No Trains to London Marylebone During Major Chiltern Line Engineering Works

Passengers using the Chiltern Main Line are being urged to check their journeys ahead of a weekend of major engineering works which will see services heavily disrupted.

Upgrade work is scheduled to take place on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 March, with engineering teams carrying out track improvements at several locations along the route. As a result of the works, no Chiltern Railways services will operate into or out of London Marylebone for the entire weekend.

One of the main projects will take place around West Ruislip station, where engineers will renew around a mile of track. The work will involve replacing older rail sleepers with new concrete versions, updating the track and installing fresh ballast.

Further upgrades will also be carried out close to Birmingham New Street station, where a half-mile section of track will be brought up to modern standards. At the same time, Network Rail teams will work on the approaches to London Marylebone, refurbishing track switches and crossings.

Network Rail says the improvements are designed to strengthen the reliability of the railway and help ensure the route continues to operate effectively for many years to come.

The work will significantly affect services across the network. In addition to the closure of London Marylebone, no trains will run south of Gerrards Cross or Amersham, and services from Birmingham will terminate at Bicester North with no trains running further south.

To help passengers complete their journeys, rail replacement bus services will operate between Bicester North and Bicester Village, as well as between Gerrards Cross and Hillingdon.

Neil Gaskin, Network Rail central route programme director, said:

“These upgrades are vital to ensuring trains run reliably and on time. I would like to thank passengers for their patience while the work takes place."

Michael Stewart, commercial and customer strategy director at Chiltern Railways, said:

“I understand that no trains to or from London Marylebone for an entire weekend will significantly inconvenience our customers. I want to thank them for their patience during these works which are crucial for the future reliability of the railway. Please check your journeys ahead of travelling in the area on the affected weekend as they will be heavily disrupted.”

Image: Network Rail