SOME very good and welcome transport news came through from the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) earlier this month.

I am delighted much-needed improvements are progressing for Darlington and Middlesbrough stations after the TVCA agreed that £45m would be given to their re-development. Twenty million pounds will be provided for a full redevelopment of Middlesbrough station through the devolved Transforming Cities Fund. The investment is to ensure that the station will be able to accommodate direct trains to London with extended platforms for the new Azuma trains (made by Hitachi in Newton Aycliffe) which will be running on the East Coast Mainline.

As a Chamber we wholeheartedly support these improvements. Instead of having to travel to Darlington to connect, passengers will be able to travel to London direct from Middlesbrough, saving valuable time. The wider improvements around the station and the creation of commercial space will also help to encourage more investment in the area and boost the economy. These fully-funded plans demonstrate clearly how devolved funding can play an important role in ensuring key improvements are carried out quickly as, in this case, early 2019 for completion in 2022. Further investment of £25m has been given to Darlington station, although in this case more funding from Government will be needed to ensure that all the improvements can be completed. The development of Darlington station is crucial to our region’s connectivity. Without changes to the platforms and realigning the track, key projects such as HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail would fail to benefit the North-East because they would be unable to connect to Darlington and the rest of the Tees Valley.

Northern Powerhouse Rail is estimated to create an extra £100bn for the Northern economy. Given the economic potential and wider connectivity these projects provide, it is essential that the Tees Valley and the wider North-East can benefit.

Having announced the £25m, the Combined Authority is now putting in a bid to Government for funding for the rest of the project in early 2019. The Chamber supports this bid and will campaign to see that Government funding is given to Darlington as part of its Connected North East campaign to ensure that there is better connectivity around Tees Valley and that the North-East is ready for HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail.

James Ramsbotham is chief executive of the North East England Chamber of Commerce