A government fund of 2 billion Euros has been reserved for the improvement of railway routes through Wales, in the UK. The money will be spent on the maintenance and renewal of the existing infrastructure, which will benefit freight and passenger services.

The fund will be spent between 2019 and 2024 and comes to Network Rail Wales and Border, the division managing the local infrastructure. It represents a 28 per cent funding increase compared to the last five-year funding plan, which ends next year. It is an addition to the financial support of Transport for Wales (TfW), which has dedicated 5 billion Euros for improvement over the next 15 years.

Record funding

Network Rail Wales and Borders route managing director Bill Kelly commented: “This record funding, together with the significant investment planned by our partners Transport for Wales, represents a truly once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform rail services for the people of Wales and Borders. We have put passengers and our freight customers first in developing our five-year plan, which will make the railway safer and more reliable for the thousands of customers who use it every day.”

The improvement works includes the renewal or refurbishment of 398 kilometre of track, bridge renewals, earthworks to improve the resilience of the railway in extreme weather, signalling renewals, such as the Port Talbot resignalling scheme, renewal of the iconic Grade II listed Barmouth viaduct and renewal of the pumps at Sudbrook pumping station, which pumps water from the Severn Tunnel.