TransPennine Route Upgrade (TRU) is continuing work on a stretch of the TransPennine line between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds, and York over multiple weekends in September and October.
Over these two months, engineers working on the multi-billion-pound project will excavate ballast as they create new track beds. With the track beds installed, workers will then replace approximately 650 metres of railway tracks and install new drainage systems.
The huge project has already seen work completed at Morley station last month as new platforms and full re-signalling was completed at the West Yorkshire train station. This followed on from TRU’s continued efforts to install overhead line equipment (OLE) and pipeline between York and Leeds.
On the Manchester side of the project, work has been continuing to upgrade the 13 kilometre of line between Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge, again completing key piling work in July before installation of the OLE. Overall, 68 kilometres of railway will be electrified and re-signalled once the project is complete.
Eventually, the TRU will help increase services and freight opportunities on the line between Manchester and York and enable higher speed trains to operate.
Gareth Hope, sponsor for the TransPennine Route Upgrade said: "Between September and October, engineers will be working each weekend to upgrade the railway tracks. This work is a crucial component of our broader upgrades, not only allowing for faster train travel but also improving service reliability in the future. We are committed to ensuring a seamless transition during the upgrades, with diversionary routes and rail replacement buses in place to keep customer moving."
Chris Nutton, major projects director for TransPennine Express, said: "These improvement works are key to the overall modernisation of the railway that will be taking place as part of the TransPennine Route Upgrade, which will help deliver a faster and more sustainable service for our customers who travel between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds and York.
Photo Credit: Network Rail
