Buses will be replacing Southeastern trains for nine days over the Easter period.

Embankment works between Tunbridge Wells and Hastings will be taking place from Friday, April 7 – Good Friday – to Saturday, April 15.

Network Rail is urging passengers travelling between the areas to plan ahead and leave more time for their journeys while the vital works take place.

Engineers will be stabilising cuttings and embankments, helping prevent the likelihood and impact of landslips in the future.

Sections of a reinforced concrete wall at Wadhurst and Frant will be built to prevent trees and soil reaching the tracks, and on sections of the line near Snape Wood hundreds of five-metre-long soil nails will also be driven into the cutting to help stabilise the slopes.

Some 500 metres of track will be replaced in Mountsfield tunnel near Robertsbridge and sections of the track slab will be rebuilt.

The existing track slab was built in the 1970s and needs replacing after 50 years of wear and tear.

This is the third extended line closure through Wadhurst since October 2021.

"Completing the work in an extended closure means that we can avoid causing more disruption to passengers by closing the railway over a series of weekends..."

This work is part of a multi-million-pound programme to address reliability challenges which have been a problem on the Tunbridge Wells to Hastings line since its construction 170 years ago.

Fiona Taylor, Network Rail’s Kent route director, said: "It’s great to see the huge investment being made to improve the reliability on the line between Tunbridge Wells to Hastings.

"While there is never a good time to close the railway, completing the work in an extended closure means that we can avoid causing more disruption to passengers by closing the railway over a series of weekends.

"We’d like to thank passengers for their patience whilst we carry out these essential works."

Scott Brightwell, Southeastern’s operations and safety director, said: "We know that closing the railway for a short period isn’t ideal, but it is essential to complete the improvement works.

"We’ll make sure that all of our customers know exactly how to complete their journey between Hastings and Tunbridge Wells while Network Rail carries out this vital work."