Ryde Pier will not reopen to trains in time for the Isle of Wight Festival, it has been confirmed by South Western Railway (SWR) and Network Rail today (Thursday, June 1).
The 143-year-old pier, which is undergoing heavy maintenance and renewal to give it a further 60 years of life, was due to re-open to Island Line services this month.
Engineers have been working to recover from a three-month delay due to extreme weather where storms damaged scaffolding and made working unsafe.
Since April, track and steelwork replacements have been completed, and a new weather screen has been installed at the Pier Head.
However, in recent weeks, engineers have been forced to revise their designs for one of the pier's zones, seeing the programme delayed.
As a result, the reopening date has been moved back by one month to Monday, July 10.
Until that date, two trains an hour will operate between Ryde Esplanade and Shanklin stations, with a minibus service helping customers travel from Ryde Pier Head to Ryde Esplanade.
There will be which will see an increased capacity over the Festival period.
Alex Foulds, SWR’s projects and change director, said: “We know just how important the Island Line is to local businesses and the local community, which is why we aimed to reopen the line between Ryde Pier Head and Ryde Esplanade in time for the Isle of Wight Festival.
“We’re sorry we haven’t been able to meet that target. We always knew this would be a challenging project for a number of reasons.
“Our focus now is to ensure that the pier is ready for the school holidays and to resume train services along the length of the Island Line as soon as possible.”
Mark Killick, Network Rail’s Wessex route director, said: “We’re really disappointed and sorry that we will not be able to reopen the pier to allow trains to run for customers between Ryde Pier Head and Ryde Esplanade station this June.”
To fully complete the Ryde Pier programme, the pier will be closed again towards the end of the year.
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