D2 supports TRU West Alliance with successful delivery of TWAO for Transpennine Route Upgrade

As a key Supply Chain Partner within the TRU West Alliance, D2 Rail has been proud to support the alliance team with the development and delivery of a Transport and Works Act Order (TWAO) for Transpennine Route Upgrade between Huddersfield and Westown (Dewsbury).

We were delighted with the recent announcement that the government has approved this complex TWAO, greenlighting major rail upgrades on this section of line.

Network Rail plans to double the number of tracks from two to four along most of the railway, upgrade stations at Huddersfield, Deighton, and Mirfield, and provide a new station at Ravensthorpe.

It will also separate sections of the track with a fly-over at Ravensthorpe and electrify the railway between Huddersfield to Ravensthorpe.

It hopes that these major upgrades will enable stations and trains to better serve the community, supporting economic growth in the area.

D2 assisted the TWAO submission with provision of resources in project planning, project controls, utilities management, and information management.

Senior Planner David Crowe, Utilities Manager Steve Cooper, and Document Controller Sarah Lomax were some of the D2 team members tasked with providing this support.

Due to the size and complexity of the submission, it was treated as its own project, encompassing the impact of proposed upgrades on everything from land, utilities, and listed buildings to the environment and local community.

“The sheer scale of the project presented a challenge”, explained David Crowe.

“With 57km of track, associated structures and stations, and a range of utility apparatus set to be affected by the upgrades, stakeholder management and consents were key. The large, multidisciplinary team also required a range of interfaces.”

The project’s early stages also coincided with the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in unprecedented communication and systems challenges.

The ‘West 3’ project team acted quickly to ensure that it remained on track, carrying out re-planning, and consulting the community via smaller gatherings, letter drops, and webinars.

One of the key issues faced was the ability to process and distribute documentation in a timely and effective manner. Sarah and Dave  therefore had weekly meetings to review outstanding actions, and to set priority lists for the wider team.

Thanks to all the teams efforts, the TWAO was submitted to plan, keeping Network Rail’s wider project on schedule.

Jim Pearson, Principal Environment Manager at Network Rail, thanked Document Controller Sarah, commenting: “Sarah has been invaluable to this project. She has worked professionally, diligently, and with no little patience in marshalling this whole process, to get the W3 TWAO application fit for print.”

To learn more about the TRU W3 TWAO, see our case study.