St. Pancras and London Bridge station Christmas disruption as section of railway to close

Customers have been warned of disruption at two of London's busiest railway stations over the Christmas period as a section of line is closed. Network Rail will close a section of the Midland Main Line, between London St. Pancras and Harpenden for nine consecutive days.

Between December 21 and 29, there will be no East Midlands Railway (EMR) services between London St Pancras and Bedford. Thameslink train services will not run between London St Pancras and Harpenden.

Journeys between London St. Pancras and destinations on the Midland Main Line, including Luton Airport Parkway, St Albans, Bedford, Nottingham, Derby and Sheffield will take longer and involve replacement bus services. In addition, between December 27 and 29, there will be no Thameslink train services between London St Pancras and London Bridge as engineering work is carried out to upgrade the tracks.

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Network Rail engineers will be working during this time to carry out a number of projects between London St Pancras and Bedford, including:

• Replacing the bridge deck on a road over rail bridge at Agar Grove in Camden

• Continuing work to upgrade the overhead lines, which power trains, between London St Pancras and Bedford

• Installing a new bridge under the railway to provide access to Radlett Strategic Freight interchange

• Lots of other maintenance and renewal jobs to improve safety and the reliability of the railway network

Network Rail advised in a statement: "Passengers who usually take the train north from London St Pancras will need to use different London stations and connecting buses to reach their destinations. EMR passengers can take West Coast Main Line services from London Euston to Milton Keynes to catch buses to Bedford where they will join their EMR train.

"Thameslink passengers travelling to destinations between London and north of Harpenden will take East Coast Main Line services from London Kings Cross to Hitchin or Potters Bar, where they can connect to rail replacement bus services to Luton Airport Parkway, or St Albans City and Harpenden. Thameslink trains will be operating from these stations to Bedford.

"Buses will replace trains between London St Pancras and Harpenden. Additional staff will also be on hand at stations to keep passengers on the move as rail replacement services will be busy and journeys will take longer than expected.

"Customers are being encouraged to check National Rail Enquiries before they travel. Additional information will also be available on EMR’s and Thameslink’s websites and social media channels from this weekend."

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