Railway line between Redhill to close for landslip repairs
Network Rail will close the railway between Redhill and Tonbridge for five days while engineers stabilise a landslip near Godstone in Surrey. Buses will…
Network Rail will close the railway line between Redhill and Tonbridge for five days from 28 October, as engineers work to stabilise a landslip near Godstone in Surrey. Replacement buses will run between Redhill, in Surrey, and Tonbridge, in Kent, until 1 November.
The closure means passengers will need to use buses instead of trains along the route, while a speed restriction remains in place until the emergency works begin. Redhill Station’s car park will also be partially closed to make room for the replacement bus services.
Railway line between Redhill and Tonbridge
Network Rail said the work is needed after a landslip affected the railway. Engineers will stabilise a 126m stretch of embankment by installing 208 sheet piles and 10m sheets of metal during the closure.
The railway operator has also imposed a speed restriction along the affected section until the work can start. Engineers plan to carry out extra maintenance on the tracks at the same time, with the aim of removing some of the speed restrictions already in place.
Nad Campbell, project manager for Network Rail, apologised for the disruption. “We know closing the line between Redhill and Tonbridge will frustrate passengers, and we have not taken this decision lightly.”
The works bring an immediate change to journeys on the route: passengers will have to transfer to replacement buses, and the partial car park closure at Redhill may affect where they access those services. Network Rail and Southern Railway have advised passengers to check online before travelling and allow extra time.
Replacement buses and station access
Tom Easdown, Southern Railway’s head of stations, said the closure would disrupt customers travelling between Redhill and Tonbridge. He apologised for the impact on journeys next week and said the company was working with Network Rail on bus services, ticket acceptance and passenger information.
“We're working hard behind the scenes, with our colleagues at Network Rail, to keep people moving, including arranging bus services, ticket acceptance and all of the latest information will be available on our website,” Easdown said.
Passengers should check the latest travel information online before setting out, particularly because both the rail service and part of the Redhill Station car park will be affected during the works. The closure is scheduled to run from 28 October until 1 November.
Source: bbc.co.uk
