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Friday 7 Feb 2025

TWO WEEKS TO GO: Vital engineering work to close West of England Line between Gillingham and Yeovil

Region & Route:

Southern: Wessex

| Southern

From Saturday 22 February to Friday 28 February, train services will change on the West of England Line between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction, with no trains calling at Sherborne or Templecombe stations all week, while Network Rail complete vital improvements to the railway in the Gillingham area.

While the railway is closed, Network Rail’s team of engineers will be stabilising the cuttings either end of Gillingham Tunnel. The area has seen previous landslips that have impacted services.

Network Rail and VolkerFitzpatrick teams, working as part of Southern Renewals Enterprise, have previously been on the site within 200m of the tunnel and this latest work will help further stabilise the embankment. The slope stabilisation design includes soil nailing which reduces the risk for further landslips.

During this time, engineers will take advantage of the line being closed to complete a range of work, including:

• Improving drainage in the Gillingham area to reduce the likelihood of flooding on the tracks,
• Repairing rail defects and replacing ballast (the stones that support the track) through level crossings in the Sherborne area
• General maintenance between Gillingham and Yeovil Junction including inspecting railway equipment, repairing line side fences, and cutting back of any overgrown or diseased trees and hedges that border the railway.

If our engineering work wasn’t completed continuously over one week, we would require many reoccurring weekend closures, causing significant disruption to passengers.  

Changes to train services

On Saturday 22 February and between Monday 24 February and Friday 28 February, buses will replace trains between Gillingham and Yeovil Junction, calling at Templecombe and Sherborne. Direct services between London and Exeter will run every two hours but will be diverted via Westbury and not serve Tisbury, Gillingham, Templecombe and Sherborne.

On Sunday 23 February, buses replace trains between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction, calling at all stations. No direct trains will run between Salisbury and Exeter.

Mark Goodall, Wessex Route Director for Network Rail, said: “While there is never a good time to close the railway, we have worked incredibly hard to minimise the disruption for passengers, by limiting the distance of this closure and diverting trains via Westbury. I am, though, sorry for the disruption that passengers who use the West of England Line will face during this closure.

“This work is vital to ensuring this part of the network is strong for the years to come. Once completed, passengers will benefit from a more reliable journey through the Gillingham area.”

Peter Williams, Customer and Commercial Director for South Western Railway, said: “We know just how important The West of England Line is to the local communities that use it, which is why it’s vital that Network Rail carry out this maintenance to keep our train services running.

“Customers should check before travelling, with buses operating between Gillingham and Yeovil Junction, and train services being amended and diverted. We’re sorry for the disruption and would like to thank our customers for their patience.”