Electrification to Bristol Parkway continues in November which means motorway will be closed overnight at weekends

Wednesday 1 Nov 2017

Electrification to Bristol Parkway continues in November which means motorway will be closed overnight at weekends

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

Electrification to Bristol Parkway continues to progress as Network Rail will be upgrading the railway over the M4 motorway near junction 19 on successive weekends in November, as they install the overhead line equipment needed to run electric train services.

The upgrade, which forms part of Network Rail’s Railway Upgrade Plan, will take place overnight on the first two weekends in November and means an overnight closure of the M4 at Junction 19, near Bristol Parkway, will be necessary.

The upgrade involves the installation of four overhead line equipment structures which hold the wires needed for electric services to run. The decision to carry out the upgrade overnight has been taken to reduce disruption for passengers and drivers.

Once complete in late 2018 electrification will provide faster, greener, longer trains with more seats and greater comfort for passengers between London Paddington and Cardiff.

The M4 will be closed at Blue Bridge near junction 19 on the following dates:

Friday 3 November at 11pm to Saturday 4 November at 7am.
Saturday 4 November at 9pm to Sunday 5 November at 8am.
Sunday 5 November at 10pm to Monday 6 November at 5am.

The closure will be repeated at the same times the following week on 10, 11 and 12 November.

Freddie Gleeson, scheme project manager for Network Rail, said: “The upgrade is absolutely vital and will bring significant passenger benefits once electrification is complete as we continue to deliver our Railway Upgrade Plan.

“We have chosen to carry out the work overnight and at weekends so we can minimise disruption. However, we apologise for any inconvenience caused.”

Railway upgrade work in Bristol during November will also affect train services to South Wales. Fans travelling to Cardiff for the Autumn International rugby matches are advised to plan their journey at www.nationalrail.co.uk

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 -Western route
MediaRelationsWestern@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.

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