DARLINGTON STATION GROWTH HUB

DARLINGTON 2025 A MODERN RAIL HUB

FOR A MODERN ECONOMY

WHY DARLINGTON 2025?

• September 2025 marks the 200th anniversary of the first passenger railway journey between Darlington and Stockton

• Darlington is the birthplace of the modern railway, and we want to celebrate this global event by showcasing the UK’s pioneering entrepreneurial industrial spirit

• Providing a modern rail hub for a modern economy is exactly the type of investment that the UK needs in its infrastructure to make it fit for the next 200 years

• By early 2020s, current track layout will have significant capacity constraints, restricting the ability to run more passenger and freight services to and from the east

• By 2033, HS2 services will be calling at Darlington, radically reducing journey times to London and Birmingham

• By 2043, there will insufficient capacity for any trains to and from the east to serve Darlington if no action is taken

WHY THE NEED FOR ACTION?

• Victorians saw stations as symbols of civic pride and gateways to the opportunities of the region – we want to emulate that approach

• Need to complement ongoing public and private investment in major new economic and housing development around the station and the town centre

• Aim to underpin other rail-based enhancements across the Tees Valley to help deliver the 25,000 new jobs and £2.8 billion boost to the UK economy set out in our Strategic Economic Plan

WHY A STATION GROWTH HUB?

STATION GROWTH HUB COMPONENTS

THE PIECES OF THE JIGSAW

THE CENTRE PIECE – THE STATION N

• New east side platforms for local rail services

• New platforms for HS2/Northern Powerhouse Rail services

• Fully accessible footbridge connections

• New retail and commercial space

RAIL PASSENGER BENEFITS

WIDER ECONOMIC BENEFITS

• Darlington Station Growth Hub is a proposal that is already underway – we need to take it to the next level to maintain and enhance the Tees Valley’s local, regional and national connectivity

• The 2025 anniversary is a once in a generation opportunity to re-state the UK’s position at the forefront of passenger railway delivery

Build It Once. Build It Now.

Ready for HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail

THE TIME FOR ACTION

DARLINGTON 2025 A MODERN RAIL HUB

FOR A MODERN ECONOMY