Railway improvements complete in North East

Passengers using the Durham Coast railway are travelling on a line fit for the future after Network Rail completed the resignalling of the route between Stranton in Hartlepool and Rhyhope Grange.

Five signal boxes have been decommissioned and are now controlled from a single point at Ryhope. The old system has been renewed with a modern, and more reliable equivalent.

Warrick Dent, area general manager for Network Rail, said: “The Durham cost rail route is a vital part of the community – providing both local and intercity passenger services as well as a busy freight route – keeping lorries off the roads.

“Unfortunately this area is a notorious cable theft hot spot so we have taken the opportunity of this project to protect the new system by making the cables more difficult to steal and easier for police to trace if they are taken. These anti-theft measures along with the new, modern equivalent will help us to deliver a reliable railway at reduced cost and with potential for increased services in the future.”

The project has been competed on time and on budget (around £28m) in just 18 months and has had minimal impact on running trains – with the vast majority of work being carried out when services are not running. In all around160,000 man hours were carried out.

The signalling system is state of-the-art and controls train movements over 30 km section between Stranton and Ryhope Grange with Ryhope being the new control point.

The project has also included the renewal of Hall Deane and Church Street level crossing with a modern equivalent controlled by CCTV.