Sir Edward Garnier, MP for Harborough, has received the following email from Tony Belshaw, Network Rail Communications Manager about the Market Harborough Line Speed Improvement Project:
From: Belshaw Tony
Sent: 26 October 2016 14:22
Subject: Market Harborough Line Speed Improvement Project
Dear Sir Edward,
Network Rail is holding a drop-in session for passengers and residents in Market Harborough to update them on plans for significant improvements which will benefit passengers traveling by rail in the East Midlands.
A team from Network Rail will be in Market Harborough indoor market on Saturday 12 November between 9.30am-4pm to talk about the plans for the station.
Under the plans the historic Market Harborough station building, which has welcomed passengers to the town for decades, will be kept as part of major upgrade work at the station.
The area around the station will also be remodelled to allow important adjustments to be made to the layout of the track. This will mean trains approaching and leaving the station will be able to travel at higher speeds, meaning cuts to journey times.
The move follows overwhelming feedback from members of the public at an information day held at Market Harborough indoor market back in February. Hundreds of people who turned up to the event said they wanted the station building to be retained.
Once the track and station have been redesigned, journey times will be improved while the station will also have longer platforms to cater for longer trains with more seats.
Work on the station and to straighten the track is due to begin in summer 2017 and will see:
- Longer platforms to handle longer trains with more seats
- Improved access to the station, particularly for wheelchair users
- A new access road to the car park to improve traffic flow
- Improved facilities for cyclists
The project forms part of Network Rail’s £40bn Railway Upgrade Plan to provide a bigger, better, more reliable railway for passengers.
The upgrade at Market Harborough is one of the first projects in a comprehensive programme of upgrades to the Midland Main Line, which runs between London St Pancras and Sheffield.
Over the next seven years the Midland Main Line will be electrified, have track and signals modernised, platforms lengthened and new trains with more carriages will be introduced. The work will involve remodelling bridges, tunnels and stations and installing overhead electrical lines helping to reduce running costs, energy usage and carbon emissions and improve journey times for passengers.
All work will be carefully planned to minimise disruption to local residents. The work will be carried out subject to obtaining the relevant consents from Leicestershire County Council.
Communications Manager (MML)
Network Rail Route and Project Communications