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Tuesday 23 Sep 2025

Emergency engineering work on the main line this Sunday to affect Greater Anglia and Elizabeth line services

Region & Route:

Eastern: Anglia

Network Rail will be carrying out emergency work to replace a faulty rail between Chadwell Heath and Shenfield this Sunday 28 September.

The affected rail is part of the track layout that allows trains to switch lines just outside Gidea Park station. One of the sleepers which holds the rails in place in this location is also deteriorating and needs to be replaced.

Engineers have been carefully monitoring the faulty rail and old sleeper, and a 20mph speed restriction has been put in place to keep everyone safe.

If the work was not carried out this weekend, the speed restriction could have to be lowered to 5mph, or the line might have to be blocked entirely at short notice. This would mean unplanned disruption that could cause more severe delays to passengers over a longer period.

Services on Sunday 28 September will be affected as follows:

Greater Anglia

There will be no train services between London Liverpool Street and Shenfield.

Buses will operate between Newbury Park Tube station (on the Central Line) and Shenfield/Ingatestone. Passengers travelling on the Southend Victoria and Southminster line should change at Shenfield. Passengers travelling on the line to and from Colchester and Clacton-on-Sea should change at Ingatestone. Ticket acceptance on the Central Line is in place with TfL.

Vital, pre-planned engineering work means that buses also replace trains between Colchester – Ipswich and Colchester – Harwich Town on both Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 September.

On c2c, buses replace trains from Leigh-on-Sea – Shoeburyness on Sunday 28 September only.

Elizabeth line

Buses will replace trains between Chadwell Heath and Shenfield, and there will be a reduced service of four trains per hour between Seven Kings and Chadwell Heath. Other Elizabeth line services are not affected.

Simon Milburn, infrastructure director for Network Rail Anglia, said: “We are really sorry for the disruption this is going to cause to passengers at short notice. Our engineers have been keeping a very close eye on the faulty rail and sleeper, and the repair now can’t wait any longer. This work will help us to avoid a much more disruptive speed restriction or prolonged line closure in future. Thank you everyone for bearing with us.”

Martin Beable, managing director for Greater Anglia, said: “We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this vital emergency engineering work on Sunday 28 September. A full bus replacement service will be in operation, and passengers are encouraged to check before they travel.”

Passengers should check the details of their specific journey before they travel at greateranglia.co.uk / nationalrail.co.uk / tfl.gov.uk

People going to the Oasis concert at Wembley Stadium on Sunday 28 September should plan ahead and allow extra time for their journeys.