It’s that time of year again – as we come up to the Christmas period, the orange workman army goes to work on the UK rail network to carry out repairs and upgrades. As such, there are some important changes if you’re coming into London’s Airports.
Let’s take a look, and what you need to plan when you’re travelling over the festive season.
Heathrow Express
Heathrow Express Service at Heathow – Image, Economy Class and Beyond
With major engineering works on the Great Western Main Line, Heathrow Express is impacted. Consider using the Piccadilly Line if you need to travel
- 23-26 December – No services on Heathrow Express
- 27 – 29 December – Departures every 30 minutes
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- London Paddington to Heathrow Terminal 5 – The first service departs at 05:22 then at 52 and 22 minutes past the hour until the last service at 23:22
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- Heathrow Terminal 5 to London Paddington – The first service departs at 05:25 then at 55 and 25 minutes past the hour until the last services at 23:25 and 23:35
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- Heathrow Terminals 2&3 to London Paddington – The first service departs at 05:33 then at 03 and 33 minutes past the hour until the last services at 23:33 and 23:41
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- Free terminal transfer services will depart every 15 minutes.
- 30 December 2018 – No services on Heathrow Express. Only Inter-Terminal Shuttle will operate
- 31 December 2018 – Departures every 30 minutes
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- London Paddington to Heathrow Terminal 5 – The first service departs at 05:55 then at 55 and 25 minutes past the hour until the last service at 23:25
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- Heathrow Terminal 5 to London Paddington – The first service departs at 05:27 then at 57 and 27 minutes past the hour until the last services at 23:27 and 23:35- Heathrow Terminals 2&3 to London
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- Paddington – The first service departs at 05:33 then at 03 and 33 minutes past the hour until the last services at 23:33 and 23:41
- 1 January – Normal service resumes
TFL Rail (London Paddington to Heathrow)
With major engineering works on the Great Western Main Line, TFL Rail is heavily impacted. Consider using the Picadilly Line if you need to travel
- 23-24 December – No Services. GWR buses will serve all stations apart from Heathrow, Hanwell and West Ealing. You should use the rail replacement bus service or local buses for onward journeys. Use Piccadilly Line or bus 105 from Southall/140 from Hayes and Harlington
- 25-26 December – No Services
- 27-29 December – Reduced service will operate between London Paddington and Heathrow Terminal 4. Trains will not stop at Acton Mainline, West Ealing or Hanwell.
- 30 December – No Services. GWR buses will serve all stations apart from Heathrow, Hanwell and West Ealing. You should use the rail replacement bus service or local buses for onward journeys. Use Piccadilly Line or bus 105 from Southall/140 from Hayes and Harlington
- 31 December – Reduced service will operate between London Paddington and Heathrow Terminal 4. Trains will not stop at Acton Mainline, West Ealing or Hanwell.
- 1 January – Normal Service resumes
Gatwick Express
Gatwick Express service passing Clapham Junction – Image, Economy Class and Beyond
Gatwick Express is pretty much closed for the holiday season due to engineering works outside Victoria station . You’ll need to go via London Bridge or Blackfriars instead to reach Gatwick Airport.
- 22 December – A Saturday service will run, with services finishing early.
- 23-24 December – No Gatwick Express service from Victoria. Use Southern or Thameslink trains will be running between Gatwick Airport and London Bridge / Blackfriars
- 25 December – No service
- 26 December – 1 January – No Gatwick Express service from Victoria. Use Southern or Thameslink trains will be running between Gatwick Airport and London Bridge / Blackfriars
- 2 January – A normal service will operate
Stansted Express
There’s not a lot of disruption on the Stansted Express, however – there are some service reductions, as well as service changes on Boxing Day.
- 23-24 December – A half-hourly service will operate
- 25 December – No Service
- 26 December – Services will operate between Tottenham Hale and Stansted only on a half-hour basis. No service between Tottenham Hale and London Liverpool Street
- 27-28 December – A half-hourly service will operate
- 29 December – Saturday service
- 30 December – Sunday Service
- 31 December – Monday Service
- 1 January – A half-hourly service will operate
Docklands Light Railway (Connecting London City Airport)
Morning time on the DLR – Image, Economy Class and Beyond
- 23 December – Normal Service
- 24 December – A Saturday service is running. Services will finish from around 22:00
- 25 December – No Service
- 26 December – Reduced Service
- 27-29 December – Saturday Service
- 30 December – Sunday Service
- 31 December – A special all-night service, with services on all routes from 00:30 until 08:00 every 15 minutes
- 1 January – Saturday service
- 2 January – Normal Service
As usual, plan ahead. The full changes are listed at http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/172371.aspx
There are also a lot of significant engineering work going on around, so ensure you know where and when you need to travel – and if you’re taking the train.
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