24.10.16
Severn Tunnel reopens after six-week electrification project
Work to prepare the Severn Tunnel for electrification has been successfully completed after it closed for six weeks.
The tunnel has been closed since 12 September to allow for more than eight miles of conductor rail to be installed, with 7,000 anchors to support them.
Network Rail engineers lowered the track in the nearby Patchway Tunnels and underneath the Little Stoke Farm bridge to preserve the historical architecture of the 130-year old structure.
Dan Tipper, project director at Network Rail, said: “It has been a phenomenal team effort, involving over 250 engineers and close working with our principal contractors ABC Electrification and Babcock as well as numerous suppliers, designers and sub-contractors including Amco, Keltbray and Arup, to deliver this essential stage of the electrification project.
“I would like to thank every single member of the team that has worked on this iconic project for their hard work and dedication to deliver this upgrade successfully and on time.”
There were 18,000 person-days worked day and night to deliver the upgrades, which also required removing 40 tonnes of soot and four miles of cable from the tunnel.
The work follows projects already underway across the West Country and Thames Valley to electrify the Great Western Main Line.
Mark Langman, Network Rail’s Western route managing director, said: “We are delighted to have delivered this vital milestone in the project to electrify the Great Western Main Line as part of our Railway Upgrade Plan to give passengers a bigger and better railway.”
John Skentelbery, tunnels operations director for ABC Electrification, which was one of Network Rail’s top 20 contractors in 2015-16, said: “This part of the electrification scheme was a huge challenge and we have all worked extremely hard to complete the work safely and on time.”
(Image c. Network Rail)
Have you got a story to tell? Would you like to become an RTM columnist? If so, click here.