Friday 29 Aug 2014
Fulscot Road bridge is reopened to the public
- Region & Route:
- | Wales & Western: Western
- | Wales & Western
The bridge over the railway at Fulscot Road has reopened to the public today, Friday 29 August, after work to prepare it for electrification was completed.
The reconstruction of this bridge is an essential part of Network Rail’s electrification programme and will enable a new fleet of longer, faster and greener electric trains to serve commuters in Oxfordshire travelling on the route between Oxford and London and between Oxford and Cardiff.
The reconstruction work involved raising the height of the bridge to create the additional space needed for the overhead lines which will power the trains to run underneath. In addition, work to strengthen and stabilise the substructure of the bridge and raise the embankment on either side was also required.
Nigel Fenn, senior programme manager for Network Rail, said: “Significant work was needed to prepare this bridge for electrification and I would like to take this opportunity to thank the local community for their continued patience and understanding.
“Now this work is complete we are another step forward in ensuring that the region can benefit from the advantages that electrification and the new electric trains will bring.”
Notes to editors
About the Great Western Electrification Programme:
Electrification will transform the railway between London and Oxford, Newbury, Bristol and Cardiff to deliver a faster, greener, quieter and more reliable railway for passengers, with extra capacity. Electrifying this part of the Great Western route will enhance 235 miles of one of Britain’s busiest and oldest railways, better connecting major towns and cities across southern England and South Wales. This investment, as well as the introduction of a fleet of new trains, will improve journey times and make services more comfortable, smoother, cleaner and quieter for passengers and people living near the railway.
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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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