a DfT aspiration.

Chris