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Monday 17 Mar 2025

COMPLETED: Line reopens between Castle Cary and Yeovil following essential engineering works on the Heart of Wessex Line

Region & Route:

Southern: Wessex

| Southern

Train services have resumed between Yeovil Pen Mill and Castle Cary after a week-long closure where Network Rail carried out essential improvements to the railway.

Over the past seven days, Network Rail’s team of engineers replaced 850 tonnes of ballast, the stone supporting a 250-metre stretch of track. This work will help prevent the track bed from becoming flooded, which can lead to failures and rough rides for passengers.

Engineers took advantage of the closure to complete a range of other important work, which included:

• Making repairs to the semaphore signals (pictured below) at Yeovil Pen Mill station to reduce the risk of failures
• Cutting down and removing dead, diseased and dangerous trees in the Yeovil area to reduce the risk of trees blocking the line and leaf fall onto the railway so we can keep trains running safely and on time.
• Track maintenance in the Maiden Newton area to ensure smooth and reliable journeys, including tamping – where engineers use a tamping machine to lift the track slightly and pack new ballast under the sleepers, before it realigns the track using laser measurement.

Mark Goodall, Wessex Route Director for Network Rail, said: “I would like to thank passengers for their patience and understanding while we carried out this essential engineering works on the Heart of Wessex Line. We apologise for disrupting passengers who travel between Somerset and the Dorset coast and know that these week-long closures are frustrating for all concerned. This closure is part of our commitment to preserve the line and provide a more reliable service for our passengers.”

Jordan Welsby, GWR’s Station Manager for Westbury, Wiltshire and Dorset, said: “We’re grateful this engineering work has been completed and our train services are now running once again between Castle Cary, Yeovil Pen Mill and Weymouth.

“The rail improvement work that has been taking place forms part of an ongoing programme of investment by Network Rail, helping to ensure we can continue to provide consistent and reliable services.”