Bristol to Cardiff rail line becomes electrified

Following their appointment to the project by Network Rail, the contractor and civil engineering company Balfour Beatty have completed the electrification of 77 kilometres worth of rail lines on the Great Western Railway network between Bristol and Cardiff.

Balfour Beatty were appointed to carry one this section of electrification by Network Rail who have outlined their overall plans to carry out 275 kilometres worth of electrification works to rail lines between Cardiff and London through their Greater West Electrification Programme.

In order to achieve this segment of the wider electrification programme, Balfour Beatty employed 750 operatives over the course of the Christmas period to install 4,200 masts and booms as well as 643 kilometres worth of electric cabling so that the first electrified train could run out of Cardiff Central Station on Monday 6^th January 2020.

The Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Rail Business, Mick Rayner stated “We are proud to have successfully delivered part of the largest modernization project on the Great Western Railway which we been working on for the past three years. Delivering this important upgrade to the Welsh rail network will provide a more sustainable way of travelling for tens of thousands of commuters”.

The Managing Director for Wales and Western at Network Rail, Mark Langman added: “I am delighted that services can now run on electricity between Bristol and Cardiff, linking the two capital cities for the very first time via an electric railway. This is the culmination of the largest modernisation project on the Great Western railway since it was built in Victorian times, which we have been working on over the last 10 years.”

This electrification of the railway line comes as alongside plans to introduce a new Cardiff Crossrail as part of the wider Cardiff Transport Strategy for 2030.

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