Railway line to be reinforced near former mineral mine in Telford

Work will be getting underway later this month to protect the railway between Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury from abandoned underground mine workings.

Network Rail will infill one mine shaft in the Hadley area very close to the important route for passengers and freight.

The railway in this part of Shropshire was developed in 1849, not to move local people, but predominantly to move the minerals mined in the area to be taken to trade.

In fact, the geography of the railway lines reflect where the largest mineral reserves were found during the industrial revolution.

Over hundreds of years, hundreds of mines have been excavated and then left abandoned. 

Now Network Rail engineers need to protect the railway from the risk of ground movements posed by the instability of the historic mine shafts.

During the essential work, trains will not be able to run and a rail replacement bus service will be in operation between Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury from:

• Saturday 18 until Monday 20 March
• Saturday 25 until Monday 27 March.

Passengers planning on travelling through the area on those weekends are being encouraged to plan ahead by visiting www.nationalrail.co.uk so they know exactly what to expect from their journey.

Photo credit: Network Rail

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