Passengers urged to check travel plans over Christmas and New Year as major works take place

Wednesday 29th Oct 2025

Rail passengers are being reminded to plan ahead this Christmas and New Year, with earlier last train times on Christmas Eve and timetable changes due to bank holidays and essential engineering works.

London Liverpool Street will be closed for eight days while Network Rail continues work to replace ageing roof panels at the station. Engineers will also carry out maintenance inside the Bishopsgate tunnel, a key structure on the approach to the terminus.

During the closure, many services to and from London will terminate at or start from Stratford. Connections into central London will be available via the Elizabeth line and London Underground. Ticket acceptance will be in place on the Elizabeth line and Central line between Stratford and Liverpool Street; on the Victoria line between Tottenham Hale and King’s Cross St Pancras; and on the Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines between King’s Cross St Pancras and Liverpool Street.

Additionally, engineers will be delivering a major signalling renewal project across the Cambridge area and commissioning new equipment ahead of the planned opening of Cambridge South station in 2026.

Passengers are advised to use the journey planner on the Greater Anglia website or app to check services.

On Christmas Eve, most services will finish by 22:00. There will be no trains on Christmas Day, and only a revised Stansted Express service will run between Tottenham Hale and Stansted Airport on Boxing Day. While most services will run between 27 and 31 December, some alterations will apply. A bank holiday timetable will operate on New Year’s Day, before a normal timetable resumes on Monday 5 January across most of the network.

Martin Beable, Managing Director, Greater Anglia, said:

“While most of our services will be running over the festive period, so that people can continue to travel across East Anglia and beyond, engineering work is taking place and will affect passengers travelling on both main lines to and from London and in the Cambridge area. Since the railway tends to be much quieter over this period, Network Rail uses it to carry out essential upgrade work that will help Greater Anglia to continue operating a very punctual and reliable service for customers in 2026. We apologise for the inconvenience caused by the service alterations, and we urge passengers to check before they travel as some journeys may take longer than normal.”

Key alterations to Greater Anglia services over the Christmas and New Year period are as follows:

Wednesday 24 December

On Christmas Eve Tuesday 24 December an early shutdown of services will apply. Trains will cease operation by 22:00, with reductions in service from 19:00.

The exception is the Stansted Express between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport.

The last train to Stansted Airport will be the 23:21 London Liverpool Street to Stansted Airport, arriving at 00:12.

The last train from Stansted Airport will be the 22:43 Stansted Airport to London Liverpool Street, arriving at 23.34.

Thursday 25 December

No Greater Anglia services will operate on Christmas Day.

Friday 26 December

Only a reduced Stansted Express service will run.

Stansted Express services will start/terminate at Tottenham Hale. Customers are encouraged to use the Victoria line to/from Tottenham Hale.

No other services will operate.

Saturday 27 December