United Kingdom - General Information: Difference between revisions

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South Tottenham - Woodgrange Park: Closed 4 June 2016 until 26 February 2017 for electrification
South Tottenham - Woodgrange Park: Closed 4 June 2016 until 26 February 2017 for electrification


Lea Bridge (Tottenham South Junction) - South Tottenham - Seven Sisters: Closed 14 May 2016 in connection with electrification works at South Tottenham; the once weekly train (0530 SO Liverpool Street - Enfield Town) is advertised to be restored from 18 February 2017 but subject to diversion via an alternative route on '' most'' Saturdays until April  
Lea Bridge (Tottenham South Junction) - South Tottenham - Seven Sisters: Closed 14 May 2016 in connection with electrification works at South Tottenham. The once weekly train (0530 SO Liverpool Street - Enfield Town) previously scheduled by this route was advertised to be restored from 18 February 2017 but will be diverted via an alternative route on Saturdays until at least April 2017


Carlisle (Petteril Bridge Junction) - Newbiggin (freight)/Appleby (passenger): Closed on 10 February 2016 following a serious land slip and expected to re-open on 31 March 2017.
Carlisle (Petteril Bridge Junction) - Newbiggin (freight)/Appleby (passenger): Closed on 10 February 2016 following a serious land slip and expected to re-open on 31 March 2017.

Revision as of 20:54, 23 February 2017

Country Name

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Nomenclature: "Great Britain" comprises the Kingdoms of England and Scotland and the Principality of Wales. "United Kingdom" (in full: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) comprises Great Britain and the Province of Northern Ireland. "British Isles" is a purely geographical description for the British mainland and the island of Ireland; the latter contains the Province of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands are usually regarded as part of the British Isles, although independent of the UK government. All but the Republic of Ireland (which is entirely independent of the UK) are under the British Crown (monarchy).

National Railway System

Most infrastructure in Great Britain is owned by Network Rail, a company controlled by the government's Department for Transport (DfT). Most passenger train services are provided by operators under franchise agreements with DfT, Transport for London, Merseytravel, Transport Scotland or the Welsh Government. Most franchisees are subsidiaries of major bus companies or national railways from other countries, principally Deutsche Bahn and Nederlandse Spoorwegen. Full details are given by links from the ATOC website. Maps showing where the operators ply are at Barry Doe's and Project Mapping websites. Passenger train operations collectively are known as 'National Rail'.

The operator of each train is indicated in the electronic National Rail Timetable and its printed derivatives by means of two-letter codes; for a de-coder and a chronology of privatisation and transfer/re-branding of Great Britain's passenger railway franchises to date go to the Rail Chronology website. Basic customer information about and links to the websites of each TOC are available through the National Rail website. Some further information about franchise periods and past franchisees can be found in Wikipedia.

A small number of operators provide passenger services on the national network which are not franchised by the DfT. These include Eurostar which is a unitary undertaking (Eurostar International Ltd) managed by SNCF, which has a 55% interest in the company. Private investors acquired the UK government's 40% stake in 2015 and SNCB/NMBS owns the remaining 5%. In addition

  • Eurotunnel operates a shuttle service for motor vehicles through the Channel Tunnel; this does not carry foot-passengers (although cyclists can be carried by arrangement)
  • North Yorkshire Moors Railway operates timetabled steam trains through between Pickering/Goathland, Grosmont and Whitby during the summer.
  • West Coast Railways operate timetabled steam trains between Fort William and Mallaig during the summer.

Railways in Northern Ireland are owned by Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (which remains state-owned) and are operated as the N I Railways (NIR) division of Translink.

All freight trains in Great Britain are operated by competing companies under "open access" conditions. The principal companies are: DB Cargo UK (formerly English Welsh and Scottish Railway, now a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn of Germany); Freightliner (owned by US railroad Genesee & Wyoming Inc); Colas Rail (part of the Bouyuges group); Direct Rail Services (owned by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority); and GB Railfreight (part of the Hector Rail Group). Direct Rail Services also operates a limited number of passenger trains for Northern Rail and for ScotRail. DB Cargo UK, in particular, and GB Railfreight, to a lesser extent, operate charter passenger trains. GB Railfreight also operates the Caledonian Sleeper trains on behalf of the franchisee, Serco Caledonian Sleepers Limited.

There are no longer any revenue freight trains in Northern Ireland.

Neither the Isle of Man nor the Channel Isles (îles Anglo-Normands) is legally part of the UK but the Isle of Man's active railways and tramways are to be found at the UK and Irish Heritage Railways website and under Trams respectively.

Official Website

Language

English. In addition Welsh is spoken in most parts of Wales, and Gaelic is used to a limited extent in north-west Scotland.

Currency

Pound sterling. Banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland issue their own notes, which are valid throughout the UK and usually accepted without question. Channel Islands and Manx notes (but not coins) are technically legal tender in the UK, but are best changed at banks. There are several different designs of £1 coin, but all are the same size, weight and colour.

UIC code

  • Great Britain: numeric 70; alpha GB (not used on rolling stock except for class 374 Eurostar trains and freight wagons authorised to operate through the Channel Tunnel or on the now-defunct train ferries).
  • Eurotunnel: numeric 69 (used only for accounting purposes and not shown on rolling stock).

Timetable

Great Britain (England, Wales, Scotland)

The official National Rail timetable is published on Network Rail's website (see below), twice yearly (in mid December, to meet an EC directive, and mid May). Services on Mondays to Fridays, on Saturdays (or Mondays to Saturdays) and on Sundays are usually different and laid out separately in the timetable; there may be several alternative Sunday services, to allow for engineering work, during the currency of a timetable. Barry Doe provides a comprehensive guide to printed and on-line public transport timetables.

Journey Planner

National Rail Enquiries Journey Planner

The Realtime Trains and OpenTrainTimes websites provide a quick-reference way of checking the latest schedule (or amendment) for any particular train

Downloadable Timetable

electronic National Rail Timetable

Working (Staff) Timetables

Network Rail Working Timetables

You can also check for the latest variations to working timetable details for specific trains on the Realtime Trains and OpenTrainTimes websites.

London Underground working timetables. DLR is not included.

Printed Timetable

Rail Times for Great Britain published by Middleton Press is produced in two versions: Comprehensive Rail Times for Great Britain (the same as Network Rail's electronic National Rail Timetable) and Abbreviated Rail Times for Great Britain (Principal Stations on Main Lines and Rural Routes - the same as is found in the European Rail Timetable). Train operators (apart from TfL Rail, operators of London - Shenfield local service) produce timetable leaflets or booklets for specific services, which should be available at relevant stations.

Engineering Information

National Rail's future engineering works

Northern Ireland

Journey Planner

On the Translink home page.

Downloadable Timetables

NIRailways Timetables

Printed Timetable

A series of four free leaflets is available.

Engineering Information

NIRailways Travel Updates

Maps

Printed Maps

  • The Rail Atlas Great Britain & Ireland by S.K. Baker gives detailed and accurate coverage of the UK railway system, and is widely available. It is mostly at 1:350,000, but with enlargements of many urban areas; an updated edition is published every 2-3 years.
  • TrackMaps publish a series of track diagrams (formerly Quail Track Diagrams) in regional volumes, based on the former British Rail regions.
  • Northern Ireland Railways are in a volume covering the whole of Ireland published by Quail Map Co.
  • Historic atlases have been published by various other publishers.

Web-based Maps

Ticketing

There is no distance-related fare tariff in the UK, and fares are charged on a market basis. Certain fares are regulated and the amount by which franchised train companies can increase some fares is specified by the Department for Transport.

Standard walk-on fares are high, but a wide range of discounted fares is available. These are subject to restrictions as to days and times when they can be used. It can be difficult to obtain accurate information as to fares and their availability, even from official enquiry offices, because the pricing structure is complicated and the different train companies are all making their own special offers. The most heavily discounted fares usually oblige the passenger to travel on specified trains (with no opportunity to alter these) - and only a limited number of tickets may be issued for each service. Train operators are increasingly introducing special offers that can only be taken up through their website.

Tickets for any rail journey in the UK can be purchased from any franchised operator's website, but the best price may be available from the operator whose service is being used. Various other websites act as 'consolidators' and will compare what is available in order to offer the best deal. It is sometimes possible to obtain a lower price for a journey by splitting it and buying a different ticket for each section. In such cases it is necessary to travel on a train that stops at stations where the validity of one ticket ends and another starts. It may also be found that a ticket to a station beyond one's destination is cheaper, but conditions need to be checked carefully. A break of journey may not be permitted, requiring an excess fare to be paid if exiting at an intermediate station.

Overseas visitors should endeavour to purchase a rover ticket, such as a BritRail or InterRail pass, before travelling to the UK. Various rail rovers are available within the UK, but they do not offer the value or wide validity of those available to foreign visitors.

In various areas where all stations have automatic ticket machines, including on the London Underground and most other tram and metro networks, a penalty fares system applies. Passengers found without a ticket are likely to have to pay a fine on the spot.

There is only limited use of smart cards on the national rail system, but they are widely used in urban areas, particularly London.

First class seating tends now to be found only on principal routes; in Northern Ireland it is limited to principal trains on the international route between Belfast and Dublin (where NIRailways call it "First plus" while partner Iarnród Éireann call it "Premium"). Eurostar maintain three classes: Standard; Leisure Select; Business Premier. On some trains, including many of those operated by Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southeastern and Southern, there is no difference between first class and standard class seating. Some services advertised as 'standard class only' are operated by trains with first class accommodation; in such cases all passengers may use the first class seats. This happens almost entirely in south east England.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure Authority

  • Great Britain: Network Rail
  • Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland Railways Company Limited, through a subsidiary NIR Networks Limited

Network Statement

Network Rail. Enthusiasts may find Network Rail's Sectional Appendices (by geographical areas known as Routes) more useful.

Translink

Gauge

  • Great Britain: Standard
  • Northern Ireland: 1600 mm [5 feet 3 inches]

Electrification

  • Great Britain: Mostly 25 kV 50 Hz. 750 V dc third rail is used on some lines in south east England and around Liverpool. The line between Pelaw and Sunderland is electrified at 1500V dc overhead, to allow use by Tyne & Wear Metro.
  • Northern Ireland: no electrified lines.

Rule of the road

Left.

Distances

Other railways

Eurotunnel operates the Channel Tunnel under a long-term concession from the two governments. HS1 Ltd (owner of the link between London and the Channel tunnel) is held by private capital under a 30-year concession from the government. Heathrow Airport Holdings Limited owns the railway between Hayes & Harlington and London Heathrow Airport. Facilities exist for special through running between the national system and some tourist lines. British American Railway Services (a subsidiary of Iowa Pacific Holdings of the USA) operate two lines (Weardale Railway and Dartmoor Railway); both function principally as tourist lines.

Tourist lines

A current listing of UK and Irish heritage railways can be found at the UK and Irish Heritage Railways website.

Metro

London, Newcastle, Glasgow. Although part of the national railway system, the Merseyrail Electrics network in Liverpool is like a Metro. There are two separate networks in London. The Underground system is 660V dc third and fourth rail; the Docklands Light Railway is a fully-automated 750V dc third rail system. Glasgow and Merseyrail are third rail and Newcastle is 1500 V dc overhead. Glasgow Subway is 4 feet (1,219mm) gauge and was originally cable-worked. There are several lines where London Underground and main line trains share the same tracks. The Tyne & Wear Metro (Newcastle) operates to Sunderland over the Network Rail line from Pelaw. London Overground is part of the national system on which the franchising has (in effect) been devolved to the Mayor of London.

Trams

Birmingham/Wolverhampton (Midland Metro), Blackpool, Croydon, Edinburgh, Llandudno (cable worked), Manchester, Nottingham, Seaton (Devon) and Sheffield. The Croydon, Manchester, Midland Metro, Nottingham and Seaton systems include extensive running over routes that were previously part of the national railway system. The Manchester and Nottingham systems have been considerably extended in recent years and an extension of Midland Metro in Birmingham city centre came into use in 2016. A second route through Manchester city centre will enter service during spring 2017 and a Transport & Works Act Order has been granted for a branch to Trafford Park.

The Seaton and Llandudno lines are essentially tourist operations, and both are narrow gauge. There are other tourist lines of a mile or more at the National Tramway Museum (Crich, near Matlock) and at Beamish Open Air Museum (near Gateshead), plus several other shorter lines. The Manx Electric Railway is a narrow-gauge inter-urban line.

After a period of uncertainty, the horse tramway along the promenade in Douglas, Isle of Man will operate in 2017. Road works thereafter will require the line to be partly singled and may involve temporary closure while the work is undertaken. However, the threat that the line might be shortened seems to have been seen off by a vote in Tynwald in January 2017.

The Tinsley Chord, which will connect the Sheffield tram system to a freight line near Meadowhall is under construction; Sheffield City Region Combined Authority Transport Committee expect it to be in use by summer 2018, allowing trams to run between Sheffield city centre and Rotherham. The trams will operate at 25kV between Meadowhall and Rotherham.

Track plans for most of the significant tram systems in the United Kingdom are available on the Railway Codes site.

Recent and Future Changes

Most aspects of national railway operations are privatised, but infrastructure ownership has reverted to the public sector. There continues to be debate about the fragmented, expensive and complex nature of the system that has emerged, under the general oversight of the Department for Transport.

Route Closures and Service Reductions

Having undergone extensive cut backs in the 1960s, the present passenger network seems relatively secure. The closure of a passenger railway in the UK currently involves a lengthy legal process, and short-notice closures usually occur only if there is a sudden and dramatic infrastructure failure,or if the closure is deemed a "minor closure". Passenger services via, or in connection with those through, the Channel Tunnel do not enjoy statutory protection from closure.

Some routes have been reduced to just one or two trains per day (or, in some cases, per week) in order to reduce operating costs without having to go through the closure procedure. These are included in the list of sparse services.

A newly-introduced passenger service can be designated as "experimental" for a period up to five years, during which time it may be withdrawn without the usual closure procedure needing to be followed. The passenger service between Yeovil Pen Mill and Yeovil Junction is "experimental" for five years from 13 December 2015.


Passenger services to be withdrawn:

Hythe Pier Tramway, which operates in connection with the ferry to Southampton, may close because of declining use. This line is noteworthy for using electric locomotives built in 1917, which are believed to be the oldest locomotives in all-year daily use (i.e. neither occasional nor seasonal) anywhere in the world.

The London Underground service between Croxley and Watford will be withdrawn on opening of the Croxley rail link, which will divert services to Watford High Street. This is not expected to happen until 2020 at the earliest.

Planned diversion of trains between Belfast and Dublin to a new terminal facility - the Belfast Hub - to be constructed close to Belfast Great Victoria Street may see the end of regular passenger services between Central Junction (Adelaide) and City Junction (City Hospital).


Closures and significant service reductions in recent years are:


Lines closed:

Barkston South Junction - Barkston East Junction (replaced by new curve at Allington, October 2005)

Farringdon - Moorgate, London (March 2009; the London Underground line between the same stations is not affected)

Fawkham Junction - Southfleet Junction (Regular passenger used ceased in November 2007, as a result of Eurostar services being diverted from London Waterloo to St Pancras. The line was converted to sidings, accessed only from Southfleet Junction, in April 2016, possibly temporarily)


Lines closed for conversion to rapid transit or other alternative transport use:

Stratford - North Woolwich, London (December 2006; part being converted to part of Docklands Light Railway and the remainder as part of Crossrail's Abbey Wood line)

Manchester - Oldham - Rochdale (October 2009; most is now part of Manchester's tram/metro system, but that has street running through Oldham, following an interim period when trams used a now-closed section of the former railway)


Passenger service withdrawn, line still open:

Lisburn - Antrim (June 2003, on diversion of passenger trains via Bleach Green Junction)

Maindee curve, Newport, Gwent (December 2005)

Newhaven Marine Station (Service suspended August 2006 because of the alleged unsafe condition of the platform canopy)

Nine Elms Junction - Linford Street Junction (November 2007, as a result of Eurostar services being diverted from London Waterloo to St Pancras)

Reading West Junction - Oxford Road Junction (summer Saturday service last ran September 2008)

Acton Main Line - Willesden West London Jn (Cross Country Brighton services withdrawn December 2008)

[Kensington Olympia - ] Latchmere Junction - Longhedge Junction [ - Wandsworth Road] (June 2013)

Westbury East Loop Junction - Hawkeridge Junction (May 2016, when the experimental service of one train each day, Monday to Friday, non-stop between Reading and Bath Spa ceased)


Regular passenger service replaced by a very limited one:

Darlaston Jn - Pleck Jn [Walsall] (reduction to one Walsall to Wolverhampton train, December 2008)

Trowell Junction - Trent Junction (reduction to 2 or 3 trains a week from December 2008)

Stechford - Aston (closure of open-access operator Wrexham & Shropshire in January 2011)

[Wandsworth Road - ] Factory Junction - Battersea Park (reduced to one and a half round trips in December 2012)

[Holytown - ] Mossend East Junction - South Junction [ - Motherwell] (reduced to single round trip in December 2014, and subsequently reduced to one journey in one direction only)

Wishaw - Holytown (December 2014)

Stations at Airports

In addition to airports served by stations on through lines, branch lines or extensions have been opened over recent years and now serve airports at London Stansted, Manchester, Newcastle and London Heathrow (where Heathrow Express/HeathrowConnect and London Underground have three separate pairs of stations: Terminals 1-2-3, Terminal 4 and Terminal 5).

Electrification

Main line electrification in Great Britain had been virtually at a standstill, because private sector train operators and rolling stock companies preferred the flexibility of diesel traction. The most recent schemes had been the line between Crewe and Kidsgrove (near Stoke on Trent) (electrified for diversionary use), the reconstructed Larkhall branch line in Scotland and High Speed 1 (the Channel Tunnel rail link) [see below].

In 2009 DfT policy shifted towards extending electrification, with significant schemes proposed and some implemented. However, greatly increased costs, partly due to more stringent safety standards, have resulted in projects being curtailed and delayed. There has been a shift to provision of bi-mode trains, which are electric trains that can operate on non-electrified lines using auxiliary diesel engines or batteries. This means that the electrified network need not be so extensive.

Schemes recently completed or under way in England and Wales are:

Manchester - Newton-le-Willows (December 2013)

Earlestown - Edge Hill (March 2015)

Huyton - Wigan via St Helens (May 2015)

Work is under way between Manchester and Blackpool North via Bolton and Preston, between Walsall and Rugeley Trent Valley and between Gospel Oak and Woodgrange Park via South Tottenham. Meadowhall to Rotherham is being electrified in connection with the Sheffield tram-train scheme (see under Trams, above). A major project for electrification of the Great Western lines from London Paddington has been particularly subject to delays and significant cost increase. Priority is being given to completing electrification between London and Cardiff. It is not clear when, or if, other elements of the scheme, including electrification to Bristol, Swansea, Oxford, Newbury and the Thames Valley branch lines will be completed.

Approval in principle has been given to electrification of the Windermere branch and that section of the East West Rail Project (see below) between Oxford and Bedford. It is also planned to electrify the line from Manchester to Huddersfield, Leeds and York and the Midland Main Line north from Bedford. When these schemes will proceed, and whether they do at all, is unclear.

The Welsh Government is sponsoring electrification of the Valley Lines from Cardiff (to Merthyr, Aberdare etc), which is to be jointly-funded with the UK Government. This may involve conversion to a form of light rapid transit.

Following the re-opening and electrification of lines to Larkhall and through Bathgate, the Scottish Government is funding wholesale electrification in the central lowlands, with work complete thus:

Glasgow (Shields Junction) - Paisley Canal (November 2012)

Cumbernauld - Springburn and to Mossend (Motherwell) (May 2014)

Rutherglen - Whifflet (December 2014)

Electrification work is under way between Edinburgh and Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk and will continue to cover Cumbernauld to Stirling, Dunblane and Alloa; and Holytown to Kirknewton via Shotts. There have been calls for further electrification in Scotland, particularly to Aberdeen and Tweedbank, but cost increases put this in doubt.

Infrastructure Upgrades

Major work has been carried out to upgrade the West Coast Main Line, including the London to Manchester route, for 125 mph running (although the tilting Pendolino trains will not be able to reach their design maximum speed of 140 mph). The scheme included the construction of additional running lines on parts of the Trent Valley section in Staffordshire.

The first 70km section of the Channel Tunnel rail link, between Dollands Moor and Southfleet Jn, opened to passengers on 28 September 2003 and the 40km second phase, between Southfleet Jn and London St Pancras International, opened on 14 November 2007. The whole CTRL is now dubbed HS1 ("High Speed 1"). Internal services between London St.Pancras International and destinations in Kent commenced on a trial basis from June 2009, and in full service from December 2009. Higher fares are charged for journeys to and from London via HS1, but not for those between Kent and places beyond London.

The High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands) Act 2017 gives powers to construct a high speed railway (HS2) from London to Birmingham, but the line will not be opened until 2026 at the earliest. It is intended that the line will be extended to Manchester and Leeds, with completion in the mid-2030s. A second Crossrail line, linking lines in North East and South West London, is being designed so that a parliamentary act for its construction can be sought.

The main line between Belfast and Dublin has been upgraded, and new and faster trains provided. This service is operated jointly by NIR and Iarnród Éireann.

Re-openings and Openings

Most projects involve upgrading existing routes, but some re-openings have occurred or are about to do so.

New and reinstated passenger services in recent years are:

Whiteabbey (Bleach Green Junction) - Antrim (June 2003)

Maryhill - Anniesland (September 2005)

Hamilton - Larkhall (December 2005)

Ebbw Vale Parkway - Cardiff (February 2008) (a link to Newport should reopen later)

Stirling - Alloa (May 2008)

Kettering - Corby - Manton Junction [Melton Mowbray] (April 2009, limited service Kettering - Corby from February 2009)

Drumgelloch - Bathgate (December 2010)

Ebbw Vale Parkway - Ebbw Vale Town (May 2015)

Todmorden Curve (allowing trains to run direct between Todmorden and Burnley Manchester Road) (May 2015)

Newcraighall - Tweedbank (Borders Railway) (September 2015)

Bicester: Curve allowing trains to run between London Marylebone and Oxford (October 2015) (until 10 December 2016 trains ran only as far as Oxford Parkway, for bus connection to Oxford)

Yeovil Junction - Yeovil Pen Mill (December 2015)

The line between Stratford and Tottenham Hale regained a regular interval service in December 2005 after a period with very few trains.

The Docklands Light Railway extended to Woolwich Arsenal in January 2009 and to Stratford International in August 2011. The first phase of the resuscitated East London line (partially reopened/partially new construction) opened in April 2010, with full service extending into south London the following month, and to Highbury & Islington in February 2011; the links from Surrey Quays to the South London line and between Wandsworth Road and Clapham Junction reopened in December 2012. Since December 2011 the curve from Slade Green to Barnehurst (Perry Street Fork Junction), which had previously had a limited service, has been used by trains for most of the day, Mondays to Fridays.

Remodelling the railway at Reading has included construction of a new dive-under from the Wokingham line to the north side of the station, with a limited passenger service, a flyover west of the station used by fast trains to and from Didcot and an alternative route between Reading West and the north side of Reading station.

A number of new curves and flyovers have been built, in order to increase network capacity by reducing conflicting moves. A flyover at Nuneaton, partly new work and partly re-opening a closed line, came into use in 2006. This avoids the need for trains between the Birmingham area and Leicester to cross the West Coast Main Line on the flat. Others include a flyover at Hitchin, used by most passenger trains towards the Cambridge line, which came into use in 2013. New curves north of Ipswich, north of Doncaster and north of Nuneaton (the latter independent of the flyover) are normally used only by freight trains. A new flyover to and from the Stoke-on-Trent line at Norton Bridge and a new down slow line towards Crewe came into use in March 2016.

Through trains are expected to run on a seasonal basis between Swanage and Wareham from 2017.

The Welsh Highland Railway - 2ft. gauge, closed in 1937 - has been rebuilt and extended to run between Caernarfon and Porthmadog (25 miles). The final section - including a flat crossing with the standard gauge line in Porthmadog, to effect a link with the Ffestiniog Railway - opened in April 2011. Extension of the Bluebell Railway from Kingscote to East Grinstead in 2013 completed a restoration of a link with the national network. The Mountsorrel branch, off the Great Central Railway, opened in autumn 2015 for occasional trains only, with the possibility of regular services at some date.

Projects authorised or under construction are:

Thameslink route through central London is being upgraded. A new station has been opened at St Pancras International and a link to the East Coast Main Line was commissioned in 2016. Work is currently under way to rebuild London Bridge station and lines between Blackfriars Junction and New Cross Gate are being extensively remodelled. The project is due for completion in 2018, when passenger use of the link to the East Coast Main Line will commence.

Crossrail (now known as the "Elizabeth Line") is a new line, almost entirely in tunnel, linking the railways from Paddington and from Liverpool Street, with a branch from Whitechapel to Abbey Wood. Trains are due to start running between Abbey Wood and Heathrow Airport in December 2018. The Shenfield service will run initially to Liverpool Street and not through the cross-London tunnels until December 2019.

A service between Oxford and Bedford, re-opening the line between Bicester and Fenny Stratford, has been approved in principle. The Department for Transport intends that this is carried out by a by a new organisation, East West Rail, that will deliver the design, construction and operation of the railway. A Transport and Works Act Order needs to be obtained.

Work has started on construction of the Ordsall Curve in Salford, which will allow passenger trains to run direct between Deansgate and Manchester Victoria.

Preliminary work on construction of a link between the LUL Watford branch and the erstwhile Watford - Croxley Green branch started in January 2016. This will result in the closure of Watford LUL station, but the re-opening of most of the Croxley Green branch, no earlier than 2020. Work has started on construction of a branch of the LUL Northern Line from Kennington to Battersea, for completion in 2020.

In the private sector, Moorland & City Railways intend to reopen the 18 mile line between Stoke-on-Trent, Leek Brook Junction and Caldon Low (which they call Cauldon Lowe). Services between Leek Brook Junction and Caldon Low (operated as an adjunct to the Churnet Valley Railway) started in November 2010 (although the section beyond Ipstones is presently closed for relaying) and are seeking to resuscitate the line to Stoke-on-Trent. The Llangollen Railway started operating passenger services to a provisional terminus at Corwen in October 2014, but the railway is to be extended further into the town. The Strathspey Railway is extending to Grantown-on-Spey and since July 2014 has offered a limited summer service between its normal terminus at Broomhill and the river bridge at Dulnain. The first (very short) section of the Aln Valley Railway officially opened in October 2013, from a new station on the edge of Alnwick. The line is to be extended to the National Rail station at Alnmouth, with a projected completion date of 2020. The first section of the re-opened Lynton & Barnstaple Railway, a narrow gauge line, is in operation between Woody Bay and Killington Lane; extensions to Lynton and to Blackmoor Gate are planned as the next phase of reconstruction. The Gloucester Warwickshire Railway is extending its line northwards to Broadway - trains currently run as far as Laverton and are planned to extend to Broadway from Easter 2018. Most ambitiously, the two Great Central Railways at Loughborough are to be linked by means of a reinstated bridge over the Midland Main Line. Other heritage schemes in progress include Milton of Crathes to Banchory, Robertsbridge to Junction Road (Bodiam) and Dereham to County School.

Temporary Closures:

Work to upgrade the UK rail network is increasingly leading to lines being closed for extended periods. Severe weather and the age of much railway infrastructure has resulted in more temporary closures caused by landslips and other problems with earthworks. Current and planned temporary closures of four weeks or more are:

London Bridge (Metropolitan Junction) - Blackfriars: No passenger service December 2014 until 2018 to allow major upgrading of the Thameslink route through London. Trains are diverted via Crystal Palace and Herne Hill.

Gospel Oak - South Tottenham: Closed 24 September 2016 until 26 February 2017 for electrification

South Tottenham - Woodgrange Park: Closed 4 June 2016 until 26 February 2017 for electrification

Lea Bridge (Tottenham South Junction) - South Tottenham - Seven Sisters: Closed 14 May 2016 in connection with electrification works at South Tottenham. The once weekly train (0530 SO Liverpool Street - Enfield Town) previously scheduled by this route was advertised to be restored from 18 February 2017 but will be diverted via an alternative route on Saturdays until at least April 2017

Carlisle (Petteril Bridge Junction) - Newbiggin (freight)/Appleby (passenger): Closed on 10 February 2016 following a serious land slip and expected to re-open on 31 March 2017.

Birkenhead North and Birkenhead Central - Liverpool Lime Street (deep level) - James Street (Mann Island Junction) (so-called Wirral loop line): Closed 3 January to 18 June 2017 for track renewal. However, Birkenhead (both lines) to James Street will be open between 13 February and 29 May.

Special Notes

Trains, other than Eurostar, are not identified in timetables and on departure sheets by numbers. Services are publicly identified by their journey and departure time, but with variations to allow for intermediate stops. There is no standard convention, but as an example a train would be described as the 09:00 London King's Cross to Edinburgh, though at an intermediate stop would probably be announced as the "10:32 Doncaster to Edinburgh, the 09:00 from King's Cross". An alpha-numeric system is used for operating purposes and these train reporting numbers can be found at Realtime Trains and OpenTrainTimes or through traveline (remember to uncheck all Mode of Transport boxes except "Train" and ensure end points are "Railway Station"); in the results see the column labelled "Service". Some operators have their own four-digit train numbering systems for reservation purposes which is displayed on train sides and reservation tickets.

Departure sheets listing trains from a station in chronological order are rarely used. The usual format is to list destinations in alphabetic order, and provide details of all trains to each. Most stations have electronic displays, which indicate all departures (and often arrivals) within the next hour or so.

It is unusual for information displays and announcements at stations and on trains to be in any language other than English (and Welsh in Wales), though station name signs in Scotland appear in Gaelic as well as English. Multi-lingual information is normally restricted to dedicated airport services and those using the Channel Tunnel.

No stations sell international tickets or can make international reservations, though there are facilities to make through bookings from certain stations by Eurostar. International tickets and reservations are available at the We Know London Tourist Services desk in the shopping mall at St Pancras International station. Even the range of tickets available from Eurostar UK is very limited. For guidance on booking travel to and from Europe visit The Man in Seat Sixty-One's website or see advice from National Rail.

Some carriages remain in service where it is necessary to open a window and use an outside handle to open an external door from inside but (apart from heritage operations) all doors are now centrally locked when trains are underway. Selective door opening is increasingly used, particularly in London and South East England. Trains are longer than some station platforms and only doors within the platform are unlocked. Announcements and visual displays advise passengers which carriages they need to be in if wishing to alight.

Facing pairs of seats in trains have traditionally had the same number, being distinguished by being either "facing" or "back" relative to the direction of travel. They are distinguished on seat reservation labels and tickets by suffixes F and B. This can cause some confusion with seat reservations on trains that reverse en route. The practice is being replaced by most operators by numbering each seat uniquely, particularly on new trains.

There are very few long-distance overnight trains in Great Britain (and none in Northern Ireland). Couchettes are not provided and seating, when available, is in saloons with non-reclinable seats, where passengers may have no control of the lighting. Completely new trains are to be introduced on Anglo-Scottish overnight services by 2018, with four categories of accommodation.

Taking bicycles, other than folding ones, by train can be difficult. Space may be limited and some operators require advance reservations for bicycles. More information can be found in the National Rail Cycling by Train leaflet.

Train services at weekends, and especially Saturday evening and Sunday until mid-afternoon, can be extensively altered because of engineering work. With the paucity of alternative routes and a growing aversion to temporary single line working, buses frequently substitute for trains in such circumstances. There are an increasing number of initiatives to give extended overnight possessions Mondays to Thursdays, in order to reduce the extent of weekend closures. This results in late evening trains being replaced by buses.

The risk of terrorism in Great Britain should not be over-stated - but this is due in part to stringent precautions, so very few stations have left luggage facilities. Unattended luggage may be removed by the police and processes to check that it is safe can be very destructive.

Railway enthusiasts are welcomed on stations - for guidance when on and about stations refer to Network Rail's advice.