{"id":96997,"date":"2024-07-29T18:36:17","date_gmt":"2024-07-29T08:36:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.railfreight.com\/?p=54933"},"modified":"2024-07-29T18:36:17","modified_gmt":"2024-07-29T08:36:17","slug":"uk-freight-routes-at-risk-says-survey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=96997","title":{"rendered":"UK freight routes at risk says survey"},"content":{"rendered":"

A combination of outdated equipment and changing weather patterns have put several UK trunk routes at risk of disruption. Among the lines most at risk are the vital freight routes of the West Coast Main Line and the Great Western Main Line. Critical lines out of Manchester are also at risk. However, the danger highlighted by this report is not the extremes of rainfall and flooding. It\u2019s the heat of summer that could be the biggest threat.<\/strong>
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The British arm of railway electrification engineering specialists Furrer+Frey has published an updated report into the effects of summer weather on the railway network. The Climate Resilience in Rail Electrification report examined many aspects of the ageing installations that serve many parts of the British network. The report even highlights equipment still in daily use but installed before the Second World War.<\/p>\n

Impacts on HS2<\/h2>\n

The Furrer+Frey team pioneered a moving catenary system designed to extend electrification into freight terminals<\/a>. Now, a new paper from the British electrification engineers at Furrer+Frey<\/a> has rang alarm bells for freight and passenger operators alike. The report, an update to 2023\u2019s Climate Resilience in Rail Electrification, identifies five railway lines in need of immediate assessment and renewal to prevent further disruption and delays for operators and customers. The report also highlights the social and economic impacts of disruption to the main arteries of the GB network.<\/p>\n

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Furrer+Frey Report cover. Image: \u00a9 Furrer+Frey.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Electrification equipment, principally the overhead line equipment, is particularly susceptible to the effects of prolonged high temperatures – a weather pattern that climate scientists say the UK can expect to experience more often in the Among the five lines most at risk, says the report, is the northern section of the West Coast Main Line (between Crewe and Glasgow). The significance of this has not been lost on the railway industry. The section of the West Coast Main Line most at risk is also the section that will be expected to carry HS2 traffic now that the high-speed project has been\u00a0curtailed to terminate at Birmingham<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Pre-war installations still in use<\/h2>\n

The summer 2024 update to the Furrer+Frey 2023 report Climate Resilience in Rail Electrification<\/a> summarises the climate threats facing British railways. The paper also recognises the top five sections of electrified lines most at risk. The most remarkable is the vestige of a line which once connected Manchester and Sheffield – an early electrification project called the Woodhead Route.<\/p>\n

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Furrer+Frey developed a retractable catenary system for use in freight terminals. Image: \u00a9 Simon Walton.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Although the line now only exists as a mothballed section serving a steelworks in Sheffield, and a commuter route into Manchester, the original equipment is still in use, says the report. \u201cBuilt from 1938 to 1954 in DC and converted to 25kV in 1984. A lot of original fixed termination equipment exists,\u201d says Furrer+Frey. \u201cThis route is by far the most impacted, with regular speed restrictions even in mild hot weather.\u201d<\/p>\n

Impact on ageing equipment<\/h2>\n

Freight traffic stands a greater chance of disruption on the other four routes identified as at risk. The commuter route between Tilbury and London is described as almost as vulnerable as the vestiges of the Woodhead Route. \u201cThere are still sections of track using equipment built before the 1990s which cannot withstand our increasingly volatile weather,\u201d said Noel Dolphin, co-author of the report and Managing Director of Furrer+Frey GB. \u201cIf we want to avoid train delays, cancellations and disruption, particularly on the hottest days of the year, we really need to look at renewing outdated equipment.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Electrification works on the Midland Main Line. Image: \u00a9 Network Rail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The port operations from Tilbury, London Gateway<\/a> and other locally-based industrial installations are all served by diesel-hauled trains, but they could all be affected by disruption to overhead line equipment. Similarly, there is potential for disruption or the need for diversion for freight services using the West Anglia routes, radiating out of Liverpool Street in London. \u201cThe line is already highly unreliable, and the impact of climate changes on already ageing equipment will be significant,\u201d says the report. \u201cThe initial focus should be on fixed termination areas before renewing the remainder.\u201d<\/p>\n

West Coast at risk and potential solutions<\/h2>\n

The Great Western Mainline between London Paddington and Heathrow has the potential to disrupt services along the length of the line into the West of England and South Wales. However, the always busy West Coast Main Line gives the most cause for concern. Referring to the electrification equipment, the report raises an alarm over the ability of the route to cope with climate change. \u201cClimate resilience is built into new and renewed electrification,\u201d says the report. \u201cThey are reliable even in a changing world. The highest risk is to electrification equipment built before the 1990\u2019s. Sections between Crewe and Glasgow have not been renewed and have increased unreliability.\u201d<\/p>\n

The report makes several recommendations, which address changing climate conditions. Furrer+Frey recommend a network-wide reassessment. \u201cBase (set-up) temperatures are too low, and the existing systems’ temperature ranges need to be reviewed,\u201d quotes the report. The electrical engineering specialists advocate an immediate assessment and renewal of vulnerable legacy assets.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A combination of outdated equipment and changing weather patterns have put several UK trunk routes at risk of disruption. Among the lines most at risk\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":54936,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12038,12039,78,85,1784],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-96997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate-resilience-in-rail-electrification","category-furrerfrey","category-rail-freight","category-uk","category-west-coast-main-line"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=96997"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96997\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97672,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96997\/revisions\/97672"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=96997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=96997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=96997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}