17.04.18
Alloa line reopens after electrification works
The Alloa line has reopened following the completion of a multi-million pound upgrade project to prepare the line for electric trains.
The work, which lasted four weeks, is part of a Scottish government-funded programme to electrify lines throughout the central belt.
Over the four weeks, hundreds of engineers worked from Stirling to Alloa along six miles of the route, installing over 200 masts and supporting cantilevers and stringing overhead power lines, as part of the wider programme to electrify the lines linking Stirling, Alloa and Dunblane to Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Once the works are complete in 2019, the electrification of the route will mean that many services will be operated by electric class 385 trains, which Network Rail says will offer a better experience and reduce journey times from Stirling to Glasgow and Edinburgh.
There will be more seats on services between Alloa, Dunblane, Bridge of Allan, Stirling and Edinburgh; a reduction in noise and improved air quality is expected for those who live and work near the railway.
Humza Yousaf, minister for transport and the islands, said: “Over this four week period Network Rail crews worked tirelessly to safely and successfully install over 200 masts and 14 km of overhead wiring, taking us a step closer to electric services on the Stirling to Alloa route by December 2018.”
Paul Reilly, programme manager for Network Rail, explained: “Electrification will transform travel across the central belt of Scotland and is part of our commitment to delivering the best railway Scotland has ever had.”
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