Crossrail to bridge the gap

Thursday 1 Nov 2012

Crossrail to bridge the gap

Region & Route:: | Wales & Western: Western; | Wales & Western

Work has begun on replacing four bridges in Slough and Hillingdon in preparation for the new electric Crossrail trains. Starting in 2018, Crossrail will provide a high-frequency rail service for passengers wanting to travel into central London, over to Maidenhead or through to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east.

Work has begun on replacing four bridges in Slough and Hillingdon in preparation for the new electric Crossrail trains.

Starting in 2018, Crossrail will provide a high-frequency rail service for passengers wanting to travel into central London, over to Maidenhead or through to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east.

The new electric trains will be quicker, cleaner, quieter, smoother and more reliable than the existing diesel suburban trains but all bridges on the route need to provide clearance for the over-head electric equipment. Middlegreen Road Bridge and Trenches Bridge in Slough and Old Stockley Road Bridge and Horton Bridge in Hillingdon will be replaced as part of this process.

Network Rail, on behalf of Crossrail, is carrying out the work which is due to be completed over Easter 2013. Worksites have been set up at each of the bridges with the major work of removing the old bridges and installing the new bridges taking place over Christmas 2012 and Easter 2013, when the railway is closed to trains for engineering work.

Earlier this month, Network Rail successfully installed the temporary footbridge next to Middlegreen Bridge, which will maintain pedestrian and cycle access over the railway while the current bridge is demolished and rebuilt.

Jorge Mendonça, Crossrail programme director, Network Rail, said: “Crossrail will transform the journeys of passengers who wish to travel into or across central London. The work we are undertaking on bridges across the western section of the route will not only enable new longer Crossrail trains to operate but is also an essential part of the programme to electrify the Great Western main line.

“During Christmas and Easter we will be removing the old bridges and installing new ones. We’ve spent months preparing for this to ensure we complete the work with the least possible impact on residents.”

As well as the bridge replacements, Network Rail is raising the parapets on a number of bridges along the Crossrail route.

Notes to editors

About Crossrail

Crossrail will run from Maidenhead and Heathrow in the west, through new twin-bore 13-mile tunnels under central London to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east. It will bring an additional 1.5m people within 45 minutes commuting distance of London's key business districts. When it opens from 2018, Crossrail will provide new transport links with the Tube, Thameslink, National Rail, DLR and London Overground.

The service will improve journey times into central London:

West Drayton will be 19mins to Paddington, 24mins to Tottenham Court Road and 29mins to Liverpool Street.
Slough will be 27mins to Paddington, 32mins to Tottenham Court Road and 37mins to Liverpool Street.

Network Rail delivering Crossrail

Network Rail is a key partner in Crossrail and is making significant investment in upgrading the network around London to deliver it. This complements Network Rail’s other work to increase capacity and improve performance across Britain.

Network Rail is responsible for the design, development and delivery of the parts of Crossrail that are on the existing network. Its work will integrate Crossrail with the national rail network, delivering faster, more frequent trains into central London from the east and west. The work includes upgrading 43 miles of track, improving 27 stations, and work on 20 bridges.

Network Rail will do all of this on an active operational railway, delivering vital upgrade works whilst minimising disruption to train services.

Diversion Routes

Middlegreen Road Bridge, Slough: The bridge will be closed to traffic from early December 2012 until late April 2013. During this time a diversion will be put in place via St Mary’s Road. A temporary footbridge for pedestrians and cyclists will be provided at Middlegreen Road to maintain pedestrian access during the closure. For safety reasons the footbridge will be closed during the two track possessions at Christmas and Easter.
Horton Bridge, Slough: The new bridge will be open and operational before the old bridge is demolished. This means pedestrians will have access across the railway at all times. The new bridge may need to be closed over Easter when the old bridge is being demolished. If this is necessary, we will contact neighbours with dates and the pedestrian diversion route.
Old Stockley Road Bridge, Hillingdon: From 1 October 2012, vehicles will be permanently diverted north along Stockley Road onto Horton Road, along Ironbridge Road North and then Ironbridge Road South. Pedestrians and cyclists will also be diverted over Stockley Road until the new bridge opens in May 2013.
Trenches Bridge, Hillingdon: The footbridge will be closed from the end of November 2012 until May 2013. During this time, pedestrians and cyclists approaching from the south will be diverted onto Maryside to St Mary’s Road. They will be able to follow a towpath alongside the Grand Union Canal back to the northern part of Trenches Bridge.

Contact information

Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41

Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries

Journalists
Network Rail press office - South East route
020 3357 7969
southeastroutecomms@networkrail.co.uk

About Network Rail

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.

Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.

Media centre