Major improvements for Cramlington Railway Station

Cramlington Town Council has welcomed the news that the footbridge at Cramlington Railway Station is about to undergo a major renovation.

Councillor Mark Swinburn, Chairman of the council’s Development and Strategic Management Committee said: “This is good news for all our residents as it coincides with the Town Council’s plans to carry out a series of environmental improvements to the area surrounding the footbridge and the station.

The Town Council are already in discussion with Network Rail to progress these works early next year. I note that the footbridge is to be closed for a period of around four months but appreciate the lengths that Network Rail have taken to ensure that access to both platforms will be maintained and that there will be no disruption to train services.”

Teams from Network Rail will begin work to completely revamp and refurbish the footbridge at Cramlington railway station on Thursday, 25 November and will see the footbridge taken off-site for inspection. During this time, the footbridge will be grit-blasted to remove rust and old paint. Following this, the team will carry out any repairs which are needed and repaint the footbridge.

The footbridge will then be put back into place at Cramlington railway station and new handrails and stair treads will be installed. Work to improve drainage on the bridge will also take place.

The work, which is an investment of £590,000, will make using the footbridge a much nicer experience for passengers, as well as making sure that the structure remains reliable, fit for purpose and in good condition for years to come.

To allow the work to take place safely, the footbridge will be closed from Wednesday, 1 December until the project completes in late-March 2022.

Network Rail and Northern are working together to minimise any impact which this work has. During the improvements, access to both platforms at the station will be maintained via pedestrian access ramps and this diversion route will be clearly signposted. This work will not impact on train services.

Sarah Reid, Route Director for Network Rail’s East Coast route, said: “This is a much-needed project which will help to future proof Cramlington railway station and create a nicer environment for everyone who uses the station.

“This work does require the footbridge to be closed for over three months and we are sorry for any inconvenience which this causes. We are working closely with Northern to make sure that passengers can still move around the station easily and we’d like to thank all those using Cramlington station during this time for their patience.”

Kerry Peters, Regional Director at Northern said: “This vital work being carried out by Network Rail will improve the footbridge at Cramlington railway station.

“We will work closely with colleagues across the rail industry to minimise the impact on our customers and I’d like to thank them in advance for their patience and understanding while the work is completed.”

Councillor Swinburn added: “Once the footbridge revamp has been completed Cramlington Town Council has drawn up proposals for a programme of environmental works around the parking areas and entrance and exit routes to the station.”

“We have set aside funds in our 2022 budget to progress with these works once we have gained approval from Network Rail and Northern. The Town Council recognises that all the improvements to the station area will affect not just rail users, it should bring significant benefits to all Cramlington residents”