£8.2m Christmas upgrade to boost reliability for passengers travelling into London Victoria

Rail passengers across Sussex, south London and parts of Surrey and people travelling to Gatwick Airport are being warned of disruption this Christmas as Network Rail spends £8.2m upgrading one of Britain’s busiest railway junctions (November 2nd).Network Rail has today announced plans to install new track at the Battersea Pier junction, which will replace infrastructure built in the mid-1970s. Southern Rail has recently recorded the best punctuality for five years and this work will further improve reliability for the 240,000 passengers who pass through this junction every day.It means platforms 9 to 19 will be closed at London Victoria station from 1:05am on Sunday 23 December until 4am on Wednesday 2 January.Most Southern trains will be rerouted to and from London Bridge. There will be no Gatwick Express trains but Southern and Thameslink services for Gatwick Airport will run to and from other central London stations, including London Blackfriars and London Bridge. A limited bus service will replace trains for local journeys between Clapham Junction, Battersea Park and London Victoria.Clapham Junction is expected to be very busy and passengers should avoid this station if possible.Tickets will be accepted on advertised alternative routes, including London Underground between Balham and Victoria and between London Bridge/Blackfriars and Victoria.