Engineering work to disrupt South Western train services over two weekends

Maintenance in the Wimbledon area will affect services across the SWR network, with long-distance services between London Waterloo and Exeter St Davids, Portsmouth Harbour and Weymouth all being impacted.

The disruption, which is due to the renewal of 800 metres of track, ballast, and sleepers between Wimbledon and Earlsfield, will take place on January 18, 19, 25 and 26.

Engineers will also replace points, which are moveable sections of track that allow trains to move from one line to another, and install 100 meters of conductor rail, which powers trains.

Peter Williams, South Western Railway’s customer and commercial director, said: “Customers should plan ahead if they intend to travel on these weekends in January, as engineers carry out vital maintenance at one of the busiest parts of our network.

“There will be a large number of service changes, with rail replacement buses operating on our suburban routes, and with long-distance services revised and diverted. Diverted services will take around 30 minutes longer than usual, so customers should allow extra time when travelling.

“We are very sorry for the disruption and are very grateful for our customers’ patience.”

Direct trains will run to and from London Waterloo over these two weekends, however, they will take longer than usual.

The improvement works will result in a number of changes made to services. The changes are as follows:

• Services between London Waterloo and Alton will start and finish their journeys at Woking, and on Sundays, these services will run hourly.
• Stopping services between London Waterloo and Basingstoke will start and finish their journeys at Woking. On Sundays, these services will run hourly.
• Services between London Waterloo and Exeter St Davids will be revised and diverted, taking longer than normal. Some journeys will start and finish at Basingstoke.
• Services between London Waterloo and Portsmouth Harbour via Guildford will be revised and diverted. Some services will start and finish their journeys at Woking.
• On Saturdays, services between London Waterloo and Portsmouth Harbour via Eastleigh will run between Basingstoke and Portsmouth Harbour only. On Sundays, services will run between Eastleigh and Portsmouth Harbour only.
• Services between London Waterloo and Weymouth will be revised and diverted.

Mark Goodall, Network Rail’s Wessex Route Director, said: “There’s never a good time to close the railway, and I’m sorry we are impacting passengers in the Wimbledon area over consecutive weekends.

“We’ve worked hard to find the least disruptive window to deliver these essential engineering works. However, completing the upgrades back-to-back is the most efficient and cost-effective option for the taxpayer.”

For more information about the South Western Railway, click here.