Borders Railway Wins RICS Infrastructure Award

Image courtesy of Network Rail

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has recognised the Borders Railway as Scottish infrastructure project of the year. The award was given at a ceremony on 14 April in Edinburgh.

In its first five months of running passenger services, the line carried 500,000 people. The new £294million railway is the longest line built in more than 100 years in the UK, linking Edinburgh to Midlothian to Tweedbank. The programme of works included 30 miles of new railway, seven new stations and upgrades of the supporting infrastructure.

The Borders Railway will now be entered into the RICS Awards Grand Final in October this year, representing Scotland in the event.

Chair of RICS Scotland judging panel, Colin Smith MRICS, said:

“The new rail network addition is highly popular and the judges could not fail to consider the project’s delivery time, quality and inherent sustainability credentials.”

Stewart MacPherson, Network Rail Infrastructure Projects Route Delivery Director for Scotland, said:

“With passenger figures exceeding expectations, the investment in the railway is really paying dividends and it’s great to see the positive impact it’s having socially and economically for the local communities along the route.”