Press release —
Upgrades mean amended rail service between Bedford and London this weekend
Network Rail has issued the following press release about work this weekend which affects Thameslink services on the route to and from Bedford:
Railway improvement work will mean no Thameslink trains running between Bedford and Mill Hill Broadway in north London this weekend (Saturday 9 and Sunday 10 May), while East Midlands Railway (EMR) services will not run south of Bedford.
Network Rail engineers will be working at several sites to deliver projects including:
- 300 metres of new track at St Albans for smoother, more reliable journeys
- drainage upgrades at Radlett to prevent flooding, protect the railway and support safer, more reliable services
- installation of switches and crossings – the sections of track allowing trains to switch between lines – at Radlett Strategic Freight Interchange
- further progress on the Access for All project at Luton station, where an accessible footbridge and three lifts are being installed.
Thameslink will have no services between Bedford and Mill Hill Broadway. East Midlands Railway will have rail replacement buses operating between Bedford and Hitchin.
Replacement bus services will run between:
- Bedford and Hitchin*
- Luton Airport Parkway and Hitchin* via Luton
- Harpenden and Potters Bar* via St Albans City
- Mill Hill Broadway and Luton
- Bedford and Luton
* (connecting with Great Northern and Thameslink services into London at no extra cost)
Jenny Saunders, customer service director for Thameslink, said:
“I’m sorry our Thameslink passengers north of Mill Hill Broadway on the Bedford route will have to take a rail replacement bus this weekend because of this essential engineering work. This will take longer than the normal train ride, so please go online to check your journey before you set out and allow any extra time.”
Dan Matthews, Network Rail operations director, said:
“This weekend we’re carrying out further improvement work to make the railway more reliable and resilient for passengers and freight. This includes renewing track at St Albans, upgrading drainage and installing points at Radlett, and continuing our work to deliver step‑free access at Luton station.
“We appreciate everyone’s understanding while these important improvements take place, and we’re sorry to anyone whose journey will be affected.”
Philippa Cresswell, customer experience director at East Midlands Railway, said:
“We’re working closely with Network Rail to support this important programme of improvements and keep customers on the move.
“We’re advising anyone travelling to/from London over the weekend of 9-10 May, to allow extra time to complete their journey. There will be rail replacement buses in place between Bedford and Hitchin.
“We’d like to thank customers for their patience; the completed works will help deliver a more reliable railway for customers in the future.”
This weekend is the second of four between April and June which will see journeys between Bedford and London affected. Further engineering work is planned for 20-21 and 27-28 June.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Other alterations to Thameslink services this weekend (9-10 May):
Saturday:
Trains between St Albans City and Sutton via Mitcham Junction will run between Kentish Town and Sutton.
Trains between St Albans City and Sutton via Wimbledon will run between West Hampstead Thameslink and Sutton.
Trains between Bedford and Brighton will run between Mill Hill Broadway and Brighton, calling additionally at Hendon, Brent Cross West and Cricklewood.
Trains between Bedford and Three Bridges will run between West Hampstead Thameslink and Three Bridges only.
Trains between Bedford and Horsham will run between West Hampstead Thameslink and Horsham only.
Trains between Luton and Rainham will run to an amended timetable between London Bridge and Rainham only.
Before 21.45 on Sunday:
Trains between St Albans City and Sutton via Mitcham junction will run between Kentish Town and Sutton.
Trains between St Albans City and Sutton via Wimbledon will run between West Hampstead Thameslink and Sutton only.
Trains between Bedford and Brighton will run between Mill Hill Broadway and Haywards Heath, calling additionally at Hendon, Brent Cross West and Cricklewood
Trains between Bedford and Three Bridges will run between West Hampstead Thameslink and Three Bridges only.
Trains between Bedford and Horsham will run between West Hampstead Thameslink and Horsham only.
Trains between Luton and Rainham will run to an amended timetable between London Bridge and Rainham only.
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For more information, contact the press office on 0203 750 2031.
GTR
GTR operates Thameslink, Great Northern, Southern and Gatwick Express services as follows:
- Thameslink – cross-London services between Bedford/Peterborough/Cambridge and Brighton/Horsham/East Grinstead, and between Luton/St Albans and Sutton/Wimbledon/Rainham; plus services between London and Sevenoaks
- Great Northern – services between London and Welwyn, Hertford, Peterborough, Cambridge and King’s Lynn
- Southern – services between London and the Sussex coast (Brighton, Worthing, Eastbourne, Bognor Regis, Hastings) and parts of Surrey, Kent and Hampshire (Ashford International, Southampton, Portsmouth)
- Gatwick Express – fast, non-stop direct services between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria
www.southernrailway.com, www.thameslinkrailway.com, www.gatwickexpress.com, www.greatnorthernrail.com
