Reading Easter railway work: Twitter feed is 'PR overdrive'
A social media feed of rail works at Reading is due to the "embarrassing fallout" of engineering delays at Christmas, it has been claimed.
Network Rail said it would provide Twitter updates of engineers installing new freight lines over Easter weekend.
But Railway Magazine said the firm's PR team had gone into overdrive after work overran during the festive period leading to heavy criticism.
The rail firm said they would "definitely have a story to tell".
Major work, including extensive signalling improvements, is being carried out on the route from Good Friday to Easter Monday.
Patrick Hallgate, from Network Rail, said: "We are acutely aware that some of our work could inconvenience those who want to travel over the Easter period.
"Which is why we want to be open and provide the public with live information about how we are using this time to make improvements to this part of the network."
Railway Magazine assistant editor Nick Brodrick said this live feed is a result of "the embarrassing fallout caused by the delayed engineering works on the East Coast Main Line after Christmas".
He said: "It is therefore not surprising to see its PR team go into overdrive to reassure passengers that it can deliver on its promises."
He added that following the minutiae of rail engineering works would not be a popular pastime this Easter.
"Most people won't be particularly interested in the nuts and bolts of the work involved; what they expect is a better train service as a result."
The improvement work can be followed on Twitter from Friday morning via @networkrailgwrm and the hashtag #greaterwest.