Ore tunnel improvements aim to cut rail journey times

Date: 13/3/2012

Improvements have been made to the railway between Ashford and Hastings in a bid to reduce journey times in the area.

Carried out by Network Rail, the upgrade took nine weeks and included strengthening the Ore tunnel.

The drainage system was renovated, while the inside lining was repaired to prevent water from seeping through into the tunnel.

It is hoped the improvements will help to make journeys more reliable, as much of the old route between Rye and Winchelsea was also replaced with almost a mile of new track during the closure of the line.

"Our engineers also scheduled a wide range of other work to take place at the same time to reduce further disruption in the future," Network Rail stated.

The organisation is continually making improvements to the country's train system and it recently welcomed a government paper that noted although safety and punctuality have been improved over the past ten years, there is still a great deal more that can be done.

Posted by Mary Treen