Londoners are being urged to check before they travel this weekend because multiple Tube lines will be shut for planned engineering work. The Piccadilly line faces major disruption overnight between Friday and Saturday, and then on Sunday, the Circle, District, Metropolitan, and Hammersmith and City lines all face closures across various points of the day. Several London Overground lines are also facing disruption, as is the Elizabeth line.
Why are the closures happening?
The closures come just a few weeks after the Piccadilly line was completely shut between Cockfosters and Heathrow as TfL prepares the line for the new fleet of trains. The disruption also comes as London’s Charing Cross and Waterloo East stations are set to close on Sunday, just days after reopening following a 22-day closure for £20,000,000 worth of upgrades.
Saturday, August 22 closures
On Saturday, several lines are planned to undergo engineering and upgrade works:
- Circle line: No service on the entire line until 10:30am, and then no service between Edgware Road and Tower Hill via Victoria until 2pm.
- District line: No service on the entire line until 10:30am. No service between Edgware Road/Embankment and Ealing Broadway, Kensington (Olympia), Richmond and Wimbledon until 2pm. No eastbound and westbound service between Stamford Brook and Barons Court, and no service between Earl’s Court and Kensington (Olympia) and between Fulham Broadway and Wimbledon after 2pm.
- Hammersmith and City line: No service on the entire line until 10:30am.
- Metropolitan line: No service between Aldgate and Harrow-on-the-Hill until 10:30am.
- Piccadilly line: No Night Tube service overnight between Friday and Saturday. No service between Hyde Park Corner and Acton Town until 2pm. Eastbound trains will not stop at Caledonian Road between now and Monday.
- London Overground: Some trains will be amended on Mildmay line. The 9:04pm and 10:34pm trains from Clapham Junction to Stratford will terminate at Willesden Junction. The 11:19pm Clapham Junction to Willesden Junction train will not run.
Sunday, August 23 closures
More closures and engineering works are taking place on Sunday, so check before you travel!
- District line: All day Sunday, no eastbound and westbound service between Stamford Brook and Barons Court, as well as no service between Earl’s Court and Kensington (Olympia) and between Fulham Broadway and Wimbledon.
- London Overground: Due to Network Rail maintenance work, no service on the Mildmay line between Willesden Junction and Clapham Junction until 9:30am, and no service on the same line between Camden Road and Stratford after 10:15pm. On the Windrush line, no service between New Cross Gate and Crystal Palace/West Croydon all day, and no service between Highbury and Islington and Dalston Junction after 10:15pm.
- Elizabeth line: No service between West Drayton and Maidenhead until 8am.
Anyone travelling across the capital is being urged to allow extra time for their journeys.
Bus strikes around the capital
The closures come after passengers faced disruption last weekend and earlier in the week when Arriva bus drivers went on strike, affecting dozens of bus routes across north London and Essex. Unite the union announced the drivers’ strike earlier this month after a row over working conditions in hot weather, which has gripped the capital throughout the summer and saw the hottest day of the year recorded. The union, which represents thousands of bus drivers, accused Arriva North London – a TfL contractor – of failing to act on complaints about conditions. Although additional strikes were planned, they have now been suspended as members of Unite vote on a deal. If the proposal is rejected, strikes will resume on Tuesday, August 25. Additional strikes are planned throughout September and October.
