East Midlands Railway is warning customers that a reduced service to its regular timetable will take place on Sunday, 27th April 2025, as scheduled engineering works are planned to be carried out.

The date Sunday, 27th April 2025, also conflicts with two major events in London, the London Marathon and Nottingham Forest’s FA Cup Semi-Final Match at Wembley.

The engineering works are taking place between Kentish Town and St Pancras, which will mean no Thameslink services will be running into Platforms A and B at the lower level part of London St Pancras International.

Thameslink services will be diverted to terminate on the East Midlands Railway side of London St Pancras International, limiting the operation of EMR services, which have to share their four platforms with Thameslink trains.

Due to this scenario, the EMR will be running the following services on Sunday, 27th April 2025. There will be one train per hour between St Pancras and Sheffield (via Beighton), one train per hour between St Pancras and Nottingham and one train per hour between St Pancras and Corby. Another hourly service will also run between Kettering and Corby.

Those planning to head to the London Marathon, the FA Cup Semi-Final or heading to London for a day or evening out using East Midlands Railway will need to ensure that they are prepared for limited services with queues likely at stations and with trains expected to be standing room only.

Those heading to the London Marathon and the FA Cup Semi-Final should allow additional time to travel and complete their journey, leaving on an earlier service if need be. Passengers are also being reminded that there will also be a limited service from St Pancras along the Midland Main Line following the conclusion of these events.

EMR suggest that passengers planning on travelling from Nottingham to London should board an EMR regional service from Nottingham to Grantham and get an LNER service to London Kings Cross, for a faster run into London.

Additional EMR services will be in operation between the two cities to compensate for the reduced direct services. Passengers are also reminded that they can add flexibility to their travel arrangements by buying Advance Purchase Tickets.

“Services will be extremely busy on Sunday, 27 April, due to engineering works, the marathon, and Nottingham Forest fans travelling to the FA Cup Semi-Final.

“We strongly advise customers to plan ahead, avoid peak times where possible, and check our website for updates. We’re sorry for any inconvenience and thank our customers for their patience.”

Philippa Cresswell, Customer Experience Director at EMR