Passengers travelling over the festive period are strongly urged to plan and check their journeys in advance as rail upgrades across the network mean busier trains and changes to some services.
Whilst most of the engineering work in the Midlands will take place during the traditional railway closure from the end of service on Christmas Eve until the morning of Friday, 27 December, other carefully planned upgrades to help improve the reliability of journeys into and around Birmingham are taking place as follows:
- On Monday, 23 and Tuesday, 24 December, track renewal in the Garrison Street area of Birmingham will mean longer journeys with replacement buses and diversion routes. The line will reopen on 27 December.
- Overnight on New Year’s Eve, tamping is taking place near Birmingham New Street station, which means a later start to services on New Year’s Day – 1 January – with longer journey times and rail replacement buses.
While the rail network winds down for Christmas, on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, engineers will be busy improving track drainage, maintaining the overhead cables, and tamping to keep journeys safe and reliable for years to come.
Martin Colmey, operations director for Network Rail Central route, said:
“We understand that travelling over the festive period is important for so many people, which is why we have tried to keep disruption to a minimum by making use of the traditional Christmas closure from 24 to 27 December.
“The vital track work in and around Birmingham will mean more reliable journeys for passengers for years to come, and we thank you for your patience while we make these essential upgrades.
“With engineering taking place on many routes across the country, I would urge passengers to plan their journeys in advance and check with their train operator or www.nationalrail.co.uk for the latest travel advice.”
In addition, passengers travelling between Wendover and Great Missenden should check before they travel from now until February due to continued work on the construction of the 345m Small Dean viaduct to carry HS2 over the existing railway.
Passengers travelling to London Euston are also strongly urged to plan their journeys in advance, as major rail upgrades mean Euston station is expected to be much busier than usual from Christmas Eve into the New Year. More information can be found at www.networkrail.co.uk/wcml.
Timetables for train services running over the festive period are live. Passengers wishing to travel during the festive period can plan their journeys and check the latest travel advice by visiting www.nationalrail.co.uk or the train operator’s website.
