Work to repair railway earthworks continues in New Mills

Network Rail is advising passengers travelling between Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly of rail closures that will continue into September as part of emergency railway repair work.

Following a landslip, engineers have been working around the clock in Hague Bar, New Mills since April to stabilise the earth that supports the railway.

Network Rail’s initial estimate was that the repairs would be completed in August. During the repairs, engineers discovered more complex issues with the drainage. As a result, five state-of-the-art drainage chambers are required to be built under the railway to collect excess water and direct it to the river Goyt. These will last for 120 years and will mean that the railway is more resilient to climate change.

To carry out the work safely and quickly, the railway now needs to be closed until 23 September.

The closure means there will be some changes to services in the area, with a bus replacement running between Marple and Chinley station.

This will be carried out as quickly and efficiently as possible to minimise disruption to the community and to reopen the railway fully as soon as possible.

Network Rail is holding a meeting for residents on Thursday 29 August from 7-9pm at New Mills Town Hall, Springsbank, New Mills, High Peak SK22 4AT. The meeting is in the lecture room with access via Hall Road. Everyone is welcome.

Vitesh Solanki, Network Rail’s scheme project manager, said:  

“I’m sorry for the disruption the rail closure will cause passengers. We have received a tremendous welcome from the community in New Mills and we are grateful for your patience while we carry out this important work.”

Please check National Rail enquiries for travel advice in August and September for services between Manchester Piccadilly and Sheffield.”

Network Rail is working with Northern to reduce disruption to passengers as much as possible.

A spokesperson for Northern said:  “We’d like to thank our customers for their patience while this important, safety-critical work is carried out by Network Rail. We’ll do everything we can to make sure customers can still get where they want to be – but they should allow more time for their journeys.”

The work means there will be some changes in services from Manchester to New Mills Central via Bredbury:

• From Monday to Saturday there will be an hourly train service between Manchester Piccadilly and Marple. A bus service will run between Marple and Chinley. 

• On Sundays, an hourly bus service will run between Manchester Piccadilly, Bredbury, Marple and Chinley.

Services between Chinley and Manchester Piccadilly continue to divert via Hazel Grove and Stockport, with a bus service between Chinley and Marple.

Passengers are advised to check www.nationalrail.co.uk before they travel.