Rail passengers travelling to and from Chichester face disruption during the October half-term, with replacement buses set to run as engineers carry out major signalling upgrades and track maintenance across the region.

Southern trains will terminate at Chichester from Monday, October 26, to Friday, October 30, with replacement buses running to Portsmouth Harbour and Southampton Central.

The work will take place between Saturday, October 24, and Sunday, November 1, and will also affect South Western Railway (SWR) services between London Waterloo and Portsmouth Harbour.

Part of Chichester railway station’s car park will close from Thursday, October 22, to Friday, October 30, to create a boarding point for replacement buses.

Rail passengers travelling to and from Chichester face disruption during the October half-term, with replacement buses set to run as engineers carry out major signalling upgrades and track maintenance across the region.

placeholder image — Rail passengers travelling to and from Chichester face disruption during the October half-term, with replacement buses set to run as engineers carry out major signalling upgrades and track maintenance across the region.

Meanwhile, Bosham’s small car park will be closed from Friday, October 23, to Saturday, October 31, to provide space for a site compound for engineering work on nearby level crossings.

The engineering programme includes the installation of 61 new axle counters in the Havant area to help signallers monitor train movements and reduce signalling failures.

Engineers will also install new rails between Liphook and Petersfield and upgrade signalling and cabling systems. In Fishbourne, 183 metres of track will be renewed, with rails, sleepers and ballast replaced to improve journeys on Southern’s West Coastway route.

The improvements form part of a £250 million investment by SWR and Network Rail Wessex to replace ageing track and signalling equipment and improve railway reliability.

Jenny Saunders, customer service director for Southern, said: “Vital resignalling work designed to give our passengers better, more reliable services, regrettably means anyone travelling west of Chichester this October half term will have to use a rail replacement bus.

“I know that for some people this will mean longer journeys and I’m sorry for the impact this will have. Please check your options and plan ahead now using our online journey planner at southernrailway.com.”

George Murrell, renewals director for SWR and Network Rail Wessex, said the investment was an important step towards improving reliability.

He said: “Reliable trains need reliable tracks and signals, which is why we’re investing in renewing and upgrading signalling systems on this key route.”

On Saturday, October 24, two buses an hour will replace Southern services between Havant and Southampton Central. The same replacement service will run on Sunday, October 25, when SWR trains between London Waterloo and Portsmouth Harbour will terminate at Guildford.

From Monday, October 26, to Friday, October 30, SWR services will terminate at Petersfield, with replacement buses operating towards Portsmouth. Southern passengers will need to use buses from Chichester to reach Portsmouth Harbour and Southampton Central.

Further disruption is expected on October 31 and November 1, when SWR trains will terminate at Haslemere and Guildford respectively, with replacement buses operating on affected sections.

Passengers are advised to check their journeys before travelling and allow extra time.