Transpennine Route Upgrade news
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Rail Business UKHuddersfield station to close for 30-day Transpennine Route Upgrade blockade
UK: A 30-day blockade of the line between Stalybridge and Heaton Lodge Junction to the east of Huddersfield will begin on August 30 as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade programme.
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Rail Business UKRail industry responds to spending review
UK: The rail industry responds to the government’s 2025 Spending Review on June 11, setting departmental budgets for day‑to‑day spending until 2028‑29 and capital investment until 2029‑30.
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Rail Business UKBritain ‘could be a global rail leader again’ says Burnham as he urges backing for ‘Northern Arc’
UK: A rail-based ‘Northern Arc’ infrastructure and development programme could help Britain ‘move on from the embarrassment of High Speed 2’ and restore the country’s reputation as a world leader in railway construction, believes Greater Manchester elected mayor Andy Burnham.
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail seeks Transpennine Route Upgrade programme partner
UK: Network Rail has begun the process of appointing a programme partner to support the delivery of the Transpennine Route Upgrade. The 96 month framework contract has a potential value of around £100m. The infrastructure manager and its selected partner will form an integrated delivery team ...
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Rail Business UKFive in the running to supply new TransPennine Express fleet
UK: Invitations to negotiate have been issued to five potential manufacturers of new trains which will enable TransPennine Express to move away from largely diesel operation as its core Leeds – Manchester route is electrified. ‘We will be assessing the bids later this year’, reports Fleet, ...
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In depthUK: Delivering a high-capacity rail artery across northern England
A major upgrading programme is in progress to enhance resilience, raise capacity and cut journey times on Network Rail’s busy east-west route through the Pennines between Manchester and Leeds. Murray Hughes investigates.
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Rail Business UKLiverpool – Manchester Railway Board created to push for construction of new line
UK: A Liverpool – Manchester Railway Board has been launched by the two cities’ metro mayors and other stakeholders to lead the development of proposals for a high speed line between the conurbations. The government has said that up to £17bn is to be made available for the new line ...
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Rail Business UKTransPennine Express confirms plans to ‘build back’ its timetable
UK: TransPennine Express has confirmed that it expects to begin reinstating services to meet commitments it made when it announced temporary timetable reductions in December 2023. Good progress has been made with crew training which will allow the operator to begin to restore services from June ...
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Rail Business UKBattery traction trial ahead as TransPennine Express fortunes improve
UK: Overcrowding and short-notice cancellations at state-owned TransPennine Express have declined since the December timetable change, prompting Managing Director Chris Jackson to suggest the operator is in a ‘better place’.
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Rail Business UKLong-term and overseas opportunities for rail apprentices
UK: The Transpennine Route Upgrade programme is ‘an investment in people’ and ‘it really is important that these projects leave a legacy of skills’, Rail Minister Huw Merriman said when he announced the latest tranche of funding. Speaking on December 4, Merriman said ‘if you look ...
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Rail Business UKLatest tranche of Transpennine Route Upgrade funding confirmed
UK: The release of a further £3·9bn tranche of funding for the ongoing £11·5bn Transpennine Route Upgrade was confirmed by Rail Minister Huw Merriman on December 4. The Department for Transport indicated that work on TRU would be accelerated through the cash injection and noted that ...
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In depthSignalling: Visualising designs at an earlier stage
Most signalling schemes across the sector are designed using 2D schematic plans. But this approach can make it difficult to visualise what drivers in the train cab will see, and when and how they will react. To address this and other challenges, Arup has created a signalling visualisation tool that is being deployed as part of Network Rail’s Transpennine Route Upgrade.
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Rail Business UKPost-Covid rail sector must understand what it does best, says Haines
UK: ‘We in the rail sector must be objective and honest about what we are good at’, Network Rail Chief Executive Andrew Haines told a conference in Birmingham on October 3, as he reflected on how the industry can plot its way through the uncertainty of the post-Covid period.
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Rail Business UKResearch expertise used to optimise Transpennine Route Upgrade designs
UK: The University of Huddersfield’s Institute of Railway Research is providing specialised pantograph-catenary interaction and vehicle dynamics expertise to optimise designs for the Transpennine Route Upgrade programme. The IRR has worked with Network Rail, J Murphy & Sons, Siemens, Systra and VolkerRail to produce a three-dimensional ...
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NewsTransPennine Express to stop using loco-hauled push-pull trains in December
UK: TransPennine Express has confirmed that it will cease using its push-pull sets of Class 68 locomotives and MkVa coaches, previously designated ‘Nova 3’, from the December 2023 timetable change. The decision is the result of a review of operations after TPE was transferred to the ...
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Rail Business UKImmersive training centre to increase rail worker safety
UK: Rail Minister Huw Merriman has opened a £2·7m immersive safety training centre designed to enable rail workers to experience safety-critical scenarios in a safe environment. The TRUST facility in Huddersfield has been developed by Active Training Team as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade programme, ...
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Rail Business UK‘Fully staffed’ TransPennine Express ‘needs to become simpler’
Recently appointed interim Managing Director of state-owned TransPennine Express, Chris Jackson tells Rail Business UK about his plans to revive the fortunes of the struggling operator.
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Rail Business UKRail Minister commits to trans-Pennine electrification ‘in full’ and HS2 to Manchester
UK: Suggestions that the Transpennine Route Upgrade may be scaled back in response to funding constraints were rejected by Transport Minister Huw Merriman when questioned by Rail Business UK.
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Rail Business UKManchester rail plans rethought as ‘ambition wasn’t able to be delivered’
UK: Network Rail has withdrawn a planning application for rail infrastructure works in Manchester, Rail Minister Huw Merriman confirmed during a visit to the city on May 25.
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Rail Business UKLocally guided £72m rail plan aims to unblock northern rail capacity
UK: Rail Minister Huw Merriman announced a £72m programme of investment for the network in Greater Manchester during a visit to Manchester Victoria station.