No services running on part of Cross City Line due to viaduct works
Rail passengers have been reminded of the closure of services between Birmingham and Lichfield due to work on a viaduct this week.
Passengers using the Cross City North line have been reminded that there will be no services between Birmingham New Street and Lichfield Trent Valley until Sunday (August 3) with the line reopening as normal on Monday.
The original closure was needed to install an HS2 viaduct, with further Network Rail work, including earthwork repairs, cutting back vegetation, track maintenance and improvements, planned to make the most of the line being closed.
While the viaduct will now be installed at a later date, the other work will continue, as well as Birmingham Council’s ongoing strengthening and refurbishment work on the A38 Tame Valley Viaduct which runs directly above the railway.
To help keep passengers moving during the closure, which started earlier this week, Network Rail said that a rail replacement bus service will run between Birmingham New Street and Lichfield Trent Valley, and between Birmingham New Street and Tame Bridge Parkway.
Additionally, services between Wolverhampton and Walsall will run between Wolverhampton and Birmingham only and rail replacement will operate between Birmingham New Street and Tame Bridge Parkway, also calling at Duddeston, Aston, Witton, Perry Barr and Hamstead.
Services between Birmingham International and Rugeley Trent Valley will be diverted and take slightly longer, calling additionally at Hamstead and Bescot Stadium.
Train services will continue to run as normal between Birmingham New Street and Redditch/Bromsgrove on the southern section of the Cross City line
Denise Wetton, Network Rail’s Central route director, said: “Everything was done to plan this work to cause the least disruption to the fewest number of people, while completing the most amount of maintenance work as possible.
"There is never a good time for closures like this and I am sorry for the inconvenience, but school holidays and summer breaks means passenger numbers will be lower than normal.
“Passengers should check with West Midlands Railway and National Rail Enquiries for travel information, and I want to thank passengers in advance for their patience.”
Jonny Wiseman, customer experience director for West Midlands Railway, said: "I’d like to thank our customers for their patience while the northern section of the Cross-City Line is closed.
"We’ll be running replacement buses throughout the work to keep our customers moving and I’d urge passengers to check their travel before setting out and allow extra time for their journeys.”
