Ferryhill railway station reopening plan moves forward

Sedgefield MP Paul Howell (centre) is backing the plan along with Durham County Council's Elizabeth Scott and Craig MacLennan

Plans to reopen a railway station in County Durham have been boosted after it was named one of nine projects to progress to the next stage of analysis.

Durham County Council last year submitted a business case to the Department for Transport (DfT) for a stop at Ferryhill to take passengers into Teesside.

It would be on the Stillington line, which is currently used for freight.

The authority said the announcement was "incredibly exciting".

The proposal aims to secure funding from a £500m government pot to restore railways and reconnect communities, and further detailed analysis will now be carried out by Network Rail.

Elizabeth Scott, the council's cabinet member for economy and partnerships, said progression to the next stage of the process "brings us one step closer to realising our plans to reopen Ferryhill Station to passengers".

She added it would offer a chance to link the south of the county with key employment sites on Teesside, such as the Freeport, and "could be part of a potential new Tyne-Tees connection, seeing rail services continue all the way up to Newcastle".

Sedgefield MP Paul Howell has also backed the plan and he said he was "thrilled" by the DfT's announcement.

"Places like Ferryhill are crying out for direct rail connectivity, and we must continue to call for investment in this critical piece of railway infrastructure."