Vehicles to be diverted as ?5.5m Thornliebank road bridge replacement begins in April: Thornliebank road bridge

Friday 23 Feb 2024

Vehicles to be diverted as GBP5.5m Thornliebank road bridge replacement begins in April

Region & Route:Scotland’s Railway: Scotland [1]

Thornliebank road bridge will be replaced as the next phase of work begins to electrify the railway corridor between East Kilbride and Glasgow. The GBP5.5m project will see the bridge, which crosses the railway near Thornliebank station, demolished and reconstructed over a 14-month period, beginning on Tuesday 2 April. During that time – up until June 2025 – pedestrian and cyclist access will be maintained but vehicles will be diverted via Thornliebank Road, Rouken Glen Road, Fenwick Road, and Merrilee Road.

Routes for First Bus services 57 and 57A will operate a diversion for the duration of the road closure and stops within the closed area will not be served during this time. It’s all part of a wider GBP140m investment in the East Kilbride Enhancement Project, which will see the line electrified in an effort to remove diesel trains from the route and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, there’s not enough space underneath the structure, between the road bridge and the railway, to install the required overhead line equipment, which will allow electric trains to run on the line.

Network Rail will create the appropriate clearance during the work, while installing the overhead line equipment and creating a new road surface as part of the bridge reconstruction. Simon Humble, project manager, Network Rail, said: “During the work we’re urging everyone to leave a bit more time for their journeys. “The work we’re completing at Thornliebank will not only allow us to create the space to install the overhead line equipment that is essential to electrifying the railway but will benefit drivers through a new and improved road surface.

“This investment in electrifying the East Kilbride to Glasgow railway corridor will mean we can run electric trains on the line. In turn, that will help us improve our environmental impact as part of the Scottish Government’s strategy to decarbonise Scotland’s Railway. “We understand that closing a road bridge temporarily is never ideal, however, this project simply can’t be completed without the closure due to the nature of the work.

“In the meantime, we’re inviting members of the public to meet our team next month and find out more about the work, as well as the overall enhancements we’re making to the railway through Thornliebank.” Linda Shields, operations director for First Bus Scotland, said: “We have worked closely with Network Rail to understand the impact on our services and to minimise any negatives for our customers. “Our services will follow a significant diversion during this phase of work to electrify the railway corridor between East Kilbride and Glasgow.

We would advise all customers to leave extra time for their journeys during this period and please refer to our website for the latest diversion details.” Full details of all diversions for affected routes can be found on firstbus.co.uk/greater-glasgow Two in-person public drop-in events will take place at Thorntree Hall on Wednesday 13 and Thursday 14 March from 4pm – 7pm.

There is no need to book a place, members of the public can walk in on the day to speak to the project team.

Notes to Editors

Address for the public drop-in eventsThorntree Hall, Main Street , Thornliebank, G46 7SF Additional informationConsent for the road traffic diversion has been given by East Renfrewshire Council while alternative routes for buses have been confirmed by First Bus and SPT. The East Kilbride Enhancement project is part of a wider GBP140m investment at the centre of the Scottish Government’s ongoing strategy to decarbonise Scotland’s Railway.

Large numbers of passenger and freight journeys are already made on electrified routes in Scotland. By converting the remainder of the diesel-powered railway network to being powered by electricity and low carbon sources, this will result in fewer greenhouse gas emissions, generating an even greener railway – with East Kilbride Enhancement project representing the current phase of the wider decarbonisation programme. Thornliebank Road bridge (OB44) crosses over the railway near Thornliebank station and was identified as a structure with insufficient clearance for the new overhead line equipment.

This means the existing structure needs to be demolished and reconstructed. The GBP5.5m investment to replace the bridge will allow the electrification of this section of the railway corridor between East Kilbride and Glasgow.

About Network Rail

We own, operate and develop Britain’s railway infrastructure; that’s 20,000 miles of track [2], 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts [3] and the thousands of signals [4], level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK’s largest stations [5] while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country’s train operating companies [6].

Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain’s railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway [7], so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan [8], to grow and expand the nation’s railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced – a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.

References

^ Scotland’s Railway: Scotland (www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk)
^ track (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ bridges, tunnels and viaducts (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ signals (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ stations (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ train operating companies (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ a safe and reliable railway (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan (www.networkrail.co.uk)
^ @networkrail (twitter.com)
^ http://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/ (www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk)