Friday 16 Apr 2004

£600K INVESTED ON THE RAILWAY AT NEW ELTHAM WILL BRING LONG TERM BENEFITS TO PASSENGERS

Region & Route:
| Southern
Network Rail has completed major engineering work at New Eltham as part of its commitment to rebuild Britain’s railway.  Rail staff carried out work to significantly improve the line between Mottingham and New Eltham stations by constructing a new drainage system and replacing 330 yards of track. The railway line has historically suffered from water logging problems in periods of severe weather, which has led to temporary speed restriction being placed on the line for safety reasons. The work sees the installation of new drains and a pumping station to improve drainage, reducing potential delays to services and thus bringing long-term benefits to passengers. Continuously welded rail with concrete sleepers was installed which means passengers can now expect a smoother, quieter and more reliable journey.  The Construction Partnership (a partnership between Edmund Nuttall Ltd and Network Rail) carried out the drainage work and Balfour Beatty Rail Infrastructure Services Ltd carried out the track renewal work, which was started on xxx and was completed on time and to budget. All work carried out was subject to an environmental and ecological survey to ensure that protected species were not disturbed during the work.  The contractors worked to an agreed code of practice to notify residents in advance of the work and to ensure that noise and disruption to local residents was kept to an absolute minimum. The work was specifically programmed to take place during the night when there are no trains running to ensure that there was no disruption to passengers. Network Rail’s Regional Director, Robin Gisby said: “This work forms part of Network Rail’s commitment to rebuild Britain’s railway. We appreciate that passengers using the line expect an improved service and this investment is a step to delivering the service they rightly deserve.”

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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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