I'm not going to say /too/ much here until publishing actual reports-
I'm-paid-to-write, but in response to some key things raised:

1) the only people involved significantly onsite at present are
infrastructure types from TfL infrastructure and BBCJV, not ops types
from LO and LOROL, so none of the ops questions were relevant.

2) there is quite a lot of building work still to do, particularly at
Dalston (where they still haven't finished laying the large slabs
above the platforms that will support the bus station)

3) however, everyone involved explicitly and repeatedly said that they
would difficultly-but-comfortably make the January 17 deadline for TfL
and BBCJV to hand over an operational railway to LOROL to start
running test trains on.

(*my opinion, not reporting*: I don't think they will achieve handover
any earlier than this. While many of the stations from Whitechapel
south just need fit-out and tinkering, Dalston and SHS are still
basically half-built. Whether achieving the January 17 deadline will
allow opening earlier than mid-June is another question, and my day
job is construction writing not rail operation. How long was the gap
between the advent of fully signalled, OH powered test E*s on HS1 and
its opening?)

4) the new stations appear to be sensibly futureproofed length-wise:
the 4 platforms at DJ are the same length, give or take 5ish metres,
and although the major building work still going on at the south end
of DJ made it impossible to reach the far end I'd be very surprised if
they weren't all 6-car. I've not seen the claim that the bay platforms
are 4-car made anywhere 'official' rather than blogs/fora - anyone
know otherwise? SHS is 8-car.

5) SHS will be like St Pancras Thameslink inside. At the moment there
are several bits that haven't been finished and hence let light in;
when it's done there won't be any. Near-total soundproofing is
required given the building site that (hopefully, economy willing)
will surround it.

6) Rotherhithe is going to look pretty cool at ticket hall level, with
the frontage restored and replicas of the original columns added, and
a new split-level glass roof replacing the 80s perspex over the
escalators. At platform level there's a new emergency exit to the
south of the platforms, but the only platform widening is based on
narrowing the loading gauge from Met to NR and the main access hasn't
been improved significantly (same at Wapping).

7) While I know naff-all about depots, the depot looks nearly ready
and rather impressive. It'll do up to C4 servicing, with anything that
can't be done there done in Derby (ie ELL trains won't need to leave
the ELL for routine maintenance). It will also perform some heavy
maintenance on NLL/WLL trains and so has various AC-related test
equipment for them.

I'll post links to articles & photos when they're up.

--
John Band
john at johnband dot org
www.johnband.org

On 27 May, 19:35, John B wrote:
4) the new stations appear to be sensibly futureproofed length-wise:
the 4 platforms at DJ are the same length, give or take 5ish metres,
and although the major building work still going on at the south end
of DJ made it impossible to reach the far end I'd be very surprised if
they weren't all 6-car. I've not seen the claim that the bay platforms
are 4-car made anywhere 'official' rather than blogs/fora - anyone
know otherwise? SHS is 8-car.

Thanks for the report.

I got my infor straight off the planning application(s). Have a look
at these 3 diagrams, which handily show 20m vehicles alongside the
platforms:
http://idox.hackney.gov.uk/WAM/doc/D...e=&pageCount=1
http://idox.hackney.gov.uk/WAM/doc/D...e=&pageCount=1
http://idox.hackney.gov.uk/WAM/doc/D...e=&pageCount=1

I think there's just about 120m between the buffers and the nose of
the crossovers, I think operational margins would prohibit 6 car
trains operating, at least without moving one or the other.

(the first diagram also clearly demonstrates why there's no point
allowing space for the eastern curve to be double track)

U

On May 27, 9:46*pm, Mr Thant
wrote:
4) the new stations appear to be sensibly futureproofed length-wise:
the 4 platforms at DJ are the same length, give or take 5ish metres,
and although the major building work still going on at the south end
of DJ made it impossible to reach the far end I'd be very surprised if
they weren't all 6-car. I've not seen the claim that the bay platforms
are 4-car made anywhere 'official' rather than blogs/fora - anyone
know otherwise? SHS is 8-car.

Thanks for the report.

I got my infor straight off the planning application(s). Have a look
at these 3 diagrams, which handily show 20m vehicles alongside the
platforms:

[links manglified by Google - see previous post]

I think there's just about 120m between the buffers and the nose of
the crossovers, I think operational margins would prohibit 6 car
trains operating, at least without moving one or the other.

Interesting stuff, thanks. Those plans seem to show that three out of
four platforms are limited to probably-not-6-cars, excepting possibly
the up through - the down through gets unusably narrow within half a
car of the bays ending. I'd assumed based on what I'd heard & seen
before, and been told today, that there was certainly room for 6 on
the throughs.

(the first diagram also clearly demonstrates why there's no point
allowing space for the eastern curve to be double track)

I'd probably suggest that "to be double track" is redundant in the
sentence above. Not least as both through platforms could've been made
the same length had it been missed out.

--
John Band
john at johnband dot org
www.johnband.org

On 27 May, 19:35, John B wrote:
3) however, everyone involved explicitly and repeatedly said that they
would difficultly-but-comfortably make the January 17 deadline for TfL
and BBCJV to hand over an operational railway to LOROL to start
running test trains on.

Of course, running test trains doesn't necessarily equate to
"everything's finished".



4) the new stations appear to be sensibly futureproofed length-wise:
the 4 platforms at DJ are the same length, give or take 5ish metres,
and although the major building work still going on at the south end
of DJ made it impossible to reach the far end I'd be very surprised if
they weren't all 6-car. I've not seen the claim that the bay platforms
are 4-car made anywhere 'official' rather than blogs/fora - anyone
know otherwise? SHS is 8-car.


If it's any help, the signalling plans that I've had to use and do
loads of operational modelling from has these lengths quoted:
1: 132m
2: 106m
3: 106m
4: 111m

The plan has a dotted line future extension at the north end of
platform 4 to bring it to essentially the same length as platform 1.
Allowing for stopping margins, I would say that platforms 2 and 3 are
to all intents and purposes (on the plan I'm looking at) 4 car only,
whereas the outer platforms are/could be 6 car.

The lengths quoted are for "usable" length, which is the space left
over once you've taken account of buffer and signal positions/
sighting. For some reason not clear, the platform 2/3 signals are
further south than those for platforms 1/4. Only 6m further south,
but nevertheless not neatly lined up.

PhilD

--