What's Happening With London's Transport Over The May Bank Holidays 2018?

Laura Reynolds
By Laura Reynolds Last edited 56 months ago

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What's Happening With London's Transport Over The May Bank Holidays 2018?

With two bank holiday weekends in May (5-7 and 26-28) you've no doubt got some fantastic plans. But there's lots of disruption on the transport network — read on to find out if it'll affect you.

Early May Bank Holiday Weekend (5-7 May)

TfL services

  • The entirety of the Circle line is closed. No replacement buses. All weekend.
  • The Metropolitan line is closed between Kings Cross St Pancras and Aldgate. No replacement buses. All weekend.
  • The District line is closed between Tower Hill and West Ham, with replacement buses running. All weekend.
  • The Hammersmith & City line is closed between King's Cross St Pancras and Barking. Replacement buses run from Tower Hill to Bromley-by-Bow, and then to Canning Town for interchange with the Jubilee line and DLR. All weekend.
  • On the London Overground, New Cross Gate to Crystal Palace and West Croydon is shut with replacement buses running. Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 May.
  • No TfL Rail between Chadwell Heath and Shenfield. Replacement buses run. Sunday 6 May.

National Rail services - which trains are running?

  • It's bad news for south-east London rail travellers as there's mass disruption in the Lewisham area on Southeastern. Engineering work is taking place between New Cross and Lewisham/Barnehurst/Hither Green/Hayes, closing all lines. There will be rail replacement buses, full details for each individual line here.  Many trains heading further out beyond Sevenoaks and Tonbridge will be rerouted to run to/from Victoria, although Charing Cross and London Bridge are still open. All weekend.
  • On top of that, Southern services are affected between New Cross Gate and Crystal Palace/West Croydon, similarly to London Overground. It's affecting trains as far down as Horsham, Caterham and Uckfield. Some services won't run, others will de diverted into Victoria — full details here. Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 May.
  • No trains between Liverpool Street and Shenfield/Ingatestone/Billericay. Rail replacement bus running. All weekend.
  • Due to Crossrail work, trains into and out of Paddington are disrupted. Some will be diverted into Marylebone, while others won't run at all, or will begin further down the line. All weekend. No trains will run at all to/from Paddington on Sunday 6 May. More information here.

Station closures

  • Cannon Street station is shut to Southeastern trains all weekend. Some trains will go from London Bridge and Charing Cross instead but several are rerouted to Victoria because of the railway closures in south-east London (see above).
  • No trains run to or from Paddington on Sunday, due to that work between Paddington and Maidenhead.

Getting to the airport

  • If you're heading to Heathrow, be aware that because of those works at Paddington, there's an amended service on both Heathrow Connect and Heathrow Connect on Saturday and Monday, and no service at all on either on Sunday. Your alternative is the Piccadilly line, which you'll need extra time for.
  • Travelling to Gatwick will also incur some problems due to that disruption on Southern. Depending when you want to travel, it may involve replacement buses. The Gatwick Express should be running a half hourly service between Gatwick and Victoria, but check before you travel.
  • There's no planned disruption on the DLR, so City Airport shouldn't be a problem.

Late May Bank Holiday Weekend (26-28 May)

TfL services

  • No DLR between Bank/Tower Gateway and Poplar/West India Quay. Replacement buses TBC. Amended service on the rest of the DLR. All weekend.
  • No London Overground Clapham Junction-Surrey Quays. Replacement buses run. All weekend. Also closed between Romford and Upminster — use local bus 370 as replacement. All weekend.
  • Both branches of the Northern line are affected by closures from High Barnet, Mill Hill East and Hampstead, down to Charing Cross on that branch, and down to Moorgate on the Bank branch. Replacement buses run as far south as Euston and King's Cross St Pancras. All weekend.
  • No TfL Rail service between Liverpool Street and Shenfield. Replacement buses run between Stratford (Central/Jubilee lines) and Romford, and between Newbury Park (Central line) and Shenfield. All weekend.

National Rail services - which trains are running?

  • No trains between Liverpool Street and Shenfield/Ingatestone/Billericay. Rail replacement bus running. All weekend.
  • If you're heading out to Kent or the coast, there are replacement buses between Orpington and Sevenoaks, and between Lewisham and Hayes. All weekend.

Station closures

  • Maintenance work between London Bridge and Charing Cross means no Southeastern services will be going to Charing Cross on Sunday 27 May.

Getting to the airport

  • From 20 May, Heathrow Connect is to be become by TfL Rail, until Crossrail starts running out to Heathrow in 2019. There look to be some teething issues with the changeover so keep an eye out  The Heathrow Express, a separate entity, will still be running, with no planned closures or disruption at time of writing. The Piccadilly line's also running all weekend.
  • For Gatwick, the Gatwick Express is expecting to run a normal service, and Southern hasn't yet announced any engineering works for this weekend. Like most train operators, both are bringing in a new timetable as of 20 May, so check train times after this date to be sure.
  • London City Airport station will still be open, but DLR trains there will be affected by the DLR closure mentioned above, and if you're heading there from central London, your route will involve replacement buses, so leave plenty of time.

Last Updated 10 July 2019