Network Rail engineers are set to start work this week on the Mallaig line at Lochailort in the West Highlands.
This £1.8m investment follows on from previous work undertaken on the line in 2020 and will help improve the resilience of the railway.
Previous took place on the Mallaig line when extreme weather caused flash floods that washed away 80 metres of railway.
The work will take place from February to June 2022 and involves installing a new concrete drainage tunnel or culvert next to the existing Allt na Criche bridge.
A 215-tonne crane will be used during a 78-hour period of continuous working from Friday 18th March to allow the team to lift the culvert into place.
A new embankment measuring 145 metres in length and between 1 to 2.5 metres in height will be built once the culvert is in place.
Jeremy Spence, Network Rail’s Programme Manager for the work commented on the improvements on the Mallaig line.
Mr Spence said: “Severe weather incidents present challenges to the railway across Britain.
“As an industry, we continue to come up with ways to help mitigate this for our passengers, freight users and the communities who live alongside the railway.
“When our programme of work at Lochailort completes in the summer, it will add further resilience to the Mallaig line.
“While the majority of this work is being carried out during the day, we appreciate that some activities may cause inconvenience to local residents and passengers.
“Every effort is being made to minimise this as much as possible.”
Further information on the project taking place on the Mallaig line can be found at: https://scotlandsrailway.com/.
