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Thursday 14 Mar 2019

Passengers in Wales and Borders urged to plan their rail journeys this Easter

Region & Route:

Wales & Western: Wales & Borders

| Wales & Western

Network Rail in Wales and Borders is urging passengers to plan journeys ahead this Easter (Friday 19 to Monday 22 April) as work continues to upgrade the South Wales Main Line.

Network Rail teams will be working around the clock this Easter to prepare the railway between the Severn Tunnel and Cardiff Central for trains to run on electricity. The significant work will include installing foundations which will support  the masts needed for overhead line equipment (OLE) and installing the OLE along the mainline from the Severn Tunnel to the west of Cardiff Central station.

Once complete later this year, the major modernisation work will enable Intercity Express Trains to run between London and Cardiff on electricity, improving journeys for passengers and creating a quieter environment for lineside neighbours.

How are journeys affected?

From Friday 19 to Monday 22 April:

• Buses will replace trains between Newport and Bristol Parkway

• Buses will replace trains between Newport and Chepstow/Gloucester

Passengers are urged to plan ahead and check their journey at nationalrail.co.uk

Bill Kelly, route managing director for Network Rail Wales and Borders, said: “We would like to thank passengers and our lineside neighbours for bearing with us this Easter as our teams work around the clock to deliver crucial upgrades to the network.

“We are working closely with our train operating partners to minimise disruption, and while most of the rail network across Wales and Borders is open for business as usual, some routes are affected. There is also essential rail upgrade work taking place across Britain, so we strongly advise passengers to plan ahead.”

Colin Lea, customer experience director for TfW, said: “Essential upgrade work of the South Wales mainline will help build a faster and more reliable railway for generations to come.

“We work closely with our partners in Network Rail to keep disruption to quieter periods wherever possible and to minimise this wherever possible. Much of our network is unaffected, but customers travelling over Easter in South Wales should leave extra time for their journeys and be aware of how this work may impact their journey by visiting tfwrail.wales/planned-improvement-works.”