£780m investment in East Coast Mainline announced

The government has announced a £780m investment in the East Coast Main Line.

The investment of up to £780m will pay for major upgrades to the East Coast Main Line from 2019, to be completed in the early 2020s.

The work will take place over the next few years and will see significant improvements to platforms, tracks, signals and junctions across the route. The government’s announcement yesterday said that together with new Intercity Express Trains on the East Coast Main Line, it would mean passengers travelling on long distance journeys between northern towns and cities would benefit from more seats and faster, more frequent journeys between Doncaster, Leeds and Newcastle.

Councillor Eric Firth, deputy chair of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority Transport Committee, reacted to the announcement, stating: “While investment in our transport infrastructure is welcome, these upgrades have been promised before so it is critically important that Network Rail sets out realistic timetables for when these projects will be completed and is transparent in their delivery.

“However it is disappointing this announcement does not appear to include capacity upgrades previously promised between York and Newcastle.  This section will be vital to realising the full potential of HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail, and we already know the line cannot accommodate additional planned trains alongside existing services.

“A reliable, resilient East Coast Main Line is vital to this region’s future.  Network Rail has identified a need for major investment in the next five years to renew much of the equipment on this line to sustain and improve reliability.  We will be pushing Network Rail and the Regulator hard to make sure these projects are prioritised.”

 

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