Network Rail has warned passengers travelling between Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly that the railway will be closed in July and August between New Mills Central and Chinley in Derbyshire for emergency repair work.
Engineering teams have been working around the clock at Hague Bar, New Mills, to stabilise the earth that supports the railway, but to complete the work safely and quickly NR says the line needs to be closed from Saturday 6 July until Sunday 25 August.
The closure means there will be some changes to services in the area, with buses running between Marple, New Mills and Chinley.
If the work is not carried out, there is a risk of 50,000 tonnes of earth falling from the railway into the River Goyt.
The team will be drilling foundations into the earth and building a wall between the railway and the river to stop the movement of the ground.
Vitesh Solanki, Network Rail’s scheme project manager, apologised to passengers for the disruption, but said: “The closure is the safest and quickest way for us to carry out the work so we can reopen the line fully to passengers as soon as possible.”
NR is working with Northern to minimise disruption to passengers. A spokesperson for Northern said: “We’d like to thank our customers for their patience while this important, safety-critical work is carried out by Network Rail. We’ll do everything we can to make sure customers can still get where they want to be – but they should allow more time for their journeys.”
The work means there will be some changes in services from Manchester to New Mills Central via Bredbury:
From Monday to Saturday there will be an hourly train service between Manchester Piccadilly and Marple. A bus service will run between Marple and Chinley.
On Sundays, an hourly bus service will run between Manchester Piccadilly, Bredbury, Marple and Chinley.
Services between Chinley and Manchester Piccadilly continue to divert via Hazel Grove and Stockport, with a bus service between Chinley and Marple.
Passengers are advised to check www.nationalrail.co.uk before they travel.
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