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Thursday 5 Dec 2024

Upgrade work affecting trains between Bedford and London St Pancras this weekend

Region & Route:

Eastern

| Eastern: East Midlands

Passengers are urged to check before they travel as engineering work this weekend will affect rail services between Bedford and London St Pancras.

Upgrades to the track and overhead power lines will mean disruption on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 December, with rail replacement buses in operation.

The engineering work to improve the track will help keep journeys reliable for passengers. The overhead power line work is part of a programme to upgrade equipment between Bedford and London to allow East Midlands Railway’s new bi-mode trains to be introduced next year.

EMR and Thameslink services will be affected, with passengers urged to check with their train operator or National Rail Enquiries before travelling.

Gavin Crook, principal programme sponsor for Network Rail’s East Midlands route, said:

“We would like to thank passengers for their understanding as we continue these important improvements.

“Upgrading the quality of the overhead power lines is part of a programme of investment to increase the speed at which electrically powered trains can run through the area. It will allow EMR’s new Aurora trains to be introduced next year.”

Philippa Cresswell, customer service director for East Midlands Railway, said:

“We would like to thank our customers for their patience while these vital engineering upgrades take place. This work will directly benefit our customers in the future, allowing the introduction of our new Aurora bi-mode trains.

“During the works, there will be no EMR services running between Bedford and London St Pancras International, and an amended train service will operate between Sheffield, Derby, Nottingham, Leicester, Corby, and Bedford. To travel to London, customers can use replacement buses between Bedford and Hitchin. At Hitchin, customers can connect to Great Northern or Thameslink services to and from London.”

Jenny Saunders, Thameslink’s customer services director, said:

“Vital engineering work on the Midland Main Line between St Pancras and Bedford means journeys will take longer this weekend. 

“We’ll have buses replacing trains between Bedford and Luton. Passengers should plan ahead and allow extra time to travel.”

You can plan your journey using the National Rail Enquiries Journey Planner.