UK: Network Rail has awarded Carillion Powerlines Ltd a £49m contract to electrify the Holytown Junction – Shotts – Midcalder Junction line, as part of a £160m project to provide a fourth electrified route between Edinburgh and Glasgow.
The contract covers the installation of 74 track-km of 25 kV 50 Hz electrification equipment on the double-track line, including vegetation clearance, site investigations, design, 1 458 piled foundations and the installation of 1 265 masts, wire runs, power supplies, systems integration and compliance.
A separate contract covered the provision of increased clearances for the electrification equipment and modifications to bridge parapets, which are already underway. The wider upgrading project also includes new station footbridges at Addiewell and West Calder, platform extensions at Carfin, Shotts and West Calder and the redevelopment of Livingston South station. Completion of the electrification project is scheduled for March 2019.
‘This work contributes to the transformation of services across the central belt as part of the wider package of investment to enhance rail travel between the country's two biggest cities, meaning passengers will see shorter journey times, increased capacity and better reliability’, said Scottish Transport Minister Humza Yousaf on January 12.
