Trains in England?
 

Will be arriving in London next Monday the 25th, and have been hearing about train service interruptions. Are they ongoing? If so what should I expect and when? Would appreciate your comments.

The main disruptions recently have been in the London Underground services during the Fire services strike. Several stations were closed, and there were longer delays than usual. The strikes may or may not start up again on Friday, so may be occuring when you arrive. Keep an eye on news.bbc.co.uk for info.<BR><BR>There are also delays on the regular trains at weekends for upgrading of the main lines north from London. Otherwise, I think trains are running normally. www.nationalrail.co.uk gives timetable information and info about engineering works.

The main disruptions recently have been in the London Underground services during the Fire services strike. Several stations were closed, and there were longer delays than usual. The strikes may or may not start up again on Friday, so may be occuring when you arrive. Keep an eye on news.bbc.co.uk for info.<BR><BR>There are also sometimes delays on the regular trains at weekends for upgrading of the main lines north from London. Otherwise, I think trains are running normally. www.nationalrail.co.uk gives timetable information and info about engineering works.

how did that happen?!

You can check schedules as suggested by a previous respondent. Generally, trains are quieter at weekends in winter, so that is when most track maintenance work is carried out; it often means that you have to change to a bus for part of your journey - these are arranged to connect with trains and train tickets are valid, but journeys take a lot longer and are less comfortable. If you're travelling at a weekend in Britain in winter, it's best to check train schedules carefully in case your train is diverted or you have to change to a bus.

This is a good site<BR>http://www.journeyplan.co.uk/<BR><BR>In one part of it you can actually see when trains are due, if they are delayed etc.

Topping

I live in the US, was in England visiting family in October. In my experience, it's good to try to track engineering workdates, to minimize hassles. Traditionally, the work was done on Sundays -- so where possible, I avoided train travel on Sundays. Imagine my surprise last visit when I arrived at Weymouth station early on a Saturday for my return trip to London, to find that the schedule was redone on Saturday too. (Apparently there's so much work needed that they need an extra day of the week for it.)<BR><BR>Here's how it worked out: Train left on new schedule time, and terminated at Wool, a small country station. We schlepped luggage up the stairs, over the track bridge, and down to the waiting bus (coach). I was directed to a bus already half full, and learned that some of those folks had been there over an hour. Rail co. had not anticipated so many passengers, didn't have enough buses waiting. And when replacement bus arrived, the driver told everyone he had to take a mandated 45 minute break. They were, of course, thrilled to hear this...<BR><BR>Once the bus was filled by passengers from my train, we drove to Poole (about 20-30 minutes) -- train was waiting there, and there were no further problems. Arrived at Waterloo about 75 minutes after the originally scheduled time.<BR><BR>My gripe was the lack of notice in Weymouth station that schedule changes were planned. Everyone seemed surprised -- including folks who were hoping to catch connections or flights. There was very little information freely shared, and almost no-one to ask. And for older passengers, the need to schlep up and down stairs with their luggage was a major problem. No help available aside from other passengers.<BR><BR>So in the end I arrived where I wanted to go, an hour late. But the rail co should surely have handled it better...