Waterway to reopen for business

The train derailment left ballast trucks dangling over a river

A waterway closed to boat traffic since June after a freight train derailed on a bridge is to reopen.

Two trucks carrying ballast were left dangling over the River Ouse between Ely and Soham in Cambridgeshire after the derailment on 21 June.

It took more than two weeks for Network Rail to remove the damaged wagons and bridge and then the river had to be dredged to clear debris.

It will take several months before a new bridge will be built.

'Frustrated'

Gillian Bolt from the Inland Waterways Association said: "I'm sure that for the local boaters it has been a considerable inconvenience and I know that some of the hire companies have felt frustrated at the different arrangements they have had to make."

Network Rail said the Ely to Bury St Edmunds line, which has been shut since the accident, could remain closed until the end of the year.

The operation to remove the 11 EWS train's trucks that had ended up on their sides was hampered by the marshy location and bad weather.

The train involved was travelling from Mountsorrel in Leicestershire to Chelmsford in Essex.