Railtrack Group PLC

Statement re East Coast Main Line
_______________________________________________________________

date 14 February 2001
source Railtrack Group PLC
type Press release

note News Release 048

EAST COAST MAIN LINE ROUTE MODERNISATION

There cannot be a definitive plan for the East Coast
Main Line route modernisation until the SRA has produced
its Strategic Plan for the route.

At the request of the SRA, Railtrack has costed a
range of options. Final resolution of the project is
dependent on the requirements of the franchise holder and
other users of the route.

Implementation of Phase 1 of the ECML route
modernisation is already underway. Railtrack initiated
this work in advance of the re-franchising process to
ensure sufficient capacity could be maintained. Pre-
feasibility work has been carried out for the next three
phases of the plan in partnership with our programme
managers Fluor Daniel and Mott Macdonald during the last
18 months.

The eventual cost and specification of the plan will
depend on the requirements of the new franchisee, the SRA
and the reasonable requirements of the other Train and
Freight Operators on the route.

The specification Railtrack has been working to has
been the subject of regular review between Railtrack and
the SRA in a joint process since the key route conference
(held in January 2000).

Since then, the SRA's franchise re-bidding process
has been underway and a range of cost estimates and
different options has been given to the SRA.

The like for like cost for the core elements of the
programme have risen by 20-25%. This is not unusual for
a project at this early stage of feasibility and
development.

Further increases in the estimates arise from
changes to the specification to accommodate additional
train paths for other operators and improve diversionary
routes. These items need to be refined with industry
parties in due course as part of moving the programme to
final evaluation and scope in conjunction with the SRA.

With the exclusion of Phase 1, the ECML upgrade is
not currently a committed project for Railtrack. Clearly
it is not possible to progress and finalise the
development of the project in the absence of a preferred
bidder.

Railtrack is working with all parts of the industry
to deliver a railway, which is capable of coping with the
significant growth in passenger numbers expected over the
next decade.

The precise details of the enhancements across
the network can only be assessed in the light of the
SRA's strategic plan and on an individual project when
the demands of the Train Operating Companies for that
particular route have been decided.


For more information please contact the Railtrack press
office on 020 7557 8292/3.
All recent press releases can be found on the Railtrack
web site www.railtrack.co.uk/corporate

Railhub Archive ::: 2001-02-14 RTK-001