A CEREMONY was held on May 25 to celebrate the completion of the second section of the replacement Dawlish sea wall in Devon.
The Network Rail project has been designed to provide greater protection for the railway due to the close proximity of the sea. Following serious flooding and storm damage in 2014, sections of the railway were left hanging in the air as the formation beneath the lines washed away.
The new structure stands at eight metres tall – two-and-a-half metres taller than the original. It was developed as part of the South West Rail Resilience Programme, put in place to improve resilience of the railway between Exeter and Newton Abbot following 2014, and cost £80 million, funded by the Government.
Stretching between Coastguards and Colonnade breakwaters, 415 metres of new promenade is linked to the first section at Marine Parade by a new footbridge, which runs parallel to the viaduct carrying the railway into Dawlish station.
The sea wall was substantially completed in July 2022, when all 164 front panels, 203 pre-cast blocks and 189 recurve units were installed. The wall is designed to return waves back out to sea and provides the railway with much greater resilience against waves that can flood the track. Network Rail senior programme manager Ewen Morrison said: “We are absolutely delighted to be opening this new section of sea wall and would like to wholeheartedly thank the community of Dawlish for their patience and support while the construction took place close to their homes and business
