8 coach services to St. Albans looks expensive!! All of the stations
would need extended platforms and St. Albans Abbey might be a bit
cramped to fit a longer platform in. I'm not saying that it isn't a
good idea, but it would be easier to get the 30 min service running
first, with the loop at Bricket Wood (which was the original plan) and
maybe adding 4 coaches at Watford Junction. I.e. work the service like
the Birmingham services which detach / attach at Northampton.

Fair point, and you'd require 2 fewer units (I think), as the two that
were on the branch while 1 is sitting in the platform at Watford would
only be 4-car.


Plus realign the track from the St Albans Abbey line back into
platform 10 at Watford Junction and save plenty of money on having to
re-signal from the main line into the existing platform 11, and while
they are at it, they can put the track back in next to platform 10!

John Burke

On Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:30:43 -0700 (PDT),
wrote:

Plus realign the track from the St Albans Abbey line back into
platform 10 at Watford Junction and save plenty of money on having to
re-signal from the main line into the existing platform 11, and while
they are at it, they can put the track back in next to platform 10!

Why was it moved?

Neil

--
Neil Williams
Put my first name before the at to reply.

On Mar 25, 10:41*pm, (Neil Williams)
wrote:
On Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:30:43 -0700 (PDT),
wrote:

Plus realign the track from the St Albans Abbey line back into
platform 10 at Watford Junction and save plenty of money on having to
re-signal from the main line into the existing platform 11, and while
they are at it, they can put the track back in next to platform 10!

Why was it moved?


So they could extend the car park across the trackbed, if you look at
Google Maps satellite view, you can see the route of the original
alignment, which went down the back of the Homebase carpark (the curve
of the wall was the original alignment). You can clearly see the
station car park has two parts, the original bit between Platforms 9
and 10 and the extension between 10 and the newer platform 11, with a
short connection between them around the end of platform 10.

Part of the council's road plans would involve fiddling with the car-
park access, which might make reinstating the original alignment
easier, although this isn't mentioned in the plans (large pdf: http://
www.watford.gov.uk/ccm/cms-service/download/asset/?asset_id=14946050

I thought about this for a bit, and came up with:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?ie=...06545&t=h&z=18

...though I seem to have forgotten to add a turnback siding beyond my
new terminal platforms. The general idea is clear though. Conceivably
you could do the same to the fast line platforms to provide loops, but
given Virgin don't want to stop there at all even if stops didn't
reduce capacity, it's probably pointless.

In article
,
wrote:
Plus realign the track from the St Albans Abbey line back into
platform 10 at Watford Junction and save plenty of money on having to
re-signal from the main line into the existing platform 11, and while
they are at it, they can put the track back in next to platform 10!
While spending more than they would save on making the car park accessible
over the reinstated tracks. It is a very busy car park and losing it would
damage the attractiveness of Watford unction for many users.

--
David Wild using RISC OS on broadband
www.davidhwild.me.uk

On 26 Mar, 09:38, wrote:
In article
,
* wrote: Plus realign the track from the St Albans Abbey line back into
platform 10 at Watford Junction and save plenty of money on having to
re-signal from the main line into the existing platform 11, and while
they are at it, they can put the track back in next to platform 10!

While spending more than they would save on making the car park accessible
over the reinstated tracks. It is a very busy car park and losing it would
damage the attractiveness of Watford unction for many users.


The extra part of the car park would then be accessible from the
Imperial way side, around the end of the remaining sidings in the yard
(only a short stretch of new road would be needed). Access this way is
planned in the Hertfordshire Council improvement scheme anyway and
would involve a new road with a bridge over the line, linking St.
Albans Road to Imperial Way, with access from this road into the car
park.

wrote in message
...
On 26 Mar, 09:38, wrote:
In article
,
wrote: Plus realign the track from the St
Albans Abbey line back into
platform 10 at Watford Junction and save plenty of money on having to
re-signal from the main line into the existing platform 11, and while
they are at it, they can put the track back in next to platform 10!

While spending more than they would save on making the car park accessible
over the reinstated tracks. It is a very busy car park and losing it would
damage the attractiveness of Watford unction for many users.


The extra part of the car park would then be accessible from the
Imperial way side, around the end of the remaining sidings in the yard
(only a short stretch of new road would be needed). Access this way is
planned in the Hertfordshire Council improvement scheme anyway and
would involve a new road with a bridge over the line, linking St.
Albans Road to Imperial Way, with access from this road into the car
park.

It sure is a pain having to negotiate the congestion around the station to
get to the car park. Even a car park on the Imperial Rd side and a foot
bridge would help.

Kevin