ENGINEERING works at a Hampshire railway station are leaving residents with a major headache.

Network Rail started to tear up old timbered sections of the platforms at Shawford last month, and plans to do so until June.

Rather than closing the station briefly, the organisation is trying to sneak in the work at times when it is not being used. As a result, engineers move onto the platforms at midnight every Saturday and work until 6am on Sunday.

Few trains pass through Shawford during the six-hour period and none are scheduled to stop. However, while disruption to passengers is kept to a minimum, the same cannot be said for nearby residents.

Many are kept awake by the din as contractors use hammers and tools powered by generators to tear up the old platforms.

One of the residents affected is Jackie Algar, of Bridge Cottages. She often has to sleep in a back bedroom, as do her two young children, to get away from the noise.

Her near-neighbour, Martin Sanders, lives closer to the station and said the din there was even worse. He added that two of his three children were currently studying for vital exams, and were having trouble sleeping. While double-glazing shuts out the noise of passing trains, Mr Sanders said it could not cope with the engineering work.

He contacted Network Rail, and while they were polite, he said they did not agree to meet him until he alerted Winchester City Council. "It was only when I got environmental health involved that Network Rail got back to me."

Mr Sanders met rail representatives, engineers and council officers last week to search for a compromise. "They wouldn't budge at all," he added.

He speculated that if the station was closed altogether, then the job could be finished in two or three days, instead of five months. "The guy from Network Rail said it was all about money. This is the cheapest way they can do it."

A spokesman for the organisation insisted that they were trying to minimise the noise. "We ask our contractors to do the work as quietly as they possibly can. The timber platforms have to be replaced, as they are reaching the end of their natural life.

* Any residents concerned about the noise levels are advised to call Network Rail on 0845 711 4141.