On Oct 28, 2:54*pm, "Mizter T" wrote:
"Bruce" wrote:
Posted without comment:

Wandsworth reveals Waterloo-Heathrow direct rail plans

Wandsworth Council has today unveiled plans for a new direct rail
service from south London to Heathrow airport.
[...]
A map of the proposed route is available on the council's website:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/6xjzzoa

I'll leave it to others to question (/ demolish!) this particular proposal
(/ bit of blue sky thinking), but with regards to the underlying issue - the
lack of rail connectivity from Heathrow to the south really is a significant
missing piece in terms of public transport access to the airport. I'm sure
it'd result in fewer people getting to and from the airport by car/cab, with
the knock-on benefits in terms of a reduction in road traffic that'd bring
(indeed I'm sure there's some Airtrack related study or two to this end out
there somewhere... but I haven't looked for it, let alone read it!).

I guess if this proposal went ahead, once the tunnels are there,
there's the option for other routes to link in.

Would the plan give a through route up to the Heathrow express
tunnels? That'd give extra options for joined up transport links.

"Stuart Moore" wrote in message

On Oct 28, 2:54 pm, "Mizter T" wrote:
"Bruce" wrote:
Posted without comment:

Wandsworth reveals Waterloo-Heathrow direct rail plans

Wandsworth Council has today unveiled plans for a new direct rail
service from south London to Heathrow airport.
[...]
A map of the proposed route is available on the council's website:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/6xjzzoa

I'll leave it to others to question (/ demolish!) this particular
proposal (/ bit of blue sky thinking), but with regards to the
underlying issue - the lack of rail connectivity from Heathrow to
the south really is a significant missing piece in terms of public
transport access to the airport. I'm sure it'd result in fewer
people getting to and from the airport by car/cab, with the knock-on
benefits in terms of a reduction in road traffic that'd bring
(indeed I'm sure there's some Airtrack related study or two to this
end out there somewhere... but I haven't looked for it, let alone
read it!).

I guess if this proposal went ahead, once the tunnels are there,
there's the option for other routes to link in.

Would the plan give a through route up to the Heathrow express
tunnels? That'd give extra options for joined up transport links.

No, I don't think so. The two sets of lines and platforms are separate,
and parallel to each other (the Airtrack tunnels are south of the HEx
tunnels). Even if there is a connection, it's not meant to be used by
service trains. In any case, the services will be more reliable if kept
separate.

"Recliner" wrote in message
...

No, I don't think so. The two sets of lines and platforms are separate,
and parallel to each other (the Airtrack tunnels are south of the HEx
tunnels). Even if there is a connection, it's not meant to be used by
service trains. In any case, the services will be more reliable if kept
separate.

Despite the existing layout, the published Airtrack proposals always
anticipated HEx running through to Staines as well - it is exactly why
Staines station was to get an additional west facing bay platform...

Paul S

"Recliner" wrote in message
...
"Stuart Moore" wrote

Would the plan give a through route up to the Heathrow express
tunnels? That'd give extra options for joined up transport links.

No, I don't think so. The two sets of lines and platforms are separate,
and parallel to each other (the Airtrack tunnels are south of the HEx
tunnels). Even if there is a connection, it's not meant to be used by
service trains. In any case, the services will be more reliable if kept
separate.
The main disadvantage of Airtrack (either original or this) is that it only
gives through trains to T5, with a change there needed to access the Central
Area, and a further change to get to T4 (might as well get the bus from
Feltham). While there would be a slight reduction in reliability,
connectivity would be improved by linking Airtrack with HEx/HConn/Crossrail.

The other disadvantage of Airtrack-Lite is that journey times from
Waterloo/Clapham Junction would be very slow, and further changes would be
needed to get to the Reading line, or to Woking (for Main Line connections)
or Guildford.

Peter

On Oct 28, 4:12*pm, "Recliner" wrote:
"Stuart Moore" wrote in message











On Oct 28, 2:54 pm, "Mizter T" wrote:
"Bruce" wrote:
Posted without comment:

Wandsworth reveals Waterloo-Heathrow direct rail plans

Wandsworth Council has today unveiled plans for a new direct rail
service from south London to Heathrow airport.
[...]
A map of the proposed route is available on the council's website:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/6xjzzoa

I'll leave it to others to question (/ demolish!) this particular
proposal (/ bit of blue sky thinking), but with regards to the
underlying issue - the lack of rail connectivity from Heathrow to
the south really is a significant missing piece in terms of public
transport access to the airport. I'm sure it'd result in fewer
people getting to and from the airport by car/cab, with the knock-on
benefits in terms of a reduction in road traffic that'd bring
(indeed I'm sure there's some Airtrack related study or two to this
end out there somewhere... but I haven't looked for it, let alone
read it!).

I guess if this proposal went ahead, once the tunnels are there,
there's the option for other routes to link in.

Would the plan give a through route up to the Heathrow express
tunnels? That'd give extra options for joined up transport links.

No, I don't think so. The two sets of lines and platforms are separate,
and parallel to each other (the Airtrack tunnels are south of the HEx
tunnels). Even if there is a connection, it's not meant to be used by
service trains. In any case, the services will be more reliable if kept
separate.

I can't help thinking that providing through lines now is relatively
cheap as part of the main project, whereas adding them later when they
weren't originally planned is expensive. If it enabled another
connection that avoided central London, surely that's worth having.

I wonder how the ticket prices would be reckoned. Feltham and Heathrow
are in Zone 6, but Staines and Ashford (which the train passes through
are outside Zone 6.

On 30/10/2011 19:05, JohnLon wrote:
I wonder how the ticket prices would be reckoned. Feltham and Heathrow
are in Zone 6, but Staines and Ashford (which the train passes through
are outside Zone 6.

It goes to an airport, so there will have to be a premium fare outside
the normal local system, ideally with the impression you can use a
normal ticket but something in the small print saying you can't, and the
instructions should be in English only and well hidden. And ideally the
station should have a slightly different name to the airport. Something
random like a suitcase surcharge would add to the fun.

--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

On Oct 30, 7:28*pm, Arthur Figgis wrote:
On 30/10/2011 19:05, JohnLon wrote:

I wonder how the ticket prices would be reckoned. Feltham and Heathrow
are in Zone 6, but Staines and Ashford (which the train passes through
are outside Zone 6.

It goes to an airport, so there will have to be a premium fare outside
the normal local system,

Why? There isn't in Manchester.

--

Stephen

On Oct 30, 11:11*pm, Stephen Farrow wrote:
On Oct 30, 7:28*pm, Arthur Figgis wrote:

On 30/10/2011 19:05, JohnLon wrote:

I wonder how the ticket prices would be reckoned. Feltham and Heathrow
are in Zone 6, but Staines and Ashford (which the train passes through
are outside Zone 6.

It goes to an airport, so there will have to be a premium fare outside
the normal local system,

Why? There isn't in Manchester.

--

Stephen
The proposed service is not a special high speed, but normal suburban
train running into Heathrow.
The Picadilly line runs to Heathrow Zone 6 with no premium.
They could just put Staines and Ashford into Zone 6.
John

"JohnLon" wrote in message
...
I wonder how the ticket prices would be reckoned. Feltham and Heathrow
are in Zone 6, but Staines and Ashford (which the train passes through
are outside Zone 6.

No mystery, they'd be in either a special zone where National Rail fares
apply; as per Watford Jn, and 'zone G' on c2c routes outside zone 6; or if
the fares were usable zones 7,8 or 9.

If it ever happens the precedent will already be in use anyway, as the
greater Anglia franchise is extending PAYG outside the zones to Shenfield
and Hertford East next year some time...

Paul S