Electrification programme

The case for railway electrification was given in the Rail Electrification paper published by DfT in 2009. Railfuture welcomed the following inclusion of a large number of electrification projects in the High Level Output Specification for Control Period 5 (2014-19), on the basis that investment was necessary to reduce unit operating costs so that additional capacity can be provided to accommodate rail travel growth without requiring more subsidy.

However on 20 July 2017 the Transport Secretary Chris Grayling cancelled the planned electrification of the Midland Main Line north of Kettering, the Great Western Main Line west of Cardiff, and Oxenholme to Windermere, proposing replacement by bi-modes and other forms of traction. Since this announcement, the following projects have been completed:

• Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk High to Edinburgh Waverley
• Glasgow Queen Street and Edinburgh Waverley to Stirling and Alloa
• Grangemouth
• Glasgow Central via Shotts to Edinburgh Waverley (electric services expected to start March 2019)
• Manchester Piccadilly and Victoria via Bolton to Preston, also the Ordsall chord
• Preston to Blackpool
• Bromsgrove to Barnt Green
• Walsall to Rugeley (electric services expected to start May 2019)
• Gospel Oak to Barking/Barking Riverside
• Maidenhead to Didcot
• Reading to Newbury
• Didcot to Cardiff
• Bedford to Corby
• London Underground Northern Line extension from Kennington to Battersea Power Station.
• Crossrail tunnels between Royal Oak and Pudding Mill Lane/Plumstead
• Midland Main Line electrification between Kettering and Wigston
• Manchester Victoria to Stalybridge
• Wigan North West to Lostock Junction (Bolton)
• York to Church Fenton
• Glasgow Central to Barrhead

Railfuture consider that a rolling programme of incremental electrification is essential for Network Rail to act as an informed, intelligent client, learning from each project and applying those lessons to the next. This will develop the programme management and design experience necessary to make the right design decisions and deliver on time and within budget. New increments should be added to this programme progressively. Each increment should deliver a new electrified service and so a specific passenger benefit, and be justified on the need for improved services and a business case which compares efficient capital costs of electrification with the increased operating costs of the alternatives and the passenger benefits which electrification can deliver that the alternatives cannot.

Current projects

Network Rail has the following electrification projects in progress:

• Huddersfield to Leeds. Network Rail submitted a Transport and Works Act Order application for electrification between Huddersfield and Leeds and four-tracking between Huddersfield and Dewsbury, which Railfuture supports because this section is the slowest, most difficult and most capacity constrained on the route. £401m initial funding was announced 26 May 2021, approved and work started in 2023.
• East Kilbride, go-ahead announced 8 October 2021, work to start April 2022 and due to be complete by December 2023.
• Haymarket to Dalmeny, construction of Fife route electrification started June 2022.

Transport for Wales is electrifying the Cardiff Valley Lines, using some discontinuous electrification.

New electric railways are also being built, for example HS2 Phase 1 between London Old Oak Common and Birmingham Curzon Street. The Midland Metro is also being extended from Birmingham City Centre to Edgbaston and to Brierley Hill.

Proposed projects

These schemes are seeking approval or confirmation:

• Midland Main Line electrification between Market Harborough and Nottingham/Sheffield was included in the Integrated Rail Plan.