New track laid near Chichester as part of £250m railway upgrade
Railway improvements have been completed near Chichester as part of a major investment programme aimed at making train journeys more reliable across the region.
Engineers have renewed 183 metres of railway track in the Fishbourne area, close to Chichester, as part of a series of improvements carried out during the October half-term.
The work involved replacing rails, sleepers and ballast, with the aim of providing smoother and more comfortable journeys for passengers using Southern's West Coastway route.
The improvements formed part of a wider programme of railway upgrades undertaken by Network Rail and South Western Railway between Saturday, October 24 and Sunday, November 1.
Elsewhere, engineers installed 61 new axle counters in the Havant area as part of an ongoing signalling upgrade designed to reduce failures and improve the reliability of services.
Axle counters are used to detect the position of trains on the railway, helping signallers monitor movements and manage services safely.
Further improvements were also carried out between Liphook and Petersfield, where new rails were installed alongside upgrades to signalling equipment and cabling.
The projects form part of a £250 million investment by South Western Railway and Network Rail Wessex to replace ageing railway infrastructure and improve reliability across the network.
George Murrell, Renewals Director for South Western Railway and Network Rail Wessex, said: “Reliable trains need reliable tracks and signals, which is why we invested in renewing and upgrading signalling systems on this key route. This was an important step for our £250 million project to improve our railway on the Portsmouth Direct Line and deliver the reliable service our customers deserve.
“I’d like to thank passengers for their patience whilst we carried out these works over the half term.”
Jenny Saunders, Customer Service Director for Southern, said: “Vital resignalling work designed to give our passengers better, more reliable services, regrettably meant anyone travelling west of Chichester during the October half term had to use a rail replacement bus.
“I know that for some people this meant longer journeys and I’m sorry for the impact this had.”