A section of the train track near the station Koudum-Molkwerum was closed yesterday for construction work after a clan of badgers spent the past several years tunnelling under it to make their home. The Leeuwarder Courant reports that Rail infrastructure manager ProRail has been trying to tackle the unruly badgers for some time now, working with the local councils to convince the badgers to move away from the deteriorating area – however, so far they’ve been unsuccessful.
Train service between the Friesian towns of Workum and Stavoren will be shut down until further notice due to the works to build a badger tunnel underneath the tracks. The badgers have undercut the cliff which has caused instability, and ProRail decided to construct an artificial home for the protected animals before carrying out repairs finding a permanent solution to the problem.
The badgers have been digging burrows near Molkwerum for years, and the track was fixed on multiple occasions while trains drove at an adjusted speed.
ProRail’s intial plans to relocate the badgers had to be scrapped because of animals’ protected status.
It is unknown how long the disruption will last. In the meantime, Arriva started operating bus services between the affected towns to minimize the inconvenience for travelers.
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