Major progress as footbridge set to be installed in £140m station
Six weekends of major engineering work will see huge strides made in Darlington station’s £140m regeneration.
A 120-tonne crane will lift steelwork over the East Coast Main Line as construction continues at the grade II-listed building – transforming passenger facilities and delivering an integrated transport hub with improved local and national links.
Major upgrades at Darlington station and across the area will mean the line is closed in both directions for six consecutive weekends from Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 February. Train services will be affected and passengers are advised to check all parts of their journeys before travelling.*
The weekend of 22-23 February will see the new enclosed, step-free footbridge lifted into place over the two new platforms, marking a major milestone in the regeneration project.
New switches will be tested against the signalling system, and there will be overhead line work across the whole station. Engineers will also be laying new cables and installing cabinets and equipment beside the railway lines to enable further steps to be made in the project.
Throughout the six weekends, additional work will also take place at other points acorss the line.
Luke Durston, Network Rail principal programme sponsor, said: “We’ve reached a crucial stage in this transformational project which will deliver a significantly upgraded Darlington railway station.
The installation of the footbridge will mark an important and visually striking milestone as we provide major improvements for passengers well into the future, while also preserving the building’s past.
We’re sorry to passengers and residents who may be affected during this phase, but we are making every effort to minimise disruption throughout the project by carrying out as much work as possible while the line is closed.”information via their operator’s website and social media channels, and at stations.”
You can plan your journey using the National Rail enquiries journey planner or call Network Rail national helpline 03457 11 41 41
*During the six weekends (8-9 February to 15-16 March), LNER will have a reduced service of one train per hour in each direction between London King’s Cross and Newcastle on a diversionary route, with all other services starting/terminating at York and Newcastle and rail replacement buses in between. There will be no Lumo services between London King’s Cross and Newcastle. A reduced and amended timetable will run between Newcastle and Edinburgh only. On Saturdays, Grand Central will operate a reduced service between London King’s Cross and Bradford Interchange/Sunderland, with some trains starting/terminating at York instead of Sunderland. Sundays will see a reduced service between King’s Cross and Sunderland, with some trains starting/terminating at York instead of Sunderland. Northern trains between Saltburn/Middlesbrough and Darlington/Bishop Auckland will start/terminate at Eaglescliffe, with rail replacement buses running between Eaglescliffe and Darlington/Bishop Auckland. TransPennine Express will have buses replacing trains between York and Newcastle. On Sundays before noon, services will be further diverted between Leeds and York to run via Castleford. Buses will replace CrossCountry trains between York and Newcastle.