Between Christmas and the New Year and the first two weekends in January, there will be disruptions to train services in south London, Kent and Sussex because of engineering work.

There will be no service between Herne Hill, Brixton and London Victoria from Saturday, 23 December to Monday, 1 January and the weekends of 6-7 and 13-14 January 2024, with Southeastern services being diverted to Blackfriars, Cannon Street or Charing Cross, and buses replacing London Overground trains between Surrey Quays and Clapham Junction.

During this time, extra gatelines will be installed at London Victoria Station to reduce congestion at the station, with the new ticket gates due to come into use by next summer.

Between Clapham and Wandsworth a major junction is being rebuilt, which involves the replacement of 14 sets of switches and crossings and installation of over 2,600 new sleepers, 1,600m of new track and 1,000m of conductor rail, and the laying of 10,000 tonnes of ballast.

From Herne Hill and Nunhead to London Victoria station work to upgrade the 1980s signalling system will also continue, ready for it to be commissioned next December.

In the Norwood area on Wednesday, 27 and Thursday, 28 December shuttle services will operate between Purley and Tattenham Corner and between Purley and Caterham, with buses replacing trains between Crystal Palace and West Croydon.

Between Oxted and Uckfield, buses will replace trains on Wednesday, 27 and Thursday, 28 December while engineers upgrade the track between Hurst Green and Uckfield and strengthen the cutting and protect the line from falling debris and landslips.

New Year’s Eve:

• Because of engineering work, there will be no Southeastern services in or out of London Victoria station, with services diverted to Blackfriars, Cannon Street or Charing Cross stations.
• Southern will operate a normal Sunday service, but passengers should check the time of their last train home and plan ahead.
• Thameslink will operate an overnight service between Three Bridges and Bedford.

Ellie Burrows, Network Rail’s Southern regional managing director, said: “We’d like to thank passengers for their patience while we carry out this programme of investment across south London and parts of Kent and Sussex this festive period.

“We know that there is never a good time to close the railway, but passenger numbers are a lot lower at this time of year which is why we try to pack as much work in as possible and reduce disruption.

“There will be varying changes to train services during this time, so we are advising passengers to plan ahead and check the latest travel information with their train operator or National Rail.”

Scott Brightwell, Southeastern’s operations and safety director, commented: “This crucial work by Network Rail over the festive period will help to deliver better, more reliable journeys in future. We’re reminding our customers that their normal train could be routed into either London Blackfriars, Cannon Street or Charing Cross and that their usual journey may take longer.

“Our message to customers travelling into Victoria over the festive period, particularly if you re planning a trip to see family or friends or heading out on New Year’s Eve is to please, check before you travel. You can do this by using the journey planners on the Southeastern app or website.

Jenny Saunders, Govia Thameslink Railway’s customer services director, said: “We’ve worked closely with Network Rail to provide as full a service as possible for customers travelling over the festive period, and we thank customers for their understanding. Please check your journeys throughout the period, including this week before Christmas when we expect services to be particularly busy. Do please also allow plenty of extra time, especially where services are finishing early, or replacement buses are running.”