City Thameslink to close for seven months in 2027 while all 10 escalators are replaced

Network Rail will close City Thameslink station in central London from Monday 17 May 2027 until late December 2027 so that all 10 of its escalators can be replaced in a single programme of work.

Thameslink trains will keep running through the station as normal during the closure but will not stop there, Network Rail and the operator said on 29 October. Passengers are being directed to London Blackfriars instead.

The infrastructure owner said the escalators have been in service for more than 35 years and are at the end of their operational life. Its project page adds that some units were severely damaged by flooding in spring 2025 and have been taken out of service indefinitely.

Lucy McAuliffe, Sussex Route Director for Network Rail, said: "We know closing City Thameslink is a significant change and we're sorry for the disruption it will cause. This is not a decision we have taken lightly."

Why a full closure

Network Rail said it examined every option before settling on a single closure, which it described as the safest, quickest and most efficient way to complete the job. It said the approach would significantly shorten the project compared with working in an open station.

Network Rail's project page also points to fire safety. Because City Thameslink is underground, strict fire-safety rules apply, and Network Rail said keeping the station partly open with fewer exit points available for emergency evacuations would not have been acceptable.

Specialist engineers will spend around seven months replacing each of the 10 escalators across the station, Network Rail said. The work does not touch the tracks, so timetable changes are limited to trains omitting the City Thameslink stop.

McAuliffe said the escalator renewal would be carried out alongside other improvement works in the station, tackling the root causes of access disruption for passengers in one go.

Alternative stations

Network Rail puts annual usage of City Thameslink at about 7.6 million passengers. It is recommending Blackfriars as the alternative, saying the station has enough space to absorb the extra footfall. Farringdon, although a similar distance from the north entrance, is not being advised because it already gets very busy.

Walking route	Minutes
Blackfriars from Ludgate Hill (south) entrance	6
Blackfriars from Holborn Viaduct (north) entrance	11
Farringdon from north entrance	12

Both Blackfriars and Farringdon offer step-free access between platforms and street level, according to the project page.

Natasha Grice, Customer Excellence Director for Thameslink, said the operator would provide clear information and practical travel advice, and would have "additional staff on hand at nearby Blackfriars station to help customers make alternative journeys."

Thameslink said it would work with customers, local businesses and the wider community over the coming months and throughout the closure to help people plan ahead.

What happens next

Network Rail said a communications and information campaign will start in the new year, ahead of the May shutdown.

It also warned that some weekends during the closure may see no trains at all through the central London section because of other planned engineering work.

The station is due to reopen with its renewed escalators in December 2027.