TRACK TECHNOLOGY
Northern Ireland is close to replacing the last of its jointed rail tracks with continuously welded rail, as part of a project that will see many other track safety improvements and eventually improved services on the Coleraine to Derry-Londonderry line. RTM speaks to Translink NI Railways’ Infrastructure Executive Clive Bradberry.
he original plans for a full renewal of the Coleraine to Derry-Londonderry
T line
had to be abandoned when the expected funding could not be found following the Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review. But Translink, Northern Ireland’s public transport company, managed to put a pot of money together by deferring some other schemes and taking money out of contingency budgets elsewhere to implement a smaller-scale project known as the Track Safety Improvement Works scheme.
(TSIW)
Then, following representations to the Minister for Regional Development by local representatives from Derry- Londonderry
late last year,
focused on its upcoming year as UK City of Culture 2013, further funding was made available. The BBC reported at the time that the extra £27m, which enabled
renewal works to each end of the line section, was transferred from a budget allocated to the A5 Derry to Dublin road upgrade.
The Derry to Coleraine line is about 30 years old, formed of jointed track – 50kg/m flat-bottom rail on concrete sleepers – and is showing serious signs of wear and tear with a breakdown of the bottom ballast and a 60mph PSR in place.
Translink NI Railways’ Infrastruc- ture Executive Clive Bradberry said that when it became clear that the original plans for a full renewal of the line section could not happen due to the lack of funding, they had to choose between further reducing speeds on the line, or implement- ing interim measures to try to keep current service standards in place. They decided on the latter course of action and managed to find enough money to fund it.
He said: “The main bulk of the 44 | rail technology magazine Feb/Mar 12
work is the central 18 miles of the line section. We’re going to re-rail it, taking it from jointed track to continuously welded rail (CWR). Where we’ve got wet beds at the joint locations, we’re going to be renewing those, broken sleepers will be replaced, and because of the CWR, we’ll be making sure we’ve got full ballast shoulders all the way along that section.”
Blockade plans
The wet beds and broken sleep- ers work is now done, he said, and Translink is replacing the ballast ahead of the re-railing. This work is being done at night from now until mid-May, so residents living near the line are being contacted directly to warn them of possible noise. The next stages of the work, at either end of the line, involve a full blockade of the line, he said, and some of the TSIW programme has been folded into this. He ex- plained: “The overall programme
involves starting a blockade of the line section at the end of July this year, when we’ll be doing the re- railing in the centre sections, and the complete renewals of the two end sections as well.
“Originally when we had just received the go-ahead for the TSIW programme, we took the decision to do it all at night time so we could keep the trains operating. But when we received the monies and approval to go ahead and do this renewals work as well, we decided that the only way we could do the renewals effectively was in a blockade. So we decided to put the main bulk of the TSIW programme back and carry those works out during the blockade as well. It was just more cost-effective that way.”
City of Culture
In the short term, the works will not lead to any service changes
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