Network Rail has announced that it has secured a budget of more than £2 billion to provide a more reliable railway for passengers travelling through Dorset.

The money will be spent between 2019 and 2024 across the route, which runs out of London’s Waterloo station.

It represents more than a 20% increase on the existing five-year budget.

The funding will be focused on renewing and maintaining existing infrastructure to stop it failing.

What did the officials say?

Becky Lumlock, route managing director for Network Rail‘s Wessex route, said:

“We now have more money than ever before to invest in this route and make a real difference to people’s journeys – that’s great news for the people of Dorset.

“With almost a quarter of billion passenger journeys a year, this part of the railway is under enormous pressure. The next five years are about making sure our tracks, our signals, our bridges and everything in-between, are in first-class condition and can support this growing demand.

“We know we still have much to do to improve train performance on our route and, working with South Western Railway, this funding will help us do that for the communities we serve.”

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