Aspirations of creating an electrified four-track railway through part of West Yorkshire moved closer to reality over the weekend.
At Bradley Junction, between Mirfield and Huddersfield, major progress has taken place in recent days as engineers worked towards installing the new 'fast lines'.
Fresh ballast has been laid over the weekend and the new sleepers were being installed late on Sunday on the section of track near Colne Bridge Road.
Two engineering trains side by side at Bradley Junction, where fresh ballast had been laid to prepare the trackbed for four tracking (Image: Sarah Bell)
At a future point, the existing two tracks will eventually become the 'slow lines' and the two tracks currently being installed will be used as the 'fast lines' - feeding into a new 1km section of curved track at Heaton Lodge Junction.
Bradley Junction, which is notable as the point where Bradford-bound trains diverge from the Transpennine Mainline, has undergone major improvement works over the last year, including track realignment to bring about line speed increases.
At nearby Deighton, work on remodelling the station has progressed during the current 16-day closure of the line in the Huddersfield area.
The new footbridge taking shape at Deighton Railway Station (Image: TRU)
The blockade has presented an opportunity for engineers to make further headway on the construction of the new station footbridge, which will include lifts in order to provide step-free access to platforms.
One of the biggest parts of the TRU is the restoration and remodelling of historic Huddersfield Station.
Over the weekend, sections of scaffolding were being removed as roof canopy restoration and extension continued at the Grade I listed station.
Work to Huddersfield Station as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade (Image: TRU)
In another visible sign of progress, the masts needed for electrification have started to be installed on the listed viaduct just to the east of Huddersfield Station.
Another aim of the current line closure was the renewal of track through Gledholt Tunnels, between Huddersfield Station and Springwood Junction. This aspect of the work seems well-advanced.
Work to Huddersfield Station as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade (Image: TRU)
In broader terms, the Transpennine Route Upgrade is an £11.5 billion transformation of the line between York and Manchester, via Leeds, Dewsbury, Mirfield, Huddersfield and Stalybridge.
Other notable aspects of the project include a relocated new station at Morley, extended platforms and a new footbridge at Batley, extended platforms and canopies at Dewsbury, a new viaduct and fly-over junction, along with a relocated station at Ravensthorpe, a remodelled station and new footbridge at Mirfield, major earthworks for a new section of track at Heaton Lodge Junction, and numerous replacement bridges along the route.
In the Bradford district, a new railway depot is being built in Shipley on the former site of a scrap yard. The site will provide vital extra maintenance capacity when Neville Hill depot in Leeds closes temporarily during an upcoming phase of the Transpennine Route Upgrade.