No Isle of Wight trains on Ryde Pier for 8 months due to works

From September 6 to October 6, the Island Line service will be closed from Ryde Pier Head to Shanklin while Network Rail and South Western Railway engineers complete a large programme of 'vital maintenance'. 

The programme includes track and bridge renewals between St Johns Road and Ryde Pier Head, renovations to the historic footbridge at Brading, signalling works at Ryde and bridge repairs in Sandown. 

Island Line train (Image: South Western Railway)

Rail replacement bus services will operate between the Pier Head and Shanklin throughout the closure. 

Engineers will also continue to work to repair and preserve the historic Ryde Pier structure, which began in October 2022.

The pier will close to trains on Friday, September 6 and is expected to reopen in early May 2025, in time for the summer season.

Ryde Pier (Image: IWCP)

To maintain connections with Wightlink ferry services, a minibus shuttle service will operate between the Pier Head and Ryde Esplanade throughout the closure.

Train services will operate every 30 minutes between the Esplanade and Shanklin.

Mark Dunn, South Western Railway's Island Line general manager, said: “We’re sorry for the disruption that this month-long closure of the Island Line will cause our customers, however, it is vital that this wide range of work is completed to ensure that the Island Line can operate long into the future.

“Due to the complex nature of the repairs and refurbishments at Ryde Pier, which aims to give the historic structure a further 60 years of use, a further long-term closure is required.

"Buses will replace trains between Ryde Pier Head and Ryde Esplanade for approximately eight months, between September 2024 and May 2025.

“Once again we’re sorry for the disruption that our customers and stakeholders on the Island will experience, and we thank them for their continued patience.”