Network Rail will begin a £2.5m project which will see an array of elements renewed for the 137-year-old Finnieston tunnel in Glasgow.

The work will get underway shortly and will take place over two weekends of the 7th and 14th of October and will see engineering teams work around the clock. The project will see the following work carried out:

• Masonry and steelwork repairs
• Waterproofing of the tunnel
• Clearing drainage channels

During the period of work, the line between Patrick station and Springburn/Garrowhill stations will close at the end of service on both Saturday the 7th and Saturday the 14th of October with normal service returning on the mornings of Monday the 9th and Monday the 16th of October.

The work will not affect Glasgow Central‘s low-level services.

The Caledonian Sleeper will follow a diversion during the periods of work and will travel via the Edinburgh-Glasgow main line and will not call at Glasgow Queen Street on Sunday the 8th and Sunday the 15th of October.

Services impacted by the work will see ScotRail operate rail replacement buses.

To find out more about how services will be impacted whilst work is carried out at Finnieston tunnel, please visit ScotRail’s website or National Rail.

The 620m tunnel will also see work continue on Saturday nights between October and January 2024 alongside two more periods of continuous planned work in December and January, with further advice set to be released nearer the time.

Once the project is complete, the tunnel will not need work to be carried out on this scale for at least 30 years, with the waterproofing having a lifespan of at least 60 years.

Allison Flannigan, project manager at Network Rail, said:

“The Finnieston tunnel opened in 1886 and continues to play an important role on the North Clyde Line, as over 133 trains pass through it each day.”

“We have a responsibility to maintain our assets to make sure they are fit for purpose and continue to deliver operational reliability for our customers.”

“We appreciate the inconvenience our activity will cause passengers on both weekends and the community living nearby, with the remainder of the work is being done overnight on Saturdays.”

“However, by delivering part of this critical engineering over short but sustained periods of time, it allows us to complete the project overall much more quickly.”

David Simpson, service delivery director, ScotRail, said:

“We understand that improvement works of this nature can be an inconvenience for customers, so we’ll be doing all we can to keep them moving.”

“Customers should plan ahead using the ScotRail app or website and remember that journey times will be longer than normal where diversions and replacement buses are in use.”

“We thank customers for their patience and understanding while this essential work to deliver a modern, reliable and green railway takes place.”