Friday 13 Dec 2019
Rail network in Sussex will be open for business this Christmas and New Year
- Region & Route:
- Southern
The vast majority of the rail network in Sussex will be open for business as usual this Christmas and New Year as more improvement work is targeted at times that have less impact on passengers.
Passengers are advised to continue to check before they travel as there will be changes to services on a few routes due to engineering works which will affect Sussex.
Shaun King, route director, Sussex said: “The work we are doing this Christmas will mean a better, more reliable railway for passengers when they return to work in the New Year.
“The railway is quieter at Christmas which is why we do our major work then, but we know it’s still a busy time for people visiting family and friends so please check before you travel. We have plenty of people at our stations in the run up to and over the break, who are on hand to help.”
Over the Christmas period, Network Rail engineers will be carrying out bridge works on Sanderstead Road bridge. The work will be carried out in several parts between 26 December to 1 January and replacing the structure will extend the life of the bridges along with preventing unplanned closures. There will be a reduced service on some routes and local road closures.
Passengers are advised to check before they travel at www.nationalrail.co.uk. A breakdown of how journeys will be affected can also be found by visiting nationalrail.co.uk/Christmas and following #XmasRailWorks on Twitter.
Notes to Editors
- As part of our Railway Upgrade Plan, we’re working for you to allow trains to run more frequently, faster, and to improve the reliability of the rail network to reduce delays in the future.
- Our timetables are planned 12 months in advance, and we schedule in the time needed for planned works to improve the rail network.
- When we need to carry out planned engineering works, such as replacing tracks or upgrading signalling systems, we might need to close a section of track for 24 hours or longer to complete the upgrade work efficiently and safely.
- Trains run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so there’s no time when the network isn’t being used, meaning works can cause some disruption for passengers and businesses.
- We plan works for certain times, so they cause the least disruption to passengers such as on bank holidays, Sundays and overnight, when the network is less busy.
- Our High Output teams replace tracks overnight using an efficient track relaying system. This significantly reduces the time the work takes, meaning less disruption for passengers.
- In addition, engineering innovations mean trains can often now run on the line at full speed straight after track renewal work, so there are fewer delays to timetables caused by slow trains, and better journey times for passengers.
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Liam Farrell
Liam.Farrell@networkrail.co.uk
About Network Rail
We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
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