Monday 19 Mar 2018
Fifteen-foot icicles block railway line
- Region & Route:
- | North West & Central
Network Rail engineers are working to remove 15ft-long icicles which have formed in a railway tunnel between Manchester and Buxton.
Until the icicles are removed no trains can run through the area.
Engineers are using all tools available to remove the icicles including snow ploughs and railway vehicles. Scaffolding has been installed inside certain areas of the tunnel to remove hard-to-reach ice.
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “Due to the treacherous conditions at Eaves Tunnel, we’ve closed the Hazel Grove to Buxton line to trains for safety reasons.
“To get the line up and running as quickly as possible, we’re using a number of methods. This includes using our own snow ploughs, road rail vehicles, as well as installing scaffolding inside the tunnel to hack away at the sheer number of icicles that have formed as a result of the cold weather.”
With the current freezing conditions set to continue over the next few days, Network Rail’s Team Orange are using all available resource to remove icicles from Eaves Tunnel and any other lcoations where they may form.
For the latest travel information visit 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 - North West & Central Region
0330 854 0100
NWCmediarelations@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.
Follow us on Twitter: @networkrail
Visit our online newsroom: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk