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Monday 23 May 2022

Multi-million-pound upgrade begins on Hope Valley railway line

Region & Route:

Eastern

| Eastern: North & East

Ground-breaking work on a £145m rail reliability upgrade between Manchester and Sheffield will start later this month.

This essential work will remove several bottlenecks on the Hope Valley line to allow passenger trains to overtake slower freight trains and improve reliability, helping people get to their destinations on time.

On Sunday 29 May, and every weekend throughout July, Dore & Totley, Grindleford, Bamford and Hathersage stations will be closed to allow Network Rail and contractor VolkerRailStory Joint Venture to begin building an additional railway line and make key station improvements.

Passengers are being urged to plan ahead with National Rail to keep their journeys on track.

The work is part of a £145m package of improvement and includes:

• A new platform and accessible footbridge with lifts at Dore & Totley station 
• A railway loop between Bamford and Hathersage 
• A new overbridge at Hathersage West, replacing the current foot crossing to improve safety 
• Signalling improvements along the line to improve reliability 
• Platform extensions to allow for more carriages on services 

Dore & Totley station car park will also be partially and fully closed at different periods over the next three months. Alternative parking spaces will be available at Abbeydale Sports Club and local businesses will remain open and accessible throughout.

Hannah Lomas, Principal Programme Sponsor for Network Rail, said: “We’re so pleased to see this major work begin – it’ll make Hope Valley stations and train services better, and improve reliability for passengers in the future.

“There will be some changes to services and car park closures while our work takes place, so I’d like to thank passengers for bearing with us and apologise for any inconvenience.”

Tony Baxter, Regional Director at Northern, said: “This work will improve Hope Valley stations and services and we are delighted to be working with our partners on this project.

"We are sorry for any disruption during the improvements and our customers can be assured that both Northern and Network Rail will do everything possible to minimise the impact of the work and deliver alternatives that keep people on the move.

Chris Nutton, Major Projects Director for TransPennine Express, said: “These works are a vital step towards delivering better services across the Pennines between Sheffield and Manchester, improving the infrastructure to help make our customers journeys more reliable and upgrading stations we serve.

"While these engineering works take place on the Hope Valley line, there will be a number of changes to TransPennine Express services, and we’d advise our customers to check carefully for the latest advice before they travel.”

Darren Lockwood, Project Director from VRSJV, said: “We thank the local community for their patience and understanding while we carry out these essential upgrade works on the Hope Valley line. The work plays an important part in facilitating this important investment in Northern travel infrastructure.”

ENDS