First of all a tremendous thank you to everyone involved in the work to open Yarwell Junction Station on 7 April, all as planned.

The work to finish the platform for opening formed part of our Civils Annual Work Week from 24 to 31 March. During March, the gravel surfacing was placed, and LNWR style fencing erected along the rear of the 7 coach platform. The fencing erection took longer than anticipated, some 6 days in total, but we saved a considerable sum by doing it ourselves rather than employing a contractor.

Space is reserved at the west end of the platform for the LNWR replica station building, due to start in mid April, with completion planned in July. A building contract has recently been awarded to Graham Kirk Carpentry Ltd for the work, leaving internal fitting out by NVR before opening, probably in September.

Many station signs have been made and erected and the view to the lake along the length of the platform is very attractive.

The TPO group are planning a second mailbag exchange apparatus point near the brick hut towards the tunnel portal, and the footpath route from the station will cross a deep dyke running in culvert under the railway. Now it just so happens that we have had in Ferry Meadows Yard a hardwood footbridge of 8.6 metre span that fits the bill. This is now in place over the dyke, and as an acknowledgement of all the hard work by Hannah in fund raising and co-ordinating the Yarwell Project, the bridge now has nameplates “Hannah's Bridge”.

The footpath and its continuation to a tunnel viewing will be completed at a later date.

In the first 3 days of Civils Work Week we carried out essential track blanketing near Longueville Junction. This is located at two consecutive joints where wet beds and pumping have been giving us constant trouble for many years and I decided that remedial works were needed to resolve the problem once and for all.

The location of the worksites in the cutting with a fence alongside meant careful pre-planning and logistical issues to get all the right materials in confined spaces. Track ballast and sand had to be bagged, loaded and offloaded and then moved to each worksite. Reach of the hired road/rail machine was critical to help move rails and concrete sleepers. But it all went according to plan, and track was kango packed, but I expect it will need further kangoing as traffic beds in the new ballast.