Rail commuters between Fife and Edinburgh face replacement buses during electrification work
Thousands of rail commuters face being switched to buses later this month during upgrading work on a major line into Edinburgh.
The route from Fife across the Forth Bridge will be shut between Saturday, January 17 and Sunday, January 25 while overhead equipment is installed to power electric trains. These include a new ScotRail fleet of battery electric trains from 2031.
Many ScotRail trains will be replaced by buses between Inverkeithing and Haymarket, along with CrossCountry services between Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Outside peak hours, this will involve buses running to and from Edinburgh Airport where passengers will be transferred on to trams into Edinburgh.
ScotRail and LNER trains between Aberdeen and Edinburgh will be diverted via Perth and Stirling.
The project is part of the £342m programme to electrify routes in Fife and the Borders, funded by the Scottish Government.
Several bridges will demolished and rebuilt to create space for electric wires as part of the work between Dalmeny, at the south end of the bridge, and Haymarket in Edinburgh.
Catherine Hall, strategy and investment director at Network Rail Scotland, which is responsible for the project, said: "This work is about future proofing one of Scotland's busiest rail routes, paving the way for battery-electric trains.
"It will help increase capacity, improve reliability, and deliver more accessible, comfortable and sustainable journeys.
"We know there's never an ideal time to close any part of the railway, and we appreciate the patience of passengers and local residents while these improvements take place.
“Our teams have planned the work carefully to keep the impact to a minimum, and we’ll continue to keep people informed every step of the way.”
It comes three years after closure of the line between Christmas and New Year for work on the electrification project was shelved at short notice by then transport minister and Fife MSP Jenny Gilruth to avert disruption to festive passengers after poor performance by ScotRail on the route.