Major project’s progress means changes to London journeys over two weekends

Network Rail has issued the following press release about engineering work affecting Thameslink journeys between Bedford and London over the next two weekends.

Passengers are urged to plan ahead and avoid busy times as London journeys are affected by important railway upgrades over the next two weekends.

There will be no East Midlands Railway trains south of Bedford on 24-25 May and 31 May-1 June, and no Thameslink trains between Bedford and Harpenden/Mill Hill Broadway*. Passengers will need to take rail replacement buses and should check online at nationalrail.co.uk.

The work will be the last in a series of nine weekends since February to upgrade the overhead lines that power trains between Bedford and London.

This investment is crucial for the introduction of EMR’s new greener fleet of bi-mode trains. The improvements also mean smoother and more reliable journeys for Thameslink passengers and everyone travelling between South Yorkshire, the East Midlands and London.

New drainage systems will also be installed, signal and communications equipment refurbished, and track maintained.

On Saturday 24 May, services are expected to by particularly busy as Sheffield United fans travel to Wembley for the Championship Play-Off Final, which kicks off at 3pm.

There will also be Sunderland supporters heading to the same fixture, and music festivals at Stevenage and Hatfield, which will make alternative routes into London King’s Cross very busy.

Fans should allow extra time to get to and from Wembley, while other passengers might consider travelling at times likely to have less football traffic.

Dan Matthews, Network Rail head of operations delivery, said: “We’re continuing to make great progress on transforming the Midland Main Line, and this run of weekend working enabled major steps to be taken.

“Our engineers are carrying out upgrades to the overhead power lines which will make services more reliable and enable the introduction of EMRs new trains. We’re also installing new drainage and maintaining track.

“We know this work can be disruptive for passengers. We’re sorry to those whose journeys will be affected but ask passengers to bear with us and plan ahead while we carry out these essential upgrades.”

Philippa Cresswell, customer experience director for East Midlands Railway, added: “We recommend customers planning to travel to or from London St Pancras over the next two weekends, to check their journey in advance as EMR services are disrupted due to essential engineering works.

“Rail replacement buses will be in place between Bedford and Hitchin where customers can connect to services to London King's Cross.

“On Saturday 24 May, services are expected to by particularly busy as Sheffield United travel to Wembley for the Championship Play-Off Final, to help supporters get to the match.

“Additionally, extra staff and crowd management resources will be in place at Sheffield station, and customer information will be regularly updated on the EMR website. There will also be EMR staff present at Kings Cross station to support LNER, whose services are expected to be busy.

“We would like to thank our customers for their patience whilst Network Rail carry out the engineering work on the overhead line equipment. This work will greatly benefit our customers in the future with more reliable journeys to and from London.”

Jenny Saunders, customer services director at Thameslink, said: “Network Rail’s investment is good news not only for passengers on long-distance EMR services but also for people using our Thameslink trains, who will enjoy more reliable journeys.

“We’ll have staff at our stations ready to help but these last two weekends of the project are going to have a significant impact on our services. So, please plan ahead at www.nationalrail.co.uk and leave plenty of extra time for your journey.”

Notes to Editors