UK: Consultancy AECOM is to take the Mid Cornwall Metro project to improve the rail links between Newquay, St Austell, Truro and Falmouth/Penryn through to the detailed design stage.
AECOM has completed the outline design and business plan, and Cornwall Council has provisionally accepted an offer of £50m of UK government-backed Levelling Up funding towards the delivery of the £56·8m scheme.
The work will include the addition of a passing loop on the Newquay branch and additional track into Newquay station, along with enhancement of associated infrastructure and signalling.
The scheme is being delivered through the South Rail Systems Alliance, a 10-year framework agreed by Network Rail, Colas and AECOM in 2019.
AECOM is the engineering lead and Colas is signalling and telecoms designer.
‘The scheme will be transformative for the local community by improving access to jobs, education and amenities’, said AECOM’s Rail, Structures & Ground Engineering Director Susan Evans on March 5.
‘It will offer a more sustainable alternative to car use, with wider scheme initiatives such as station improvements and ticket digitalisation delivering a better user experience for passengers.’
