Leeds Station Capacity improvements hailed for world-leading sustainability credentials: TRUBREEAMBENN1

Monday 10 Jul 2023

Leeds Station Capacity improvements hailed for world-leading sustainability credentials

Region & Route:
Eastern

Work to improve capacity at Leeds station, delivered as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade, has been awarded an ‘excellent’ BREEAM rating.

The award was presented to the Transpennine Route Upgrade team on the recently-constructed Platform 0 at Leeds Station by Hilary Benn MP, on behalf of the BRE Group.

BREEAM Infrastructure, the world’s leading sustainability assessment, rating and awards scheme for civil engineering, infrastructure, landscaping and public realm projects, recognised the sustainability of the project including the construction of platform 0 and reconstruction of platform 1, which increase capacity for more frequent, longer trains to run through the station.

The Transpennine Route Upgrade is building a greener, faster and better railway between Manchester and York, and recently released its plans to slash carbon emissions, generate thousands of jobs and deliver billions of pounds in social value to the North of England.

The programme’s new sustainability strategy titled ‘Our Guiding Compass’ outlines how the largest rail infrastructure project in the North will save 6 million tonnes of CO2e over a 60-year period after work is complete.

Design and construction teams worked together at Leeds to reduce materials and waste, resulting in a saving of over 144 tonnes of CO2e. This included finding efficiencies through track upgrades, reducing the quantity of materials used and pre-fabricating components off-site, reducing the impact on station users and nearby residents.

Leeds Central MP Hilary Benn said:

“The awarding of excellent in BREEAM infrastructure for the work at Leeds station is testament to all the staff involved and to the sustainable ethos of the Transpennine Route Upgrade.

“Rail travel is vital to the people of Leeds and this recognition shows how sustainability is being built into the future of rail travel across the North of England.”

Neil Holm, Managing Director of Transpennine Route Upgrade said:

“Sustainability is at the heart of the Transpennine Route Upgrade and the recognition from BRE Global for our work at Leeds Station pays tribute to our ambitions.”

“Leeds is a key station on the Transpennine Route Upgrade and to deliver this vital work while making major carbon savings, engaging the community and creating jobs sets a blueprint for the rest of our programme.”

The Transpennine Route Upgrade Sustainability Strategy ‘Our Guiding Compass’ can be accessed at Our Guiding Compass - Transpennine Route Upgrade (thetrupgrade.co.uk).

Notes to Editors

  • Leeds station capacity improvements – delivered by the Transpennine Route Upgrade – has achieved an ‘excellent’ rating in BREEAM infrastructure, formally CEEQUAL
  • Part of this work was the delivery of platform 0 which opened in 2020. This provides more capacity for more frequent, longer trains to run through the station
  • Other works completed include:
    • o Replacing the signalling control system and installing a new modern system to increase capacity.
    • o Upgrading the signalling interlocking from a legacy solid state interlocking to a new computer based interlocking.
    • o Demolishing and reconstructing platform 1.
    • o Alterations to Platform 2, 3, 4 and 5
    • o Remodelling the track and overhead electrical lines (OLE) on the approaches to platform 0-3 to allow functionality for parallel working and increased capacity.
    • o Remodelling track and OLE into Platform 4-6 to allow greater operational flexibility and accommodate services from Leeds NW into Platform 4 and 5
  • As part of the rating, the project achieved 98% under the communities and stakeholders assessment category due its extensive stakeholder engagement and various social initiatives centred around Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) and charitable volunteering. Examples:
    - working with Leeds City Academy year 8 and 9 students in the Engineering Development Trust Go4Set programme
    - donating the Victorian canopy columns to Bolton Heritage Railway
    - collecting donations at the station for St. George’s Crypt. This charity works with homeless and vulnerable people offering them a safe and warm place to stay, providing meals and clean clothing and access to medical support. Raising over £8,500 (provided by Jamie)
  • Design and construction teams worked together to reduce materials and waste, resulting in a saving of over 144 tonnes of CO2e. This included finding efficiencies through delivering some track upgrades at Category 4 instead of Category 2,  reducing the quantity of materials used and changing two OLE portals to Twin Track Cantilevers (TTCs) and removing  four OLE structures.
  • Much of the pre-fabrication of components such as the overhead line equipment occurred off site and was delivered to site on installation day. Plus construction colleagues parked at satellite locations and minibuses transported them to the compound. This reduced the impact on station users and nearby residents
  • The team worked with small medium enterprises. An example of this was the procurement of £140,000 worth of OLE steel through Adey Steel in Loughborough.
  • Drones and 360-degree cameras were used to capture videos and imagery of the site. This reduced the need for repeated in-person surveys – saving time and money.

TRU will bring passengers:

  • More trains to choose from and more seats. Our improvements will enable more trains to run between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds and York with up to six fast services every hour between Leeds and Manchester and up to two stopping services for local connectivity.
  • Faster journeys so you can travel to your favourite towns and cities more quickly. Our fastest journey times are forecast to be 63-66 minutes between Manchester and York and 41-42 minutes between Manchester and Leeds.
  • More reliable journeys with trains that run on-time
  • Better stations across the Transpennine route, bringing passengers a better travel experience through improved, more accessible station.
  • Electric trains will run between Manchester and Stalybridge by the middle of the decade.
  • The majority of TRU benefits will be realised by the early 2030s with full completion of the programme expected between 2036 to 2041.

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