Sunday 16th and Wednesday 19th December

Today's very brief visit was a bit of an anticlimax after last Monday's site visit.  However there was something to report.   The ballasting of the viaduct had moved on to nearly the end.  The supported embankment between the viaduct and the mainline look a bit nearer completion.  During the week a lot of materials were moved on to the former Bedford embankment.  These were visible on the Grove Road bridge along with some temporary lighting, probably in advance of the Christmas shutdown.

First picture shows the link between the viaduct and the mainline. The edging is almost finished.

A digger can be seen on top of the ballast heap, possibly preparing the location of the new junction.

 From the same spot a shot of the viaduct.  The digger I saw on top on Monday has moved to the start of the final two sections.

 And the same digger from the far side of the scrapyard.  A large heap of ballast is to the right of the crane.  Two red hoppers which can be seen to the left are presumably used to move the ballast up on to the viaduct.

 The light started to fade when I took this shot next to the dead tree by the scrapyard.  The large blister is for a signal and the cabinet to hold the control equipment.  A gap has been left in the fencing to allow this to be installed.

 The light was too bad to take any more pictures after this one.  This shows one of the expansion gaps I mentioned in the previous report.  Whilst I was on the viaduct, I noticed four large concrete pads on the higher ground which were not visible from ground level..  These were put in to support the crane when lifting sections of viaduct into place.  These will be removed later when the site is tidied up.

 This will be the focus of the work over Christmas, the future location of Hitchin North Junction.   On Wednesday 19th, the work on the link seems to have moved on again with the scaffolding gone. 

 A closer look reveals the ballasting digger has moved on to the link.

And looking to the right, the rollers seen on the embankment during the ballasting work there are now here.  Just below the drainage pipe is the level of the former Bedford line.  This has been vital in moving materials and plant onto this area of the worksite.  This week has again seen a lot of machinery and workers moving along what was a double track width embankment.