GWML ELECTRIFICATION HUNTINGTHE FROGS

摘要

As you might expect, there has been no official response to last month's comparison of the Great Western main line (GWML) electrification with the 1990s scheme on the East Coast main line (ECML). This showed that the cost per single track km of the current scheme was just under four times that of the British Rail project. However, readers have been forthcoming with information on boiling frog colonies on the GWML as observed from the sharp end. A classic example via a civil engineering chum concerns bridges. For example, it was assumed the bridge substructures and approach embankments would not require major work when decks or arches had to be modified to obtain clearance for the overhead line electrification equipment. But in several cases, redesigning a bridge to current design codes required major strengthening and stabilisation of abutments.