Travellers will find rail journeys again disrupted in late December and early January as Network Rail closes lines and stations for engineering work.
The organisation says: “Work will take place from Sunday 24 December 2023 to Tuesday 2 January 2024. The vital improvements and routine maintenance around Britain will give you a better and more reliable railway for the long term.”
In addition, work by HS2 will close the Great Western main line from 24 to 27 December.
“Most of the railway will stay open for business as usual,” Network Rail says.
These are the key rail engineering works over the festive season and the last dates before Christmas you need to travel on to ensure you make it home for the holidays by train.
LNER/East Coast main line
Travel to/from London no later than 23 December if you want to be home by Christmas. The East Coast main line, connecting London King’s Cross with Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland, will be closed at its southern terminus on 24 December.
No trains will run to or from King’s Cross on Christmas Eve. LNER trains will start from or terminate at Peterborough or St Neots. The latter will be served by a bus link to Bedford, for onward travel to London on Thameslink. Hull Trains will be diverted to start/terminate at London St Pancras International.
Greater Anglia (London-Essex-Suffolk-Norfolk)
Travel before mid-evening on Christmas Eve, as all trains will end by 10pm – except on the Stansted Express. The last train leaves the Essex airport at 11.59pm, making it the latest departure anywhere in the UK.
Passengers on the line from London to Colchester, Ipswich and Norwich have become wearily accustomed to festive closures, and 2023 is no exception. Work will take place between Shenfield and Witham in Essex, blocking the route from 27 December-1 January.
The Stansted Airport-Cambridge link is also closed 27 December-1 January
Southeastern (London-Kent)
Travel from London Victoria no later than 22 December. From 23 December to 1 January inclusive, the hub in the capital will be closed, along with Brixton station. Trains will divert to and from Blackfriars, Cannon Street and Charing Cross.
Southern (London-Gatwick-Sussex coast)
Complete journeys by 9pm on Christmas Eve, when all services will cease.
South Western Railway (London-Southampton/Bournemouth/Portsmouth)
Travel on any journey that covers…
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