Midland Main Line (South)

Midland Main Line (South)
Description	The Midland Main Line from London St Pancras to Bedford
Country	United Kingdom
Time period	2023
Train Operating Company	East Midlands Railway, Thameslink, London Northwestern Railway
Simulation difficulty
Author	Oxalin
Website	Midland Main Line (South)
Rolling Stock	Class 180 Class 222 Class 230 Class 360 Class 700
Route map Midland Main Line Bedford North Junction Bedford North Siding Bedford Bedford CE Sidings Bedford Jowett Sidings Bedford Carriage Sidings Bedford St Johns Goods Loop Bedford St Johns Bletchley Elstow Private Sidings Ampthill Tunnels Flitwick Junction Flitwick Harlington Sundon Loop Leagrave Junction Leagrave Leagrave Tamper Sidings Limbury Road Sidings Luton Luton Centre Siding Luton Airport Parkway Harpenden Harpenden Junction St Albans City Centre Siding St Albans City Radlett Stone Terminal Radlett Radlett Junction Elstree & Borehamwood Elstree Tunnels Mill Hill Broadway Hendon Dudding Hill Cricklewood Depot Cricklewood Cricklewood Depot Loop West Hampstead Thameslink Loop West Hampstead Thameslink West Hampstead Siding Belsize Tunnels Lismore Circus Tunnel Hampstead Tunnel North London Line Kentish Town St Pancras North Siding Camden Road Tunnels St Pancras Loop High Speed 1 St Pancras South Siding Thameslink Core London St Pancras

The Midland Main Line is the smallest of the three main routes north out of London, after the East Coast and West Coast Main Lines. The route runs from London St Pancras through Bedford and Leicester to Nottingham, Derby and Sheffield. Intercity services along the route are provided by East Midlands Railway, while London commuter services are provided by an intensive Thameslink service. The line is also a major freight route, with connections to the North London Line in both directions.

This simulation includes the south end of the line, running from London St Pancras to Bedford. Only the four platforms used by East Midlands Railway have been included at London St Pancras - the low level platforms can be found in the "Thameslink Core" route, and the Southeastern and Eurostar platforms can be found in the "High Speed 1" route.

In general, East Midlands Railway services use the fast lines while Thameslink services use the slow lines. However, a reasonable number of Thameslink services use the fast lines for at least part of their journey to skip stations and overtake, particularly in peak hours. Conversely, during the early morning the route operates as a "two-track railway" to allow for engineering possessions on the fast lines, and as such the first few East Midlands Railway services operate on the slow lines.

Timetable

A timetable for a weekday in January 2023 has been included, starting at 4am. Trains will stop entering the route at around 10am, however the final trains will not leave until around midday. London Northwestern Railway services have been included between Bedford and Bletchley, despite these currently being operated by a bus-replacement service.

The following standard services are included:

Midland Main Line (South) Services
Train Operating Company	Origin	Destination	Frequency (tph)
East Midlands Railway	London St Pancras	Sheffield	2
		Nottingham	2
		Corby	2
London Northwestern Railway	Bletchley	Bedford	3
Thameslink	Brighton		2
	Three Bridges		2
	Rainham	Luton	2
	St Albans City	Sutton via Mitcham	2
		Sutton via Wimbledon	2

Additionally, both Thameslink and East Midlands Railway operate some extra peak services, some freight services are included, and a charter service to Chesterfield.

Operational Tips

• Keep an eye on the instructions for each train to work out where they should switch between fast and slow lines.
• Watch out for 5O15 - this train starts out of Bedford Carriage Sidings quite early and is scheduled to shunt into Bedford North Siding - only accessible from one platform. Make sure not to route another train into its way at Bedford!
• Trains generally arrive at Cricklewood Depot Loop early - make sure to route them onto the line in the correct order with the trains already in service.
• The bay platform at Bedford is exclusively used for the London Northwestern Railway shuttle to Bletchley - Thameslink should not use this.
• Try not to set routes too far ahead of trains - something else might appear at a junction first and need to cross over!
• Keep an eye on where Thameslink services terminate - services for Luton should use the platform between the slow lines, while services for St Albans City will shunt into the turnback siding.