Monday 9 Sep 2019
Network Rail thanks local community and motorists in Whittington following successful level crossing upgrade
- Region & Route:
- Wales & Western: Wales & Borders
Whittington residents and local motorists in Shropshire can now benefit from a state-of-the-art level crossing upgrade, successfully completed by Network Rail and partners, Strail.
The A495 at Whittington level crossing reopened yesterday after a nine day closure to allow Network Rail engineers to fully replace the worn crossing surface with a harder wearing rubber material that will reduce noise when traffic passes over it.
Sean Wootton, programme manager for Network Rail Wales and Borders, said: “We would like to thank the local community and motorists for their patience while we carried out this upgrade to Whittington level crossing.
“This essential work has improved the resilience and reliability of the level crossing and has increased its lifespan for years to come.
“We worked closely with our partners to minimise disruption and have successfully installed this state-of-the-art crossing surface.”
Colin Lea, customer experience director for Transport for Wales, said: “Keeping level crossings safe and reliable is incredibly important in the running of the railway so it’s great news that we’re seeing this investment in Whittington by Network Rail.
“We worked closely with our partners in Network Rail to keep disruption to passengers to a minimum and would like to thank passengers who travelled on our bus replacement service between Wrexham and Shrewsbury for their patience and understanding.”
Notes to Editors
- The new crossing features an innovative design of interlocking panels that quickly spring back into place after a train passes over it. This design will provide safer crossing for cyclists and disabled pedestrians.
- The nine day road closure was determined by the need to let a metre-deep of concrete set, so it could handle the weight of passing trains. The increased concrete depth, interlocking rubber panels and the nine-day period, allowed engineers to deliver a quality product to Whittington residents.
- During the closure, commuters were asked to follow a diversionary route provided by Network Rail, Highways England, and Shropshire Council. The route took commuters down the safest route south towards Wootton. Pedestrian access over the crossing was maintained throughout the day. The only exception was on Sunday 1 and Sunday 8 September, when engineers needed unrestricted access to the level crossing to install the VeloStrail panels. Trains were also affected on these days and a bus replacement service was in place between Shrewsbury and Wrexham.
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Sara Crombie
sara.crombie@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