Thameslink railway in central London reopens following Christmas engineering works

The Thameslink railway through central London has reopened this morning following a long closure for track replacement works.

Over the Christmas period, the line between St. Pancras International to Herne Hill was closed, while Network Rail engineers installed 1,670m of new rails on the track between Farringdon and Blackfriars, as well as a number of insulated block joints – the joints that bolt sections of railway track together.

Following the construction of the new track, an equivalent amount of scrap rail was also recycled. The opportunity was also taken to improve drainage and maintain switches and crossings at Farringdon, City Thameslink, and Blackfriars.

David Davidson, Kent Route Director for Network Rail said: “I’d like to thank passengers for their patience while we completed this work.

“The rails between St Pancras International and Blackfriars were installed in 2011, and after 13 years and thousands of trains passing over the track, the track had become worn and we needed to install brand new rail to prevent faults delaying passenger journeys.

“With the railway closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day our engineers were able to get a head start on the work so that we could reopen this crucial route.”

Unrelated works were also carried out north of St Pancras over the Christmas period, as a large road bridge at Agar Grove in Camden had to be replaced.