The weather has been kind and the progress good. The excavation was completed by the end of the week.
This was despite finding a wet area halfway down the embankment and extra drainage needing to be installed.
So on Friday we were able to undertake a trial of the stone train delivery method. The Racecourse is very kindly letting us use their land at Cheltenham Racecourse to stock pile the stone and the dogfish wagons are loaded there.
In order to empty the wagons RJ Clarke created a bespoke chute which needed some tweaks as the day progressed. We also required the help of the PWay team.
Overall a very successful week. We have approximately 2000 tonnes of material to reinstate and the stone train delivers 80 tonnes a time. It is also not simply a case of dumping the stone in situ. The stone must be compacted in suitable layers.
So the next few weeks will be busy. Additional thanks must be given to those Drivers & Signalman doing extra shifts to enable this repair to go ahead.
Cheers,
Sarah (Infrastructure Manager)
Very interesting blog. Thanks for the update.
ReplyDeleteRegards, Paul.
Well done to contractors R J Clarke and the P-way team for cracking on with this essential work and great to hear of the mutual cooperation with the racecourse. Presumably the embankment either end of the affected area will need to be continuously monitored?
ReplyDeleteThis whole length of embankment is certainly a concern for us. I don't believe we need continuous monitoring but thankfully the track patrollers are excellent at noticing changes & cracks.
DeleteExcellent news - and progress! Better going than dealing with previous slips on the line! Big thanks also to the Cheltenham Racecourse for their assistance with the logistics on the stone.
ReplyDeleteI guess the GWSR has hidden, buried (literally) unpleasant surprises that were 'gifted' to the line by its builders. Sigh, let's hope there are not too many more.
I wonder if the embankment is higher (above the base) on the side that failed than on the other side - and if the running line was put in on that side because of that? Good thinking on someone's part, if so! This slip has caused much less upset to ordinary goings-on on the line than the Chicken Curve one did.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed much higher on one side than the other. There is a lot of flexibility gained from only have a single line!
DeleteThank you for indulging my curiosity!
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