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Shapps promises more trans-Pennine rail paths

[ July 19, 2022   //   ]

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has promised an additional hourly freight slot on the Transpennine rail route as part of an upgrade package. The Government has announced £950 million for next phase of TransPennine Route Upgrades, which will include electrification, new signalling and doubling tracks from two to four between Huddersfield and Dewsbury.

In response, Logistics UK policy director, Kate Jennings said the investment “will provide a welcome boost to logistics operators in the north and give them the ideal opportunity to support Northern businesses as they revive their fortunes after the pandemic. The promised additional tracks for freight services will make deliveries more reliable and give business more opportunity to forge reliable trading links with the rest of the country by using the rail network.”

Port operators ambitious to put more freight on rail have long complained of the difficulty of securing freight train paths across the Pennines, with some traffic having to take circuitous routings to avoid the busiest sections of lines.

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