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Hundreds of thousands of passengers and businesses using rail freight are set to benefit from one of the biggest Easter investment programmes ever carried out on Britain’s rail network.

Network Rail’s orange army will be transforming the 130-year-old Severn and Patchway tunnels this autumn in preparation for the arrival of a new fleet of longer, faster, quieter and greener electric trains.

Passengers are being reminded to check before they travel this Easter as Network Rail’s orange army get set to carry out work on one of the biggest investment programmes ever carried out on Britain’s rail network at Easter.

Network Rail’s orange army has reached the next milestone to improve safety at Ufton Nervet by beginning construction of the bridge to replace the level crossing.

Passengers are being advised to check before they travel this week after a landslip damaged the railway between Eastbourne and Lewes, in Sussex.

Ipswich-based signal maintenance engineer, Owen Flanders, is proof that an apprenticeship can get you ahead in the workplace and he has taken part in a video to encourage people to think about apprenticeships ahead of National Apprenticeship Week (14-18 March). Owen works on one of the most heavily-used freight paths in Britain, covering the mainline from London Liverpool Street to Norwich, which also sees around 32 million passenger journeys a year.

Commuters in Anglia are being warned to take care at level crossings on their journey home from work after new figures from Network Rail revealed that across Britain, more than half of all near misses with trains at level crossings over the last five years took place during the evening rush hour with more than a fifth of these happening in Anglia.

Passengers in the South East suffered delays yesterday evening and this morning (Thursday and Friday) after three bridges were hit by high vehicles within 12 hours of each other.