Network Rail has begun work on improving the railway line between Ryde and Shanklin ahead of the arrival of new trains later this year.
Engineers have been replacing sections of the line in the area of Ryde St John’s this weekend, with all services suspended whilst the works are carried out. It’s thought that the track is being lowered.
A rail replacement bus service is in operation between Ryde Esplanade and Shanklin, but buses are not serving Ryde Pier Head or Smallbrook Junction. Taxis are operating up and down the pier.
Train services will resume as normal tomorrow (Monday).
There will be further disruption later down the line as the network is enhanced for a new era of Island Line. The next disruption is scheduled for next weekend (22nd/23rd August), with all services once again suspended.
Surely it would be far more sense to make the entire track into a road?
Traffic and accidents are growing yearly, and a new relief road which would cut the huge amount of traffic from the Ryde to Shanklin will be needed more than ever when Pennyfeather and the rest of Ryde is ruined?
This would create the bye pass that Brading so badly needs, and Brading could become ‘another’ Godshill type bored tourist ‘trap’, rather than a bottle neck as it is now, and will be when thousands more cars are using it from PF and other masse ruination building.
Lake is another problem area, and that too would be relieved of much traffic.
Whilst railways are seen as quaint, green, and saving pollution, the truth is they are not all that when slow moving traffic causes pollution, frustration and thus accidents, and makes life miserable daily for drivers, who wont give up their cars for ANY train which both starts and stops way away from your initial and then intended destination.
The reason they were never as popular as cars has not, and cannot be changed, and that ‘is’ the reason.
Remove the rose tints, and SEE what is required to improve not hamper peoples futures here on the Island.
Good job you are up to speed with the modern idea of taking traffic OFF the roads…
Waste of a ready made route for badly needed road.
Brilliant to keep this rail route running and new trains as well!!
I can’t wait to see how the new electric trains fare (no pun intended) on freshly lowered tracks… Especially at St. John’s Road and Ryde Esplanade at high water accompanying a period of heavy rain. The whole reason we had Underground trains is because the electrified lines had to be raised because of flooding. Mainly in the seafront tunnel. Still, I expect the millions spent by our Council on flood defences was not wasted. I am sure we will never have cancellations of rail services, due to water, ever again. Mmmmh…
I believe it’s only a small section of track under a bridge that’s getting lowered and the platforms are being lifted.
The money spent by the Council on flood defences was ONLY to remove the one obstacle they could otherwise NOT have gotten around as people protested against the ruination of Ryde by building Penny Feathers, Bullen, and Ashey siting flooding of Monkton st et al, as one valid reason.
As ‘very’ grateful developers would not then had been able to ‘thank’ the council had such had stopped them, our council then used our money to sort out the flooding issue and the anti building argument so they could get what ‘they’ want, despite Ryde town council and the majority of Ryde residents NOT wanting this to go ahead.
That is WHY it was done, not for the people but for themselves, as more buildings means millions more in council tax, businesses rates, so then, the council can take higher salaries, expenses and pensions etc, from a far ‘larger’ income, thus not ‘looking’ so bad as it would, IF it tried to take an increase from a smaller pot.
It’s fine, they don’t need to lower the tunnel tracks – the new trains aren’t excessively tall and the tunnel, though tight, has more headroom than widely assumed (despite losing some height to drainage improvements in the 60s).
It’s actually the bridges carrying Rink Road and Smallbrook Lane which need sorting, and that work is now underway.
Pah, cheaper to get an angle grinder and cut the high bits off and weld them lower, than to waste our cash digging this, and digging that out.
I would like to sort this lot out, no messing.
Millions spent on anti flooding was only achieved so as all the building at Pennyfeather could take place, as the main reason against such destruction was the massive additional water run off into Monkton Brook which always floods Simon St and the Strand etc.
The council knew that their lucrative income and their friendly developers generous pals would lose a lot of easy money if this problem was not first resolved.
So after years of people complaining about flooding, when, and only when it suited the councils income did they ‘do’ anything about such.
Never fool yourself it was for any other reason, any bonus to others is just a fortunate aside.
I know.
These repairs and upgrades should have been done long ago and would have been much more cost effective than the council spending millions on a poorly built floating bridge which was working fine anyway, certainly having less faults than the newer one which just constantly needs more money spent on it to keep it working!
Islanders have thought and for a long time asked for rail services to be extended to Newport. Considering how much revenue it would bring in ticket sales but more importantly how much it would encourage visitors over to come and to the ever failing tourism revenue over the island.
Having worked on Island Line many years ago, several times we couldn’t get the trains through from St Johns to Ryde Esplanade due to flooding in the tunnel.
I hope they replace the pumps or there will be more cases of flooding occurring.
I also hope the rails are NOT second hand either, which they probably are, possible more broken rails as well.
More broken rails? As someone who worked on Island line surely you know that it is the fishplates that break occasionally, not the rails?
Work began months ago. Sleepers have been replaced all over the place. But why bother reporting it until there’s disruption, which was planned and known about, but reporting it stirs people up. Crap reporting once again. Wonder how long before this gets deleted.