£1 MILLION MAKEOVER TO THE RAILWAY AT WENDOVER

Monday 27 Sep 2004

£1 MILLION MAKEOVER TO THE RAILWAY AT WENDOVER

Region & Route:: | Southern

Rail passengers travelling on the Chiltern line through Wendover can now expect a smoother, quieter and more reliable journey thanks to a £1 million track renewals project by Network Rail. During the past four weekends, Network Rail employees worked near Wendover station to replace more than 3,000 yards of worn-out track, along with old ballast and sleepers. The line was reopened early each Monday morning for passenger services. Robbie Burns, Network Rail Route Director, said: “The railway through Wendover is an important commuter link into London and renewing it highlights our commitment to improving performance and reliability. We apologise for the disruption caused, but it is crucial that we renew our assets to deliver a better railway for passengers.” In total 2,000 concrete sleepers, 5,000 tonnes of ballast and 180 tonnes of continuous welded rail were replaced. This is enough material to build a railway up Ben Nevis and back down the other side. As well as laying new track, the team also cleared scrap and debris from the railway. This work is part of the massive £700 million investment programme committed to the Midlands over the next three years.

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We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.

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