There will be lots of planned engineering works and upgrades taking place during the festive period as Network Rail works to improve the railway. Network Rail carry out the work during this time as fewer people usually travel by train.
In addition, some train companies will be making changes to their timetable, and to some train times, to match services to the number of customers travelling.
If you are travelling over the festive period, please check your journey before you travel to avoid disappointment. You may find our Travel Summary useful, it contains lots of useful information and advice to help you be in the know before you go.
During the Christmas and New Year period major engineering work will be taking place at the following locations:
- Between London St Pancras International and Harpenden â Saturday 21 to Sunday 29 December
- In the London Paddington area â Friday 27 December to Sunday 29 December
- At London Liverpool Street â Friday 27 December to Wednesday 1 January
- In the Cambridge area â Friday 27 December to Sunday 5 January
- In the Crewe area â Friday 27 December to Thursday 2 January
There will also be improvement projects at numerous other locations, including the start of long term work in the Westbury area. You can find details of all the engineering work that is taking place in the 'Planned engineering works' section of our Status and Disruptions page.
Check before you travel:
You can check your journey using the National Rail Enquiries real-time Journey Planner. Please note, there are no National Rail train services running throughout England, Wales and Scotland on Christmas Day, Wednesday 25 December. Only a small number of train operators will be operating train services on Boxing Day, Thursday 26 December.
Rail Replacement Services:
For helpful advice if you need to travel on a rail replacement service, including accessibility and bicycle information, please use our Rail Replacement Services page.
You can find the pick-up and set-down location of rail replacement services by checking station signage or by searching for your station on our Find a Station page.
Please be advised that replacement vehicles may be busier than usual, and you should allow extra time for your journey.
Compensation:
You may be entitled to compensation if you experience a delay in completing your journey. Please keep your train ticket and make a note of your journey, as both will be required to support any claim.