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Wednesday 14 Jan 2026

Transpennine Route Upgrade lays the foundations for a better-connected North as NPR funding is confirmed

Region & Route:

Eastern

Today on a visit to Neville Hill Depot in Leeds the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, backed Northern Powerhouse Rail with £1.1bn over the Spending Review period, allowing progress on planning, development, and design work to be made which will unlock benefits for the people of the North from the 2030s. This reinforced the importance of continued investment in rail infrastructure across the North of England.  

As plans for the programme move forward, the £11bn Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) is already delivering the infrastructure, skills and capability that Northern Powerhouse Rail builds upon for success and improve east–west rail connectivity across the region. 

TRU is on time and on budget, upgrading the existing Transpennine main line for 70 miles between York and Manchester to provide an electric network and increased capacity that future Northern Powerhouse Rail services will rely on. This work is supporting a faster, more reliable and greener railway, while improving journeys for customers across the North. 

 

James Richardson, Managing Director for Transpennine Route Upgrade, said: 

“Today’s announcement is a positive commitment to improving rail travel across the North of England, supporting economic growth in the UK.  

“The Transpennine Route Upgrade is already delivering the skills and capability that Northern Powerhouse Rail will build upon along with delivering some of the infrastructure required for its success.  

“We are proud to be part of creating an improved, more reliable railway that communities and businesses can rely on - delivering faster, more comfortable journeys, greater capacity, and a better overall experience for passengers, while helping to unlock investment that will support long-term economic growth.” 

 

Significant progress has already been made across the TRU programme with a quarter of the line now electrified, supporting cleaner and more reliable trains, while £100m has been invested in three dedicated diversionary routes to keep customers and freight on the move during the construction phase. By the end of this year, improvements at four stations will have been completed, delivering improved accessibility and facilities for customers. Over 40 miles of track have been laid so far and work is being delivered on 23 stations, and 285 bridges and viaducts. Over 5,000 people are in post and over 85% of Team TRU consists of people living within 40 miles of the route. 

TRU is in the first phase of NPR under the Integrated Rail Plan and the scope of works avoids future rework, reduces cost, and enables NPR’s future delivery. TRU’s NPR-enabling works include TRU reducing Manchester–Leeds travel times to 42 minutes. TRU is also creating capacity and gauge clearance for up to 15 new intermodal freight paths per day, supporting NPR’s freight strategy. 

 

Other key works that TRU is delivering, that support NPR include: 

• Doubling the numbers of tracks from two to four between Ravensthorpe and Dewsbury in West Yorkshire, including grade separation of the TRU Huddersfield route from the Lancashire and Yorkshire route, aligned with future NPR capacity and allowing fast trains to overtake stopping services 

• Adding platform capacity at Huddersfield and providing passive provision for Platform 7 

• Adding passive provision for future NPR four-tracking between Cross Gates and Garforth 

• From Marsden to Huddersfield, adding new third line supporting NPR capacity 

• Improving capacity and increasing speeds of trains running between Leeds and Cross Gates 

• Delivering Digital Signalling between Stalybridge and Colton on the East Coast Mainline which will provide additional capacity for NPR services 
• Improving accessibility, extending platforms, and enhancing station facilities for future NPR passengers on the TRU route. 

 

Beyond the physical transformation of the railway, the Transpennine Route Upgrade is already having a meaningful economic and social impact across the North. Over £850m has been spent with local businesses and suppliers so far and over 450 apprentices have started their careers on the programme. The programme continues to invest in skills, apprenticeships and early careers, ensuring that the benefits of this investment are felt well beyond the railway itself. 

The funding announcement for Northern Powerhouse Rail reinforces the importance of long-term, joined-up investment in the North’s rail network. The upgrades being delivered through TRU will ensure the existing railway is ready to support future NPR, unlocking faster journey times, increased capacity and improved reliability for both passengers and freight.