THE 'paused' electrification of the rail link between York and Manchester is to go ahead.

Improvements on the Transpennine route were "paused" in June, but today the Government has announced Network Rail's plan to upgrade the York to Manchester route, and the Sheffield to London Midland Mainline route, are to start again.

Work on the improved routes should now be finished by 2022.

Network Rail chairman Sir Peter Hendy said: "The temporary pause in the programme has given us the space to develop a better plan for passengers. People can expect more services and faster journeys. We face some difficult challenges, and there is more work still to do, but the Secretary of State’s decision means we can now move forward with our plans to electrify TransPennine and Midland Mainline”.

According to the DfT announcement, the new plan will bring faster journey times and more capacity between Manchester, Leeds and York. It will provide capacity for six fast or semi-fast trains per hour, and take up to 15 minutes off today’s journey time between Manchester and York.

When the work is finished, the whole route from Liverpool to Newcastle (via Manchester, Leeds and York) will be fully electrified and journey times will be significantly reduced compared to today’s railway.

The announcement has come after Sir Peter Hendy's plan for the projects was approved by Transport Secretary Patrick McCloughlin.

The minister said: "As a one nation government we are making sure every part of Britain benefits from a growing economy. Connecting up the great cities of the north is at the heart of our plan to build a Northern Powerhouse. This government will see the job through and build a better, faster and more reliable railway for passengers in the north and Midlands."