Track work to cause disruption for weekend trains

There will be disruption for rail passengers in the East of England over several weekends this month while maintenance work is carried out.

Parts of the 40-year-old signalling system at the Norwich end of the Great Eastern mainline to London will be replaced with digital parts.

Work between Norwich and Diss and near Stowmarket will also take place over the weekends of 15-16 and 29-30 November, with rail replacement buses put on – including on the day of Norwich City's home game against Queens Park Rangers.

Martin Beable, Greater Anglia managing director, said the work would help to "modernise the railway and maintain punctuality and reliability".

Analogue signalling equipment will be swapped over to a digital system, Network Rail said

Rail replacement buses will run between Norwich and Ipswich on Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 November. Trains will continue to run between Ipswich and London.

On Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 November, buses will replace trains between Norwich and Ipswich, and between Ipswich and Bury St Edmunds.

Trains will continue to run between Ipswich and London, from Bury St Edmunds to Cambridge, and between Bury St Edmunds and Peterborough.

Additional disruption is also expected on Sunday 23 November at the London end of the line, as well as on the Southend and Southminster branch lines in Essex.

Part of a faulty track at Forest Gate, where there is currently a 50mph (80km/h) speed restriction, will be replaced and repairs made to a nearby bridge.

Buses will run instead of trains from either Ingatestone and Shenfield into London, affecting journeys from Norwich, Ipswich and Clacton.

Passengers travelling between Southend Victoria and Newbury Park – as well as to and from Southminster and Wickford – will also need to board buses.