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Thursday 27 Nov 2025

Travelling by train this Christmas and New Year? Book ahead and plan your journey as improvement work means some changes to trains travelling through Cardiff

Region & Route:

Wales & Western: Wales & Borders

Network Rail will be carrying out vital upgrades west of Cardiff Central station between 24-31 December to keep the railway safe and reliable for passengers. 

This work includes upgrades to the track - the rails, sleepers, switches and crossings, and points - that help guide trains safely from one line to another. To carry out these improvements, our teams will be using handheld and mechanical tools, along with task lighting to ensure they can work safely overnight.

The work will run continuously from Wednesday 24 December - Wednesday 31 December, requiring the closure of some tracks through Cardiff Central station. Some services may have timetable changes and this might also affect journeys elsewhere on the wider rail network.

Passengers are strongly advised to check the latest travel information before setting off at nationalrail.co.uk.

Planned work dates:

• Wednesday 24 December - Wednesday 31 December: Continuous work from 23:30 (24 Dec) to 04:00 (31 Dec)
• Saturday 3 January - Sunday 4 January: 11:30pm – 9:00am

 Great Western Railway services affected

• Saturday and Sunday: Trains between London Paddington and Cardiff Central / Swansea / Carmarthen will run up to 2 minutes earlier or later than usual.
• Trains will be diverted between Cardiff Central and Bridgend via Ninian Park (not stopping at Ninian Park), adding a few minutes to journey times.
• Calling times between Cardiff Central and Swansea / Carmarthen will be slightly earlier or later than normal.

 Transport for Wales update services affected

• Maesteg services will shuttle between Bridgend and Maesteg.
• All services to / from west of Cardiff Central will call at all stations where possible, divert via Ninian Park (non-stop) and run through Cardiff platform 4. Trains using the Ninian Park diversion will be retimed by a few minutes.
• Please check before you travel between Cardiff, Hereford & Shrewsbury, and between Bridgend, Swansea & Carmarthen because these trains may now be timetabled to operate at different times than previously advertised.
• Most services previously running between Ebbw Vale Town and Maesteg will now operate between Ebbw Vale Town and Newport only. A significantly reduced service will run between Ebbw Vale Town and Cardiff Central, journeys may require a change at Newport.

Network Rail carries out much of its major engineering work over the festive period, when fewer passengers are travelling, and fewer train services are running. This helps us safely close sections of the network and complete essential upgrades with less disruption to those who rely on rail services for work or critical appointments.

While our teams will do everything possible to minimise noise, some disturbance is unavoidable, and we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.