Train company announces when Shrewsbury to Birmingham services will resume following fatal Mid Wales crash

Network Rail said it expects the Cambrian line to be open to normal services from Monday.

One person died and 15 others were injured when two trains collided near Llanbrynmair in Mid Wales on Monday evening. The deceased was Tudor Evans, 66, of Aberystwyth.

Network Rail said its investigation teams have now completed their field-based investigations.

This allowed Transport for Wales (TfW) engineers to attend the crash site and separate the two damaged trains, which were in the process of being removed from the site.

At the same time, Network Rail engineers carry out repairs, maintenance and a range of checks and safety inspections.

In the statement made by Network Rail, it was stated that they tried to reassure the public about the line: “Security systems on trains using the line continue to be regularly checked and inspected.

“Test trains will pass through the area to ensure everything is operating normally before starting passenger operations on Monday.”

However, it was stated that the incident may affect train services in the short term and passengers should continue to be checked before traveling.

Nick Millington, Network Rail’s route director for Wales and Borders, said: “The tragic events of Monday night will forever be etched in my memory and my thoughts remain with everyone affected.

“Thankfully, incidents like this are very rare on the rail network. We continue to operate one of the safest rail networks in Europe.

“Our engineers were on site throughout and carried out very comprehensive safety checks. “We will be running test trains in the area.

“I am grateful to the local community who have been so good to us in running this event over the past week.

“I would also like to thank passengers for their patience, understanding and support over the last few days as our teams worked tirelessly to repair the railway as quickly as possible.”

TfW chief operating officer Jan Chaudhry van der Velde said: “Railways in Wales have a very good safety record, so when serious incidents such as this occur, we at TfW, together with our partners at Network Rail, are committed to taking the necessary action. ” getting to the bottom of what caused this.

“We are therefore co-operating fully with the authorities investigating the accident, particularly the Rail Accident Investigation Branch.

“We worked hard to safely remove trains from the scene of the accident and carry out full safety checks and testing before reopening the line to passenger trains.

“We offer our condolences to the family of the passenger who lost his life and wish a speedy recovery to the passengers and personnel injured in the accident.”

Network Rail said there would be no TfW service between Shrewsbury and Birmingham International this Saturday or Sunday due to “operational difficulties” following the incident.

It confirmed that an agreement had been reached with West Midlands Railways to accept tickets on the route, but added that people are advised to use alternative routes where possible.