From October to mid-November, train services through parts of north Cambridgeshire and Norfolk will be liable to disruption because of engineering work in the Ely area.

Included in the work are:

• Replacing 1,500 metres of track, ballast, and sleepers, and three sets of points between Ely North Junction and Chettisham.
• Replacing track near Waterbeach.
• Installing new signalling equipment.
• Tamping track at Ely station.

The work will affect services operated by Greater Anglia, Great Northern, Thameslink, CrossCountry, and East Midlands Railway.

Level crossings on the B3182 Ely Road in Queen Adelaide and Lynn Road near Chettisham will be closed each weekend from Saturday, 4th October until Sunday, 16th November, with the closures lasting from 10 pm on the Friday night until 6 am on the following Monday. During the same period, the work will also affect Clayway and Second Drove non-highway crossings, and private users and public recreational walkers should use alternative routes.

Summary of train service alterations:

• Saturday, 4th October – Train services between Cambridge and Peterborough and King’s Lynn via Ely, but train services will run between Ely and Norwich.
• Sunday, 5th October – train services between Ely and Peterborough, and Norwich, with a revised service operating between Ely and King’s Lynn.
• Saturday, 11th and Sunday, 12th October – train services between Ely and Peterborough, King’s Lynn and Norwich.
• Saturday, 18th and Sunday, 19th October, Saturday, 25th and Sunday, 26th October, and Saturday, 1st and Sunday, 2nd November – train services between Cambridge North and Peterborough, King’s Lynn and Thetford.
• Sunday, 16th November – train services between Ely and Peterborough.

To enable passengers to complete their journeys, rail replacement bus services will operate between affected stations, and some train journeys may need to be completed by a different rail operator. CrossCountry passengers travelling to Stansted Airport can use their tickets on other services at no extra cost.

The Department for Transport has recently awarded £5 million in funding for 26 groundbreaking projects aimed at improving passenger experience on the railway. Network Rail is also completing projects throughout the UK, and in August, it completed the refurbishment of two bridges in Somerset and Wiltshire.

“Busy areas of the network can see more wear of the rails through extensive use by passenger and freight services. The track between Ely North junction and Manase experiences a lot of use, and this autumn we’re planning to renew over 1500 metres of track to keep services moving safely. These engineering works will, unfortunately, cause some disruption to weekend services and road users. However, the longer time on the track will give our engineers the opportunity to complete this work safely and more efficiently.”

Katie Frost, Network Rail’s route director for Anglia