This article lists proposed railway electrification routes in Great Britain.

Background

Railway electrification in the UK has been a stop-start or boom-bust cycle since electrification began. The initial boom was under the 1955 modernisation plan. There was a flurry of activity in the 1980s and early 1990s but this came to a halt in the run up to privatisation and then continued in the 2000s, and also the Great Recession intervened. In 2009 Lord Adonis was appointed Secretary of State for Transport and, after a gap of more than a decade, electrification of the UK rail network was back on the agenda with Adonis announcing plans to electrify the Great Western Main Line from London as far as Swansea, as well as infill electrification schemes in the North West of England. The 2010 general election produced a coalition government that wanted to reassess spending, and so electrification was paused again.

In July 2012 the UK government announced £4.2 billion of new electrification schemes, all at 25 kV AC and reconfirmed schemes previously announced by Adonis. These were to be Northern Hub, Great Western Main Line, South Wales Main Line, Midland Main Line, Electric Spine, Crossrail, Gospel Oak to Barking line and West Midlands suburban lines including the Cross-City Line. The Trans-Pennine route from Manchester to York and Selby via Leeds was also announced. Rail transport in Scotland is a devolved matter for the Scottish Government, but they too have pursued electrification with multiple schemes in the Central Belt. All these have been 25 kV AC, as in England and Wales.

Delays and cancellations of projects

On 25 June 2015 the government announced that some of the electrification projects would be delayed or cut back because of rising costs. Electrification work was to be "paused" on the Trans-Pennine route between York and Manchester, and on the Midland Mainline between Bedford and Sheffield. Electrification of the Great Western Main Line would go ahead but the status of the Reading-Newbury and Didcot-Oxford sections was unclear. However, in September 2015, the electrification work was "un-paused", but with a delayed completion date. In November 2016, plans to electrify the route between Chippenham and Bristol, as well as Didcot and Oxford, were announced as delayed indefinitely.

On 20 July 2017 Chris Grayling the Secretary of State for Transport cancelled a number of electrification projects citing disruptive works and the availability of bi-mode technology as an alternative.

Electrification has had much controversy with cancellations and various appearances of the Secretary of State for Transport called before the Transport Select Committee. The Transport Select Committee published its report into various matters including regional investment disparity on the railways and calling again for the reinstatement of various cancelled electrification schemes. A written question was submitted and answered in parliament regarding route miles electrified in the years 1997–2019.

In March 2019 the Railway Industry Association published a paper on Electrification cost challenge suggesting ways forward and a rolling programme of electrification.

In September 2020 the TDNS (Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy) Interim Business case was published though it was dated 31 July 2020. The principal recommendation was further electrification of 13000 STKs - single track kilometres of UK railways. As of November 2020, there were very few confirmed schemes. As of October 2022, the TDNS has been quietly abandoned.

In July 2025, electrification of the Midland Main Line between South Wigston and Sheffield was paused indefinitely.

List of routes

Infill schemes for freight The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport has shown that electrifying of track used by British rail freight could allow 95% of freight trains to be hauled by more powerful, non-polluting electric locomotives. They propose three schemes that would make a substantial difference. From Felixstowe, avoiding London to the Midlands and the North. Electrifying a direct link to the West Coast Main Line at Nuneaton, and from Peterborough via Lincoln to Doncaster. From Southampton to inland markets, the Electric Spine. Electrifying from Basingstoke to Reading and from Didcot via Oxford to join the West Coast Main Line at Bletchley using East West Rail. Electrifying links to major quarries and cement works in the Peak District and the Mendips These proposals are supported by the Railway Industry Association.

Northern Hub

As part of the Northern Hub project, the following lines in North West England and Yorkshire were to have been electrified: In December 2013 it was announced that the branch from to would be electrified by 2017. However, the enhancements delivery plan update of September 2016 moved the completion date with only GRIP Stage 3 (Option selection) being completed by then. On 1 September 2021, the Department for Transport formally announced this would now go ahead. Harrogate line: Harrogate to Leeds electrification was proposed, but not yet agreed.

Transpennine

Electrification of the Transpennine north route, comprising the Huddersfield Line between Manchester Victoria and via and is in progress and due to be completed April 2026. This is affected by the 2021 Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands. As an extension of this the Hull to Selby Line was going to follow: Hull Trains planned to electrify the line between Temple Hirst Junction on the East Coast Main Line south of and Hull using private finance. This moved closer to reality on 20 March 2014 when Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin confirmed in the House of Commons that he had made £2.4m available to move the project to the next stage of development, GRIP Stage 3. This scheme was to have joined the already planned transpennine electrification (part of the Northern Hub project) at Selby. In November 2016 this project was shelved indefinitely.

Windermere branch line

Windermere Branch Line: In August 2013, the Department for Transport announced that the branch line between and was to be electrified by 2016."DfT Unveils Lakes Electrification Plans" Railnews news article 09-08-2013; Retrieved 2014-03-13 The Hendy review moved the completion of GRIP 3 to March 2017 with a yet to be determined date for completion of electrification. In July 2017 Chris Grayling the Secretary of State for Transport announced the scheme had been cancelled and bi-mode technology would be used.

Great Western Main Line and South Wales Main Line

The electrification of the GWML to Thingley Junction (near Chippenham) and the SWML via Bristol Parkway to Cardiff Central was due for completion in December 2018, but was delayed to December 2019, with electric trains only beginning to run to Cardiff from January 2020. Electrification from Reading to Newbury was completed in December 2018. On 8 November 2016, Transport Minister Paul Maynard announced that several parts of the Great Western electrification project were being deferred 'until further notice': these include the line between Didcot and Oxford, the lines to (both via Bristol Parkway and Bath), the line between Cardiff and Swansea,Rail electrification delayed but passengers told there will be new trains with more seats Oxford Times, 8 November 2016 and the Henley and Marlow branch lines. On 20 July 2017, it was announced that the Cardiff-Swansea electrification project had been cancelled and that bi-mode trains would be used on the route. As a spin-off, it was proposed that the Valleys & Cardiff Local Routes would be electrified once the main route is complete.

Midland Main Line

The line has already been electrified to Bedford since the early 1980s. This was to be extended to Corby, Leicester, Nottingham, Derby and Sheffield. In November 2016 only the electrification to Kettering and Corby was confirmed as continuing with the DfT refusing to be drawn on dates for the remaining parts of the original scheme. On 20 July 2017, it was announced that the Kettering-Nottingham-Sheffield electrification project had been cancelled and that bi-mode trains would be used on the route. However, in March 2019, it was announced by Department for Transport that the line between Kettering and Market Harborough would be electrified. This would allow easier connection to the new proposed grid feeder at Braybrooke. The Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands (IRP) published November 2021 said electrification of the entire route would now go ahead. On 28 July 2024, the Kettering to Wigston section was energised. This section was delivered on time and under budget. However, in July 2025, electrification north of Wigston was paused."Midland Mainline Electrification Phase 3 (RNEP) - The next phase of electrification of the Midland Main Line has been paused."

North Wales Main Line

Electrification of the North Wales Main Line from to via was announced by the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in 2023. The project would be allocated £1 billion of funds following from the partial cancellation of High Speed 2.

Electric Spine

This project included the lines from the Port of Southampton to Nuneaton, and to the Midland Main Line via the East West Rail between Oxford and Bedford. This would have involved electrifying the Coventry to Nuneaton, and Coventry to Leamington Line, part of the Chiltern Main Line, Cherwell Valley Line and Reading to Basingstoke Line; also converting part of the South West Main Line between Basingstoke and Southampton Central from 750 V DC third rail to 25 kV AC overhead. Electrification of the Midland Main Line to Leicester, Nottingham and Sheffield is included in the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands.

2020 onwards Under Transport Secretary Chris Grayling many of the proposed electrification projects were cancelled, despite pledging to remove full diesel trains by 2040. However, after being sacked in 2019, and replaced by Grant Shapps many of the cancelled electrification schemes were reconsidered. The Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands (IRP) confirmed this.

York to Church Fenton Work to extend the wires from Colton Junction to Church Fenton began in December 2020. Preliminary work included track and signalling to enable line speed improvements prior to the installation of overhead gantries and wires in 2022 ready for an October 2022 completion. The extension will allow bi-mode trains to use electric traction through this section. The overhead lines on this section is scheduled to be operational from early 2024 along with a speed limit increase from 90 mph to 125 mph. As of April 2023, there has been no announcement on electrification between Leeds and Church Fenton.

Stalybridge to Leeds The section between Huddersfield to Dewsbury had the TWAO applied for on 31 March 2021.

Leeds to Selby, Hull and Sheffield In 2020, transport secretary Grant Shapps confirmed plans to spend nearly £600m on work to upgrade and electrify the TransPennine main line, and thus electrification was seen to be back on the agenda.

Leeds to Bradford Interchange via New Pudsey As part of the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands the line between Leeds and Bradford Interchange via New Pudsey is planned to be electrified.

Scotland Rolling programme