Railway bridge reopens ahead of schedule

Trains between Carlisle and Workington are running again after repairs to a viaduct were completed ahead of schedule.

Rail passengers in west Cumbria had previously been warned to expect several weeks of disruption.

It came after heavy rainfall last month caused damage to the columns holding up the structure.

In the south of the county, buses still replace trains between Lancaster and Barrow, after a train derailed near Grange over Sands on Friday.

Rail services between Workington and Carlisle had been suspended since emergency repairs started on 1 March.

Work was expected to last for at least six weeks, but services are now running again, operator Northern Rail has confirmed.

At the time of the suspension being announced, Phil James, Network Rail's north-west route director, said problems like this were occurring more frequently because of climate change.

"We are now seeing the impact, with more issues like the erosion of this railway viaduct," he said.

The company said that an unusually wet February resulted in fast flowing water along the River Derwent, which damaged the pillar and riverbed.

The route between Barrow-in Furness and Lancaster is expected to be closed for two weeks after a train derailed near Grange-over-Sands.

A bus replacement service is operating instead.

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