East Coast Main Line

The East Coast Main Line (ECML) is a 632km long railway that links between London and Edinburgh via Peterborough, Doncaster, York, Darlingham, Durham and Newcastle, it is presently electrified throughout the whole route. The route forms a key artery on the eastern side of Great Britain and is broadly paralleled by the A1 trunk road.

Route definition and description
The ECML forms part of Network Rail's Strategic Route G which comprises six separate lines:


 * The main line between London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley stations, via Stevenage, Peterborough, Grantham, Newark North Gate, Retford, Doncaster, York, Northallerton, Darlington, Durham, Newcastle, Morpeth, Alnmouth, Berwick-upon-Tweed and Dunbar. The line crosses the Anglo-Scottish border at Marshall Meadows Bay;
 * The Doncaster branch of the Wakefield Line, between Doncaster and Leeds, via Wakefield Westgate;
 * The Northern City Line from Finsbury Park to Moorgate; and
 * The Hertford Loop Line from Alexandra Palace to Stevenage.
 * The branch line to North Berwick
 * The Dunbar loop

The core part of the route is the main line between King's Cross and Edinburgh, with the Hertford Loop used for local and freight services and the Northern City Line providing an inner suburban service direct to the city. The route has ELRs ECM1 - ECM9.

Origins and early operations
The ECML was originally developed and constructed out of the efforts of three independent railway companies. During the 1830s and 1840s, each of these firms had built their part of the route with the principal aim of serving their own areas, but also held the intention of linking each other's railways together to form an extensive through route that would span between the that became the East Coast Main Line. From north to south, these companies were:


 * the North British Railway, from Edinburgh to Berwick-upon-Tweed, completed in 1846.
 * the North Eastern Railway from Berwick-upon-Tweed to Shaftholme.
 * the Great Northern Railway from Shaftholme to King's Cross, completed in 1850.

When first completed, the GNR established an end-on connection at Askern, which was famously described by the GNR's chairman as being: "a ploughed field four miles north of Doncaster". Askern was connected with the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, a short section of which was used to reach the NER at Knottingley. During 1871, the route was shortened when the NER opened a direct line, which ran from an end-on junction, with the GNR, at Shaftholme, just south of Askern to Selby and then (once over Selby bridge on the Leeds- Hull Line) direct to York.

Having come to recognise that through journeys had become an important and lucrative element of their respective businesses; during 1860, the three companies decided to establish special rolling stock. Services using this rolling stock were operated on a collaborative basis under the name of "East Coast Joint Stock" and continued to be performed under this identity up to 1922.

During 1923, as part of an effort to stem the losses of smaller railway companies, the Railway Act of 1921 required the three companies to group together to form the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER). Throughout its existence, the LNER was the second largest railway company in Britain, its routes mainly covering various territories located to the North and East of London. On 1 January 1948, as a consequence of the Transport Act of 1947 implemented by Clement Attlee's Labour Government, the LNER was nationalised along with the other privately owned railway companies to form the state-owned British Railways. The company managed the ECML under its Eastern Region division up to its discorporation during the early 1980s.

Numerous alterations to short sections of the ECML's original route have taken place, the most notable being the opening of the King Edward VII Bridge in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1906 and the Selby Diversion, built to bypass anticipated mining subsidence from the Selby coalfield and a bottleneck at Selby station. During 1983, the Selby Diversion was opened, which diverged from the original ECML at Temple Hirst Junction, north of Doncaster, and joined the Leeds to York Line at Colton Junction, south west of York. The former line between Selby and York was dismantled and has since been used as a public cycle path.

The ECML has been the backdrop for a number of famous rail journeys and locomotives. The line was worked for many years by Pacific locomotives designed by Sir Nigel Gresley, including the famous steam locomotives "Flying Scotsman" and "Mallard". Mallard achieved a world record speed for a steam locomotive, having attained a recorded top speed of 126 mph, while traversing the Grantham-to-Peterborough section on the descent of Stoke Bank. To date, the speed record set by Mallard has not been broken.

Diesel era
During the early 1960s, the line's steam locomotives were replaced by Diesel-electric counterparts. Perhaps most notable amongst these vehicles was the purpose-built Deltic, a powerful high-speed locomotive developed and built by British manufacturing conglomerate English Electric. The prototype was found to have been successful in its trials, leading to a fleet of 22 locomotives being built and put into BR service to handle all the important express traffic. Designated as the, they were powered by a pair of Napier Deltic engines, which had been originally developed for fast torpedo boats; the unusual three crankshaft triangular configuration of the engines was the source of the locomotive's Deltic moniker. Their characteristic throaty exhaust roar and chubby body outline made them unmistakable and distinctive amongst their peers. The Class 55 was for a time the most powerful diesel locomotive in service in Britain, capable of providing up to 3300 hp.

In the immediate years following the introduction of the Deltics, the first sections of the East Coast Main Line were upgraded to enable trains to be routinely run at speeds of up to100 mph. On 15 June 1965, the first length to be cleared for the new higher speed, a 17 mi stretch between Peterborough and Grantham, entered service. The second section was a 12 mi line between Grantham and Newark; many sections were upgraded thereafter to enable such speeds to be reached across much of the EMCL.

As the demand for higher speed intensified, British Rail made intensive efforts during the late 1960s and early 1970s to produce a successor to the Deltics. They would be superseded by the High Speed Train (HST), which was introduced between 1976 and 1981. Capable of 125 mph, the HST proved to be a popular and iconic train on the line. The type remains in regular passenger service as of 2018, albeit having undergone a re-engining programme during the 2000s, in which newer MTU engines replaced the HST's original Paxman Valenta power units.

During 1973, the prototype of the HST, the Class 41, was recorded as having achieved a top speed of 143 mph in one test run the line. As a consequence of current British legislation requiring the use of in-cab signalling for running at speeds in excess of 125 mph, regular trains services are unable to be run at such speeds. The lack of in-cab signalling has been cited as being the primary reason which has prevented the InterCity 225 train-sets from being operated at their design speed of 140 mph during normal service. A secondary factor was that the signalling technology of the time was insufficient to allow detection of two broken rails on the line on which the train was operating.

Before the present in-cab regulations came in, British Rail experimented with 140 mph running by introducing a fifth, flashing green signalling aspect on the Down Fast line (signals P487 to P615) and Up Fast line (signals P610 to P494) between New England North and Stoke Tunnel. The fifth aspect is still shown in normal service and appears when the next signal is showing a green (or another flashing green) aspect and the signal section is clear, which ensures that there is sufficient braking distance to bring a train to a stand from 140 mph. Locomotives have operated on the ECML at speeds of up to 161.7 mph in test runs. The capability to run special test trains in excess of 125 mph is listed as being maintained in the LNE Sectional Appendix.

Electrification
As early as the 1930s, studies were being conducted into potential options for electrifying sections or all of the ECML. While British Rail had considered its electrification to hold equal importance to that of the West Coast Main Line (WCML) during the 1950s, political factors played a role in delaying such ambitions while the WCML did receive such changes. Instead, investment was directed towards high-speed diesel traction, such as the Deltic and High Speed Train, as an alternative path for implementing service improvements.

Between 1976 and 1991, the ECML was electrified along its length. The route has been furnished with 25 kV AC overhead lines, which were installed in two phases: The first phase between London (King's Cross) and Hitchin (including the Hertford Loop Line) was carried out between 1976 and 1978 as part of the Great Northern Suburban Electrification Project, using Mk.3A equipment. This only comprised a short length of the line, covering 30 miles in total.

According to author David Shirres, a working group of British Rail and Department for Transport officials convened during the late 1970s had determined that, of all potential options available for further electrification, the ECML represented by the best value for money by far. Reportedly, the in-house forecasts produced during this study had determined both increases in revenue and considerable reductions in energy and maintenance costs would occur by electrifying the line. During 1984, the second phase of the programme commenced when authority was given to electrify the Northern section of the line to Edinburgh and Leeds. Shirres has credited the role of the then Secretary of State for Transport Nicholas Ridley and of the then-Minister for Railways David Mitchell as having played a large role in the decision to proceed with the electrification programme.

The electrification programme covered roughly 1,400 single-track miles and involved several major infrastructure changes being carried out, including the resignalling of the northern part of the route from Temple Hirst junction, near Selby, to the Scottish border (accompanied by new signalling centres at Niddrie, York and Newcastle, in Tyneside), ten new power supply points along key points of the route, as well as necessary clearance and immunisation activity to protect equipment. The ECML was crossed by a total of 127 overbridges which had to be adjusted to accommodate the change; in general, it was decided to rebuilt or replace individual bridges as opposed to lowering the track or other line-based compromises. Some of these overbridges, such as the aqueduct near Abbots Ripton, were subject to innovative alterations in order to accommodate the installation of the overhead lines. In order to better accommodate listed structures, such as the Royal Border Bridge, and other sensitive areas, a specially-developed mast and foundation combination were used; elsewhere, the standard Mk.3B equipment was deployed.

According, during 1985, construction work began on the second phase; at the peak of the electrification project in the late 1980s, the programme was claimed to be the "longest construction site in the world", spanning over 250 mi. In 1986, the section to Huntingdon was completed, Leeds was reached during 1988 and the route through to York was energised in 1989; by 1991, electrification had reached Edinburgh, allowing for full electric services to commence on 8 July that year, eight weeks later than had been originally scheduled at the start of the project. As had been projected, significant traffic increases occurred within two years of completion; one station alone recorded a 58 per cent increase in activity.

The programme was completed at a total cost of £344.4 million (at 1983 prices), a relatively minor cost overrun against a total authorised expenditure of £331.9 million. 40 per cent of this figure was attributed to the procurement of new traction and rolling stock, while 60 per cent was spent upon the electrification of the line itself. Shirres has compared the ECML and later Great Western Railway electrification programmes, noting an apparent 740 per cent increase in overall cost between the former and the latter; in this respect, the earlier electrification scheme was considerably more cost effective. The infrastructure is capable of supporting speeds of up to 140 mph, a feat which has been demonstrated, such as a 3hr 29mins non-stop run between London and Edinburgh on 26 September 1991; however, British regulations have since required the use of in-cab signalling upon any train running at speeds above 125 mph, which prevents such speeds from being legally attained during regular service.

During 1989, the InterCity 225 rolling stock was introduced to work the newly-electrified line. These were developed to a competitive tender, to which GEC was awarded as the winner. The Intercity 225 sets were joined by other rolling stock, including the locomotives and  electric multiple units. The displaced diesel trains were reallocated to other lines, predominantly the Midland Mainline.

Infrastructure
The line is mainly four tracks from London to Stoke Tunnel, south of Grantham. However, there are two major twin-track sections: the first of these is near Welwyn North Station as it crosses the Digswell Viaduct and passes through two tunnels; the second is a section around 'Stilton Fen', between Fletton Junction near Peterborough, and southwards towards Holme Junction; furthermore, the section between Holme Junction south to Huntingdon is mostly triple track. North of Grantham the route is twin track except for four-track sections at Retford around Doncaster, between Colton Junction (which is south of York), Thirsk and Northallerton, and another at Newcastle.

The main route is electrified along the full route and only the line between Leeds and York (Neville Hill Depot to Colton Junction) is non-electrified. This diversionary route will be electrified as part of the transpennine electrification scheme, to be completed by December 2018.

With most of the line rated for 125 mph operation, the ECML was the fastest main line in the UK until the opening of High Speed 1. These relatively high speeds are possible because much of the ECML travels on fairly straight track on the flatter, eastern regions of England, through Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire, though there are significant speed restrictions (due to curvature) particularly north of Darlington and between Doncaster and Leeds. By contrast, the West Coast Main Line has to traverse the Trent Valley and the mountains of Cumbria, leading to many more curves and a lower general speed limit of 110 mph. Speeds on the West Coast Main Line (WCML) have been increased in recent years with the introduction of tilting Pendolino trains and now match the 125 mph speeds available on the ECML.

Tunnels, viaducts and bridges
Major civil engineering structures on the East Coast Main Line include the following.

Line-side monitoring equipment
Line-side train monitoring equipment includes hot axle box detectors (HABD) and wheel impact load detectors (WILD) ‘Wheelchex’, these are located as follows.

Operators
The line's current principal operator is Virgin Trains East Coast, whose services include regular trains between King's Cross, the East Midlands, Yorkshire, the North East of England and Scotland. Virgin Trains East Coast is jointly operated by Stagecoach Group and Virgin Group and took over from East Coast on 1 March 2015.

Other operators of passenger trains on the line are:
 * Great Northern: long distance services between King's Cross, Peterborough, Cambridge and King's Lynn and commuter services between Moorgate and Stevenage via either Welwyn Garden City or the Hertford Loop.
 * Hull Trains: operate six trains per day between King's Cross and Hull and one per day between King's Cross and Beverley on weekdays, whilst on weekends there are seven trains a day between King's Cross and Hull.
 * East Midlands Trains: local services between Grantham and Peterborough, part of the service that runs between Liverpool Lime Street and Norwich, as well as infrequent services between London-York and Scarborough, extensions of services running to/from Sheffield, Leicester and London St Pancras.
 * CrossCountry: cross-country services north of Sheffield are routed via either Leeds or Doncaster. Leeds trains use the ECML between Wakefield Westgate and Leeds and then again north of York. Doncaster trains use the ECML north of Doncaster. Services run to and beyond Edinburgh. Occasional services run from Doncaster to Leeds before rejoining the ECML at York.
 * TransPennine Express: between Liverpool Lime Street and Newcastle also between Manchester Airport and Middlesbrough before they divert off the ECML to Middlesbrough via Yarm.
 * Northern: suburban services from Doncaster to Leeds and Chathill to Newcastle via Morpeth railway station and infrequent services between Newcastle and Darlington that continue to Middlesbrough and Saltburn. Services between Selby and York also use the line from Hambleton Junction to York.
 * Abellio ScotRail: services from Edinburgh Waverley to North Berwick and Dunbar.
 * Grand Central: intercity operate five daily services between King's Cross and Sunderland, branching off the main line at Northallerton; and four daily services between King's Cross and Bradford, branching off at Doncaster.

Eurostar previously held the rights to run five trains a day on the line for services from continental Europe to cities north of London, as part of the Regional Eurostar plan, although such services have never been run.

The overnight Caledonian Sleeper operated by Serco occasionally uses the ECML when engineering works prevent it from using its normal train path on the WCML.

DB Cargo UK, Direct Rail Services, Freightliner and GB Railfreight operate freight services.

Capacity problems
The ECML is one of the busiest lines on the British rail network and there is currently insufficient capacity on parts of the line to satisfy all the requirements of both passenger and freight operators.

There are bottlenecks at the following locations:
 * The section of twin track within a four-line section at Welwyn North over the Digswell Viaduct and through the Welwyn tunnels
 * The twin and triple-track sections located between Huntingdon and Peterborough.
 * Just north of Newark station at a flat crossing with the Nottingham to Lincoln Line.
 * The section of double track between Stoke Tunnel and Doncaster.
 * Doncaster station has limited facilities for terminating branch trains on the up side of the station. This has been remedied with the opening of a new platform (platform 0) on the up side so that trains to and from the Thorne direction do not conflict with high-speed trains.
 * The north throat of York station including Skelton Bridge Junction
 * South of Newcastle to Northallerton (which is also predominately double track), leading to proposals to reopen the Leamside line to passenger and freight traffic.

Railway operations are vulnerable during high winds and there have been several de-wirements over the years due to the unusually wide spacing (up to 75 m) between the supporting masts of the overhead lines. The other cost-reduction measure was the use of headspan catenary support systems over the quadruple track sections – as employed in the Weaver Junction to Glasgow Electrification on the WCML during the 1970s. Headspans do not have mechanically independent registration (MIR) of each electrified road and thus are more complex to set up, compared to TTC (two-track cantilever) and portal style support structures, during installation. In the event of a de-wirement of a given road, headspans result in the need to correctly set up the OLE of adjacent roads before the line can reopen to electric traction. This was a result of extreme pressure from the Department for Transport to reduce avoidable costs when the line was originally electrified between 1985 and 1990.

Recent developments

 * The Allington Chord was constructed near Grantham in 2006, allowing services between Nottingham and Skegness to call at Grantham without having to use the ECML, trains now passing under the line. This provided sufficient extra capacity for 12 additional services between Leeds and London each day.


 * A new platform at London King's Cross was opened on 20 May 2010. This was originally to be called "Platform Y". Instead it has been named Platform 0 to avoid confusion of lettered and numbered platforms.
 * Connection of the ECML to Thameslink at Belle Isle Jnc. as part of the Thameslink Programme (for Thameslink and Great Northern commuter services to extend to Brighton, Horsham and Maidstone East).
 * At the southern end of York station a short length of fourth track was installed in early 2011 at Holgate Junction with accompanying OLE and signalling systems. This work helped to remove one of the bottlenecks on the East Coast Main Line. Previously, trains from Leeds would sometimes have to wait before entering the station. The improvement allows for better flow of trains in and out of the station.
 * Provision of a £47m grade-separated junction to the north of Hitchin (the Hitchin flyover) enabling down Cambridge trains to cross the main line The work was completed by 26 June 2013
 * Major remodelling of Peterborough station was completed during early 2014 providing three platform faces for services in the up direction towards London and two for ECML services travelling north on the down lines. An additional two platform faces are also available for Cross Country services to and from stations to the east of Peterborough.
 * A new flying junction just south of Joan Croft level crossing in South Yorkshire to allow freight trains from Immingham to pass over the line on their way to Eggborough and Drax power stations, was completed in very early 2014. The project, known as the North Doncaster Chord, also replaced the level crossing on a minor road with a new overbridge just to the north of the original crossing point.
 * Renewal and gauge enhancement of the Great Northern and Great Eastern Line which runs parallel to the ECML between Peterborough and Doncaster. This removes freight traffic from a heavily congested section of the ECML.
 * A new Rail Operating Centre (ROC), with training facilities, opened in early 2014 at the "Engineer's Triangle" in York. The ROC will enable signalling and day-to-day operations of the route to be undertaken in a single location. Signalling control/traffic management using ERTMS is scheduled to be introduced from 2020 on the ECML between London King's Cross and Doncaster - managed from the York ROC.
 * An £8.6 million redevelopment of Newcastle station was completed in 2014 enhancing the existing station and provide a state-of-the-art station for thousands of passengers.
 * Provision of a new Up bay platform (Platform 0) at Doncaster station (part of the ECML Connectivity programme).
 * Platform extensions at Stevenage, Grantham, Newark North Gate, Northallerton, Durham and Edinburgh Waverley stations for the Intercity Express Programme.

Planned or proposed developments
Over the years successive infrastructure managers have developed schemes for route improvements. The most recent of which is the £247 million "ECML Connectivity Fund" included in the 2012 HLOS with the objective of increasing capacity and reducing journey times. Current plans include the following specific schemes:


 * King's Cross throat remodelling to improve capacity and introduce higher speed turnouts reducing journey times.
 * Power supply enhancement on the diversionary Hertford Loop route
 * Additional turnback facility at Gordon Hill (part of the ECML Connectivity programme).
 * Additional down platform and turnback facility at Stevenage (part of the ECML Connectivity programme) - now delayed from CP5 to CP6.
 * Re-quadrupling of the route between Huntingdon and Woodwalton (HW4T) which was rationalised in the 1980s during electrification (part of the ECML Connectivity programme). This also involves the closure and diversion of a level crossing at Abbots Ripton which was approved in November 2017.
 * Enhanced passenger access to the platforms at Peterborough and Stevenage.
 * Further remodelling at Peterborough and linespeed enhancements on the down slow line in the Fletton area (part of the ECML Connectivity programme).
 * Werrington Grade Separation: A £96 million scheme to increase capacity north of Peterborough station by constructing a dive under to route rail traffic between the Stamford Lines and the GNGE line, thereby avoiding at-grade conflicts on the ECML. The scheme is under TWA application (February 2017).
 * Replacement of the Flat Crossing at Newark with a flyover (scheme developed to GRIP Stage 2 by Jacobs)
 * Upgrading of the Down Fast line at Shaftholme Junction from 100 mph to 125 mph and higher speed associated crossovers (part of the ECML Connectivity programme).
 * Modified north throat at York Station to reduce congestion for services calling at Platforms 9 - 11 (part of the ECML Connectivity programme)
 * Freight loops between York and Darlington (part of the ECML Connectivity programme).
 * Darlington station up fast line platform and future station remodelling as part of HS2.
 * Fitment of TASS Balises and Gauging/Structure works proposed by the open operator GNER (Alliance Rail) to enable tilt operation of Pendolino trains north of Darlington station, supporting its aspirations for express 3hr43min London to Edinburgh Services.

And on a more route wide basis the following projects:


 * Power supply upgrades (PSU) between Wood Green and Bawtry (Phase 1 - completed in September 2017) and Bawtry to Edinburgh (Phase 2), including some overhead lines (OLE) support improvements, rewiring of the contact and catenary wires, and headspan to portal conversions (HS2P) which were installed at Conington in January 2018.
 * The line between London King's Cross and Bawtry, on the approach to Doncaster, will be signalled with Level 2 ERTMS. The target date for operational ERTMS services is December 2018 with completion in 2020
 * Level crossing closures between King's Cross and Doncaster: As of July 2015 this will no longer be conducted as a single closure of 73 level crossings but will be conducted on a case-by case basis (for example Abbots Ripton Level Crossing will close as part of the HW4T scheme.)
 * Increasing maximum speeds on the fast lines between Woolmer Green and Dalton-on-Tees up to 140 mph (225 km/h) in conjunction with the introduction of the Intercity Express Programme, level crossing closures, ETRMS fitments, OLE rewiring and the OLE PSU - est. to cost £1.3 billion (2014). This project is referred to as "L2E4" or London to Edinburgh (in) 4 Hours. L2E4 examined the operation of the IEP at 140 mph on the ECML and the sections of track which can be upgraded to permit this, together with the engineering and operational costs.

Accidents
The ECML has been witness to a number of incidents resulting in death and serious injury:

Popular culture
The cuttings and tunnel entrances just north of King's Cross make a memorable smoky appearance in the 1955 Ealing comedy film The Ladykillers. Also during the 1950s, the line featured in the 1954 documentary short Elizabethan Express. Later, the 1971 British gangster film Get Carter features a journey from London King's Cross to Newcastle in the opening credits. During 2009, the motoring show Top Gear featured a long distance race, in which LNER A1 60163 Tornado, a Jaguar XK120 and a Vincent Black Shadow competed to be the fastest vehicle to travel the full length of the line from London to Edinburgh.

The route has been featured in several train simulator games. Trainz Simulator 2010 features the route between London and York, Trainz Simulator 12 extends the route to Newcastle, and Trainz: A New Era brings it all the way to Edinburgh, allowing the entire 393-mile route to be driven. All three routes take place during the 1970s, around the time the InterCity 125 was introduced; this is reinforced by instructions in the "HST Southbound Express" session not to move until the guard has locked the doors, since the trains did not have pneumatic locks initially; doing so will lead to an automatic failure. Other rolling stock includes Class 37s, Class 47s, and Class 105s, plus Mark 2 coaches. TS12's version added Class 55 Deltics and Class 313s, as well as additional pre-made, pre-scripted sessions.

King's Cross Station is also known as the starting point of the Hogwarts Express from the books and films of the Harry Potter franchise. This connection is marked by a tourist attraction within the station concourse, featuring the Platform 9¾ sign and a luggage trolley partially embedded in the station wall with an owl cage and suitcases on it.