Rother Valley Railway

I can't think of anywhere that may have enough space to install it, without buying up some more somewhere, best place would be Tenterden, if some land can be acquired just beyond the C&W Workshop be ideal then for evening out wear on flanges etc, and turning the odd visiting engine from the Main line . either that, or at Robertsbridge, but I would imagine there is no spare space .

 

Reading the blog, the RVR seem to have a plan, which is hardly surprising, but they're going to reveal it in bite-sized installments!

 

Intriguing Would there be enough room in the proposed expansion of Rolvenden (K&ESR already own an adjacent field)? Or will it fit on the small ‘engine shed’ site in the Robertsbridge plans?

 

60footer ?

 

A picture of part of the turntable on a heavy transport vehicle appears on the RVR blog. So it must be on its way somewhere. We will just have to wait and see.

 

See post 1240.

 

According to a post on the RVR blog it's 70feet.

 

that's going to need one very big hole digging

 

That'll give plenty of materials for rebuilding a missing embankment somewhere....

 

I heard the new plan is to build a ribblehead style viaduct across the A21, across to Austins bridge, and to build a great spiral to raise the track height

 

How about a combined level crossing and turntable on the A21? Utterly pointless but wouldn’t it be nice?

 

You could always install it in the roundabout on the A21. That would save on land use.

 

Actually, whilst the installation of the level crossing , if it goes ahead, ( not counting chickens etc) there will need to be a diversion in place won't there, I would assume then that traffic will have to use the old A21 through Roberts bridge re joining at Northbridge St.

 

When KESR replaced the level crossing at Rolvenden - this was done overnight - they used some sort of prefabricated unit with the rails already installed. I suspect that RVR will use something similar to get the trackbed in place - so there may not be too much disruption. The barriers would be installed seperately. I suspect that the level crossing at Junction Road will be installed first.

 

I would imagine the work will be much harder and possibly take longer than just one night, for starters the road has to be dug out, and any cables etc re routed, at rolvendon, the old crossing only had to be removed and any reworking done, at Junction Rd, its all got to be done fresh, from scratch, even using modern methods, can the road be dug up levelled and the track laid all in one night, ? On the A21, I would imagine, that the road will have to be closed overnight with diversions In place, anyway, possibly for more than just the one overnight period, as later installing and testing Barriers will have to be done also and that will need another localised road closure .

 

With most things in infrastructure, you can work incredibly quickly provided you throw sufficient resource at it, and have planned adequately. So a single night to install the rails across the road wouldn't seem beyond reasonable to me - after all, you are really only talking about digging out a road and resurfacing for a length of twenty feet or so to cover the width of the railway. I don't know exactly how you commission a new level crossing (presumably there is systems testing on the interface between road and railway signals, and the signals / hardware interface of the actual infrastructure) but I suspect some of that could be done without a closure, and any final proving could happen over one or more nights.

All of which is funding-dependent of course (who pays for that sort of work - the railway or the Highways Authority?), and of course also dependent on a huge amount of advance planning so that the actual disruption is minimised.

Tom

 

As you say, planning is the key. Putting the actual crossing in wouldn’t be a big job You can commission the crossing system without the actual barrier arms in place, only fitting these when all else is done.

 

"An Historical Survey of Southern Sheds" by Hawkins & Reeve gives 65ft. It would have been new for opening in 1933. When I saw it in the late 90s it was out of use.
Pat

 

It is the service provision that wil take the time.
As has been said the actual Dig, Relay and ballasting and installing of a form of crossing system.
Bomac panels or Rubber preformed sections more likely.
That can be done in a reasonable length of possession.
We used to reballast with 300mm ballast below the sleepers and renew rails and Rubber panels between 22.00 and 09.00 but that would have been about 4 - 5 lengths to get an overlap into the existing either side of the crosing.
With the RVR crossing it may be possible to cut that length down to about 30ft either side of the crossing.

 

This is how we do it!
https://www.railengineer.co.uk/2017/06/07/revolutionary-level-crossing-on-kent-heritage-railway/