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Tuesday 5 May 2026

Reminder: Rotherham track renewal means changes to journeys over next two weekends

Region & Route:

Eastern

| Eastern: North & East

Passengers are reminded that railway improvement work at Swinton in Rotherham will affect journeys over the next two weekends (9-10 and 16-17 May).

The essential work, which started in early April, includes nearly half a kilometre of track renewal within the 1km worksite either side of Swinton station to maintain the safe and reliable running of train services.

This project involves replacing old sections of track and installing new foundations, using rail-mounted cranes and engineering trains.

The work is being delivered by CRSA – an alliance between Network Rail and Balfour Beatty – and will include:

• laying 420 metres of rail
• replacing three sets of points, the sections of track allowing trains to switch between lines
• placing 2,500 tonnes of ballast, the stone base used for drainage and track support
• installing 650 sleepers, the beams which hold the rails in place.

Preparation work has been taking place since 4 April with little disruption to trains. But the main engineering work requires greater access to the track and means changes to services on the weekends of 9-10 and 16-17 May as follows:

CrossCountry:

• Trains will not call at Wakefield Westgate.
• Services will be retimed between Sheffield and Leeds.

Northern:

• Trains between Sheffield and Doncaster/Adwick will not call at Swinton.
• Trains between Sheffield and Hull will start/terminate at Doncaster.
• A reduced train service will operate between Moorthorpe and Leeds.
• Buses will replace trains between Sheffield and Moorthorpe/York.

Karen Duffy, Network Rail operations director, said:

“Renewing the track at Swinton is vital for maintaining a safe and reliable railway. We’re sorry to passengers whose journeys are affected and we’re grateful for the patience of residents while we carry out these essential improvements.”

A spokesperson for CrossCountry and Northern said:

“We’re working closely with Network Rail while this essential work takes place at Swinton. We’re asking customers to check before they travel during the affected weekends, as some services will be diverted, retimed or replaced by buses. We’d like to thank everyone for their patience while this vital work is carried out.”

Follow-up work – also mostly taking place overnight and at weekends – is planned to be completed in August.