The transformation of Hartlepool station has taken a major step forward after plans for the major overhaul were given the green light by Hartlepool Borough Council.
Proposals will see the station’s redundant second through platform brought back into use with a new replacement platform, and plans also for new lifts and a footbridge for improved access.
Hartlepool station is the busiest single-platform station in the UK and the third biggest station in the region which, pre-pandemic, welcomed up to 650,000 passengers per year.
The works will help provide more capacity to enable future service for routes including those between London and Sunderland operated by Grand Central. Northern services which connect Hartlepool with Middlesbrough, Newcastle and other key economic centres on the Durham Coast rail line are also in line for enhancement as a result.
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen worked closely with Councillor Shane Moore, Leader of Hartlepool Borough Council, to provide £12million in funding for the redevelopment of the station. In October, Mayor Houchen secured £310million from the government to invest in local transport priorities.
The news comes just weeks after the first images of the new look station were revealed, showing what the platforms could look like after the transformation is complete.
The station’s redevelopment will also support the ambitions of the Hartlepool Mayoral Development Corporation, currently out for public consultation, which aims to reshape the town to make it a more attractive place to live and visit, support small businesses and deliver a master plan to maximise future funding.
The work, supported by Network Rail, Northern Trains Limited and Hartlepool Borough Council, is set to begin later this summer so the new station is ready for the Tall Ships coming to the town in July 2023.
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