Media centre

Monday 28 Oct 2019

Railway network update following weekend of extreme weather on the Wales and Borders route

Region & Route:

Wales & Western: Wales & Borders

| Wales & Western

Following extreme weather over the weekend across the Wales and Borders route, the line between Abergavenny and Hereford is closed, after flooding caused sections of the track to be washed away.

Engineers are working around the clock to repair the line at six separate locations north of Abergavenny, replacing 500 tonnes of ballast and 300 tonnes of track foundations that were washed away. Engineers are also repairing drainage systems and fencing that were significantly damaged.

Network Rail is working in close partnership with Transport for Wales to keep passengers moving as quickly and as safely as possible.

• The line is closed between Abergavenny and Hereford until Monday 4^th November and a bus replacement is in operation.
• An amended timetable is in operation between Newport and Abergavenny, with some rail services back up and running and a rail replacement bus service also in operation.

Passengers are advised to check their journey before travelling.

Chris Pearce, Network Rail’s head of operations delivery, said:

“Significant damaged was caused to the railway line and our engineers are working day and night to carry out these essential repairs and reopen the line as soon as possible.

“We would like to thank passengers for their patience and to also thank our staff and partners at Transport for Wales who worked tirelessly over the weekend in very difficult conditions to keep passengers moving as efficiently and as safely as possible.”

Transport for Wales Customer Experience Director Colin Lea said:

“This weekend saw significant flooding in parts of our network and damage to the Marches line between Abergavenny and Hereford.

“We are able to get some services from Newport to Abergavenny and back, while supporting these with an additional coach service between Newport and Hereford.

“Together with our partners in Network Rail we have been working incredibly hard to minimise the disruption all around the network and we will be continuing to work closely together to manage the impact of disruption between North and South Wales over the coming days. Customers should continue to check before traveling.”

Attached, please find service alterations between Hereford to Abergavenny.