Press Release: Campaigners urge government to electrify the Midland Mainline and pull the plug on road schemes

1 August

Campaigners are calling for funding to electrify Phase 3 of the Midland Mainline – a shovel-ready rail project that will create thousands of jobs in Derby, boost regional transport capacity, improve rail services and cut climate emissions.

They are urging the Government to switch the cash from destructive and polluting road schemes, like the A38 expansion in Derby, to rail electrification.

Groups from across the East Midlands [1] will stage a photo opportunity with banners on Litchurch Lane in Derby on Friday 1st and Saturday 2nd August, the symbolic heart of Britain’s rail engineering industry. This is timed to coincide with the major rail industry event, ‘Alstom presents The Greatest Gathering’ [2]. Campaigners highlight the contrast between Government failure to support and fund electrification, claiming there is not enough money [3], whilst funding more polluting road expansion.

In the spending review the Government decided to fund road schemes like the £10bn Lower Thames Crossing, £1.5bn A66 Northern TransPennine, £700m A46 Newark and more. Meanwhile, the Government has paused Phase 3 of Midland Mainline electrification [4], despite evidence it would bring nearly £400 million in economic benefits and support 5,000 skilled jobs. Rail industry leaders have warned this decision is wasteful and plays an important part in delivering the UK’s legally binding climate targets [5].

As a key rail corridor for freight, another benefit of Midland Mainline electrification would be the ability to increase the amount of goods carried by rail. This would take more heavy goods vehicles off the roads, reducing pollution and carbon emissions across the region and creating more jobs for Derby [7].

The Government is also planning to spend over £300 million [6] on the climate damaging A38 Derby Junctions road scheme, even though the Full Business Case won't be produced until June 2026. Campaigners argue that the final cost will likely escalate significantly, pointing to other recent road schemes which have doubled in cost [8].

While there are no published costs for the electrification of the Midland Mainline, based on Network Rail figures, campaigners estimate that £300 million could make a significant contribution towards the electrification of the tracks between Leicester and Sheffield [9].

Clare Wood from the Stop the A38 campaign said:

“Electric cars are not enough to meet climate targets. We need fewer car journeys, not more, and that means investing in rail, buses, and active travel – not spending over £300 million on expanding a road through the middle of Derby.”

Pauline Inwood from Derby Climate Coalition said:

"Why is the government spending millions on damaging road projects in our region while pausing a long overdue rail scheme which will provide rail jobs for Derby, more reliable rail journeys, enable faster and longer trains and reduce rail operating costs?"

Jim Froggatt, Chair of TravelWatch East Midlands and a Derby resident said:

“Most people in Derby have some family connection with railways and we are very proud of our heritage.  But the city is still at the heart of technical developments and looking to the future of rail. It’s ridiculous that new electric trains built in Derby have to leave the works towed by a diesel and that foreign visitors wanting to buy our expertise will still have to arrive on a diesel train. Why are governments so keen to cancel railway projects when half-finished?”

Rebecca Lush, roads campaigner for Transport Action Network (TAN) said:

"Whilst the government is claiming there's no money for electrifying the Midland Mainline, it is meanwhile blowing billions of pounds on expensive and poor value for money road schemes like the £10bn Lower Thames Crossing and the A38 Derby Junctions scheme. This short term and harmful decision to pull the plug on electrification needs to be reversed quickly, with the government reinstating the investment needed in the east midlands and electrification of the rail network"

Sir Peter Soulsby, Chair of Transport for the East Midlands and Mayor of Leicester, quoted in various media reports [10] said

“We are deeply disappointed that the government has yet again paused work on electrifying the Midland Main Line. Electrification is not just a technical upgrade, it is a critical investment in the capacity, reliability and sustainability of our railway. It reduces carbon emissions, lowers operating costs, and provides the infrastructure that could transform local as well as inter-city rail services across the East Midlands.”

The campaigners called for the immediate cancellation of the A38 road project and the reallocation of funding to the Midland Mainline electrification, which they say will deliver greater economic, environmental, and public benefits. They also demanded that the full and updated business case for the A38 be made public before any vegetation clearance or construction is allowed to proceed.

Photo Opportunity

Campaigners will be holding banners, placards and giving out leaflets on Litchurch Lane. Photos will be available on request.

Notes for editors

[1] Campaign groups represented at the photo opportunity included: Stop the A38 Road Expansion; Derby Climate Coalition; Derbyshire Climate Coalition, EMCCA Climate Coalition, TravelWatch East Midlands

[2] The group will gather at Litchurch Lane, Derby (on the pavement) on Friday 1 August, 9:30am – 11:00am; and Saturday 2 August, 10:00am – 11:30am outside Alstom presents: The Greatest Gathering

[3] Rail minister, Lord Hendy claimed in evidence to the House of Commons Transport Committee on 16 July that "there isn’t the money" for electrification of the Midland Mainline.

[4] Announcement of the 'pause' for Phase 3 of Midland Mainline electrification whilst approving funding for A38 Derby Junctions, Government Press Release, 8 July 2025

[5] Rail industry leaders urge action on Midland Main Line electrification, after ‘pause. News release about joint letter from the Rail Forum and Rail Industry Association to Rail Minister Lord Hendy, 14 July 2025.

[6] Estimated to cost up to £250 million in 2019, equivalent to £320 million in 2025 prices.

[7] Every tonne moved by rail generates 76% less carbon than by road and there are many other benefits of shifting freight from road to rail. The Chartered Institute of Transport and Logistics have estimated that over a third (38%) of HGV tonne-kms would be suitable for rail.

[8] A new A50 junction upgrade south of Derby has doubled in cost since its original budget, and the M3 Junction 9, has risen 35% from £215 million to £290 million in just two years.

[9] While a significant section of the Midland Main Line is now electrified, including from London St Pancras up to Wigston, south of Leicester, the full electrification is now on hold. We estimate an infrastructure cost of between £390m to £560m based on Network Rail 2020 costs to electrify a single track km (STK), updated to 2025 costs, of £1.7m to £2.5m per STK and assuming 112 km of dual track between Wigston and Sheffield.

[10] eg BBC News Leicester Report, 9 July 2025 and Rail Business Daily