RAIL passengers in the Forest and Wye Valley will be affected by closures over three weeks this summer as Network Rail continues a major project to prevent landslips from closing the line.

Engineers will be working on a one-mile-stretch of railway, close to Purton between Lydney and Gloucester, to remove around 15,000 tonnes of material from the cliff face between July 31 and August 18, as part of ongoing works to shore up the cliff face.

The project is part of Network Rail’s £25 million Severn Estuary Resilience Programme, which aims to improve the resilience of the “vital” link between south Wales and England, for passengers and freight.

A series of landslips in the area have caused multiple closures of the railway over the last few years, including three in January 2023 alone.

Phase One of the project was completed over six weeks in July and August last year, which saw engineers work in the searing heat to remove 15,000 tonnes of material from the cliff and install 27,000 square metres of mesh and bolts.

Network Rail (NR) says that no landslips occurred on the stretch where those works took place during a period of heavy rainfall in January, which it says highlights the success of the scheme with five major landslips having occurred there previously.

Phase Two will see a similar ‘active’ mesh system covering 19,500m2 secured by more than 5,000 rock bolts, just west of the Phase One site.

A 100-tonne landslip occurred at the site in January following a prolonged bout of heavy rain, which saw the line closed for four days.

Works are also taking place to refurbish the Grade II-listed Chepstow Viaduct between July 31 and August 4.

The refurbishment of the 170 year-old bridge over the Wye is also part of the £25 million Severn Estuary Resilience Programme, and will cost around £4.6 million.

NR says the works will ensure the historic viaduct will remain in use “for many years to come”.

Sections of the line between Gloucester and Newport will be closed while Phase Two takes place so the works can be carried out “safely and efficiently”.

The company says the period of closure has been chosen to minimise the impact on schoolchildren travelling between Lydney and Gloucester.

Transport for Wales and CrossCountry trains will be affected, and a rail replacement service will be put in place.  

Transport for Wales will replace trains with buses calling at all stations:  

Network Rail urges passengers to visit tfw.wales for more information.  

CrossCountry will replace all trains with buses between Newport and Gloucester, calling at all stations:

Network Rail urges passengers to visit crosscountrytrains.co.uk/Lydney-2023 for more information.