Transport for London (TfL) awarded the £196 million contract to a joint venture of VolkerFitzpatrick and Morgan Sindall Construction & Infrastructure (MSVF) to extend the London Overground to Barking Riverside.

The extension - which includes 4.5km of new track - is one of several transport measures designed to serve the emerging development area at Barking Riverside.

Barking Riverside is the largest housing development in east London, with planning permission for up to 10,800 new homes, as well as healthcare, shopping, community and leisure facilities. Without a new rail link in place, the full potential of the development at Barking Riverside cannot be achieved.

The Barking Riverside extension will be capable of operating four trains per hour from Barking station along the existing Tilbury line used by c2c between Fenchurch Street and Grays. After passing under the Renwick Road bridge the extension would then head south to a new station in the heart of the Barking Riverside development.

Under the contract, MSVF will deliver:

• A 4.5km extension to Barking Riverside, from the Tilbury Loop Line between Barking and Dagenham Dock stations to Barking Riverside
• Reconfiguration of Network Rail’s Ripple Lane goods yard to allow the extension to connect to the Tilbury Loop
• Construction of a viaduct over the Ripple Lane yard. This will require the viaduct to be built over the Tilbury Loop and foundations constructed between the HS1 tunnels
• Continuation of the viaduct for a further 1.5km over Renwick Road and into the heart of Barking Riverside
• Construction of a new terminus station within the Barking Riverside town square. The station will have step-free access from street to train.