Waverley Railway Project Update

29 March 2007

Councillor David Parker, Leader of Scottish Borders Council has expressed his delight at the announcement by Deputy First Minister Nicol Stephen today that Transport Scotland, the national transport agency for Scotland has agreed to take on the delivery of the Waverley railway.

The announcement was made in Galashiels, when Soil Mechanics, part of Environmental Services Group Limited, started the first of many boreholes that will be drilled along the site to check ground conditions in preparation for the main design.

Councillor Parker commented,

"This is the best possible outcome for the project. This will protect the Councils from risk and will ensure the best delivery of the project.

The Councils will still be involved with the project and will be responsible for acquiring all of the land which is required. We expect to sub-contract for the roads, car parks and bridges as we have a proven record in this area and we are best placed to deliver these items timeously and achieve costs savings. This will also give local companies a good chance of being involved in a substantial part of the work.

Each Council will pass over their funding for the project to Transport Scotland as part of the transfer. I know that for many local Council tax payers, this is just what they wanted to hear – reassurance that there's nothing more for the Councils to pay.

This is a truly momentous day, for the Borders and Midlothian in particular, and like the granting of Royal Assent last year, today's announcements will be seen as one of the defining moments in this project's history. Many years of hard work has finally paid off. We can now move forward to the delivery of the line with confidence.

Over the next 3–4 weeks, each of the 3 Councils will be asked to approve the transfer of the project to Transport Scotland."

Contracts are soon to be been let for the topographical survey – which will provide the detailed maps for the designers, for the environmental survey – which will catalogue the critical habitats along the route, and for land acquisition services – to help the project team buy the land required for the project.

Construction is planned to start in 2008 with the first trains expected in 2011.

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