RESIDENTS in Newport have been warned to expect “very noisy” work for at least 20 weeks as work is carried out to electrify a railway line.

Network Rail has written to residents living near the railway line that piling work is set to be carried out along a seven mile stretch between Marshfield, east of Newport and Llandevenny on the Monmouthshire border. The work, part of a project to electrify the South Wales line between London and Swansea, is will be carried out between early April and late August.

In a letter to affected residents, Rebecca Heeley, community relations manager, said: “Safety is our number one priority and for this reason work of this type must be carried out while trains are not running; this means carrying out a lot of our work during the night.

“Piling by its nature is a very noisy activity, with noise levels dependent on distance from the piling location and local topography.

“Please be assured that we will make every effort to minimise unnecessary noise and complete each pile as quickly as possible.”