AN UPDATE has been issued after days of disruption caused by a closure of the railway due to a sinkhole.
The Helensburgh to Edinburgh line has been shut between Airdrie and Bathgate since engineers discovered a "sinkhole" at Caldercruix, North Lanarkshire, on the morning of Sunday, April 21.
As a result, ScotRail has only been able to run the line between Helensburgh Central and Airdrie.
The closure has led to many services to and from Helensburgh being cancelled altogether.
Network Rail says that even once the line reopens, trains will have to run with a speed restriction for two weeks while engineers work on a longer-term fix.
The infrastructure company says it's currently "on target" to reopen the line on Monday, April 29.
James Montgomery, Network Rail's senior programme manager with Scotland's Railway, said: "We found a significant sinkhole under the track and we are currently pumping away 1,500 gallons of water per minute, which is a significant amount of water to try and manage on the track.
👷📽️ Here’s an update from James at Caldercruix. We’re still on target to reopen the Airdrie – Bathgate line on Mon 29 Apr. For safety reasons, trains will run with a speed restriction for 2 weeks, following these complex repairs. @ScotRail @transcotland pic.twitter.com/yIl51sGsAg
— Network Rail Scotland (@NetworkRailSCOT) April 24, 2024
"We've dug a number of ditches to take that away safely into a watercourse, and what we'll be doping now is working to formalise those to get us into a position where we can manage that water.
"There will still be some significant works afterwards to get a permanent solution and make sure we manage where that water's coming from, but we can do that once we've got passengers moving again.
"We know this is a disruptive incident and we're doing everything we can to get things open as quickly as possible while keeping everyone safe."
For the latest travel information follow @ScotRail on X (formerly Twitter) or see journeycheck.com/scotrail.
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