Network Rail fits 61 axle counters in October half-term Havant resignalling work

Network Rail installed 61 new axle counters in the Havant area and renewed track between Liphook and Petersfield during October half-term work that ended on Sunday 1 November, the infrastructure owner said on 2 November.

Buses replaced South Western Railway (SWR) and Southern services from Saturday 24 October while engineers worked on the corridor linking Guildford with Portsmouth and Chichester with Southampton, Network Rail said.

The axle counters, which tell signallers where trains are on the network, were installed as part of the Havant resignalling programme alongside upgrades to safety systems. Network Rail's project page for the work listed 23 automatic warning system (AWS) and nine train protection and warning system (TPWS) components in the scope.

George Murrell, renewals director for South Western Railway and Network Rail Wessex, said: "Reliable trains need reliable tracks and signals, which is why we invested in renewing and upgrading signalling systems on this key route."

The work

Between Liphook and Petersfield, engineers installed new rails and upgraded signalling and cabling, building on the Farncombe to Petersfield signalling upgrade completed in 2025. Network Rail said this maintenance was intended to improve reliability on that stretch, while the Havant work is aimed at reducing signalling failures.

On Southern's West Coastway route, 183 metres of track were renewed in the Fishbourne area, with rails, sleepers and ballast replaced. SWR had set out the same scope when it announced the works on 29 September, so the completed programme matches what was planned.

The main closure ran from Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October, according to the project page, with Havant and Bedhampton level crossings shut from 05:00 on the Monday. During that period SWR services between London Waterloo and Portsmouth Harbour terminated at Petersfield.

Jenny Saunders, customer service director for Southern, said: "I know that for some people this meant longer journeys and I'm sorry for the impact this had."

The programme

Network Rail's announcement describes both projects as part of a £250m investment by SWR and Network Rail Wessex to replace ageing track and signalling. Its own project pages set the spending out differently, as two phases of the Portsmouth Direct Upgrade: a £129m signalling upgrade between Farncombe and Petersfield, completed in November 2025, followed by what Network Rail called an "additional" £120m re-signalling programme in the Havant area.

Phase	Value
Farncombe to Petersfield signalling upgrade (completed 2025)	£129m
Havant re-signalling programme (2026 to 2028)	£120m

The Havant scheme, which Network Rail calls the Havant Relock & Recontrol project, will move control of the railway from Havant Area Signalling Centre to its operating centre in Basingstoke. Network Rail said in May 2026 that the transfer would take place when the programme completes in 2028. Its Portsmouth Direct Upgrade project page says the Havant phase is being delivered through a series of planned blockades between 2026 and 2028.

The May phase included renewing 18 wheel timbers, the long blocks that support the track on Portcreek viaduct.

The earlier Farncombe to Petersfield scheme was commissioned during a nine-day closure between Guildford and Havant, with services resuming on Monday 3 November 2025. Engineers tested 90 new signals, brought 17 new signalling equipment buildings into use and upgraded nine level crossings. Signalling on that section is now managed from Basingstoke, where Network Rail's operating centre opened in November 2015.

Tom Desmond, operations director for Network Rail and South Western Railway, said at the time that upgrades along the Portsmouth Direct Line had been under way since early 2022. Network Rail describes the line as one of the main rail corridors into London Waterloo.

What happens next

Network Rail said in May that engineers would return to the Havant area in October 2026 and again in February 2027 to continue the resignalling work, ahead of the planned transfer of control to Basingstoke in 2028.