With long weekends on the horizon, Britain’s railways are bracing for one of their busiest – and most disruptive times of the year.
From major line closures to replacement buses and altered timetables, Easter and the May Bank Holidays in 2026 come with a clear message from National Rail: please check before you travel.
When the rail disruption is happening
The Easter Bank Holiday weekend runs from Friday 3 April (Good Friday in England, Wales and Scotland) until Monday 6 April (Easter Monday in England and Wales) inclusive. After that, there are two May Bank Holiday weekends to be aware of:
Early May Bank Holiday: Saturday 2 May – Monday 4 May inclusive.
Late May (Spring) Bank Holiday: Saturday 23 May – Monday 25 May inclusive.
Across all three weekends, Network Rail will carry out extensive engineering and upgrade works, while train companies adjust timetables and individual train times to match changing passenger demand.
Easter weekend 2026 travel disruption due to train engineering works
A considerable number of engineering rail works are scheduled for Easter.
- Milton Keynes Central – London Euston: Lines between Milton Keynes Central and London Euston will be closed from Friday April 3 until Wednesday April 8inclusive for major improvement works. Long‑distance services between Scotland, the north‑west, the West Midlands and London will terminate at Milton Keynes Central, with buses running to Bedford and Potters Bar for onward trains to alternative London terminals.
- Preston – Glasgow Central / Edinburgh: From Saturday April 4 to Monday April 6, improvement works will significantly disrupt services between Preston and Glasgow/Edinburgh, with some or all of the journey potentially replaced by buses.
- London Waterloo – Cambridge / Southampton: Additional significant engineering work may affect journeys to and from London Waterloo, services to and from Cambridge, and routes in the Southampton area.
May Bank Holidays: more rail works on the way
Across both the Early May Bank Holiday (2–4 May) and the Late May (Spring) Bank Holiday (23–25 May), another wave of rail engineering and improvement have been planned.
For the Early May weekend, some of the biggest confirmed works include:
- London Euston: Reduced line capacity will mean an amended train service to and from Euston from Saturday May 2 to Monday May 4 inclusive.
- Liverpool Lime Street: On Sunday May 3 and the morning of Monday May 4, main lines between Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway, and between Lime Street and Huyton, will be closed for major improvements. Only Merseyrail will run trains to and from Lime Street during this period.
- York – Darlington: The East Coast Main Line will be closed between York and Northallerton from Saturday May 2 to Monday May 4 inclusive, with rail replacement buses likely for journeys between York and Darlington.
- London Charing Cross and Waterloo East: No trains will run to or from London Charing Cross or London Waterloo East from Saturday May 2 to Monday May 4, while London Cannon Street will also be closed on Sunday May 3. Most Southeastern services will be diverted to other London stations, predominantly London Victoria.
- Other key locations: Significant work at Huddersfield, in the Ely area and at Bath Spa may also affect Early May journeys.
Why are there so many rail disruptions during the bank holidays?
Bank holidays are prime time for “essential engineering works and upgrades” that simply can’t be squeezed into overnight slots in the working week.
By concentrating projects over long weekends, Network Rail can close lines for longer, complete bigger jobs and reduce the impact on day‑to‑day commuter traffic.
To dovetail with this, train operators often run amended timetables. That can mean: fewer early‑morning commuter services, different stopping patterns, last trains leaving earlier than usual, or journeys that involve a portion by rail‑replacement bus.
How to plan and check your journey
National Rail’s strongest piece of advice is to plan in advance – and keep checking right up until you leave home.
Use the real‑time National Rail Journey Planner to plan and check journeys before you travel; important information and extra travel advice will appear as symbols alongside your results.
Be aware that Journey Planner data is still being updated as timetables are finalised, so information is subject to change.
Keep re‑checking your journey until you’re due to set off so you can tweak plans in good time and avoid last‑minute surprises.
Check the Status and Disruptions pages on the National Rail site for up‑to‑date, real‑time disruption and engineering work information.
If things go wrong, you can read about your rights to compensation, refunds and assistance if your train is delayed or cancelled via National Rail’s passenger rights pages.