FLOODLINE NEWS
For insurance reasons only working members of the Railway can be directly involved in repair activity. Any members not currently working volunteers and who wish to assist should contact Dewi Jones in the first instance.
FLOODLINE 79
Thursday 31st January 2008
CLEOBURY ROAD BRIDGE – BRIDGNORTH
A suitable road crane has been found and booked.
An emergency road closure order has been issued.
The bridge will be lifted on Wednesday 6th February.
This will allow P Way and S+T engineers on the 7th and 8th to reconnect or adjust the track, signal cables, point rods and possibly a water main. If the engineers are satisfied by end of day on the 8th , passenger trains will run on the reopened BH to HL section on the 9th February as initially planned.
BORLE VIADUCT
Several one ton sand bags have been lowered into the brook today to build a “wall” in the river. This is so that contractors can work in a safe area and be protected from the strong water flow. It is hoped that the long reach crawler bucket on the northern bank along with a smaller one (marooned on the southern bank for about a month) will start work within a day or so. The original plan of removing the damaged trailing wall in sections had been changed. The wall is so severely undercut and cracked that it provided no support to the embankment behind it. The plan is now to remove the wall in one go and insert the gabion rock baskets as quickly as possible. Contractors will be working longer hours and flood lamps will be brought in to allow them to work during the hours of darkness. It is likely that they will have to work extended hours and probably weekends to complete this work before the river level rises again.
Diesel Class 73101 has emerged from Kidderminster Paint Shop and ran a test train to Bewdley today. It will soon be leaving the SVR for a spell on the Llangollen Railway.
LNER buffet coach 643 left Kidderminster 11.30am Monday by road to Crewe. By 9.30am Tuesday all wheels had been re-profiled and was back at the SVR by Thursday. It is now in the works so that it can be adjusted to the correct height.
Photos taken on 30th January
Highley cattle dock rear retaining wall. This will allow work including the footpath to the Engine House to commence. The front walls of bricks will only be put up after the track in front of the dock is in place.
Sterns Cottage Slip. The concrete cap for the concrete piled wall appears six inches above the surface giving no indication of the 30 foot deep piles below. On the right is the new french drain. The Sterns Historical Slip as it is now referred to is beyond the yellow vibrating roller.
Cleobury Road bridge at Bridgnorth up hill side Hampton Loade end, showing that the green bridge girder and the brown polymer bearing pad have been pushed out from the concrete weight bearing beam.
Photos Johnathan Symonds
Class 73 101 just arrived at Bewdley with a test train today showing that the skills of Kidderminster Paint Shop are not restricted to carriages.
Photo Dewi Jones Traffic Manager
FLOODLINE 78
Wednesday 30th January 2008
This afternoon our engineers inspected the Cleobury Road Bridge at Bridgnorth after a report that the track was slightly out of alignment. A detailed inspection revealed that the bridge had been struck by a road vehicle. As a result the bridge is now about 2-3 inches out of true and further damage to the stonework and shifted base plates has resulted in all rail movements over this bridge being banned until further notice with the exception those specially authorised by the Chief Engineer. As a result the P Way, BH MPD and S+T staff will be involved as some of the track and signalling crossing the bridge may have to be dismantled. Engineers and the highway authorities are looking at various dates to effect a repair.
Option 1
To close the road on 6th or 7th February to lift the bridge.
The ballast tamper and Cl 73 will have to be moved south of the bridge before this date so that they can continue ballasting and tamping Sterns and Hampton Loade Slips
There is now a question whether the hopper and Shark ballast plough can be moved to KR without disturbing the ballasting work at Highley and Fisherman’s Crossing Slip.
If repairs are concluded in time we may be able to open to HL on Sat 9th Feb otherwise it will be the first advertised day after the repairs are complete.
There will be no Bridgnorth station shuttle on 2 and 3 February
Option 2
To use own breakdown crane on the 13th or 14th February. The road closure is subject to other roadworks and closures in the area and to use our own crane would require further dismantling of the P Way and building a dedicated plain track to the bridge abutment for the crane to stand on.
It is unlikely that repairs to the P way and S+T would be completed the following weekend therefore the likely reopening date for the BH-HL section will then be Sat 23rd Feb.
There will be no Bridgnorth station shuttle or passenger trains BH to HL until 23rd February.
The above dates are what can be worked to at the moment and will be subject to change as we are in the early stages of planning the repair.
STERNS
The french drain and associated drainage on the uphill side of the trackbed was completed today.
HIGHLEY
The base for the water tower has been excavated and the concrete for the base poured.
The cattle dock rear retaining wall is about half complete. This rear wall should be finished in a day or two and will allow the contractors to start work on reinstating the footpath to the Engine House
NORTHWOOD
Contractors have completed the digging out of the top meter of the formation, put in hundreds of tons of rock which has been compacted and installed an improved drainage system. Lorries bringing ballast start arriving tomorrow. The lorry off loading point is in the lane just south of Northwood Level Crossing, this is then lifted by crawler bucket to track level, put in a road railer and trailer, this then trundles over Northwood LC (fancy being flagman here?) to the Northwood Slip. The RR then unloads the ballast into a rubber-tyred dumper which then crosses the slip to unload its contents on the rock formation and another crawler bucket then spreads it evenly ready for sleepers. This might give you an idea of why some jobs which look to be quick ones are not!
Vegetation clearance north of Bewdley
Dai Price is asking for help on Sunday 3rd February.
Meet at Bewdley station about 10.00am for train to Bridge 12 (train will remain at site and return to Bewdley about 4.00pm. Otherwise walk (with PTS) or by car along Northwood Lane.
Dewi Jones
Traffic Manager
Photos taken at Northwood Lane two weeks ago.
Looking towards Bewdley, the crawler bucket has removed about a meter in depth the original contaminated ballast. Between the yellow cable and the machine new rock has already been levelled. The yellow machines is in fact digging a hole for one of the cross drains to be installed.
Looking in the other direction notice the top of the black plastic mesh is held in place by the rock.
Viewed from the lane the black plastic mesh on the side of the embankment is held in place by these large washers which have been bolted to the steel soil nails. Hydroseeding will take place to cover this area.
FLOODLINE 77
Tuesday 29th January 2008
KNOWLESANDS INDUSTRIAL ESTATE
New boundary fence being erected today
STERNS COTTAGE SLIP
28th Jan The piled retaining wall cap casting complete
29th Jan Class 73 diesel moved water tanker and track tamper SCS to Bridgnorth to clear all rail vehicles from BH-SCS section (in conjunction with 3rd Feb)
30th Jan shuttering around cap to be dismantled
31st Jan drainage work in cutting and rock infill around capping
1st Feb terram membrane and ballasting of track formation in cutting
3rd Feb relaying track through cutting ie joining up the line then complete BH to Borle Viaduct
4th Feb top ballasting of Sterns, Tamping of ballast
7th Feb S+T installing cable
8th Feb S+T installing and testing cable BH to HL
track tamper to be at Bridgnorth for onward road movement to the Bluebell Railway
9th Feb PLANNED REOPENING OF BRIDGNORTH TO HAMPTON LOADE SECTION
15MPH PSR to remain on Sterns Historic Slip within the original speed restriction signs
It is not planned to put a speed restriction on the Sterns Cottage Slip
Ground movement inclinometers installed within the concrete cap to indicate any movement in the piled wall and below the track.
W/c 4th Feb
Ballasting and tamping of Hampton Loade Slip
Ballasting and tamping of Highley main line and sidings
Ballasting and tamping of Fisherman’s crossing Slip
HIGHLEY
28th Jan concrete base for cattle dock poured. The original cattle dock had to be dismantled to allow repairs to the Highley slip to take place.
29th Jan P Way preparing trackwork and turnout to join up No2 and No3 sidings
This week:
contractors to excavate base of water tower and pour concrete foundation
Additional trackwork to be installed
Start on building cattle dock wall
Installing kerbs stones and drainage from the station yard gates to and beyond the level crossing
Once enough trackwork laid the HY Travelling Post Office will be moved to BH by rail for onward movement to KR. This movement will allow enough time for it to receive the attention of the paint shop before being brought back to be exhibited in the Engine House
FISHERMAN’S CROSSING
Some drainage work in progress but will not hold up reopening of the line
Awaiting ballasting and tamping
BORLE VIADUCT
The level of the River Severn and therefore the Borle Brook has fallen significantly over the last weekend. If this rate continues then work can resume on building a retain gabion rock basket wall by the end of this week. The contractors need two weeks to build this wall. If the waters rise again afterwards work can continue for another three weeks unhindered to repair the collapsed embankment.
Contractors have looked at all options of effecting a repair over the last few weeks. These include building a bailey bridge to get a massive drilling rig similar to the one used at Sterns some weeks ago across the brook. Drilling so close to the viaduct would add the risk of disturbing the ground and affecting the foundations of the arches. Pile driving was explored, the first 5.5m or 50 feet is so soft a contractor joked that they could be pushed in by hand! It was only then solid rock was found so piles would have to be significantly longer and the vibration of such a repair would probably damage the viaduct. So far there are no indications of any movement of the viaduct.
Unfortunately solid rock is 5.5m 50 feet below river level so the piles would have to be significantly longer and the cost £500,000.
Drilling and piling so close to the viaduct would add the risk of disturbing the ground and affecting the foundations of the arches.
The planned timetable of work at Borle Viaduct will allow the railway to reopen throughout on Good Friday
NORTHWOOD
Civil engineering reconstruction work complete
Some ballast being brought to site
1st Feb Drainage work on uphill side of track and under track starts complete within 3 days
w/c 4th Feb ballast back on formation
6th Feb steel sleepers now in store at AY to be moved to site
w/c 11th Feb relaying of 6 panels to join up track KR to Borle Viaduct work to take less than 2 days. Use of flat bottom rail, some at site some at Bewdley to be moved
Date TBA Shark and one hopper to be moved BH to KR to be used on ballast train
Northwood (Folly Point and Eymore Cutting) to be ballasted from KR end.
Return of Tamper from South Devon and P + Dartmouth railways will tamp above sections from KR end
Her Majesty’s Railway Inspectorate has informed us that the SVR may reopen the line without them having to inspect it first.
Dewi Jones
Traffic Manager
Photos Taken on Mon 28th January 2008 at Borle Viaduct
With the water level falling the first of the gabion rock baskets that were installed comes back into view. The trailing wall on the opposite bank was only partly shotcreted before work had to be stopped. Thursday last week the tracks of the crawler bucket were half submerged.
Water seeping through the arch continually erodes the embankment. The S+T cable linking Highley and Arley is left exposed. Note the pillar in the centre of the river is wet for many coursed above the water indicating that water is still seeping out of the viaduct many days after the last downpour
View taken off the embankment. Note that just this side of the trees there is a straight line in the grass. This break in the gradient indicates a slip plane which extends towards the viaduct under the grey stone area towards the grey plastic pipe. Naturally the land wants to slip into the river and it is only the old stone trailing wall that has prevented this. This wall will be replaced by the extended gabion basket wall which will have its foundation below the bed of the brook.
Photos Dewi Jones Traffic Manager
FLOODLINE 76
Photos taken on Monday 28th January 2008
Viewed from the bridge just south of Highley Station, work is ongoing installing kerbstones and drains in preparation for lowering the road and installing the Engine House level crossing.
One of the hundreds of plans required by the civil engineers to work from. This is a well-thumbed one of the level crossing showing track, roadway, earthworks and disabled parking bay measurements for the contractors to work from.
Highley Cattle Dock. This had to be removed to effect repairs in this area and is now being rebuilt. The concrete is unloaded from the lorry into the crawler bucket which then swings round and unloads the concrete onto a reinforced mesh. This is then tamped and levelled. This work was completed today.
A similar view taken from the new footpath to the Engine House. The mound of ballast behind the workmen will be levelled tomorrow to allow further trackwork to be installed here this week. The cattle dock wall will then be built.
Photos Dewi Jones, Traffic Manager.
FLOODLINE 75
Photos taken 24th January 2008.
Fisherman's Crossing Slip looking north. Awaiting top ballast, tamping and S+T cable laying.
Hampton Loade Slip looking south. Awaiting top ballast and tamping, signal wire replaced and tested.
Sterns Cutting looking south. Wooden shuttering being built around the tops of the reinforced concrete pile wall. Half of this concrete cap has been cast with the second half to be done on Monday 28th January. The machine in the distance has started filling in around the cap with rock in preparation for track bed ballasting. Concrete sleepers on the right bank planned to be relaid on Sunday 3rd February.
Similar scene but looking north. This area awaits ballasting, S+T cabling and drainage work.
Photos Dewi Jones, Traffic Manager
FLOODLINE 74
Tuesday 22nd January 2008
These photographs may give an idea of the amount of water in the Borle Brook.
It is about 14.5 feet above normal level peaking this evening at 8.00pm. Contractors must now wait for the river levels to fall back to about 2 foot before allowing men and machines safely back into the river to continue repairs.
Photo taken today from the Borle Viaduct showing the flooded roadway on the opposite north bank. The crawler bucket has had to retreat away from the brook edge to higher ground. Photo taken today by Johnathan Symonds
Photo taken last week on 16th January with machine and materials on site waiting for the level of the river to fall.
Photo taken from the north bank showing on the south side the collapsed embankment. The grassy bit at water level is the top of the reinforcing arch. The white aggregate bag in the foreground sits on top of another on the river edge.
Photo taken today by Johnathan Symonds.
Photo taken on 16th January shows the long reach crawler bucket having just unloaded a drilling rig on the other bank. Aggregate bags in the foreground were to be used to build a coffer dam in the river to allow repairs to the trailing walls to commence.
A view taken back in September of the low arches put in c1910. These have been inserted between the original arches to prevent further erosion of the river bed and possible erosion of the viaduct's foundations. The river level today is level with the flat bit of the lower arch.
Dewi Jones
Traffic Manager
FLOODLINE 73
Thursday 17th January 2008
OLDBURY VIADUCT to HAY BRIDGE
All track and S+T work completed. All civil engineering work completed (snagging list does not prevent trains running)
STERNS COTTAGE SLIP
The concrete cap for the retaining wall should be in place by early next week. The contractors will lay a drain on the opposite side of the track and then lay 200 tons of ballast and a sheet of Terram membrane for the track. The P Way will then join up the track in the cutting with further ballasting and tamping. Hopefully this will be done by early February as the tamper is booked to go to the Bluebell Railway on the 6th February. The S+T Dept are arranging crews to then connect the communication cable over the slip.
STERNS (EXC) TO HAMPTON LOADE
All track work complete but awaiting ballast and tamping at HL (1 day’s work). All civil engineering work completed.
HAMPTON LOADE SLIP
Hydroseeding of the bank should take place tomorrow unless the rain is too heavy.
HAMPTON LOADE to HIGHLEY
All track and S+T work completed. All civil engineering work completed (snagging list does not prevent trains running)
HIGHLEY
The first of the two storage containers will be removed followed by the second on Monday. This will then allow a channel to be dug under the roadway and the tracks to allow the electric and telephone cables which currently (get the pun!) are supported on poles to be buried and the poles removed from site Contractors next week planning to put in foundations for water tank and cattle dock.
By end of day Wednesday the main line track had been relaid over the Highley Slip to allow construction traffic across. Monday 21st will see contractors start work on lowering the road over the level crossing. The work associated here will include walkways, kerbs, drainage as well as resurfacing the regraded road. The railway bit of the level crossing will take a day or possibly two to install.
FISHERMAN’S CROSSING SLIP
All track work completed this week but awaiting ballast and tamping (1 day’s work).
Once this site has been ballasted there is a chance that one hopper and Shark ballast plough will be moved from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster by road to join up with another three hoppers here so that ballasting of Northwood, Folly Point and Eymore Cutting can take place. All civil engineering work completed
BORLE BROOK
The idea is that stone can be delivered by lorry to Fisherman’s crossing and then tipped on the north bank of the brook. A long reach crawler bucket on the north bank will remove the damaged trailing wall on the south bank in sections of about 3 meters in length. This is to prevent weakening the wall and fail to retain the embankment above it. The track on this section has been removed to lighten the load on the embankment. Gabion baskets are then to be lowered into the gap and filled with the rock. This method continues in sections until the whole wall has been replaced.
Yesterday the Brook was 12 foot higher than normal. As the River Severn is similarly in flood the Brook is in effect dammed and will drop when the level of the Severn drops. Contractors will not be allowed back to work in or around the Brook until the level has dropped to about 2 foot higher than normal. The estimated time this work will take is two weeks to put in the gabion wall and another three weeks to stabilise and build up the railway embankment.
BORLE VIADUCT to ARLEY
All track work complete (tamping of Kinlet Straight to take 1 day). All civil engineering work completed
ARLEY to VICTORIA BRIDGE
All S+T done and tested (arm to go back on refurbished AY Down Distant). All civil engineering work completed
EYMORE CUTTING
Arley Station team will be clearing logs out of Eymore Cutting this Saturday and Sunday. Anyone wishing to help should report to Arley Station. There is some urgency to complete this job as the S+T Dept are awaiting clearance before they can go in and start laying a 1000 meter cable starting from Victoria Bridge. Ongoing clearance of trees by contractor.
NORTHWOOD
Last of the 475 soil nails went in on Monday. Rail tankers used to feed the drilling rigs removed on Tuesday. Two road railers accessed the track bed to start removing the track formation to a depth of 1 meter. Rock is then brought in and rolled. A section of about 15 meters in length is done at a time as removing the top of the slip in one go may destabilise the land above it. This work should take three weeks so possibly the second week of February the six panels here can be replaced ready for ballasting and tamping possibly week commencing 24th February.
To put some people’s mind at rest, all new and original drains and culverts are coping well with the recent rainfall. Staff walking the line in the execution of their duties seeing any debris collecting in culvert headwalls should reported the fact to the P Way Dept or the Duty Officer, do not attempt to clear it whilst the streams are in flood.
And in case someone knows differently all efforts are geared to reopening the line on Good Friday 21st March 2008, so if you are asked that’s the answer.
To end on a sad note, one of our friends will not be around to see the reopening of the line. Bridgnorth engine driver Gordon Foster died suddenly on 1st January. His funeral will be on Wednesday 23rd January at St Michael’s Church, Trent Valley Road, Lichfield at 12.30pm.
Dewi Jones
Traffic Manager
Floodline 72
Photos taken at Highley on Wed 16th January
The line between the turnout at the south end of the Loop has now been linked up to the retained track in the platform. Some additional track may be relaid here alongside contractors who are about to start work on the foundations of the cattle dock and water tank. The blue equipment containers will be moved shortly to allow burying of ducting to reroute the power cable pole line underground.
Fisherman's Crossing Slip Wednesday 16th January
Contractors last week completed laying the base ballast on this rebuilt embankment. The P Way gang started here this morning and the joining up of the line here should be complete by Friday evening. The larger yellow machine, a road railer, brings the concrete sleepers to the rail head where the rubber tracked mini digger then moves them and the rail into place for the gang to line up and assemble.
You may recall photos of this site after the flood where the track was suspended in mid air and is shown on the front of the Flood Damage Appeal leaflet.
Photos: Dewi Jones, Traffic Manager
Two "holes" in the track filled in this week, three gaps to go.
Floodline 71
Photos taken on 13th January 2008
Sterns New Slip. Looking towards Hampton Loade. The tops of the concrete piles are now ready to be contained in a concrete cap. Some concrete has been poured at the far end of this 45m wall. What look like tall steel rods are in fact pipes that go down the length of the piles and can be used to monitor any further movement underground.
A closer look at the concrete piles with reinforcing steel rods. The steel rods at an angle are called racking piles and act as additional support for the vertical pile wall. The concrete flooring is to give an adequate surface to build the shuttering for casting the capping beam. This work should take about two weeks.
Some of the 35 working members who walked from Bridgnorth to Hampton Loade passing Sterns (also referred to as Sterns Canal a few days earlier!). Sleepers on the embankment will be relaid here in about three weeks time.
Photos: Dewi Jones Traffic Manager
Floodline 70
Photos taken at Highley on Monday 14th January 2008
The civil engineering works have reached the stage where the bottom ballast had been laid and the SVR Permanent Way Department symbolically opened up the Heras fencing to lay the first panels of track across the repaired Highley Slip. By Wednesday evening it is hoped that the line here will have been joined up.
Photos: Dewi Jones, Traffic Manager
Previous editions of FLOODLINES