Great Western Coffee Shop

A car crash sent blocks of stone falling onto the Waterloo to Exeter railway line in Somerset earlier.

Pictures of the damage show rubble on the track in front of a train at Crewkerne Station.


Another image shows a damaged car at the base of an embankment near the station entrance.


Several emergency service vehicles are pictured nearby.

Emergency services say they were called to the railway bridge in Misterton at around 8.30am on Monday morning (August 14). One person was taken to hospital in Yeovil.

The railway line and road above it were both closed following the crash. Both have since re-opened.

Robin Heyd-Smith, a Misterton parish councillor, saw the aftermath. He said: “From what I could see the car was travelling towards Crewkerne and appears to have struck the stone wall of the railway bridge. It looks like it then bounced off, crashing through the fence on the other side, before going down the embankment and into the car park at the station.”

South Western Ambulance Service attended the incident. A spokesman said: “We received the call at 8.38am to reports of a road traffic collision. There was one male casualty with an arm and leg injury. We attended with one rapid response vehicle and one ambulance. The casualty was taken to Yeovil District Hospital.”

An Avon and Somerset Constabulary spokeswoman said: “Initial reports suggest a car had rolled over. Debris may have fallen onto the tracks below. There is a closure on either side of the bridge to stop people going over it. British Transport Police are dealing with the incident.”

When contacted, a spokesman for British Transport Police said he was unsure whether they would be investigating as the incident had taken place on the railway bridge. He said: “It may be Network Rail or the local force that investigates. Or we may investigate.”

The damage caused to the bridge at Crewkerne train station.

Network Rail confirmed on Twitter this afternoon that services would be delayed for some time.

It said: "Disruption between Yeovil Junction and Exeter St Davids expected until 6pm."

Confirming that lines had re-opened, a spokesman for South West Trains said at 2pm on Monday: "Lines between Yeovil and Exeter have now reopened. Trains are now going through, but delays expected while service restarts."

20 New Car Park Spaces
20 New Car Park spaces at Crewkerne Station
Stuff2Store are offering storage and car parking space between the station and Bradfords - the Bradfords' Maintenance area that was recently sold off.
Car parking is for a minimum of one week, for £20, which compares reasonably with SWR's prices of £4.70 per day, and £2 per day at the weekend.
If we can persuade 20 people who wish to park all week, to park in Stuff2Store, that would release 20 paces for the mid-week when it's usually full 

We wanted to update you on emergency works taking place between Axminster and Crewkerne on 23rd January 2022.

Over the last week Network Rail teams have been monitoring the railway near to the River Axe bridge in Crewkerne and have begun to detect a deterioration in the condition of the lineside. As a result the teams will stabilise the bridge this weekend, allowing us to keep trains running safely and reliably on this part of our network.

Unfortunately we will need to put in place an short emergency closure of the railway all day on Sunday 23 January, before continuing with the work overnight for the next three weeks when no trains are running.
   
A video interview with Mark Killick, Network Rail Wessex’s Route Director, about the urgent need for the works can be found on this
Tweet:  https://twitter.com/NetworkRailWssx/status/1484167919617687561

We’re really sorry for the disruption this short notice work will cause to our customers and are grateful for their patience over the weekend. Buses will replace trains in the area on Sunday 23 January and passengers should check before they travel at https://www.southwesternrailway.com/plan-my-journey/planned-improvements/january-2022-works

NR, via Twitter, have shown a photograph of the signal base left after a car hit the signal this morning. It is affecting London bound trains but clearly,  secondarily, also those going to Exeter.

https://twitter.com/networkrailwssx/status/1518855453257654272?s=21&t=iXGI98rQ3Kd3zSQ7UXzQPw

Thanks to @SW_Help passengers on the West of England line for their patience today - London bound trains are being delayed by around 10-15 minutes at #Crewkerne after this signal (there was one here) was demolished by a car that left the road.

I am trying to work out which one it was. Was it the up repeater for the level crossing?

The train that struck the felled signal, 5L65, wasn't cancelled, but it was over three hours late.

Cancellations to services between Exeter St Davids and Yeovil Junction

Due to a landslip between Exeter St Davids and Yeovil Junction all lines are blocked.

What's Going On:
Train services running through these stations will be cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day on 06/12/23.

What We're Doing About It:
The recent heavy rain and flooding is causing earth to move above the Crewkerne Tunnel and the line is closed to all services on safety grounds.

Engineers will conduct a further daylight assessment of the site on Tuesday and the tunnel will definitely be closed until at least Thursday 7th December.

In addition to this, heavy flooding of local roads is affecting the replacement bus services running between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction.

With further rain forecast in the next 48 hours there is potential that no services will run until the weekend.

Please do not attempt to travel between Salisbury and Exeter on Tuesday 5 or Wednesday 6 December.

Could SWR run Salisbury Westbury Taunton and return?

@NetworkRailWssx digs 100 tonnes of clay, soil and vegetation from the drainage channels around Crewkerne tunnel   

The buildings adjacent to the line are the remains of the brickworks set up to provide the bricks for the tunnel. It was then used commercially for some time.
The tunnel goes through the Bridport Sands, a permeable rock allowing water to pass through. It then meets the clay and emerges at or near the meeting level.
A similar situation is seen on the Dorset Coast at West Bay.

What's Going On

Due to a landslip between Exeter St Davids and Salisbury all lines are blocked. Train services running through these stations will be cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day 10/12/23.

What We're Doing About It

On Monday 4 December, heavy rain and flooding caused a landslip at Crewkerne tunnel, blocking the line between Salisbury and Exeter St David’s.

Following an assessment on Tuesday 5 it was confirmed that the tunnel will be closed until Monday 11 December.

As a result, we are advising you not to attempt to travel between Salisbury and Exeter St David’s until Monday 11 December.

Service summaries for Friday 8, Saturday 9 & Sunday 10 can be seen below:

Friday 8 December

There will be no service between Yeovil Junction and Exeter St David’s
A rail shuttle service will operate between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction via Westbury
Due to safety checks following adverse weather. rail replacement bus services will only operate after 08:00 between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction

Saturday 9 and Sunday 10 December

There will be no service between Yeovil Junction and Exeter St David’s
A rail shuttle service will operate between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction via Westbury
Adverse weather is expected which is likely to affect rail replacement bus services between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction.

Monday 11 December

The line between Salisbury and Exeter St David’s is expected to re-open

Please do not attempt to travel between Salisbury and Exeter St David’s until Monday 11th December.

Walking away from e.g. Honiton to Exeter was poor. Not sure what regular travellers have had to do to work round that.

Mark

A railway line that has been closed for a week due to a landslip has reopened.

Network Rail said engineers worked throughout the weekend to remove 300 tonnes of materials on the track near Crewkerne tunnel in Somerset.

Efforts to restore some of the line were hampered by further adverse weather conditions, in particular strong winds, it added.

The line between Salisbury and Yeovil Junction is now running as normal.

Trains between London Waterloo and Yeovil Junction are also running, but the line between Yeovil Junction and Exeter St David's will remain closed until Wednesday, a spokesperson for Network Rail said.

More than 90mm (9cm) of sustained heavy rain over 48 hours caused the landslip above the Crewkerne tunnel last week.

With bad weather continuing, it made it unsafe for engineers to use a tall crane essential to complete work and repair the landslip.

Network Rail is advising customers not to attempt to travel between Yeovil Junction and Exeter St David's before Wednesday and to continue to check for travel updates.

"We're sorry for any inconvenience caused by these essential works... [but] with the weather set to improve, we hope to be able to make good progress over the coming days," the spokesperson added.

BBC seem a bit confused here. Yes Salisbury to Yeovil has reopened, but that's due to completion of engineering works, not following a landslip.

Yeovil to Exeter still closed as work on Crewkerne Tunnel continues.

Fully emergency timetable running today (Tuesday, 12th) between Axminster and Exeter St Davids

Got there in the end, the day before normal service resumes!  ::)

What's Going On
Due to a landslip at Crewkerne all lines are blocked. Train services running through this station may be cancelled, delayed or revised. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

What We're Doing About It
We have been informed of a landslip at Crewkerne. This means that trains are unable to run between Exeter St Davids and Yeovil Junction.

Passengers are advised not to try travelling between these stations.

Until further notice the following alterations will be necessary:
Trains between London Waterloo and Exeter will run between London Waterloo and Yeovil Junction in both directions

To assist you with your journey your ticket will be accepted, at no extra cost to yourself, on the following services:
Great Western Railway via any reasonable route

For further information or onward travel advice please speak to a member of staff or use a station help point.

We are very sorry for any delay that this may cause to your journey.

Update 2 (1600)
Works are progressing well and on track for a handback time of 2359, the ballast wall has been fully installed and the a rope access team is working to remove further material.

Plans are in place for the line to re-open with a 20mph ESR, over an approximately 8 chain section, causing services to lose approximately 4 minutes per train on the single line.

Investigations ongoing regarding identifying a route proving train before the start of service tomorrow to run between Axminster to Yeovil.

Update to follow once works have been completed and handed back.

Interesting point from Paul Clifton;

https://x.com/PaulCliftonBBC/status/1743425281585512800?s=20