Media centre

Network Rail’s orange army will be carrying out work this summer to greatly improve reliability for passengers by tackling the almost yearly problem of flooding on the railway line that runs through Hinksey near Oxford.

Passengers travelling on the Great Western Main Line over the weekend of 23-24 January are being advised to check before they travel as Network Rail carries out the penultimate stage of a major signalling upgrade at Swindon as part of its Railway Upgrade Plan.

Royal Wootton Bassett residents are invited to attend a drop-in event to find out more about the latest plans to prepare three bridges in the town for the arrival of a new fleet of electric trains.

Network Rail engineers are continuing repair work on the Conwy Valley line after flooding caused damage at over 100 separate locations.

Across Britain, hundreds of thousands of passengers and businesses will now be feeling the benefits of the successful completion of Network Rail's £150m Christmas Railway Upgrade Plan resulting in better, more reliable train services and improved passenger facilities.

Network Rail and Great Western Railway thanked passengers and lineside neighbours today for their patience following the completion, on time, of railway improvement work in the south west and Thames Valley over the Christmas and New Year period.

Passengers in parts of northern England and Wales are advised to check before travelling as flooding continues to affect rail services.

Major flooding and landslips are disrupting services in some parts of Cumbria, the Tyne Valley, West Yorkshire and the Conwy Valley in Wales.

Rail passengers in flood affected parts of Wales are being urged to ‘check before you travel’ as Network Rail staff work hard to keep train services running, despite severe weather conditions.