Monday 28 Feb 2011
LONDON OVERGROUND RAIL SERVICES RESUME AFTER SUCCESSFUL UPGRADE
- Region & Route:
- | North West & Central
The multi-million pound upgrade of the London Overground network is close to completion following the successful commissioning of new signalling equipment, which will allow more trains to run on the line connecting Richmond and Clapham Junction with Stratford.
Once complete in May, passengers using London Overground services will benefit from up to eight trains an hour during peak times on parts of the network, double the current number and with a more reliable timetable. New and longer platforms at some stations will also allow four carriages per train, increasing capacity.
Andrew Munden, Network Rail route director, said: "London relies on rail to get more than a million people to and from work every day, which is why investment in projects like the London Overground upgrade is so important to the capital's economy.
“I’m delighted to report that last week’s work went to plan and that we’re now only a couple of months away from completion. This project will provide vital additional capacity in time for the Olympic Games and help meet growing demand on this busy commuter line, supporting economic growth across vast swathes of London."
Notes to editors
For more information on the upgrade of the North London Line, click here.
Transport for London (TfL) and the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) are providing 76% of the £326m funding for the upgrade (TfL 44%, ODA 32%) with Network Rail giving 23% and the Department for Transport 1%.
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Network Rail press office - South East route
020 3357 7969
southeastroutecomms@networkrail.co.uk
About Network Rail
We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
Follow us on Twitter: @networkrail
Visit our online newsroom: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk