Media centre

Tuesday 26 Jan 2021

Emergency rail works at Ingatestone to continue throughout the week

Region & Route:

Eastern: Anglia

Emergency works to stabilise the embankment at Ingatestone on the Great Eastern Main Line will continue for the rest of the week after further issues were found during remedial work.

The line out of London to Norwich will remain closed, with services operating in both directions on the line towards London. This means the number of services will be reduced on the main line and branch line services to Clacton, Braintree, Southend, Colchester Town and Harwich are also affected.

On Friday 22 January, the embankment became unstable, causing a dip in the tracks. Network Rail’s engineers have been working around the clock to make repairs, but further works are now required.

A further update will be sent out on Friday (29 January). Passengers are advised to check Greater Anglia’s website or app for the latest travel information. Passengers should also follow government advice and only travel for work if essential or for other legally permitted reasons.

Ellie Burrows, Network Rail’s route director for Anglia, said: “I understand how frustrating it is that the work is taking longer than expected and I’m sorry for the disruption this is causing to passengers. We are doing everything we can to carry out the repairs quickly so that we can safely reopen the line.

“I know that this has been very disruptive for passengers and for those living nearby and I’d like to thank everyone for their patience. I’d like to say a special thank you to those who have worked with us to give us access to the site and enable us to carry out these emergency repairs.”

Jamie Burles, Greater Anglia Managing Director, said: “We would like to thank customers for their patience while engineers work to repair the railway, and we are very sorry for the inconvenience caused. Although the work is taking longer than anticipated, safety is our top priority.

“We are running a reduced timetable for all services which travel through Ingatestone. Customers should check before they travel and allow more time for their journey. We will keep our website updated with any changes to our services.

“Anyone who is affected by the delays can claim compensation at www.greateranglia.co.uk/delayrepay

“Government travel advice is currently to stay at home and only travel for legally permissible reasons such as work and medical appointments. Information about what we are doing to keep passengers safe during the pandemic is on our website.”

Notes to editors:

Passengers are advised to check www.greateranglia.co.uk for the latest travel information. Passengers should also follow government advice and only travel for work if essential or for other legally permitted reasons.