Stansted Express disruption: five weekends of travel chaos ahead

Planned engineering work will cause major disruptions to train services to and from Stansted Airport in the coming weeks. Sections of the railway between Stansted and Broxbourne are scheduled for maintenance, meaning holidaymakers travelling by train will need to use a rail replacement bus service for part of their journey. John Boughton, commercial director of National Express, acknowledged the disruption. He said: “We recognise the significant impact and inconvenience the upcoming rail disruption will have on travellers. By adding thousands of extra seats on our Stansted services, we’re proud to once again step up and provide customers with dependable and affordable airport connections.

“With hundreds of services running day and night to Stansted Airport, customers continue to choose us — thanks to our brilliant coach drivers taking them right to the airport terminal door. We expect to be busy, and tickets are selling fast, so we’re advising customers to book in advance to guarantee a seat.”. Below is a full list of upcoming Stansted Express disruptions, along with alternative travel options.

Due to scheduled maintenance, no trains will run directly between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport from February 22 to February 23. There will be replacement coaches between Waltham Cross and Stansted Airport and trains will operate from Waltham Cross to London Liverpool Street. Due to scheduled maintenance, no trains will run directly between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport on these weekends: March 1 and 2, March 8 and 9, March 15 and 16 and March 22 and 23.

There will be replacement coaches between Broxbourne and Stansted Airport, and trains will operate from Broxbourne to London Liverpool Street. National Express offers a convenient alternative for travelling to Stansted Airport from London. Frequent coach services depart from Paddington Station, Victoria Coach Station, and Waterloo. To help passengers reach their destinations on time, National Express is adding 25,000 extra seats on its routes between London and Stansted Airport.

While the Stansted Express typically takes 48 minutes, National Express coaches have a comparable journey time of around 45 minutes. Another option is EasyBus, which operates direct services from London City (Old Street) and Baker Street. For those who prefer to drive, Stansted Airport provides parking facilities and a free shuttle service to the terminal. Taxis and private hire vehicles are also available.