WOKINGHAM residents are being warned that a second level crossing in the town is to close this evening – and the two affected routes will not reopen until Monday, February 19.
Network Rail is currently engaged in repairs and replacements to the signalling around Wokingham railway station.
As a result, it closed the level crossing to traffic last Friday.
Tonight, Friday, February 2, the Star Lane crossing at Easthampstead Road will also be shut, with diversions in place.
At Easthampstead Road (Star Lane), engineers will complete work to modernise the level crossings, installing new equipment that Network Rail says will extend the life of the crossing by 30 years.
These crossings will need to be closed completely from 10pm this evening.
At Wokingham station, a manually controlled barrier will be upgraded with CCTV monitors.
Both crossings will reopen at 4am on Monday, February 19.
Next weekend, there will be a shutdown of railway lines between Reading and Ascot, and Reading and Gatwick Airport, meaning passengers will need to use replacement buses for their journeys.
This will affect services running during February half-term – Saturday, February 10 through to Sunday, February 18.
Buses will replace South Western Railway (SWR) and Great Western Railway (GWR) trains between Reading, Bracknell and Gatwick Airport, extending to Ascot and Aldershot on some weekends.
This work is the conclusion of Network Rail’s £116m Feltham and Wokingham re-signalling programme which, over the past four years, has seen upgrades to key signalling equipment and level crossings controlled by the Feltham Area Signalling Centre and Wokingham Signal Box, which jointly cover 80 miles of railway and 500 separate pieces of signalling equipment in key areas of the South Western Railway (SWR) network including Feltham, Hounslow, Shepperton, Twickenham, Windsor & Eton Riverside and Wokingham.
Once complete, Network Rail says customers will benefit from a modern digitised signalling system that will help improve train performance, increase future capacity, result in fewer delays, and enhance the safety of level crossings.
While the railway is closed, engineers will also be working at Wokingham Junction to upgrade switches and crossings as well as completing routine maintenance and structure examination to make best use of the railway being closed for nine days.
Tom McNamee, Network Rail’s Wessex route infrastructure director, said: “These works are critical to us being able to deliver a safe, modern and reliable service for customers travelling on our network between Reading, Bracknell and Guildford.
“There’s never a good time to close the railway, and we know that level crossing closures in Wokingham will be disruptive to local road users. However, delivering the bulk of these works during the half term break, when fewer people travel by rail and the schools are closed, helps us minimise the disruption to our customers who rely on this important stretch of railway.
“We’re grateful to customers and local residents living alongside the railway for their patience and understanding while we continue upgrading the railway.”
A spokesperson for South Western Railway added: “We would like to remind customers to check before travelling ahead of these vital improvements, as buses will replace our train services between Reading, Bracknell and Ascot at differing times between Saturday, February 10, and Sunday, February 18.
“Customers heading to Twickenham for the England v Wales rugby fixture on Saturday 10 should also plan ahead.
“We’re very grateful for our customers’ patience as this work is carried out.”
Great Western Railway station manager for the North Downs line Andrew Gallaugher said: “As we continue to invest in the railway, this work is really important to ensure we can maintain and improve resilience.
“Buses will replace trains between Reading and Gatwick Airport between Saturday, February 10 and Sunday, February 18; journeys will take slightly longer, and we urge those travelling to check their journey beforehand.
“Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding.”
