Buses will replace a number of trains
Rail passengers in Kent and south east London are being warned about a planned nine-day line closure. There is track upgrade work at Dartford Junction, the busiest railway junction in Kent.
It will mean replacement buses during the work, from Saturday, February 14 to Sunday, February 22, most schools’ half-term. Buses will replace Southeastern and Thameslink services between Gravesend and Dartford towards Crayford, Barnehurst, and Slade Green.
Services will run as normal into London along the Sidcup, Bexleyheath and Woolwich routes. Passengers are warned that during peak times, there may be queues for the replacement buses, which will be accessible.
South Eastern Railway’s chief operating officer David Davidson said half-term had been “deliberately chosen” to minimise disruption as “schools are on holiday and fewer people are commuting”. The track upgrade aims to improve the reliability of the junction and “help to provide better journeys for customers” travelling between Kent and London.
Other station improvements will be done during the line closure, said Network Rail.
Passenger information
- During the work, no Southeastern or Thameslink services will operate between Slade Green, Barnehurst, Crayford, and Gravesend via Dartford. Replacement bus services will be provided.
- No Thameslink services will operate between Plumstead and Gravesend. An hourly Thameslink shuttle train service will run between Gravesend and Rainham.
- All Southeastern metro routes continue as normal into London via Sidcup, Bexleyheath and Woolwich lines but times will change. There will be extra services on the Bexleyheath line.
- Highspeed services to and from St Pancras via Gravesend will continue to operate as normal.
Buses will replace trains at the following stations:
- Dartford
- Stone Crossing
- Greenhithe for Bluewater
- Swanscombe
- Northfleet
Replacement buses may be busy. Network Rail urges customers to plan more time to travel. The replacement services will run:
- between Gravesend and Slade Green calling at Northfleet, Swanscombe, Greenhithe, Stone Crossing and Dartford;
- between Dartford and Crayford;
- between Dartford and Barnehurst;
- between Dartford and Slade Green.
Upgrade work
The upgrade includes the renewal of 10 switches and crossings, also known as points – the moveable sections of track that allow trains to change direction – and around 400 yards of new rail will be laid between Slade Green and Dartford. Station improvements will be made at the same time, including new tactile paving at Dartford station to improve accessibility and reduce the stepping distance between platforms and trains.
At Stone Crossing station, damaged fencing will be replaced, while at Greenhithe, the accessible toilet will be refurbished. Deep cleaning will take place at Swanscombe, and new LED lighting and additional customer information screens to aid journey planning will be installed at Northfleet.
Repainting will take place at all of the stations closed for the duration of the work. While the main upgrade of the junction is scheduled to take place during the nine-day closure between February 14 and 22, there will also be additional weekend closures on Saturday, February 7 and Sunday, February 8 for preparation work and then follow-up work on Sunday, March 1 and Sunday, April 5.
A replacement bus service will be running on these dates. Chief operating officer for the South Eastern Railway David Davidson said: “The work at Dartford Junction, where 650 trains pass every day, is a vital investment in the long-term resilience and efficiency of one of the busiest junctions of our network.
“We want to thank customers for their patience while we carry out this essential upgrade. We’ve deliberately chosen the half-term to minimise disruption as schools are on holiday and fewer people are commuting.
“We will be making the most of the time available when trains are not running to carry out station refurbishments, including installing tactile paving at Dartford station to improve accessibility and safety. We understand that this will be disruptive and we’re working hard to ensure passengers are fully informed about the closure so that they can make their alternative travel arrangements.
“By doing the work over the February half-term, we can fit everything we need to do into one nine-day closure. The alternative would be up to 30 weekends, which would be much more disruptive over a longer period.”
Never get stuck in a jam again with our FREE traffic and travel email for KentLive readers. Find out more here
