A PLANNED week-long closure of parts of the cross city railway line later this month will not affect journeys between Birmingham and Bromsgrove and Redditch.
Network Rail have shared details of the closure which will stop all trains between Birmingham and Lichfield between Monday, July 28 and Sunday, August 3 inclusive.
The rail operator has confirmed journeys on the southern section of the line between Redditch and Bromsgrove and the city centre will not be impacted.
Denise Wetton, Network Rail’s Central route director, said: “Everything was done to plan this work to cause the least disruption to the fewest number of people, while completing the most amount of maintenance work as possible.
“There is never a good time for closures like this and I am sorry for the inconvenience, but school holidays and summer breaks means passenger numbers will be lower than normal.”
A rail replacement bus service will run between Birmingham New Street and Lichfield Trent Valley and between the city centre station and Tame Bridge Parkway.
Services to Rugeley Trent Valley will be diverted via Aston, with slightly extended journey times
The original closure was needed to install an HS2 viaduct, with further Network Rail work – including earthwork repairs, cutting back vegetation, track maintenance and improvements – planned to make the most of the line being closed.
The closed section of the line will reopen as normal on Monday, August 4.
While the viaduct will now be installed at a later date, the other work will continue, as well as Birmingham City Council’s ongoing strengthening and refurbishment work on the A38(M) Tame Valley Viaduct which runs directly above the railway.
Jonny Wiseman, customer experience director for West Midlands Railway, said: “I’d like to thank our customers for their patience while the northern section of the Cross-City Line is closed.”
Passengers affected by the closure are urged to plan journeys ahead of time.
Visit www.nationalrail.co.uk and www.wmr.uk for more information.
