Track re-laying at the Mor Brook bridge site on the Severn Valley Railway has been completed ahead of the full reopening later this week.

Flying Scotsman will reopen the line on the 25th July after a major lanslip at Mor Brook closed the line earlier this year.

The railway says that one of its directors used his extensive network of main line railway contacts to secure equipment and man power at no cost to the railway.

On Wednesday 16 July, the ‘Orange Army Volunteer All Stars’ came together to complete the work, following repairs to the damaged bridge and embankment at Mor Brook.

The companies taking part in the exercise included A P Webb, AWE Technologies, Balfour Beatty, Central Rail Systems Alliance, CML, Colas, Crown Group, Forestry, Rail & Civils Ltd, Ganymede Solutions, Interflon, Network Rail, Rail Power and Construction Ltd, Shannon Rail, Staytite, Vital and VP Rail.

SVR director Steve Featherstone said: “It was clear we needed a very fast solution for our track re-lay, once we’d secured the visit of ‘Flying Scotsman’, and we had an incredibly short timescale to get things done. I started making phone calls to contacts in the rail industry, and was completely knocked out by their willingness to get involved and the generosity of so many companies.

“It’s been quite a job pulling all this together, but it has worked out tremendously well. The camaraderie and atmosphere on site was amazing.”

Denise Wetton, Network Rail Central Route director said: “In 2023, the SVR’s managing director Gus Dunster and I signed the first ever partnership agreement between Network Rail and a heritage railway. The Mor Brook rebuild and reinstatement is a great example of what can be achieved when everyone works closely together.”