South Western Railway Holiday Engineering Works
Some local services will terminate at Clapham Junction
Network Rail contractors at work on the line. Picture: SWR
December 15, 2025
South Western Railway (SWR) has confirmed that major engineering work between London Waterloo and Clapham Junction will cause significant disruption to services over the Christmas and New Year period, with particular impact on the Hounslow Loop and trains passing through Putney.
Key Dates and Closures
- Christmas Eve (24 December): Services will finish earlier than usual, around 22:00.
- Christmas Day & Boxing Day (25–26 December): No SWR services will operate.
- Saturday 27 & Sunday 28 December: No trains between London Waterloo and Clapham Junction. Services on the Hounslow Loop and Putney line will start and finish at Clapham Junction.
- 29–30 December: Reduced services, with trains via Barnes (including Putney and Hounslow Loop services) terminating at Clapham Junction. Vauxhall and Queenstown Road stations will be closed.
- New Year’s Eve (31 December): Amended timetable, with Barnes line services again starting and finishing at Clapham Junction. Extra late-night trains will run from Waterloo to Basingstoke, Guildford and Twickenham between 01:00 and 05:00.
- New Year’s Day (1 January): Reduced service across all lines, with Barnes and Putney services terminating at Clapham Junction.
- 2–4 January: Continued disruption, with Barnes line services curtailed at Clapham Junction. On 4 January, separate engineering work will also affect services towards Woking and Reading.
- Normal timetable resumes Monday 5 January 2026.
Passengers using the Hounslow Loop, which connects to Waterloo via Barnes, Chiswick, Putney and Brentford, will face extended diversions and reduced services throughout the period. With trains unable to run into Waterloo on key dates, journeys will terminate at Clapham Junction, requiring onward connections.
Similarly, Putney station will see services disrupted from 27 December through early January, with trains diverted or curtailed. SWR advises passengers to plan ahead and consider alternative routes, including District Line services from Richmond and Wimbledon, or Southern services from Clapham Junction to London Victoria.
Network Rail engineers will be carrying out improvements to track, switches and crossings, signalling systems and electrical supplies. Platforms at Queenstown Road (Battersea) will also be upgraded. SWR says the work will deliver smoother and more reliable journeys in the long term.
SWR Chief Operating Officer Stuart Meek said, “There will be major changes through to the new year, particularly for services to and from London Waterloo via Barnes. On 27 and 28 December, when there are no trains between Waterloo and Clapham Junction, customers should plan ahead and check their journeys now.”
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