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Tuesday 25 Mar 2025

Track and drainage upgrades in the Derbyshire area this weekend

Region & Route:

Eastern

| Eastern: East Midlands

Passengers travelling between Derby and Chesterfield/Matlock are advised of changes to services as Network Rail carries out track renewal and drainage work.

The line will be closed and rail replacement buses in operation on Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 March.

Network Rail teams will be renewing nearly 600 metres of rail, sleeper and ballast to bring smoother, more reliable journeys in the Belper area, and improving drainage at Clay Cross Tunnel by installing 120 metres of new pipe.

On Saturday 29 March, East Midlands Railway (EMR) will terminate some of its London St Pancras to Sheffield trains at Derby, with others diverting via Alfreton to Sheffield but not calling at Derby. For customers travelling north of Derby, rail replacement buses will also run between Derby and Chesterfield.

On the Sunday 30 March, EMR will operate one train an hour between St Pancras and Sheffield via Derby.

EMR will operate a rail replacement bus service between Derby and Matlock all weekend.

CrossCountry services north of Derby will be diverted with journey times extended by up to an hour. Services will not call at Chesterfield over the weekend. 

Fewer services than usual will operate between Birmingham and Newcastle via Doncaster – customers can check their journeys on the CrossCountry website. 

Dan Matthews, Network Rail operations director, said: “We’re sorry to passengers affected as we carry out this important upgrade work at Belper and Clay Cross Tunnel.

“The enhancements will result in improved track quality, bringing smoother and more reliable journeys for passengers, while also improving drainage in the tunnel.

“Please check all parts of your journey before travelling in this area over the weekend of 29 and 30 March.”

Philippa Cresswell, customer experience director for East Midlands Railway, said: “There will be an amended train service between Derby and Chesterfield on Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 March.

“We recommend customers planning to travel on those dates to check the EMR website for information on how your journey is affected as there are rail replacement buses in place.

“Thank you to our customers for their patience whilst Network Rail carry out the rail enhancements. These works are crucial for us to provide a more reliable service.”

Ben Simkin, CrossCountry’s regional director for the North East & Scotland, said: “I want to thank passengers in advance for their patience during the critical maintenance work north of Derby over the coming weekend.

"We’re sorry for the inconvenience that this work will mean for passengers travelling north of Derby over the weekend, and would ask them to double-check their journey details before setting off.”

Check before you travel at https://www.nationalrail.co.uk or with your train operating company.