00:00Railway engineers are undertaking two weeks of major works around Huddersfield this autumn as the Trans-Pennine Route upgrade moves
00:07another step forward.
00:09Major works running through to Sunday 4th October will see teams work around the clock on improvements designed to increase
00:16reliability and capacity and support faster and more frequent train services in the future.
00:22At Huddersfield Station, the subway will be extended towards Platforms 4, 5 and 6. Those platforms are being remodelled to
00:29accommodate longer trains, while work also continues to renovate the station's historic Euston-style roof.
00:37At nearby Dayton, reconstruction of the station will progress with the installation of a new footbridge. Once complete, it will
00:43include lifts, providing step-free access.
00:46Elsewhere along the route, engineers will renew track and drainage to improve reliability, install new track to increase capacity, and
00:55fit overhead line equipment ahead of the introduction of greener electric trains.
00:59The work will mean Huddersfield and Sloughet stations are closed until Sunday 4th October, reopening on Monday 5th.
01:07The railway between Staley Bridge and Murfield will also be affected. Mossley, Greenfield and Marsden stations will also be impacted
01:15by weekend closures.
01:17Trains will continue to run wherever possible using diversionary routes. Those routes have already benefited from more than £100 million
01:24of investment, and where trains cannot operate, rail replacement buses will be available, with Brighouse Station acting as the main
01:32rail and bus interchange during the works.
01:34Rail passengers are being advised to allow extra time, check before travelling, and expect amended timetables and potentially longer journey
01:42times.
01:43The Huddersfield work forms part of the wider Trans-Pennine Route upgrade, a multi-billion pound programme modernising the railway
01:50between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds and York.
01:5325% of the route is now electrified, with electric services already operating between Manchester and Staley Bridge, and York
02:01and Church-Fenton.
02:02The programme currently has around 70 work sites across the 70 mile route, and involves more than 5,000 staff.
02:0985% come from within 40 miles of the route.
02:12When complete, the programme aims to half the time lost to delays, fully electrify the line, increase the number of
02:19tracks and key locations, introduce digital signalling, and improve all 23 stations on the route.
02:25Work already completed includes new stations at Murfield and Morley, and a fully accessible platform too at Castleford.
02:34The Huddersfield station redevelopment will continue after these autumn works, with a further 38-day closure planned, following the last
02:42service on Christmas Eve, to complete the main phase of the upgrade.
02:46The A62 Leeds Road Bridge will eventually be demolished and reconstructed at a later date to make it taller and
02:53wider, so there's space to install overhead line equipment, which will power electrified services down the line.
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