Waterloo Station revamp: Network Rail seeks contractor

On 6 May 1994 the Queen inaugurated the cross-channel rail service at Waterloo but the five platforms have been disused since Eurostar moved its London terminal to St Pancras in 2007.

Now Network Rail has published detail of a contract valued at £200 million to £300 million for its Wessex Capacity Programme.

"The works involve bringing the Waterloo International Terminal back into use for domestic train services, increasing the length of some platforms at London Waterloo Station, alterations to the track, signalling, communications, buildings and civils infrastructure on the Wessex Route and at Waterloo, Vauxhall, Clapham Junction, Richmond, Wimbledon and Surbiton Stations," says the notice published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The contract is due to begin next year and runs till 2019.

If major works at Woking are included in the final project the timescale is extended to 2021.

One of the five former Eurostar platforms at Waterloo will be in regular public use for commuter trains when South West Trains introduces its summer timetable later this month.