Work has started on a new £100 million TrainCare Centre in Shipley as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU).

The programme this week hosted Bradford Council Leader Susan Hinchcliffe, along with Cllr Alex Ross-Shaw and Cllr Liz Rowe, to view progress on site.

The depot will initially be used to stable and maintain Northern’s electric fleet on the Airedale and Wharfedale lines while access to the operator’s Neville Hill depot in Leeds is restricted during a future phase of TRU in 2028, helping to minimise disruption for passengers.

Northern intends to keep the facility open once TRU is finished, with up to 100 permanent roles expected.

The former scrapyard site has been fully cleared and levelled, with contaminated soil removed. A substantial retaining wall has been installed along the western boundary to support safe construction and future operations.

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Adam Sellers, TRU senior sponsor, said: "Great progress has been made with enabling works at our Shipley site, so we were delighted to have our Bradford Council colleagues see this firsthand, and to provide a detailed update on the benefits this site will bring to not just railway resilience in West Yorkshire, but the local economy.

"TRU is committed to supporting local communities and providing local jobs, and this new depot will ensure we leave a positive lasting legacy in the town."

TRU is a multi-billion-pound programme to transform journeys across the North, linking cities including Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds and York. Around a quarter of the route is already electrified, enabling electric services between Manchester and Stalybridge, and between York and Church Fenton.

When complete, TRU will fully electrify the line, add extra tracks in key sections to allow fast trains to pass stopping services, introduce digital signalling to boost capacity and speed, and upgrade all 23 stations to improve accessibility. With around 70 active worksites across the 70-mile corridor, the programme employs over 5,000 people (85% from within 40 miles) and is set to create more than 8,000 jobs overall. Freight capacity will also grow, with 15 additional freight paths and gauge enhancements to carry containers between east and west coast ports, potentially taking over 1,000 lorries a day off trans-Pennine roads. Recent milestones include new stations at Mirfield and Morley, an accessible platform 2 at Castleford, a £100m upgrade of diversionary routes, and the completed Hope Valley improvements at Dore & Totley and Bamford.