Work starts on major station revamp

Ground has been broken on preparing the foundations for the first structures of the huge Darlington Station overhaul.

Demolition on the station’s east and west sides has finished, with teams now beginning piledriving for a new multi-storey car park, transport interchange and gateway entrance connected to Central Park.

The £140million project will also see an upgrade to the Victoria Road entrance and car park pick-up and drop-off points on the western side.

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen was joined by council leader Steve Harker in a ceremony to mark the beginning of the piling works.

Contractor Willmott Dixon is leading work on the east side while Network Rail crews are also gearing up to start their infrastructure works this summer in bringing two new platforms to the station.

Mayor Houchen said: “With hundreds of Government jobs coming to Darlington, the town and its people deserve a modern and vibrant station to provide a gateway to the rest of the great developments on their way.

“Bank Top is now showing its age and bringing two extra platforms and a cutting-edge interchange will make the whole region more accessible and cut journey times.

“This is another significant milestone for the project and I’m thrilled the station project is steaming ahead.”

The station overhaul will be completed in 2025 in time for the Stockton and Darlington Railway bicentennial celebrations.

Two new platforms will accommodate current services and improve rail connections both within the Tees Valley and beyond via the East Coast Main Line. The station project has been primed with £33million from the Tees Valley Combined Authority and Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen alongside more than £100million in Government funding so far.

Cllr Harker said: “I am delighted that work is progressing on this project to transform the station to improve access to Darlington for business and leisure travellers. It will also create much better access into the wider Tees Valley.

“Upgrading the station will allow us to continue attracting investment to Darlington.”

The old and new station sites will be linked by a bridge joining the historic train shed with the modern facility.