Landslip near Stoke Mandeville leads to Aylesbury and Amersham train disruption
Closures of the line will be affecting commuters over the weekend
Network Rail are urging commuters and rail passengers to check before they travel, after a landslip near Stoke Mandeville station has caused distruption.
Passengers travelling between London Marylebone and Aylesbury via Amersham will be affected by emergency repairs to the railway in Stoke Mandeville, with engineers closing one of the two tracks north of the station on Tuesday.
Inspections found movement of the embankment which supports the track, meaning repairs are required before they can reopen.
120 specialist nine-metre-long 'soil nails' are among the measure being installed into the railway embankment to stabilise the area, with tracks closed today, ahead of repair work beginning.
When are the closures in place?
Both tracks will be closed between Aylesbury and Amersham stations continuously from Friday 1 to Monday 4 March.
Trains will be resuming on after work has been completed.
Chiltern Railways are running a reduced service today, with no Chiltern services running between London Marylebone and Aylesbury Vale Parkway via Amersham from Friday until Tuesday.
Will there be any alternative transport put in place?
Buses are replacing all trains during the closure between Amersham and Aylesbury Vale Parkway stations.
Neighbours are being told about the disruption, and what the repairs will entail, ahead of work beginning on Friday.
Some noise is expected, following around 5,000 tonnes of material slipping along the embankment, as heavy rainfall has weakened the earth.
“Our major repairs will allow us to safely reopen the railway as quickly as possible"
Adam Checkley, infrastructure director for Network Rail, said: “I’m really sorry to passengers and local people affected by the landslip at Stoke Mandeville which is causing disruption to trains between Aylesbury and London Marylebone via Amersham.
“Our major repairs will allow us to safely reopen the railway as quickly as possible and I want to urge passengers to check www.nationalrail.co.uk for the latest travel advice.”
Tony Baxter, operations director at Chiltern Railways, said: "We're sorry that customers between Aylesbury, Amersham and London Marylebone are being affected while Network Rail undertake urgent repairs to the railway.
"While the embankment is urgently repaired, no Chiltern services will run between London Marylebone and Aylesbury Vale Parkway via Amersham from Friday 1 March to Tuesday 5 March.
"A rail replacement bus service will be in operation between Aylesbury Vale Parkway and Amersham while the line is closed. Ticket acceptance has been arranged for TfL services between Amersham and Baker Street. Customers at Aylesbury and Aylesbury Vale Parkway are still able to travel by rail to/from London via High Wycombe.
"Affected customers should check ahead before they travel.
"We'd like to thank customers for their patience and understanding while we work to keep people moving and reopen the railway."