Media centre

Wednesday 18 Mar 2015

Major improvement work at Easter to deliver faster, more reliable services for passengers travelling through the Thames Valley

Region & Route:

| Wales & Western: Western

| Wales & Western

Thousands of passengers are set to benefit from major improvement work taking place in the Thames Valley this Easter, the biggest package of improvement work carried out on the Western route to date.

An army of approximately 1,200 engineers will be spending Easter and the week that follows, working on the Western route – which connects London with the Thames Valley, the west and south west of England – to deliver improvements, including increased reliability and reduced journey times, for passengers who travel on this part of the network.

Patrick Hallgate, Network Rail’s managing director for the Western route, said: “This is our most ambitious package of improvement  work to date, which once complete will deliver immediate benefits for the many thousands of passengers who travel through the Thames Valley and into London.

“Passenger numbers are continuing to increase with demand for journeys from the west into London set to double within 30 years. This Easter investment programme will play a key part in helping us to meet this demand and make improvements to this part of the rail network.”

The major investment schemes on the Western route this Easter include:

• Reading: New freight lines will be installed under the Reading viaduct to completely separate passenger and freight services, enabling all those travelling on this route to experience smoother, faster journeys into and through Reading. This work is the penultimate phase of the Reading redevelopment project which is currently a year ahead of schedule.
• Slough: A major re-signalling project will be undertaken that involves replacing ageing signalling equipment with new, ‘state of the art’ technology that will improve reliability for passengers travelling on the route to London Paddington from the west, south west and Thames Valley.

 

To complete these major projects in as short a timescale as possible, there will be timetable changes and in some cases replacement bus services running on parts of the Thames Valley network over the Easter period. Passengers are therefore advised to check rail websites for travel information if their journeys involve passing through this area.

Patrick concluded: “This is an exciting time for the Western route, which is benefitting from huge investment to modernise and significantly improve it.

“I am conscious that many people want to use the railway during Easter to meet with family and friends and I apologise that some of our work could interrupt their travel plans. However, I ask that you please bear with us through this temporary period, when crucial work will be taking place to pave the way for more capacity and reduced journey times, and ultimately a better travelling experience for passengers.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

Further travel information for over the Easter period can be found by visiting National Rail Enquiries’ website www.nationalrail.co.uk. Alternatively, train operator First Great Western also has up–to-date travel advice on their website www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk.