Passengers travelling in the area around Morpeth in Northumberland are seeing their train services disrupted while Network Rail carries out repair work at Plessey Viaduct, between Cramlington and Morpeth.

The viaduct is on the Newcastle to Morpeth stretch of the East Coast Main Line. It was built by the York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway in 1849/50, replacing a timber trestle bridge of 1847.

Over the weekend, Network Rail carried out planned engineering work, and while doing so found that the bridge’s parapet had moved. As this is an important safety feature, work stopped and specialist structural teams came to the site to assess repair options.

They concluded that it is not viable to move the parapet back to its original position, because of the location, the viaduct design and the heavy machinery required. Network Rail Structural Engineers and external specialists are now working on different options to repair the structure.

The structure of the viaduct itself is not affected, so train services are still running on one of its lines. However, operators have had to reduce their train services, and run some replacement buses.

Details on how this impacts train services can be found on the National Rail Enquiries website here.

Paul Rutter, Route Director for Network Rail’s East Coast route, said: “Our teams are working hard to repair damage to Plessey Viaduct. While we want to minimise disruption to travellers, the safety of passengers is our top priority.

“We are sorry for the inconvenience this will cause to journeys and we want to thank passengers for their patience and understanding while we carry out this vital work.”

A spokesperson on behalf of train operators said: “We want to thank our passengers for their patience as Network Rail carries out essential work to repair Plessey Viaduct. There is a reduced service in place, and some services are not stopping at Morpeth, Cramlington, and Manors stations.

“We are advising passengers to check before they travel with National Rail Enquiries or via their train operator.”