Corby, Kettering, Wellingborough Christmas rail services to and from London severely disrupted from December 21 - for NINE days

Extensive engineering works on the route will mean passengers travelling to, and from, London will have to use rail replacement bus services over most of the holidays.

The section of the line between London St Pancras and Bedford will be shut for nine consecutive days from tomorrow Saturday (December 21) until Sunday, December 29.

It means people travelling home for Christmas will have to get on rail services from Euston to Milton Keynes before getting a bus to Bedford and catching a train for the remainder of their journey further north.

Routes will take substantially longer so passengers are being warned to be prepared for delays and increased travel times.

Network Rail engineers are carrying out major route improvement work ready for the introduction of EMR's new bi-mode fleet of trains next year, completing extensive maintenance work, and supporting the future expansion of freight operations on the network.

Work on the line between London St Pancras and Bedford will include replacing the bridge deck on a road over rail bridge at Agar Grove in Camden, continuing work to upgrade the overhead lines, which power trains, between London St Pancras and Bedford and other maintenance and renewal jobs to improve safety and the reliability of the railway network.

Thameslink train services will also not run between London St Pancras and Harpenden.

Journeys between London St Pancras and destinations on the Midland Main Line, including Luton Airport Parkway, St Albans, Bedford, Nottingham, Derby and Sheffield will take longer and involve replacement bus services.

Mark Budden, route director for Network Rail’s East Midlands route, said: “We’re sorry that this essential work will cause significant disruption to journeys for many people over the festive period. We’ve worked hard to make sure the work will be completed as quickly and safely as possible.

“We’re deploying hundreds of people to carry out dozens of jobs to prevent further disruption at another time. Once complete this essential work will mean passengers will have smoother, faster and more reliable journeys.

Anyone planning to travel between Saturday, December 21 and Sunday, December 29 have been asked to check their whole journey, including connections.

Passengers who usually take the train north from London St Pancras will need to use different London stations and connecting buses to reach their destinations.

EMR passengers can take West Coast Main Line services from London Euston to Milton Keynes to catch buses to Bedford where they will join their EMR train.

Thameslink passengers travelling to destinations between London and north of Harpenden will take East Coast Main Line services from London Kings Cross to Hitchin or Potters Bar, where they can connect to rail replacement bus services to Luton Airport Parkway, or St Albans City and Harpenden. Thameslink trains will be operating from these stations to Bedford.

Buses will replace trains between London St Pancras and Harpenden.

Additional staff will also be on hand at stations to keep passengers on the move as rail replacement services will be busy and journeys will take longer than expected.

Videos of stations where passengers need to catch replacement services have been made available for people to familiarise themselves with layouts.

Customers are being encouraged to check National Rail Enquiries before they travel.

Philippa Cresswell, customer service director for East Midlands Railway, said: “We are working closely with Network Rail to keep customers moving throughout the festive period; however, journey times will be significantly longer than normal with rail replacement buses and amended timetables in place.

“This work will greatly benefit our customers in the future with the introduction of our bi-mode trains and with reliable journeys to and from London.”

To plan your journey go to the EMR website by clicking here.