Passengers are being urged to check before travelling this weekend (18th/19th February) as work continues on the East Coast Digital Programme.
New signalling is being brought into use on the Wood Green – New Barnet area, with new equipment being installed between Welwyn Garden City and Hitchin.
For work to take place, no trains will run between St Neots and London King's Cross and between Royston and London. Both King's Cross and Moorgate will be closed throughout.
No trains will from to or from St Pancras International via Finsbury Park.
Services on the 18th/19th February will operate as follows: (please check with your operator for last minute changes, information below correct at the time of writing)
- Grand Central
- No services will run
- On Monday 20th February, the 08:27 London King's Cross to Sunderland will be cancelled
- Hull Trains
- A reduced service will run, with trains being diverted to run to and from London St Pancras International
- LNER
- Lumo
- Trains will run between Edinburgh and Peterborough, with rail replacement buses running between Peterborough and London King's Cross.
Passengers are also advised to check their journey as major track renewal at Preston will impact services on the West Coast Main Line (you can read more on that by clicking here).
Paul Rutter, East Coast Route Director for Network Rail said: “It's exciting to see the East Coast Digital Programme moving forward as we get closer to offering passengers more reliable journeys along a digital railway that's fit for the future.
“There will be significant changes to services over the weekend so that we can deliver these benefits safely and we're sorry if this impacts people's plans. We've worked closely with train operators to keep people moving, so passengers should plan ahead.”
Excitement about the improvements under way does not mask the concern that the rail industry makes little effort to provide alternative services when closures are needed. Are there fast trains from Euston to Edinburgh when the ECML is closed? How about St. Pancras to Leeds? We have built-in inflexibility that drives customers to their cars.