During the visit to Ballymoney Railway Station, which is the operational site of the work underway on the section between Ballymena and Coleraine, the Minister met with Translink officials and project contractors to discuss progress to date.
The Minister said: “I appreciate the importance of the railway line between Belfast and Derry. I welcome the opportunity to see the progress being made on this project to extend the track life of the line. This is one of several major projects which my department is taking forward in order to improve public transport in the region.
“Since coming into office I have lifted the restriction on investment on the Derry line and I remain committed to reversing decades of under-investment in the North-West region and redressing regional disparities across the North generally.
“This extension project will allow the general speed on the Ballymena to Coleraine line to rise to 70mph and once the planned relay of the railway line between Coleraine and Derry is completed, journey times between Belfast and Derry will be reduced by 30 minutes, with commuter trains arriving in Derry before 9.00am for the first time.
“In addition to this, in late March I signed the contract for 20 new trains at a cost of over £105million and as a result, there will be increased train frequencies on this line.”
The line between Ballymena and Coleraine is currently closed to facilitate the relaying of the track. A bus substitution service is operating and the line is due to re-open in late June. Both sections of line from Ballymena to Coleraine and Coleraine to Derry are currently running at a general 60mph, with specific temporary speed restrictions at various locations.
Notes to Editors:
- This project is co-financed by the European Union under the Trans European Transport Network (TEN-T) programme.
- The relay of the section on the railway line between Coleraine and Derry is scheduled for completion by 2013.
- Media queries to: Press Office, Tel 028 9054 0004. Out of office hours please contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 07699 715 440 and your call will be returned.
