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Monday 10 Aug 2015

Batman joins forces with Network Rail’s orange army to help deliver Bath electrification work

Region & Route:

| Wales & Western: Western

| Wales & Western

As the ‘orange army’ entered its third week of preparing Bath’s railway line for electrification, the team has been working with an ecologist to ensure the bats living in Box Tunnel are not adversely affected by the work.

Protecting local wildlife is a key element of the project to lower 10km of track through Bath in preparation for the arrival of a new fleet of longer, faster, quieter and greener electric trains.

Before work commenced on site, Network Rail worked with an ecologist to survey the bat population in Box Tunnel to better understand their numbers and patterns of behaviour. This enabled the team to adapt their working practices to cater for the bats.

As the team head towards the halfway point in the project, an ecologist once again visited the site to survey the bat population and check the recording equipment that has been installed in the tunnel to monitor their activity.

Andy Haynes, Network Rail’s project director for the west of England, said: “We have often talked about the importance of preserving Bath’s historic architecture, but as equally important is the need to protect the wildlife that lives within it.

“This is why we are continuing to work with an ecologist to ensure the improvement work we are carrying out is not having a detrimental effect on the significant number of bats that have made Box Tunnel their home.

“So far the bats appear to be disturbed less by our work than they are by the usual passage of trains, which is good news.”

During their work in Box Tunnel, the ‘orange army’ also found a young injured kestrel. After liaising with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the team took the kestrel to a nearby veterinary surgery and it is now recovering well at a bird of prey rescue centre.

Andy continued: “You always encounter the unexpected when working on a complex project such as this, but I’m pleased to say that we remain on schedule and last weekend finished our track lowering work through Dundas Aqueduct.

“I would like to thank passengers and those living near Bath’s railway line, for their continued patience and support as we deliver the biggest upgrade this section of line has had for over 40 years.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

The species of bat identified as roosting in Box Tunnel, include:

- Small numbers of hibernating lesser horseshoes

- A maternity colony of common pipistrelles

- Transient roosts of brown long-eared and Myotis bats

- One male Bechstein’s bat.

Further travel information for during the Bath work can be found by visiting First Great Western’s website www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk. Alternatively, National Rail Enquiries also has up-to-date travel advice on their website www.nationalrail.co.uk.