Mossend near Glasgow is undergoing a significant transformation, that will see the terminal emerge later this year as the greatly enhanced Mossend International Railfreight Park. Not only will it be Scotland’s self-styled twenty-first century rail freight park, it will be carbon neutral too.
Operator of the terminal PD Stirling presented work underway on the new electric-traction capable suite of eight new, 800m-long sidings, during a side tour at the recent Rail Freight Group Scottish Conference. The project represents the biggest new rail infrastructure installation in Scotland since the building of the Borders Railway was completed in 2015.
Mossend is an unpretentious suburb of the unassuming town of Bellshill in North Lanarkshire. It is already home to a thriving, 200,000 sq m terminal, just off the West Coast Main Line. Every day it handles a variety of traffic, from steel and bulk cement products, through to intermodal containers and finished cars.
Cross, who is one of the main speakers at Railfreight Summit UK in Salford next month, said the new terminal, which will be fully ‘Channel Tunnel’ security cleared, could handle up to 16 trains per day. “Electrification is key to the industry”, he said, as the new 200 hectare facility will treble the size of the terminal. “There has been many years of planning with many stakeholders, all of whom are pleased with what we’re doing”.