The newly appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to the Transpennine Route Upgrade in October’s Autumn Budget announcement. Just a week later, the Chancellor, along with the Transport Secretary and Mayor Andy Burnham, visited Manchester and Stalybridge to see first-hand the progress being made on the programme.
A major target for TRU in 2024 was achieved in November, as TransPennine Express joined Northern in operating electric passenger services between Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge. This was a huge step forward in the programme’s aims to deliver faster, more frequent trains on a cleaner, greener, more reliable railway.
Electric test trains have also been in operation between York and Church Fenton, with the first electrified passenger services to launch in 2025.
Significant progress has also been made in upgrading infrastructure across the route, with perhaps the most noticeable change seen at the iconic Huddersfield station.
The station upgrade has just passed the one-year mark. Scaffold towers and a raised working platform are in place to enable the trainshed canopy restoration work, whilst the tearoom – built in 1886 – has been dismantled in 8,000 different pieces and carefully stored away ahead of being reinstated in the future.
A new, purpose-built office compound was also opened at the rear of the station, so that the programme had a central working hub at such a vital location on the route. Named HD1, the sustainable approach to the building of the office compound contributed to TRU’s perfect 45/45 score in a Considerate Constructors Scheme assessment of the station.
October saw the completion of TRU’s public consultation on plans for rail upgrades between Stalybridge and Diggle (Saddleworth). More than 300 residents gave feedback on proposals, including major upgrades at both Mossley and Greenfield that will make the stations fully accessible for the first time.
The programme was granted a Transport and Works Act Order (TWAO) to bring further upgrades to the route between Leeds and Micklefield, outlining plans to replace five level crossings with safer alternatives, work to a number of bridges to enable electrification, and the installation of some small-scale infrastructure.
Back in March, TRU announced a £100m investment for a new rail depot in Shipley which will be used to house and maintain Northern’s fleet of electric trains on the Airedale and Wharfedale Lines whilst access in and out of their Neville Hill depot in Leeds is restricted during a future phase of TRU works. Northern will keep the depot open following the completion of upgrades, with as many as 100 permanent employees.
Elsewhere in West Yorkshire, the new year brought an intriguing find – following investigations at a TRU site near Ravensthorpe Road, a team from Oxford Archaeology believed that a large, irregularly shaped cropmark was probably an Iron Age or Romano-British enclosure.
A collection of Romano-British ceramics, building materials, flint, glass and animal bones were all recovered at the site and are still in testing.
TRU closed out the year with the launch of the programme’s first annual Sustainable Development Report, based on the sustainability strategy, ‘Our Guiding Compass’.
Our Guiding Compass has been instrumental in shaping TRU’s sustainable development efforts, comprising of four key pillars that steer sustainability: Northern jobs, enhanced environment, satisfied customers, and community engagement.
One milestone of many outlined in the report was the introduction of PlanBEE Rail, a unique higher apprenticeship scheme designed to recruit and nurture the next generation of multi-disciplinary project managers. In what is a two-year programme where the apprentices rotate around four different employers, the TRU cohort have already had a taste of what’s it’s like to be part of a multi-billion-pound railway programme.
As part of the programme’s commitment to leave a long-lasting legacy within the communities it operates, 2024 saw the introduction of the £175,000 TRU Community Fund. The fund offers community groups, schools and charities the opportunity to create or enhance indoor or outdoor community-focussed facilities through small (£1000-£5000) or medium (£5000-£20,000) grants, with the successful recipients recently confirmed.
Work to deliver upgrades across the route continues over the Christmas period, too:
Gordon Kells, TRU Interim Managing Director, said:
“2024 was a big year for TRU and I’m really proud of what’s been achieved across the programme. A number of key milestones have been reached and we’ve paved the way for more success next year.
“I’d like to thank all of our passengers, stakeholders and local communities for their understanding and support and we are looking ahead to further achievements in 2025.”
