IT WAS hailed as a high-tech upgrade that would improve reliability on the railways, but twice this week the new level crossings at Wokingham Station have failed.
On Friday, February 23, the barriers failed during morning rush hour, with the barriers stuck in the raised position.
National Rail said trains had faced a morning of disruption.
The failure comes after a 10-day shutdown of the railway line between Reading and Ascot to allow works to take place to replace the signalling at Wokingham Station.
The level crossing was also closed, along with the crossing at Star Lane.
The work had been timed to coincide with half-term, and was intended to provide a modern system with advance fault detection, improving relability and safety for the passenger and freight network.
On Monday, Matt Pocock, Network Rail’s Wessex route director, said: “The new digital signals have replaced the old equipment which became unreliable and harder to maintain and the new state of the art signalling will improve the reliability of this key stretch of railway and in turn help reduce delays for our customers.”
While the signalling works have been completed, Network Rail’s engineers now need to figure out what has caused the issue with the barriers.
A Network Rail spokesperson, said: “Shortly after 8am this morning (Friday, February 23), the level crossing at Wokingham failed meaning the barriers were stuck in the raised position.
“Our teams are on site investigating the issue, and to ensure everyone’s safety we are operating the level crossing manually to keep trains and motorists moving.
“Unfortunately, this is the second fault here this week after it was reopened following engineering work.
“We are really sorry for the delays and are working hard to fix the problem as soon as possible.”
