The £500 million plan to speed up train travel between London and Nottingham has been put on hold by the Transport Secretary.
It was announced in Parliament by Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin that work on the electrification of the Midland Mainline would be “paused”.
Mr McLoughlin said that improvements could be made to services before the electrification of the line takes place.
The electrification of the Midland Mainline, a project once described as “critical to maintaining a reliable railway”, was supposed to be part of Network Rail’s five year plan, which was launched last year as the largest modernisation of the railways since Victorian times.
Rising costs and missed targets were blamed for the £500 million plan becoming untenable.
The chairman of Network Rail, Professor Richard Parry-Jones announced he would be stepping down after three years in the role.
On the Midland Mainline better services can be delivered before electrification with things such as speed improvements, so works on it will be paused.
Patrick McLoughlin, Secretary of State for Transport.
The project was supposed to be completed by 2019 and would provide faster and more environmentally friendly journeys to the capital, with trains also able to carry more passengers.
The estimated costs of the improvements is said to have risen from £257 million in 2011 to a latest estimate of £1.3 billion.
Network Rail Chief Executive Mark Carne in a statement said: “I recognise that these delays will cause disappointment for some passengers for which I can only apologise.”
The Transport Secretary said that the struggling Network Rail needed to stay within budget and should focus on completing the electrification of the Great Western Line.
Mr McLoughlin said: “The Midland Mainline was always going to follow the work on the Great Western Line and when one sees some of the challenges that have been faced where the Great Western Line is concerned, people will understand that.”
No indication was given as to when the plans would be revisited but it was said that the electrification remained in the government’s future plans.
