North Swindon MP, Justin Tomlinson has welcomed works by Network Rail to upgrade the Great Western Main Line, which covers Swindon and the surrounding area.
Since the year 2000, the number of rail passengers has doubled in the UK and yet much of the railway infrastructure from tracks and signals, to stations and bridges on the Great Western Mainline from London to Bristol and on to Penzance have remained largely unchanged since being built in the 19th century.
The Government is correcting this by investing £48 billion over the next 5 years to upgrade and modernise the entire network; providing an important economic boost to the South West, with the electrification of the line from Bristol to London via Swindon already completed and set to be extended on to Cardiff later this Autumn.
This builds on the rollout of the new Intercity Express Trains on the GWR network, meaning faster trains with an increased capacity of passengers. Taken together, these improvements will cut journey times, increase capacity and improve the commuting experience for passengers.
Justin Tomlinson MP said: “These announcements show that this Government is investing in some of the most ambitious and revolutionary upgrades to our railways since Victorian times. I am delighted that commuters in Swindon will benefit from these changes.”
