According to a recent headline, Christmas is cancelled! And if you read the closures due on our rail lines, you’d understand why. With London Bridge due to be half closed for 16-days, the West Coast mainline shut between Euston and Hemel Hempstead, more lines closed between Stafford and Crewe, and a key London to Scotland line being closed due to works., maybe now’s the time to start re-thinking your travel strategies for the upcoming festive season.
Nearly three times as many people travel over the festive period that other times of the year as many use our national rail lines to spend Christmas with family and friends across the country. The truth is that rail repair closures over the festive period is nothing new; it is no surprise to any of us that these works have become a yearly tradition. What puts the icing on the cake, so to speak, is that the news of Christmas disruptions comes just days after Stagecoach, Richard Branson’s transport group that also runs the West Coast train operator, has just announced that they’ve got the East Coast line franchise.
Network Rail’s managing director, Jim Syddall, apologised for the inconvenience in a statement, adding that “There is never a good time to carry out this type of work.” Really? They have chosen probably the busiest time of the year; where’s the sense and planning in that?
So, let’s look at the details; a 16-day half closure of London Bridge involving the Thameslink programme. This means that from 22nd December to 4th January, Thameslink trains won’t be stopping at London Bridge, and there won’t be any cross-London Thameslink Bedford-Brighton trains, not returning ‘til 2018. From 22nd December to 24th December, some Charing Cross services also won’t be stopping at London Bridge, but only in the morning rush hour. Then we hear that Paddington station is also going to be affected, and that will lead to some services being closed on 24th December to 30th December from 5pm onwards. There will be works taking place between Reading West/Tilehurst and Slough from 29th December to 3rd January; buses will replace train services between Aldershot and Ascot on 27th and 28th December, as well as lines closed between Earlestown/St Helens Central and Edge Hill.
So, if you are planning on travelling over the festive period, do your research and check which train lines and services are closed and which aren’t. And if the route you were planning is closed or disrupted, don’t despair, there are plenty of other travelling options available including coaches, buses, airplanes and, of course, Heathrow Gatwick Transfers services!