In December 2012, Network Rail appointed BAM Nuttall as its main contractor. The Network Rail team which worked on the line was essentially the same as the one which delivered the Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link in 2009. A Network Rail spokesman confirmed that lessons learned from the previous project had been applied to the Borders project, such as better coordination between the different teams by having them together in one office in Newtongrange. In June 2013, the design contract for the line was awarded to URS which agreed to design new bridges, stations and roads, as well as the refurbishment of existing bridges and the provision of engineering support, for £3.5 million. The line comprises of single-line track over a distance of , plus 42 new bridges, 95 refurbished bridges and two refurbished tunnels, and required 1.5 million tonnes of earth to be moved. Stations are provided at , , , , , and . According to Network Rail, the line was not suitable for double track and, in any event, there was no business case for doubling the line from the outset. As a result, of the line are single-track with three "dynamic" passing loops providing of double-track to allow for half-hourly services. The route is not electrified but provision has been made to install overhead line if required as bridges have been built to W12 gauge. Although certain sections of the line are designed for speeds of up to , average speeds over the whole line are in the region of . Amongst the line's 27 substantial structures, the greatest engineering challenge was posed by the point where the track met the Edinburgh City Bypass. At that point, a tunnel had to be constructed under the A720 road while it had been temporarily diverted; in total, the project incorporated five new associated road schemes. Major challenges were also posed by abandoned mine shafts to the north of the route, some of which dated to the 16th century and had not been mapped. More than 200 bridges were involved in the scheme, as the route crosses the Gala Water and River Tweed nineteen times. One of the most vital bridges on the line carries the track over Hardengreen roundabout on the A7, and required extensive works throughout 2013. Other works included digging out an infilled cutting on the outskirts of Galashiels and reconstructing a nearby bridge to allow the line to pass under power lines. The first sod was turned at Galashiels on 3 March 2010, when Scottish transport minister Stewart Stevenson attended a ceremony in the presence of campaigner Madge Elliot.