May bank holiday engineering works
We’ve planned essential engineering works over the May bank holiday weekends.
Work will take place from Saturday 2 to Monday 4 May and Saturday 23 to Monday 25 May 2026. Some train services will be affected during this time, so be in the know before you go. Visit National Rail or your train operator’s website for the latest travel information.
We will deliver a £140.5m investment programme across both weekends consisting of 568 projects to improve reliability.
Projects planned for the May Bank Holidays include (but are not limited to)
Early May Bank Holiday (Friday 2 to Monday 4 May)
East Coast Main Line
Work to rebuild a junction at Tollerton on the East Coast Main Line in North Yorkshire means buses will replace trains between York and Darlington between Saturday and Monday, with a limited train service from Northallerton to Darlington. Trains restart on Tuesday 5 May.
South East London
Work to improve signalling around Lewisham, complete a track renewal and footbridge installation at Hither Green means Charing Cross will be closed for all three days of the Bank Holiday, while Cannon Street is also closed on Sunday only. Trains will be diverted to London Victoria and Blackfriars. Normal service resumes on Tuesday 5 May.
Transpennine
The Transpennine Route Upgrade programme’s major programme of improvements between Manchester, Huddersfield and Leeds gets underway on Saturday and runs through most of May and June, including the installation of overhead wires for electric trains, a new bridge, track and station improvements. See here for more details.
Liverpool Lime Street
The station is closed on Sunday 3 May and Monday 4 May only for new signalling to be installed around Edge Hill.
Late May Bank Holiday (Saturday 23 to Monday 25 May)
East Coast Main Line
Work continues on rebuilding a junction at Tollerton on the East Coast Main Line in North Yorkshire, so buses will again replace trains between York and Darlington between Saturday and Monday, with a limited train service from Northallerton to Darlington. Trains restart on Tuesday 26 May.
Transpennine
As above, work continues between Manchester, Huddersfield and Leeds as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade.
Great Western Main Line
Work gets underway on a two-week programme of improvements to the Severn Tunnel’s power supply and track around Patchway and Filton. The work will improve reliability for passengers and cutting disruptive maintenance needed in the area, as well as being a key enabler for new passenger services between Bristol and Henbury.
Buses replace trains between Newport and Bristol Parkway with one through train an hour between South Wales and London via Gloucester from Saturday 23 May until Sunday 7 June, with normal services resuming on Monday 8 June.
Thameslink
Improvements to signalling and telecommunications equipment in the Thameslink “core” between Finsbury Park, St Pancras and Blackfriars means Thameslink trains from the north of London will start and end their journeys at Kings Cross and St Pancras and services from the South will start and end their journeys at London Bridge.