Work is under way to install almost 30 miles of rail on the new Borders line, according to project chiefs.
Network Rail said the Borders railway project is now entering the main phase of track-laying on the route.
Transport Minister Keith Brown and Mark Carne, chief executive of Network Rail, visited the newly-constructed Shawfair station today to launch the latest phase of the scheme.
By the end of the year, a state-of-the-art rail installation machine, capable of laying over 1km of track per day, will complete the Borders route.
The machine, operated by main contractor BAM, will install rails on to 90,000 sleepers already laid out along the way.
The project will re-establish passenger services for the first time in over 40 years from Edinburgh through Midlothian to Tweedbank in the Scottish Borders. It is the longest new domestic railway to be built in Britain for over a century.
Mr Carne said: "The installation of track on this route puts rail services within touching distance for thousands of potential passengers in Midlothian and the Scottish Borders.
"By the end of this year, rails will connect seven stations along the route to the national railway network for the first time in 45 years. When services start running next September, the railway will form a new economic artery for the region, providing opportunities for employment, education and tourism."
The £294 million Scottish Government-funded project is set to be delivered on-time and on-budget next year.
Mr Brown said: "With construction due to complete next summer and the line to enter service on September 6 2015, the new railway will offer a fast and efficient alternative to the congested local road network allowing passengers to travel from Tweedbank to Edinburgh in around an hour at peak times.
"This time next year, for the first time in almost half a century, people will be travelling by train between Edinburgh, Midlothian and the Borders - a hugely proud achievement for those who have worked so hard to deliver this railway and an exciting development for these communities."
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