Work is continuing on a £23 million land slip repair project in Cumbria.

Network Rail said the scheme to reinstate the Settle to Carlisle railway is progressing well, with the route planned to be reopened on 31 March.

Major flooding in the area last year caused around 500,000 tonnes of earth to give way, resulting in the ground below the railway to slip 2.5 metres below its normal level during the weeks that followed.

The multi-million pound repairs scheme involves driving two rows of high-strength piles – steel tubes filled with concrete – into the sloping bedrock of the Eden gorge, north of Armathwaite.

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A large number of piles have been installed and staff have already started working on laying the concrete slab which will provide a stable platform for the track to sit on.

Around 3,000 tonnes of concrete will be delivered to the site this month to fill the steel tubes.

Once the railway is reopened, Network Rail plans to carry out earthworks improvements to the foot of the embankment below the line and above the River Eden. This includes drainage ditches and pipework, rock armour to guard against erosion when flows are high, and finally replanting trees over the entirety of the affected area.

Rhiannon Price, project manager for Network Rail said: "The project continues to progress well, with more of the important work completed.

"This complex repair job has taken months to plan we are now focused on reopening the line to Carlisle, which is on schedule for 31 March."

(LM/MH)