30.09.16
Passengers warned to ‘start planning ahead’ for major Waterloo works next summer
Passengers can expect significant disruptions at London Waterloo from 5 to 28 August 2017 to allow for major upgrade work, Network Rail and South West Trains (SWT) have warned.
Platforms 1-9 at the station will be closed while work is carried out to extend platforms 1-4. This is intended to allow 10-car trains to run between Waterloo and Reading.
Network Rail and SWT will publish a temporary timetable next year, but said passengers should start planning ahead.
Stuart Kistruck, route managing director at Network Rail, said: “As there will be major impacts on services, we want everyone to have plenty of time to plan ahead while we invest for better journeys down the line.”
Christian Roth, managing director at SWT, added that the Waterloo and South West Upgrade is the “biggest investment in this railway for decades and will provide more trains, more seats and more space for tens of thousands of passengers every day”.
“We are doing everything we can to minimise the impact on passengers while the work is carried out but there will be some changes to services next summer, particularly between 5 and 28 August 2017,” he said.
Waterloo’s former international terminal will also be brought back into use, with platforms 20-24 reopening during August.
The changes are part of a wider £800m improvement programme for SWT, which will also include enhancements to Vauxhall and Surbiton stations and to depot and maintenance facilities.
RTM reported last year that a planning application to enable more trains to run in and out of London Waterloo was submitted in July, with London TravelWatch shortly afterwards calling the upgrades ‘vital’.
A similarly ambitious programme of upgrades at London Bridge has now been completed, with two-thirds of the new concourse opening, but they contributed to significant delays for London rail services.
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