Network Rail is continuing with work in Kent which will bring reliability improvements to the railway. The work is set to take place over four consecutive weekends through August and September and will see no trains services operating from London Charing Cross and Waterloo East.
Over the weekend of the 12th and 13th of August, engineers from Network Rail started work to rebuild the well-used rail junction at New Cross which controls train movements in and out of London Bridge station.
The upcoming stage of work will see five switches and crossings replaced alongside over 1,000 yards of track sleepers and ballast as part of Network Rail's programme to replace 1980s infrastructure in Kent.
During the period of work, the majority of Southeastern trains will see a diversion to London Victoria and London Blackfriars stations on the following dates:
- Saturday the 19th to Sunday the 21st of August
- Saturday the 26th to Monday the 28th of August
- Saturday the 2nd to Sunday the 3rd of September
During the above work dates, accessible rail replacement buses will be running between Lewisham and Greenwich, calling at St. Johns and New Cross.
Passengers travelling will be able to use their ticket on London Underground, for no extra cost between: London Victoria, Charing Cross, Embankment, Waterloo, Southwark, London Bridge, Cannon Street, Blackfriars and Elephant & Castle, as well as on the Docklands Light Railway between Lewisham and Greenwich.
David Davidson, Network Rail's Kent route director, said:
“Over the past four years, we've invested more than a billion pounds into the railway in Kent and South East London, replacing and upgrading 1980s infrastructure to improve reliability for passengers.”
“That work continues with this investment at New Cross junction, a key location on the route into London Bridge, controlling the movement of hundreds of trains each day.”
“Any incident on the route into London Bridge has a major impact on passengers and it's vital that our infrastructure is as reliable as possible. This vital work will bring tangible benefits for passengers when complete and we'd like to thank passengers for their patience while we undertake these works.”
Daniel Tall, head of the joint performance team for Southeastern, said:
“We know that this work being undertaken by Network Rail is crucial in making the railway more reliable, but for a short period during August and early September, there will be an impact on customers' journeys at weekends.”
“Our message is to please check before you travel on the Southeastern app, our website or Twitter @Se_Railway, and allow more time for your journey on these weekends.”
