Rail passengers across the East of England are being warned to expect significant disruption over several weekends this month as major maintenance and signal upgrade work takes place on the Norwich line.
The multi-million pound project will see parts of the 40-year-old analogue signalling system at the Norwich end of the Great Eastern Main Line to London replaced with modern digital components. Network Rail said the work will improve reliability and punctuality for passengers travelling between Norwich, Ipswich and London.
Sections of track between Norwich and Diss, and near Stowmarket, will be affected on the weekends of 15–16 and 29–30 November. During these periods, rail replacement buses will be in operation, including on the weekend of Norwich City’s home fixture against Queens Park Rangers.
Rail replacement buses will operate between Norwich and Ipswich on Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 November, while trains will continue to run between Ipswich and London. On the final weekend of the month, Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 November, buses will again replace trains between Norwich and Ipswich, as well as between Ipswich and Bury St Edmunds. Train services will continue to run between Ipswich and London, Bury St Edmunds and Cambridge, and Bury St Edmunds and Peterborough.
Further disruption is also expected on Sunday 23 November at the London end of the line, as well as on the Southend and Southminster branch lines in Essex. Engineers will carry out work to replace a faulty section of track at Forest Gate, where a 50mph (80km/h) speed restriction is currently in place. Repairs will also be made to a nearby bridge.
During this time, buses will operate instead of trains between Ingatestone and Shenfield into London, affecting journeys from Norwich, Ipswich and Clacton. Passengers travelling between Southend Victoria and Newbury Park, or to and from Southminster and Wickford, will also need to complete part of their journey by bus.
Greater Anglia’s managing director, Martin Beable, said: “We appreciate that this work will cause inconvenience to passengers, but it’s essential to modernise the railway and maintain punctuality and reliability in the long term.”
Network Rail said the digital upgrade is part of a wider programme to replace ageing systems across the region, ensuring safer and more efficient train operations in the future.
