A LIST of potential electrification schemesfor Britain’srailwaysto accelerate decarbonisation of the network has been created by Network Rail and submitted to the Department for Transport.
News of the existenceofa list came during a video conference between selectedrail journalists and Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines on December 15.
Mr Haines said the list was aseries of‘quick wins’backed by strong business cases to ensure aflowofwork is continued after current schemes, particularly when the on-going electrification of the Midland Main Line concludes.
The UK had,in the past 20 years,slipped behind the rest of the world when it came to electrifying more track kilometres,Mr Haines added.Just 251km of track was electrified in 2019, relatedto the LeeValley Rail and Great Western schemes. The current split is 6,049 route miles are electrified (38%) and 9,855 is non-electrified. “Weexpecttosee the DfT’s decarbonisation plan in March but until then we can’t saywhat schemesare. It’s asecret,”said Mr Haynes.