East Coast Main Line passengers advised of major upgrades coming in March

Monday 2 Feb 2026

East Coast Main Line passengers advised of major upgrades coming in March

Region & Route:: Eastern; | Eastern: East Coast

Major improvement work on the East Coast Main Line will affect passenger services across four weekends in March.

A range of railway upgrades are planned for various sites between York and Newcastle from Saturday 7 March to Sunday 29 March.

There will also be digital signalling testing on the southern part of the line in Hertfordshire on Sunday 15 March, meaning services between Peterborough and London King’s Cross are also affected.

Rail replacement services will be in operation over the four weekends and passengers are advised to allow more time for their journeys.

The work in the North East includes the renewal of more than 3.8km of track, as well as new switches and crossings (also known as points – the sections of track allowing trains to switch between lines) at three locations. Further progress will also be made in the £140 million Darlington station upgrade, which will also see overhead line equipment installed as the project nears completion.

The improvements taking place include:

Cowton, between Northallerton and Darlington: 560 metres of new track and renewal of switches and crossings
Croft, south of Darlington: renewal of switches and crossings
Aycliffe, north of Darlington: 1.3km of rail renewal and removal of disused material
Northallerton: 485 metres of new track and renewal of switches and crossings
Low Fell, south of Newcastle: 1.6km of track renewal
installation of overhead line equipment and switches and crossings as part of the Darlington station upgrade.

On Sunday 15 March, there will also be further testing of new equipment in Hertfordshire between Welwyn Garden City and Hitchin, under the £1.4 billion East Coast Digital Programme (ECDP).

The landmark ECDP scheme is set to introduce digitally signalled passenger trains on a section of main line between Welwyn and Hitchin from later this year, meaning more reliable, greener, and even safer journeys. The rigorous testing process checks the interaction between lineside equipment, onboard equipment and signalling control at York Rail Operating Centre.

Gunnar Lindahl, joint operations director – Network Rail East Coast and LNER, said:

“We’re carrying out a significant package of upgrades on the East Coast Main Line this March to keep trains running safely and reliably for the millions of passengers who depend on the route. The improvements, including renewing track and switches and crossings as week as progress with the Darlington station upgrade and East Coast Digital Programme, are important steps towards an even more modern, greener, safer and more reliable railway.

“We appreciate this work does mean changes to weekend services, and we’re grateful to passengers for their patience while we complete these upgrades.”

Daniel Mann, director of industry operations at Rail Delivery Group, said:

“As vital improvement works take place on the East Coast Main Line ahead of the Easter holiday, we’re advising passengers travelling between York and Newcastle at the weekend to plan ahead and allow extra time for travel, with the latest journey information available on the National Rail website. Visual Disruption Map videos, offering a guide to planned service changes and alternative travel options, will also be available online and at stations.

“Our railway colleagues will be working hard to keep people moving, and we kindly ask everyone to treat them with kindness and respect as they help deliver a safe and reliable service.”

Passengers using rail replacement services are reminded to only bring luggage they can carry comfortably and be mindful of transfer times between train and bus/coach.

Notes to Editors

7-8 March

CrossCountry: Rail replacement road transport will operate between Leeds, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle. Alternative rail services will run between Leeds and York.

Grand Central: Amended and reduced service running between York and London King’s Cross.

LNER: A revised service will run between Newcastle and Edinburgh or will run via a diversionary route around the Durham Coast. A rail replacement operation will be in place. Services will call at Northallerton on Saturday but will not call at Northallerton on Sunday. Newcastle semi-fast trains will start and terminate at York.

Lumo: An amended and reduced service will run between Newcastle and Edinburgh/Glasgow Queen Street.

Northern: Trains will start/terminate at Eaglescliffe. Buses will be provided between Eaglescliffe and Bishop Auckland and between Darlington and Newcastle via Durham and Chester-le-Street.

TransPennine Express:

On Saturday: Rail replacement buses will operate between York and Newcastle. Trains to / from Redcar Central will run as normal.
On Sunday: Rail replacement buses will operate between Newcastle and York/Northallerton. Trains to/from Redcar Central will not call at Northallerton.

14-15 March

CrossCountry: Buses replace trains between York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle.

LNER:

Rail replacement buses will operate between York/Northallerton and Newcastle. Services between York and Edinburgh will either operate between Newcastle and Edinburgh only, or will be diverted to run via Sunderland. On Sunday, no trains will call at Northallerton.
On Sunday, LNER will also be operating an amended service starting and terminating at Peterborough. Rail replacement coaches will run between Peterborough and Bedford, where passengers can join Thameslink or EMR services to London St Pancras.

Lumo: An amended and reduced service will run between Newcastle and Edinburgh/Glasgow Queen Street only.

Northern: Buses will replace trains between Darlington and Saltburn.

TransPennine Express: Rail replacement buses will operate between York and Newcastle, and between Middlesbrough and Redcar Central.

An amended timetable will run between:

Liverpool Lime Street and York
Manchester Airport and York
York and Middlesbrough (on Sunday services will be unable to call at Northallerton)
Wakefield Kirkgate and York

Thameslink and Great Northern: On Sunday, there will be no trains between Potters Bar and Letchworth Garden City/St Neots or between Hertford North and Stevenage.

An amended train service will run between:

St Neots and Peterborough
Letchworth Garden City and Cambridge/Kings Lynn
London King’s Cross and Potters Bar
Moorgate and Potters Bar/Hertford North
Finsbury Park and Brighton

A rail replacement bus service will run between:

Hertford North and Stevenage via Watton at Stone
Luton Airport Parkway and Stevenage
Potters Bar and Hitchin
St Albans City and Stevenage via Hatfield
St Neots and Hitchin
St Neots and Bedford

21-22 March

CrossCountry: Buses replace trains between York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle.

Grand Central: No trains will call at Northallerton. Buses will replace trains between Northallerton and Thirsk.

On Saturday, the 06:44 and 10:32 Sunderland to London King’s Cross services and the 15:00 and 19:25 London King’s Cross to Sunderland services will not run. The 08:32 Sunderland to London King’s Cross will start from York. The 17:00 London Kings Cross to Sunderland will terminate at York.
On Sunday, the 10:30 and 12:30 Sunderland to London King’s Cross and the 15:00 and 17:00 London King’s Cross to Sunderland will not run. The 08:37 Sunderland to London King’s Cross will start at York. The 19:00 London King’s Cross to Sunderland will terminate at York.

LNER: Rail replacement buses will operate between York/Northallerton and Newcastle. Services between York and Edinburgh will either operate between Newcastle and Edinburgh only, or will be diverted to run via Sunderland. No trains will call at Northallerton.

Lumo: An amended and reduced service will run between Newcastle and Edinburgh/Glasgow Queen Street only.

Northern: Rail replacement buses will be run between Middlesbrough and Saltburn, and between Darlington and Newcastle calling at Durham and Chester-le-Street.

TransPennine Express: Rail replacement buses will operate between York and Newcastle, and between Middlesbrough and Redcar Central. An amended timetable will operate between York and Middlesbrough, and between Manchester Airport and York.

28-29 March

CrossCountry: Rail replacement buses will operate between York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle.

Grand Central: No trains will call at Northallerton.

On Saturday, the 06:44 and 10:32 Sunderland to London King’s Cross, and 15:00 and 19:25 London King’s Cross to Sunderland will not run. The 08:32 Sunderland to London Kings Cross will start from York at 10:11. The 17:00 London Kings Cross to Sunderland will terminate at York.
On Sunday, the 10:30 and 12:30 Sunderland to London King’s Cross, and the 15:00 and 17:00 London King’s Cross to Sunderland services will not run. The 08:37 Sunderland to London King’s Cross will start at York at 10:10. The 19:00 London King’s Cross to Sunderland will terminate at York.

LNER: Rail replacement buses will operate between York/Northallerton and Newcastle. Services will operate between Newcastle and Edinburgh, or will run a diversionary route via Sunderland. No trains will call at Northallerton.

Lumo: An amended and reduced service will run between Newcastle and Edinburgh/Glasgow Queen Street only.

Northern: On Saturday and Sunday, buses replace trains between Darlington and Newcastle, calling at Durham and Chester-le-Street. On Sunday, buses will operate between Middlesbrough and Saltburn.

TransPennine Express: Rail replacement buses will operate between York and Newcastle.

Contact information

Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41

Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries

Journalists
Gareth Dennison
Media relations manager, Eastern region
Network Rail
07561 874858
gareth.dennison@networkrail.co.uk

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