Tuesday 14 Jul 2026
TWO WEEKS TO GO: Major London stations close as railway carries out £20m upgrade this summer
- Region & Route:
- Southern: Kent
- Essential £20m upgrade to replace ageing track and strengthen structures, improving safety and reliability for customers
- Upgrades bring major changes for 22 days this summer, with no Southeastern trains at Charing Cross or Waterloo East and services diverted across London
- Plan ahead and check before you travel, as timetables, service frequency and first and last train times will change
Passengers are being advised to plan ahead this summer as a 22-day programme of engineering work in central London brings significant changes to Southeastern services.
From Sunday 26 July to Sunday 16 August 2026, London Charing Cross and Waterloo East will close to Southeastern services while a £20 million upgrade is carried out on track, platforms and structures in and around the stations. Further weekend closures will take place before and after the main works.
During this period:
- Trains that usually run into Charing Cross will be diverted into other London stations
- Services across the Southeastern network will run to different times, with some services running less often
- The times of first and last trains will change over the 22 days
Customers should plan ahead and check their full journey before travelling, including the time of their last train.
No trains will call at Charing Cross or Waterloo East during the closure. Services that normally run to Charing Cross will instead be diverted to London Victoria, London Cannon Street, London Blackfriars or London Bridge.
Engineers will replace nearly two kilometres of 36-year-old track, rebuild sections of platform at Charing Cross, upgrade drainage and carry out structural repairs to the Waterloo East to London Waterloo pedestrian link bridge and Hungerford Bridge. Completing the work in one extended closure will avoid a much longer period of repeated weekend disruption.
Scott Brightwell, Safety, Planning and Performance Director, South Eastern Railway, said:
“We are investing £20million into upgrading 1990s track and platforms to make journeys safer and more reliable, while strengthening Victorian-era structures for years to come.
“Services will run differently during the 22-days closure, with changes to routes, frequencies and train times across the network.
“We’re asking customers to plan ahead, check before you travel, and make sure you know their last train home.”
Customers can plan their journeys using the Southeastern journey planner or at www.nationalrail.co.uk and are encouraged to check before they travel. Customers travelling within London should also check TfL services.
No trains will call at Charing Cross or Waterloo East stations on the following dates:
- Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 July
- Sunday 26 July to Sunday 16 August – 22‑day closure
- Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 August
- Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 October
Customers should be aware that service patterns on the preparation and follow‑up weekends may differ from the main closure and are encouraged to check before travelling.
Ticket acceptance
During the main 22-day closure, ticket holders can use the Jubilee line between London Bridge and Waterloo, and the Circle and District line between Victoria, Blackfriars or Cannon Street and Embankment.
Ticket holders can use Thameslink between Elephant and Castle, London Bridge and St Pancras International, and Southern services to London Bridge and Victoria.
Full details of ticket acceptance by ticket type, information on ticket acceptance on London Buses and refunds is available at www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/CharingCrossUpgrades .
Notes to Editors
Service changes, and last train times, by line of route
Hayes line
Trains to and from Hayes via Lewisham will run to and from London Bridge. Other trains will be diverted to and from London Blackfriars and will call additionally at Lewisham and Elephant & Castle.
Last trains for stations on the Hayes line will depart London Bridge at 00.16 and London Blackfriars at 22.50
Grove Park line
Trains that usually run between Charing Cross and Orpington or Sevenoaks will instead start and terminate at London Bridge, with some trains diverted to run via Lewisham.
Cannon Street trains to and from Orpington will continue but a small number of additional peak time trains will not operate.
The last train for stations to Sevenoaks via Grove Park will depart London Bridge at 22.37. The last train for stations to Orpington via Grove Park will depart London Bridge at 00.59.
Bromley South line
Victoria to Orpington trains will run every 30 minutes instead of every 15 minutes. Peak‑time trains between Blackfriars and Beckenham Junction will continue to operate, but at revised times.
The last train for stations to Orpington via Bromley South will depart Victoria at 23.57.
Maidstone East line
Trains that normally run to and from Charing Cross will operate to and from London Victoria instead, calling additionally at Bromley South. Other Victoria trains on the route will continue to run but run at different times.
The last train for stations to Ashford International for the three weeks of the closure is 23.35.
Services after this are subject to change due to overnight engineering work taking place on this line of route, please check journey planners before travelling as departures from Victoria will vary.
Hastings line
Trains to and from Hastings will run between London Bridge and Hastings, with some peak hour trains running to and from London Cannon Street.
Trains that usually start or end their journey at Tunbridge Wells will be diverted to run to and from London Victoria, calling additionally at Bromley South.
Last trains to stations on the Hastings line will depart London Bridge at 23.48 and Victoria at 22.23.
Paddock Wood line
Trains will run between London Bridge and Dover Priory / Ramsgate via Ashford International, with some peak hour trains running to and from London Cannon Street.
The last train for stations on the Paddock Wood line to Dover Priory will depart London Bridge at 23.39.
The last train for stations on the Paddock Wood line to Ramsgate via Canterbury West will depart London Bridge at 22.39.
Bexleyheath line
Trains will continue to run between Cannon Street and Barnehurst, and between Victoria and Gravesend, with some changes to timings. Additional, Cannon Street trains will run in the morning peak.
Last trains for stations on the Bexleyheath line will depart London Bridge at 00.34 and Victoria at 00.33.
Sidcup line
Trains that usually start or end their journey at Gravesend, will run to and from London Bridge and call additionally at Lewisham.
Trains that start and terminate at Dartford will not run; additional services will operate in the off peak between Dartford and Cannon Street via Sidcup (these do not call at Lewisham).
Last trains to stations on the Sidcup line will depart London Bridge at 00.38 and Cannon Street at 23.40
Woolwich line
Trains on the Woolwich line will continue to run into London Cannon Street, with some running at revised times, particularly during the morning peak.
A small number of peak time trains will be retimed, cancelled, or diverted via Blackheath instead of Greenwich.
Last trains to Dartford via Woolwich will depart Cannon Street at 23.36 and London Bridge at 00.30
Sole Street line
Victoria trains will run with some services retimed.
Cannon Street peak trains will operate with some services running at different times.
The last train for stations to Dover Priory will depart London Bridge at 22.10. The last train for stations to Ramsgate will depart Victoria at 21.40.
Services after this are subject to change due to overnight engineering work taking place on this line of route, please check journey planners before travelling as departures from Victoria will vary.
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Tom Moore
Communications Manager
Network Rail
07354531500
Thomas.Moore@networkrail.co.uk
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