Major engineering work during the August Bank Holiday weekend, from Saturday 29 to Monday 31 August 

Route(s) affected

Various routes

Description

Planned essential engineering works and upgrades will be taking place during the August (also known as Summer) bank holiday weekend as Network Rail works to improve the railway - Network Rail carry out essential improvement and engineering work across the rail network during this time as fewer people usually travel by train.

Also, during the bank holiday weekend, some train companies will be making changes to their timetable, and to some train times, to match services to the number of customers travelling. So if you are travelling during the August Bank Holiday weekend, please check your journey before you travel to avoid any disappointments.

Despite the planned engineering works taking place in some areas, Britain’s railway will be open for business, and the vast majority of trains will be running.

Among the projects taking place that may affect your journey during the August Bank Holiday weekend, major engineering work will be taking place at the following locations:

London Kings Cross: Starting at 22:00 on Saturday 29 August, continuing all day on Sunday 30 August, and finishing at 08:00 on Monday 31 August, major East Coast Digital Programme (ECDP) engineering work will be taking place between London Kings Cross and Peterborough. During this time, no trains will be able to run between Potters Bar and Peterborough / Royston, and between Stevenage and Hertford North. This will significantly disrupt local journeys, and also longer distance journeys on the East Coast Main Line between Edinburgh / Newcastle / Leeds / Hull / Doncaster and London Kings Cross.

London Bridge - Tulse Hill: From Saturday 29 to Monday 31 August, track renewal work will close the south of London lines between London Bridge and Tulse Hill via Peckham Rye. Replacement buses will be running as required on the affected Southern routes. (Engineering work will also impact London Overground Windrush line services through Peckham Rye where buses will replace trains between Surrey Quays and Clapham Junction.)

Other disruptive bank holiday weekend engineering work will affect journeys between Birmingham New Street - Coleshill Parkway, in the Leeds / York area, between London Charing Cross - Hayes (Kent), in the Guildford area and between Farnham - Alton.

There is also the longer term engineering work in the Wrexham area which ends during the bank holiday weekend, and engineering work starting in the Kilmarnock area which continues into September.

You can find details of all the Planned engineering works that are taking place on our Status and Disruptions pages.

Finally, you may find our August Bank Holiday Travel Summary useful, it contains lots of useful advice to help you be in the know before you go.

Check before you travel:

You can check your journey using the National Rail Enquiries real-time Journey Planner

Rail Replacement Services:

For helpful advice if you need to travel on a rail replacement service, including accessibility and bicycle information, please use our Rail Replacement Services page.

You can find the pick-up and set-down location of rail replacement services by checking station signage or by searching for your station on our Find a Station page.

Please be advised that replacement vehicles may be busier than usual, and you should allow extra time for your journey.

Compensation:

You may be entitled to compensation if you experience a delay in completing your journey. Please keep your train ticket and make a note of your journey, as both will be required to support any claim.