The Cross City line between Birmingham and Lichfield is open today (11th April) to both passengers and freight once again following a huge project which saw a bridge removed and replaced this Easter.

The vast project saw Network Rail invest £4 million to replace the rail bridge in Sutton Coldfield which carried freight trains over the passenger line.

The complex project required a four-day railway closure which began on Good Friday and has now been completed allowing service to operate from today the 11th of April.

The impressive project has been photographed and images have been released of various stages of progress as engineers were hard at work getting the new bridge in place.

Improvement in reliability due to the replacement of the bridge will benefit both freight services and passengers on the well-used route which connects Warwickshire via Birmingham and into Staffordshire.

Denise Wetton, Network Rail’s Central route director, said: “Removing and replacing this railway bridge over just four days was a hugely ambitious task and I’d like to pay tribute to the dozens of engineers involved who worked around the clock to make sure trains could run as normal from today.

“I’d also like to thank passengers for their patience while we had to close the Cross City line so we could safely and swiftly carry out these improvements. Now they are complete it means better, smoother journeys for passengers, as well as making sure goods can move across the country on the important freight route through Sutton Coldfield.”

Further smaller-scale engineering work is set to take place in the Midlands and on the Chiltern line during the early May bank holiday from Saturday the 29th of April to Monday the 1st of May.

As other parts of the national network will also see upgrades during this time passengers planning to travel during the early May bank holiday weekend are advised to plan ahead and check their journeys via www.nationalrail.co.uk

Further work taking place in the Midlands involved the stabilisation of the Nuneham viaduct which may affect passengers travelling. People planning to travel through the Midlands heading towards Reading or further on the south coast of England are advised to check with their train operator or via National Rail Enquiries.