The last time we saw this railway line in the news was on the night of 4th February, the night of horrific storms that battered the country’s coastline. The town of Dawlish in Devon also became a household name that night because it was at this location where the railway line collapsed as the storms washed away the sea wall that was supporting 100m of railway track.
The good news, and the reason why this particular town and section of the London-to-Cornwall railway line, is that it is due to re-open in time for Easter! When work began to repair the damage, the re-opening date was mid-March; this got pushed back to mid-April, but rail chiefs have brought the date forward to 4th April after weeks of rebuilding work. Great news for the thousands of commuters who have endured journeys on replacement buses and coaches for the last two months!
When the track and sea wall below it gave way on that night, the Army and Royal Marines were called in to help with emergency repairs to this famous route that was designed by engineering legend, Isambard Kingdom Brunel more than 150 years ago, and built to provide a route to take tourists from London to the south west. In just a week, continual storms that tore apart the south west coastline also severely damaged 3.7 miles of railway line between Dawlish and Teignmouth; but that wasn’t all. Breaches were also seen at Dawlish Warren, Teignmouth, and there were also five landslips near the famous Smugglers’ Cove!
More than 300 engineers, 5,000 tonnes of concrete, 150 tonnes of steel, scaffolding bridges and long lengths of cable have been used to repair the 100m of track; a new sea wall has been constructed, new track has been laid, an entire platform at Dawlish station has been demolished and rebuilt, at a cost rumoured to be around £15 million, although it is said to cost Devon’s tourist industry much more! Traders in towns in Devon and Cornwall claim the works have cost the South West’s tourist economy as much as £1 million a day, if not more; but like many things when it came to the storms that the UK suffered this winter, there’s not a lot you can do to stop ‘Mother Nature’ when she puts her mind to it! And you can’t fault Network Rail for working almost round-the-clock to get the rebuilding and repairing work done as quickly as possible!
A spokesman for Network Rail said: “We are acutely aware of the value of the railway to the economy of the south west of England and have been working closely with local authorities, business groups and transport providers in and around Dawlish to ensure that disruption is minimised. Restoring this vital asset in time for the busy school holiday period will provide a welcome boost to the regional economy as business and tourism return to South Devon and Cornwall.”