Thousands of Londoners planning festive getaways face significant travel disruption this year, as Network Rail schedules a major programme of engineering works across the capital's key rail hubs.
Key Station Closures and Engineering Works
London Euston will be partially closed from Saturday, 27 December to Sunday, 4 January. This affects Avanti West Coast services on the West Coast Main Line due to a junction renewal at Hanslope. Passengers travelling between London and Scotland are advised to use LNER or Lumo services on the East Coast Main Line instead. Rail replacement buses will operate between Milton Keynes Central and Rugby/Northampton.
Liverpool Street station, the UK's busiest, will shut completely for eight days from Christmas Day until Thursday, 1 January. The closure is for vital work to strengthen the Bishopsgate tunnel, with the exception of the Elizabeth line's separate underground platforms. Greater Anglia services will divert via Stratford, Stansted Express trains will terminate at Tottenham Hale, and London Overground services will end at London Fields. Passengers should use Victoria line services from Walthamstow Central and Seven Sisters or local buses.
Further Disruption Across South and South West London
London Victoria will see no Southeastern trains from Saturday, 27 December until New Year’s Eve. This is due to power, rail, and signalling upgrades. David Davidson, Southeastern's chief operating officer, stated the work is timed for when the railway is quieter to deliver safer, more reliable journeys. Southeastern services will also not run to or from London Charing Cross or London Waterloo East on New Year’s Day or Friday, 2 January 2026.
Waterloo station faces a full closure on the weekend of Saturday, 27 and Sunday, 28 December. Around 350 engineers will be working on track and points upgrades around Queenstown Road in Battersea. Services will start and terminate at Clapham Junction. A limited service will then run from Monday, 29 December to Friday, 2 January, with trains on some routes starting or ending at alternative stations.
Vauxhall station will be closed from Saturday, 27 December to Tuesday, 30 December, and again on New Year’s Day, Thursday, 1 January. Trains will not stop at the station on these dates due to engineering works in South West London. Services will run normally on New Year's Eve and from 2 January onwards.
Plan Ahead for Festive Travel
Network Rail utilises the quieter festive period to carry out essential maintenance that is too disruptive to perform at busier times. While travel out of London before Christmas Day remains unaffected, passengers intending to journey between Christmas and early January are strongly urged to check their routes well in advance.
The National Rail journey planner is the best resource for real-time information. All operators advise allowing extra time for travel and expecting busier services on routes that remain open, as passengers are funnelled onto alternative lines.
