Monday 5 Oct 2020
Fewer delays for rail passengers between Ipswich, Ely and Cambridge
- Region & Route:
- Eastern: Anglia
Track, sleepers and ballast have been replaced by Network Rail’s engineers as part of a programme of upgrade works to make train services more reliable between Ipswich, Ely and Cambridge.
Nearly four miles of track has been replaced between Ipswich and Bury St Edmunds along with sleepers and ballast, the stones that keep the track in place.
Just like road surfaces, track gets worn from constant use every day. Network Rail’s engineers carry out inspections and repairs regularly, but over time the track becomes so worn that a full replacement is the only option to avoid speed restrictions that cause delays and cancellations.
Ellie Burrows, Network Rail’s route director for Anglia, said: “Keeping the tracks in good condition is vital to running a safe and reliable railway for our passengers and that is exactly what we’re here to do. This is a busy section of our network for passengers and freight and this work will reduce the number of delays and cancellations caused by track faults.”
The work started on the 18 July and was completed at weekends, finishing on the 4 October.
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.
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