Network Rail will be carrying out safety-critical vegetation management on lines running up to and including Penarth station.

These works will take place each night from 23:15 to 05:15 from Monday 9th March to Friday 13th March 2020. This work will be on the railway line from River view to Penarth Station.

This is what is involved:

- Network rail clear all vegetation up to seven metres from the track – according to the site's requirements and the type of infrastructure (like overhead power lines).

- If not cut back, overgrown trees and shrubs could cover up signals – the traffic lights of the railway – and potentially cause an accident.

- They need to clear vegetation further back where trains run at higher speeds, in cuttings or embankments, or where there are level crossings or overhead line equipment.

- Weeds and ground cover are kept to a minimum, and low-lying scrub past the six-metre point could need cutting back so that our teams can work safely without trip hazards.

- In some places they also clear the vegetation to help the trackside teams examine or repair earthworks and structures.

- To reduce the problems caused by leaves falling on the railway in the autumn, they will target certain tree species including poplar and sycamore.

- Treating stumps with herbicide to stop unwanted regrowth from the stumps. This prevents overshading and enables more diversity in ground flora to grow.

- Ongoing vegetation management promotes safety and is more cost-effective than reacting to damage and delays caused by a fallen tree.

National Rail explain on their website that: "Not all potentially hazardous trees are on our land, so we work closely with our lineside neighbours to make sure that trees next to the railway aren't a danger, whether they're on our land or not.

"If we need to prune neighbours' trees that overhang fences or boundaries, we'll always seek permission first.

"We leave the area tidy and either remove the logs and branches or chip smaller branches to spread them evenly as chippings.

"We are looking in to initiatives to use some of the material produced by our vegetation management such as bio-fuel.

"On sites where there is enough room and it is safe to do so, some of these smaller branches may be left in a small pile as habitat for wildlife, such as hedgehogs, reptiles and amphibians.

"Our teams will often carry out additional improvements while on site, such as clearing away litter and mending fences."

An accident which involved the death of local Penarth resident Bethan Roper who was hit by a tree branch on a train displays the importance of such vegetation management.