Community representatives from the Marshlink Community Rail Partnership have been given an escorted tour of the work taking place inside Ore tunnel.

Members of the group were shown the repairs to the inside of the tunnel on a visit arranged by Network Rail.

Suzanne Horgan from the Friends of Ore Station and John Spencer from the Friends of Winchelsea Station joined Marshlink line chair Kevin Boorman, Marshlink line officer Paul Bromley and 1066 line officer Andy Pope on the trip on Friday (25 October).

After a safety briefing and after being provided with personal protective equipment, the group were taken along the tracks to see inside the tunnel.

Marshlink line chair Kevin Boorman said: “It was great that Network Rail and the contractors were able to let members of the Marshlink Community Rail Partnership, which included local community representatives, access to the worksite in the tunnel to see exactly what was being done.

“It is clearly a massive undertaking, with a lot of staff, plant and machinery on site. It is really good to see such investment on the line; although disruptive to travellers and those living, working and studying in the area this work will help guarantee the future of this vital rail link.”

Suzanne Horgan added: “It was an experience with the amount of skilled collaborations with various organisations and the health and safety structure and the number of people to carry out the essential work.

“I am absolutely delighted they want to give something back to the community and are going to give me labour at the community garden plus donations with wood and other items which we can recycle.”

The Marshlink line is currently closed with replacement bus services and shuttle train services taking passengers along the route between Hastings and Ashford International.

The work started on Saturday 19 October and is due to be finished on Sunday 3 November.

The plans include:

:: Replacing 700 yards of track through the tunnel 1,402-yard (1,282 m) long tunnel, and around the Ore area

:: Refurbishing 4 sets of switches and crossings to improve reliability

:: Repairing the footbridge at Ore station and the Briscoe Road bridge in Guestling

:: Surveys and maintenance of embankments/cuttings to prevent landslips

:: Maintenance of drainage culverts between Winchelsea and Hastings

All the work is scheduled to be finished by Monday 4 November.

You can view a full set of pictures of the visit here.