Essential track works to improve reliability for rail passengers between London and Southend

Thursday 27 May 2021

Essential track works to improve reliability for rail passengers between London and Southend

Region & Route:: Eastern: Anglia

Network Rail will replace track and improve drainage on the c2c line between London and Shoeburyness next month (June) to improve reliability.

The work will take place between Fenchurch Street and Barking at weekends throughout June and July up to Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 and includes:

Replacing nearly one and a half miles of rail
Installing 40 new catchpits, 180 new drainage pipes and 1000 tonnes of top stone to improve drainage
Replacing 1700 new concrete sleepers and 4,500 tonnes of ballast, the stones that make the track bed.

Like road surfaces, track wears out from constant use by trains. Engineers carry out inspections and repairs but over time the track will need to be fully replaced in order to avoid speed restrictions that cause delays. Network Rail’s engineers have been busy over the last year on a programme of track replacement across the Anglia region in order to keep services running reliably.

Drainage work is essential to keep both the track and the foundations stable and to prevent delays and cancellations during heavy rainfall.

Network Rail’s route managing director for Anglia, Ellie Burrows, said: “We’re replacing track and installing new drainage systems between London and Barking in order to keep services running safely and to minimise delays on this line. We can only carry out this work when trains aren’t running and have planned this in at the weekend when fewer people travel.

“I advise passengers to check before they travel and thank everyone for their patience while the work takes place.”

Passengers are advised to check before they travel at www.nationalrail.co.uk

Notes to editors

Works will take place between Fenchurch Street and Barking on the following weekends:

Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 June
Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 June
Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 June
Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 June
Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 July
Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 July
Follow up works will take place on the Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 August.

Passengers are advised to check before they travel at www.nationalrail.co.uk or www.c2c-online.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 - Katie Mack
Media relations manager (Anglia route)
0330 8577 132
Katie.Mack@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