Media centre

Monday 13 May 2024

Check journey plans before travelling by rail this late May bank holiday

Region & Route:

Eastern: Anglia

The majority of the railway across Anglia will be open this late May bank holiday but passengers are being encouraged to continue to check their journey plans before travelling as engineering work will take place. 

This will include

• Replacing points (moveable sections of rail that allow trains to change tracks) at Bury Street Junction in north London to improve reliability.
• Construction continues at Beaulieu Park station in Chelmsford on the track, overhead wires and the installation of new station footbridges.
• Track maintenance and follow-up tamping (which repacks the ballast under the track to give a smoother ride for passengers) between Westerfield and Oulton Broad South.
• General maintenance work on platforms at London Liverpool Street station.

Lawrence Bowman, Network Rail’s route director for Anglia, said: "We’ve worked with our train operators to keep the majority of the railway open for this second bank holiday in May. There will be, however, some construction, track and overhead line maintenance work to keep our railway safe and reliable. Every maintenance task completed during this time contributes to a dependable service for all those travelling across Anglia and I would encourage passengers to check before travelling and leave extra time if your service is affected."

Jamie Burles, Greater Anglia managing director, said: “We have a lot of great destinations on our network, and we hope people are able to get out and about this the late May bank holiday weekend.

“There will be some engineering work taking place on our network. A rail replacement service will run while the work takes place, and passengers are advised to check before they travel and allow more time for their journey.

“This work is extremely important to help maintain the safe and reliable running of the railway.

“We would like to thank customers for their patience and understanding while this essential maintenance is carried out.”

Travel information and service alterations:

All passengers are encouraged to check their journey plans before travelling with National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator. Buses may be busier than usual, and passengers should allow extra time for their journey if affected by engineering work.

London Overground

On Sunday 26 May and Monday 27 May, there will be no London Overground service between Liverpool Street and Enfield Town / Cheshunt stations. Trains will run between Liverpool Street and Chingford but will not stop at Bethnal Green.

On Tuesday 28 May, there will be no London Overground service between Hackney Downs and Enfield Town / Cheshunt stations. A revised service will run between Liverpool Street and Chingford, with some trains calling additionally at Cambridge Heath and London Fields, and some trains departing slightly earlier than usual.

Over all three days, replacement buses will run between Seven Sisters and Enfield Town / Cheshunt. Passengers can use London Underground and London Buses between Liverpool Street and Seven Sisters. For Rectory Road and Stoke Newington, Clapton station on the Chingford line is recommended.

Train services will run on Saturday 25 May to accommodate a major rugby event at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Similar service alterations will also be in place on the following weekends to prepare for the bank holiday work and carry out post bank holiday work:

• Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 May
• Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 June
• Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 June
• Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 June
• Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 July

Greater Anglia

Greater Anglia services that usually call at Seven Sisters will stop at Tottenham Hale instead from Sunday 26 May to Tuesday 28 May.

Buses will replace trains between Ipswich and Lowestoft all day from Sunday 26 May to Monday 27 May to allow track maintenance between Westerfield and Oulton Broad South.

To facilitate the construction of the new Beaulieu Park station from Saturday 25 May to Monday 27 May, Greater Anglia services from Norwich, Ipswich, Clacton, Colchester and Braintree will terminate at Witham. From there, passengers can catch replacement bus services:

• Fast buses to Billericay for London-bound passengers (about 50 minutes).
• Stopper buses to Billericay via Hatfield Peverel and Chelmsford (about 1 hour and 5 minutes).

Connecting train services will run between Billericay and London Liverpool Street, stopping at Shenfield and Stratford.

For those travelling to/from Ingatestone station, shuttle buses will run between Chelmsford and Ingatestone, as well as between Ingatestone and Shenfield.

To note, similar bus replacement services will also operate on the weekend prior, on19 May to facilitate construction work for Beaulieu Park station. Greater Anglia passengers are encouraged to check their journey before travelling on this day.