Thursday 17 Apr 2003

RAILWAY ENGINEERING WORK AND EDUCATION PROGRAMMES EASTER 2003

Region & Route:
| Southern
As part of the continued drive to deliver a safe and reliable railway, Network Rail will be carrying out engineering work at various sites across East Anglia. The work has been specifically programmed around the Easter holidays to ensure peak travel periods are largely unaffected.  This engineering work has been planned in consultation with Network Rail’s customers, the train and freight operating companies.  Passengers are advised to check their travel arrangements with National Rail Enquiries on 08457 484950 or individual operators before making their journey. During the Easter Holidays maintenance and renewal work will be undertaken round-the-clock at a number of locations.  Two miles of track will be renewed between Witham and Braintree, where replacement buses will run all weekend.              The mechanical signalling system is being worked on at Colchester Town.  Therefore the station will be closed, but a replacement bus service will run on Saturday 19 April.  Points maintenance will take place between Cambridge and Waterbeach.  As a result, a replacement bus service will run on Sunday 20 April between Cambridge and Ely.  - more - Easter – 2 Points work is also taking place between Woodgrange Park and Barking.  Over the Easter weekend, Silverlink will be running an amended service between Gospel Oak and Barking via South Tottenham including a replacement bus service at certain times. The £184m West Anglia Route Modernisation project (WARM), which is upgrading the signalling system from Liverpool Street station to Stansted Airport, is currently in its fifth stage and the holiday marks an essential period of activity.  The line from Cheshunt to Stansted Airport, including the Hertford East branch will be closed all day on Sunday 20 April.  A replacement bus service will be in operation. Mark Phillips, East Anglia Regional Director, designate, Network Rail said: “The window of opportunity at Easter is essential to the continued maintenance and renewal needed on the region’s infrastructure.  During this time we will be doing our utmost to ensure disruption to passengers and those living beside the railway is kept to a minimum.” To coincide with the holidays, Network Rail has intensified its railway crime education programme.  Trends show that railway crime increases during holiday periods.  To help combat this educational leaflets have been distributed to ‘hot spot’ locations, a workshop targeting 1,200 children in Harlow has been completed and a school talks have taken place in Tottenham and South Essex.  Along with the targeted programmes, Network Rail also sponsors ‘Football in the Community,’ a nationwide education programme aimed at teaching children the importance of safety – while having fun. Several clubs in East Anglia have courses throughout the year and especially during holiday periods.  See notes to editors for further details. Network Rail also looks at other options of combating railway crime.  Over the holidays new vandal proof equipment will be trialled in Angel Road on the West Anglia route out of Liverpool Street.  - more - Easter - 3 New lockable troughing lids, which cover electrical cables are being installed.  They are made out of a fire resistant, hard wearing anti-slip plastic so they are more durable and harder to remove from the trackside than traditional concrete troughing lids.  If this trial is successful the scheme will be rolled out in strategic locations across East Anglia. Jim Hagan, Regional Operations and Safety Manager, Network Rail said: “Safety is Network Rail’s top priority and we aim to increase safety and reduce railway crime through education programmes, working in partnership with the British Transport Police and the railway industry, and innovative safety solutions.” 

Contact information

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03457 11 41 41

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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.

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