The Department for Transport has announced a landmark deal to eliminate mobile phone dead zones on Britain’s busiest railway lines.

The deal will see a public-private partnership deliver on the Government’s Plan for Change to kick start economic growth by laying ultra-fast fibre-optic cable along 1,000 kilometres of major railway lines, and will also eliminate mobile signal blackspots in tunnels.

The partnership, named Project Reach, between Network Rail and telecommunication companies Neos Networks and Freshwave will see new fibre-optic cable laid along key routes between London, Manchester, Newcastle and Cardiff.

An innovative commercial model will bring together public and private sector investment and infrastructure to create a digital connectivity backbone for businesses that supports the UK’s digital ambitions.

Neos Networks will initially install 1,000 kilometres of ultra-fast fibre optic cable along the East Coast Main Line, parts of the West Coast Main Line, and the Great Western Main Line, and in the near future hopes to extend coverage to beyond 5,000 kilometres.

Meanwhile, Freshwave will install equipment to eliminate signal blackspots in 57 tunnels with an overall length of almost 50 kilometres, including the 4-kilometre-long Chipping Sodbury tunnel near Bristol.

As part of Project Reach, mobile network operators will install new 4G/5G infrastructure at 12 of Network Rail’s largest stations, including Birmingham New St, Bristol Temple Meads, Edinburgh Waverley, Euston, Glasgow Central, King’s Cross, Leeds, Liverpool Lime Street, Liverpool Street, Manchester Piccadilly, Paddington, and Waterloo.

Work on the project is expected to start next year and be completed by 2028. As well as providing better connectivity for customers, the enhanced network will enable better monitoring of railway assets and pave the way for the rollout of new technologies that rely on improved connectivity.

Project Reach is expected to save taxpayers around £300 million.

Earlier this year, Network Rail, in conjunction with London North Eastern Railway and the private sector, installed a custom-built antenna system inside the tunnels immediately outside London King’s Cross station to greatly improve connectivity on O2 and Three networks.

Passengers on the Elizabeth line between Liverpool Street and Paddington through Central London have had the benefit of high-speed 4G and 5G mobile coverage since July last year.

“I’m delighted that we have now signed this innovative deal with our partners Neos Networks and Freshwave. This investment model will deliver the necessary upgrades to our telecoms infrastructure faster, whilst offering significant value-for-money for the taxpayer and stimulating wider economic benefits across the country. As we move towards becoming a unified railway with the formation of Great British Railways, the enhanced telecoms infrastructure will play a key role in our ambition to provide a data-driven railway of the future, delivering better connectivity and a better, more reliable train service for our passengers.”

Jeremy Westlake, Network Rail’s Chief Financial Officer