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| Electrification of train lines to be restarted by Network Rail | Electrification of train lines to be restarted by Network Rail |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| The electrification of two railway lines is to be restarted after the projects were halted so a review could be carried out, Network Rail has said. | The electrification of two railway lines is to be restarted after the projects were halted so a review could be carried out, Network Rail has said. |
| Work on the TransPennine Express Railway - between Manchester and York - and Midland Mainline - from London to Sheffield - was stopped in June. | |
| Sir Peter Hendy, chair of Network Rail, said the "temporary pause" had "given us the space to develop a better plan". | Sir Peter Hendy, chair of Network Rail, said the "temporary pause" had "given us the space to develop a better plan". |
| Transport minister Patrick McLoughlin has approved the decision. | Transport minister Patrick McLoughlin has approved the decision. |
| The TransPennine upgrade is expected to provide capacity for six "fast or semi-fast trains" per hour between Manchester, Leeds and York , reducing journey times by up to 15 minutes. | The TransPennine upgrade is expected to provide capacity for six "fast or semi-fast trains" per hour between Manchester, Leeds and York , reducing journey times by up to 15 minutes. |
| The Manchester to York section of the work is now planned to be completed by 2022. | The Manchester to York section of the work is now planned to be completed by 2022. |
| Sir Peter said the electrification of the Midland Mainline north of Bedford to Kettering and Corby will now be completed by 2019, and the line north of Kettering to Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and to Sheffield will finish by 2023. | Sir Peter said the electrification of the Midland Mainline north of Bedford to Kettering and Corby will now be completed by 2019, and the line north of Kettering to Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and to Sheffield will finish by 2023. |
| "We face some difficult challenges, and there is more work still to do, but the secretary of state's decision means we can now move forward with our plans to electrify TransPennine and Midland Mainline," he added. | "We face some difficult challenges, and there is more work still to do, but the secretary of state's decision means we can now move forward with our plans to electrify TransPennine and Midland Mainline," he added. |
| 'Northern Powerhouse' | |
| In June, Mr McLoughlin told Parliament he was pausing both projects - resulting in criticisms from rail users and MPs in the affected areas. | |
| He told MPs he was delaying or cutting back a number of modernisation projects, blaming Network Rail for rising costs and missed targets. | |
| It followed the publication of Network Rail's annual report, revealing its profits had halved. | |
| At the time, he said "better services" could be delivered on the Midland Mainline before electrification was completed. | |
| Addressing the TransPennine route, he told Parliament in June: "We need to be much more ambitious for that route." | |
| However, in a letter to National Rail, the transport minister said he was now accepting Sir Peter's new recommendation that work should restart. | |
| Mr McLoughlin said work of the two lines could be "unpaused with immediate effect and progressed with some urgency". | |
| He said "connecting up" cities in northern England was "at the heart of our plan to build a Northern Powerhouse". | |
| "This government will see the job through and build a better, faster and more reliable railway for passengers in the North and Midlands," he said. |