The Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC), the central agency for passenger rail operators in the UK, has reported that most rail passengers will be unaffected by a series of planned improvement works that are expected to be carried out between the Christmas and New Year holiday period.
As the upcoming holiday period is going to see a slow down in passenger traffic, new statistics from the agency show that number of replacement buses will be much less than the same period last year. The majority of rail routes in the UK will stay open despite the planned improvement work.
Michael Roberts, the chief executive of ATOC, said, ‘A great deal of effort and planning goes into making sure that work to improve stations and make journeys faster and more reliable goes on while minimising disruption for our passengers.
This year, we have again been able to reduce the number of people who will have to get on to a replacement bus. Once again train companies have been working closely with Network Rail to make sure that we keep people on trains wherever we can.’
Network Rail, a company that operates the railway network in the UK, has announced that its engineers will be working all through the holiday period to improve signalling, place tracks, renovate bridges and refurbish rail stations to improve its passenger experience.
Robin Gisby, the Network Rail managing director for network operations, said, ‘We’re doing a lot of work this year to improve Britain’s railway and there will be some disruption to passengers over the Christmas period, but the overall effect on passengers is much lower than in previous years.
Passengers will see fewer buses and a better service this Christmas holiday period as our vital improvement work uses new techniques and equipment that reduces the impact on train services. This will be the model for the years ahead as we invest heavily to build a bigger, better railway and support Britain’s economic growth.’
