Trains running again between Portsmouth Harbour and Southampton Central as "integral" upgrades completed

The line has been closed throughout much of the Easter Holidays. Network Rail engineers started work on April 12 to stabilise a 300m section of embankment between Swanwick and Fareham - with the aim of improving the reliability of services.

Mark Goodall, Network Rail’s Wessex route director, said: “I’d like to thank passengers for their patience and understanding while our teams have completed this important work over the Easter break. I recognise the piling work to stabilise the embankment between Swanwick and Fareham, at times, may have been noisy for residents living nearby for which I’m sorry for any disruption caused.

“We’re committed to running a safe, reliable and punctual railway and the work we have completed is an integral part in fulfilling this commitment.”

A metal sheet pile wall was installed between the stations, on the line between Southampton and Portsmouth via St Denys and Fareham. It’s hoped the chance of landslips will reduce as a result. Engineers carried out a range of other improvements.

This included strengthening the footbridge at Hamble station to reduce long-term maintenance costs, cutting down overgrown hedges and trees between Fareham and Swanwick, Replacing 10 wooden wheel timbers - the blocks that carry the tracks over a bridge - with synthetic ones - along the viaduct over the River Itchen and other maintenance.

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Fibre-reinforced Foamed Urethane was used to replace the wooden counterparts, which are hoped to last 30 years. Railway operators Southern Rail and South Western Railway believe the engineering works will allow their services to be better.

Southern’s Customer Service Director, Jenny Saunders, said: “These works have ensured the reliability of services on the line for years to come, and I’d like to thank our passengers for being patient while engineers were hard at work on our railway. The line between Southampton and Brighton has some great destinations – and with the tracks back open, I’d encourage people to make the most of our regular service along the coast."

Peter Williams, SWR’s Customer and Commercial Director said: “We are very pleased that the line connecting Southampton and Portsmouth has reopened after this essential maintenance work to improve reliability and reduce disruption in the area. We are very grateful to our customers for their patience and look forward to welcoming them back on our services.”