Scots railways could see 'super' freight trains

Date: 25/4/2013

Scotland's railways may be set to see the introduction of half-mile long "supertrains" as part of expansion proposals for the Mossend freight railhead in Lanarkshire.

As the Scotsman reports, operator PDS is expected to lodge plans for the construction of a siding long enough to support 770-metre freight trains - a notable increase on the 600-metre trains that currently run on the existing tracks.

The proposals form part of PDS's attempts to maximise the potential of its new distribution park at its site near Bellshill, with the completion of the M8 motorway between Glasgow and Edinburgh providing greater access to the railhead.

However, the firm admitted that sharing train lines with higher-speed passenger services presents a problem that will have to be addressed before any expansion can be implemented.

David Spaven, spokesman for the Trail Freight Group, said: "We need 775 metre loop sidings on the west coast main line if big freight trains running at 75mph are to find suitable paths amongst 125mph passenger services."

Posted by Sarah Bailey

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