Completion of rail work near Kettering marks major milestone in £1.5bn scheme

Work on a new railway sidings near Kettering's station has been completed, marking a major milestone in a £1.5bn upgrade to the Midland Main Line.

The brand new facility is a place where trains can be kept overnight and cleaned, ready for passengers the next day.

It's made up of four sidings and has been designed and built for electric trains, which will run between London and Corby from May 2021.

Network Rail transferred control of the new facility to East Midlands Railway yesterday (November 9) with the first trains expected to arrive later this month when East Midlands Railway starts driver training ahead of the timetable introduction.

Gavin Crook, principal programme sponsor for Network Rail, said: “This is a key stage in the Midland Main Line upgrade and I’m happy that our hard work on this stage of the project is now complete.

“The sidings will be a place where trains new to the route can be cleaned for passengers and enables one additional service every hour to run between London and Corby from May 2021.

“We’re now passing over control of the facility to East Midlands Railway who can begin using it for driver training.”

Lisa Angus, transitions and projects director at East Midlands Railway, said: “I would like to thank everyone who has worked so hard, especially during difficult times, to finish this important project. It is a great example of what can be achieved through effective collaboration and teamwork.

“We are now looking forward to welcoming the first trains to the facility which will enable us to deliver our new May 2021 timetable.”

The completion of the sidings marks a key stage in the Midland Main Line Upgrade, which Network Rail say is the biggest investment into the route since the Victorian era.

When the project completes an additional train will run between Corby and London every hour.

The sidings enables these additional services to run as it gives them somewhere to be stabled and cleaned.

The new electric sidings contain overhead power lines, which carry 25,000 volts of electricity, enough to seriously injure or kill anyone that comes into contact with them.

Network Rail is warning people of the dangers of trespassing on the tracks.

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