Member Article

Tees Valley authorities to push for electrification of the North East rail network

Local Authority leaders along with Tees Valley Unlimited are calling for a comprehensive electrification of the rail network in the North East to help unlock the area’s economic potential.

Tees Valley Unlimited and the area’s five councils are concerned that constraints in the current rail infrastructure are acting as barriers to the area achieving its full economic potential.

They have joined forces to call for improvements including:

• The implementation of a comprehensive line electrification programme for the North East.
• For the section between the East Coast Mainline and Middlesbrough and Teesport to be included in the Trans-Pennine North Electrification scheme. They argue that doing this would not only provide a significant benefit immediately, but it also would pave the way for further electrification of the Durham Coast and Tyne Valley lines during the next 15 years.
• The replacement of the ‘unloved’ Pacer trains that make up much of the rolling stock. TVU and the local authorities believe that replacing Pacers is a fundamental requirement as many trains, particularly those operating local services, are some of the oldest on the national network.
• A change in timetables to meet the changes in land use patterns, the needs of businesses and people’s changing lifestyles.

Chairman of Tees Valley Unlimited, Sandy Anderson, said: “Effective and efficient transport networks are crucial to the Tees Valley economy, which is why TVU, with the support of our partners and stakeholders, is pushing for improvements to the area’s rail infrastructure.

“In particular, we believe that the implementation of a comprehensive line electrification programme for the North East is vital to our efforts to improve the area’s economic prospects.”

Leader of Darlington Borough Council and TVU Vice Chairman, Councillor Bill Dixon, said: “Our case is based on hard economics as modern and efficient rail infrastructure is crucial because of the housing and business developments that are taking shape throughout Tees Valley.”

Middlesbrough Mayor, Ray Mallon, said, “We are setting out rail improvement priorities, including quicker and more frequent connections, which are imperative to help unlock the future economic potential of Tees Valley.”