Media centre

Tuesday 2 Jan 2018

Network Rail successfully completes £8 million upgrade in Southampton

Region & Route:

Southern: Wessex

| Southern

South Western Railway passengers are able to travel through Southampton again after Network Rail successfully completed £8 million of track renewal work on schedule over the Christmas period.

The replacing of worn out infrastructure will mean more reliable journeys for passengers in and out of Southampton, as well as reducing track noise for residents living close to the railway near Northam Junction.

The work formed part of Network Rail’s biggest-ever Christmas investment in Britain’s rail infrastructure, with more than £160 million spent nationwide to improve journeys for passengers.

During the Southampton work, more than 100 engineers worked in shifts around the clock, from Christmas Eve to New Year’s Day, to complete the upgrade on time, replacing more than 6,000 meters of cabling and 200 meters of track.

Becky Lumlock, route managing director for Network Rail’s Wessex Route, said:

“This upgrade work was essential to replace worn out kit and means we can now provide a more reliable service to passengers through a critical part of our busy network; around 164,000 trains have passed over these tracks in the last year alone.  

“I’d like to thank passengers for their patience while we delivered this important project and also give thanks to our team of engineers who have worked incredibly hard 24-hours a day over the Christmas period to complete the work on time.”