No Greater Anglia train will run from Colchester to Liverpool Street from 27 December to 3 January. Trains end at Shenfield; buses run on to the Central line.
Trains from Colchester will not reach London Liverpool Street for eight days over the New Year. From Sunday 27 December to Sunday 3 January, Greater Anglia’s main line trains will start and finish at Shenfield.
Network Rail is renewing six sets of points at Forest Gate, in east London, in a 10-day programme. Greater Anglia set out the plan in its Christmas engineering notice, published on 22 October. Network Rail published the same notice in its own media centre.
Last year, when Liverpool Street itself was shut, Colchester’s trains still ran as far as Stratford. This year they turn back in Essex.
How you get to London from 27 December
Greater Anglia’s service alteration notice for the closure says:
- trains run as normal between Norwich, Ipswich, Clacton and Shenfield, calling at Colchester
- rail replacement buses run from Shenfield and Ingatestone to Newbury Park, a Central line station in east London
- Greater Anglia tickets are accepted on the Central line from Newbury Park to Stratford and Liverpool Street
Network Rail adds that Elizabeth line trains will not run between Stratford and Romford, with buses instead. A reduced Elizabeth line service runs between Romford and Shenfield.
Allow a lot of extra time. Greater Anglia advises buying a paper ticket or eTicket before you travel when buses replace trains, because pick-up points are often some distance from the station.
The full Christmas timetable
| Day | Greater Anglia trains from Colchester |
|---|---|
| Thursday 24 December | Fewer trains from 7pm; all trains stop by 10pm |
| Friday 25 December | No trains |
| Saturday 26 December | No trains. The only Greater Anglia service is a Stansted Express between Stansted Airport and Tottenham Hale |
| Sunday 27 December to Sunday 3 January | Trains run to and from Shenfield only; buses on to Newbury Park |
One date to check
Greater Anglia’s notice and Network Rail both say the work ends on Sunday 3 January. But the operator’s own service alterations calendar for January runs the Shenfield buses to Monday 4 January. If you are travelling into London that Monday morning, check the journey planner before you set off.
Other works on the Colchester line
The same calendar lists two more late-night closures near Colchester around Christmas:
- Monday 7 to Wednesday 9 December: the line between Witham and Colchester shuts late at night and early in the morning. The 23:48, 00:18 and 00:46 trains from Liverpool Street to Colchester are replaced by buses from Witham, and the 04:43 Colchester to London starts from Witham at 05:00, with a bus leaving Colchester at 04:10. Greater Anglia’s notice has the details.
- Monday 4 to Wednesday 6 January: late-night changes between Colchester, Clacton-on-Sea and Walton-on-the-Naze, which affects Hythe and Wivenhoe.
What it means for you
- Travelling to London between Christmas and New Year? Expect to change at Shenfield for a bus to Newbury Park, then take the Central line. The bus leg alone runs through east London traffic, so build in extra time.
- New Year’s Eve in London? Plan the journey home before you go. Greater Anglia has not yet published last train times for 31 December.
- Christmas Eve: do not count on a train after about 7pm.
- Heading out of London on 26 December? There are no trains from Liverpool Street to Colchester that day.
Our Colchester Christmas trains and buses page now carries the 2026 plan and will add First Essex’s festive bus timetables when they are out. Normal journeys are on our Colchester train times to London page, and road closures are on the roadworks page.
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