Birmingham travel Easter bank holiday weekend: changes to train and bus services

If you are heading off on a road trip this Easter, you’re far from alone - with millions of journeys expected to be made over the bank holiday weekend.

Many will be getting ready for a well deserved break to spend time with their family and friends, and with travel restrictions around Covid now lifted, many people will also be keen for a UK-based staycation.

With the roads expeted to be busy and up down the country, many will also be using public transport to reach their destination this weekend.

With that in mind, we’ve had a look at timetable changes this Easter.

Trains and railway journeys in the West Midlands this Easter

There are some changes due to planned engineering works by Network Rail.

Essential works are being carried over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend, impacting journeys across the West Midlands Railway network.

Due to HS2 works being carried out, train services between Coventry and Birmingham will be diverted via Solihull, while there will be bus replacement services between Rugby and Birmingham International, and between Leamington Spa and Nuneaton/Coventry.

From Saturday (16 April) to Easter Monday (18 (April), buses will replace train services between Birmingham International and Coventry.

Tomorrow (Good Friday) London trains will also be running between Birmingham and Northampton only.

Elsewhere in the region, bus services will also replace trains between Nuneaton and Leamington Spa while a railway bridge is replaced From Good Friday to Easter Monday.

If you’re travelling to or from London, you’re advised to travel either side of the bank holiday weekends to avoid disruption. No trains will run to/from London Euston during this time.

Network Rail is uging travellers to plan ahead carefully for their journeys this bank holiday.

Andrew Haines, Network Rail chief executive, said: “The majority of the railway will be open as usual this Easter for people to take a short break or visit loved ones, but some routes will be affected by our upgrade works, so we’re asking passengers to plan ahead and check their journeys in advance.

“We’ll be carrying out hundreds of vital projects that will improve passengers’ journeys in future – for example by improving reliability and boosting capacity on the network.”

What about bus routes in Birmingham?

There are also some temporary changes to several services throughout the Easter period.

Up until Saturday April 23, there will be changes to the frequency of a number of services across the West Midlands.

Services affected in Birmingham include Birmingham to Solihull (via Sparkbrook), Acocks Green Village (via Springfield), Birmingham to Perry Common (Via Newtown and Aston) and Birmingham Inner Circle (via Saltley, Small Heath, Highgate, Jewellery Quarter).

You can see the full list of services affected on the National Express West Midlands timetable, here.

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. BirminghamWorld is Birmingham’s latest news website, championing everything that is great about our city - reporting on news, lifestyle and sport. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook,Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going.