Disruption expected between Peterborough and London due to East Coast Main Line upgrades

The works are part of a £1.2 billion upgrade which will see the reopening of a disused railway tunnel to allow more trains to enter and exit King’s Cross station, as well as improvements to the track and signalling.

Network Rail say that the upgrades will bring a more modern, reliable railway with more services to meet future passenger needs.

The main works to install overhead line equiptment will take place this weekend between Saturday November 21 and Sunday November 22 and will mean no services will run to or from London King’s Cross, Moorgate or St Pancras International via Finsbury Park.

The full list of service changes is as follows:

Saturday November 21 - Sunday November 22 - No services to or from London King’s Cross, Moorgate or St Pancras International via Finsbury Park.

Saturday November 28 - Reduced service to and from London King’s Cross, with limited capacity for passengers. Services will continue to run to and from Moorgate and St Pancras International via Finsbury Park.

Sunday November 29 - Reduced service to and from London King’s Cross, with limited capacity for passengers. Services will continue to run to and from Moorgate and St Pancras International via Finsbury Park. No trains will run on the Hertford North line with replacement buses serving closed stations.

Ed Akers, Principal Programme Sponsor for Network Rail, said: “This work which is taking place over weekends in November is a vital part of the East Coast Upgrade. The project will bring a more modern, reliable railway for passengers.

“We are making as much progress as possible without disrupting services, but work on the overhead line equipment and improvements to the signalling system can only be carried out safely when there are no trains in the area.

“We thank passengers for their continued patience and strongly advise those who need to travel to or from London to check their journey and allow plenty of time.”

A spokesperson on behalf of train operators on the route, which includes Thameslink, Great Northern and LNER, added: “We would like to thank passengers for their patience whilst these improvements are carried out as part of the East Coast Upgrade.

“We strongly advise people to check their journey before travelling. Replacement buses will be running and some journeys will take longer.”

Further work is planned over the coming months and the dates of full and partial closures at King’s Cross have been announced up to June 2021. This includes an extended six-day closure between Christmas and the New Year. No services will be running to or from London King’s Cross from Friday 25 December until Wednesday 30 December. There will also be a reduced service on Thursday 24 December, and between Thursday 31 January and Sunday 3 January 2021.

Passengers can find out more so they can plan their journeys in advance at eastcoastupgrade.co.uk.