Customers urged to check journeys as industrial action and engineering work to affect Chiltern services next week

Chiltern Railways customers are being urged to check their journeys before they travel due to ongoing industrial action and engineering work.  

Industrial action on the London Underground network next week (w/c 24 July) means that there will be no Chiltern Railways services running along the Metropolitan Line between London Marylebone and Aylesbury (via Amersham) between Tuesday 25 July and Friday 28 July. During this period, there will also be no services calling at South Ruislip station. 

Customers in Aylesbury will still be able to use Chiltern services to London Marylebone via Princes Risborough, where some additional services have been added to cater for increased demand.  

On 29 July, due to strike action by the RMT, a significantly reduced service will be in operation, with no services north of Bicester North/Oxford Parkway. Trains will start later and finish earlier than usual. Due to level of disruption, the operator is urging customers to only travel if essential.  

29 July – service provision: 

Essential travel only - a very limited service be in operation between approximately 08.00 and 22.00, structured as follows: 

• 1 train per hour Marylebone - stations to Bicester North (and vice-versa). 
• 1 train per hour Marylebone - stations to Oxford Parkway (and vice-versa). 
• 1 train per hour Marylebone - stations to Aylesbury (via High Wycombe; and vice-versa). 
• 1 bus per hour Bicester North - Banbury. 
• Periodic bus shuttle Bicester North - Kings Sutton - Banbury. 

Additionally, the railway is closed between Amersham and Aylesbury all day due to planned engineering works. Rail replacement buses (two per hour) will operate as follows, connecting with London Underground services to/from Baker Street at Amersham: 

• Amersham - Great Missenden - Wendover - Stoke Mandeville - Aylesbury - Aylesbury Vale Parkway. 

The above coincides with the beginning of a further set of complex engineering works affecting Chiltern routes in Warwickshire and Oxfordshire: 

Bicester North and Banbury/Leamington Spa  

The line between Bicester North and Banbury / Leamington Spa will be closed for improvement works between Saturday 29 July and Friday 4 August. Rail replacement services will run between Bicester North and Banbury on the 29 July, Bicester North and Banbury/Leamington on 30 July, and from Bicester Village to Banbury/Leamington from the 31 July to 4 August.  

Oxford Parkway to Oxford    

From Saturday 29 July to Sunday 6 August, all lines into Oxford city center are closed while Network Rail upgrade the track and signalling into the station. This will enable an additional line to run into Oxford station in 2024 and the Botley Road Bridge to be replaced. Chiltern Railways will be running a replacement service connecting Oxford Parkway and Oxford station throughout the closure.  

Chiltern Railways is aware of further upcoming industrial action by ASLEF between Monday 31 July and Saturday 5 July, which also coincides with this engineering work. The action will lead to an amended timetable across the Chiltern Railways network, and the operator will confirm rail service provision on these dates as soon as possible. Rail replacement bus provision will be unaffected. 

If customers are intending to travel with Chiltern Railways during this period, they are urged to check before they travel on the Chiltern Railways website (www.chilternrailways.co.uk) or app, as journeys may be altered because of the upcoming industrial action and engineering works. 

Further information on industrial action affecting Chiltern Railways can be found at https://www.chilternrailways.co.uk/strike.