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Railways: Electrification

Volume 477: debated on Thursday 19 June 2008

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many officials in her Department are working on plans to upgrade or increase railway electrification. (208315)

The Government committed in last year’s rail White Paper, “Delivering a Sustainable Railway”, to keep the case for further rail electrification under review. The improving business case suggests great potential for a rolling programme of electrification, and the Department continues to work with the rail industry to explore how the cost of electrification can be reduced, and to prioritise schemes. A number of officials are at times engaged with this work, and as a result, it is not possible to provide a simple figure. Upgrades of existing electrification infrastructure are a matter for Network Rail.