What’s happening?
From Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026, buses will replace trains between Chichester and Portsmouth Harbour, and between Chichester and Southampton Central.
This is while our partners at Network Rail carry out major work to modernise and upgrade signalling in the Havant area. You can find out more about this project on the Network Rail website.
Network Rail will use the time the railway is closed to also carry out work to modernise tracks and level crossings in the Bedhampton, Bosham and Fishbourne areas.
The works have been timed to take place over this period as it coincides with when the majority of schools have their half-term holidays, when there are generally fewer people travelling.
How will my journey be affected?
From Monday 26 to Friday 30 October, the following changes will be in place:
- Buses will replace trains between Chichester and Portsmouth Harbour / Southampton
- Trains which usually run to/from Portsmouth or Southampton will be amended to run to/from Chichester, with some services being diverted to Bognor Regis
- The usual Barnham to Bognor Regis shuttle service will not run during this period
Journeys will take longer while this engineering work takes place, especially if you need to use a replacement bus.
Bus and train departure and arrival times may be different to the normal train timetable, so it is really important to plan ahead and check the details of your journeys before you travel, including any connections with other services, at nationalrail.co.uk
The works in the Havant area also impact South Western Railway services. You can find out more on the SWR website.
You can find more information about the works, including a video that explains the closure, on the dedicated National Rail webpage.
Replacement bus information
During this closure, replacement buses will run in both directions on the following routes:
- Chichester - Fishbourne - Bosham - Nutbourne - Southbourne - Emsworth - Warblington - Havant - Hilsea - Fratton - Portsmouth & Southsea - Portsmouth Harbour
- Chichester - Havant - Fratton - Portsmouth & Southsea - Portsmouth Harbour
- Chichester - Southbourne - Emsworth - Havant - Cosham - Portchester - Fareham - Swanwick - Woolston - Southampton Central
(Please note: buses on this route will wait for a short time at Havant. Journey planners will show this as two separate bus journeys, however, you can remain on the same vehicle with no need to change buses)
National Rail station information pages will have information on rail replacement bus stop locations for each station.
Havant customers, please note that there is a new location for rail replacement services, with all buses relocated to Market Parade.
Ticket acceptance
Southern tickets will also be valid on alternative South Western Railway or Great Western Railway services between Fratton and Southampton Central.
Changes at some station car parks
During this work, there will be changes to car park facilities at the following Southern stations:
Chichester
The smaller car park on the south side of the station will be closed from 00:01 on Thursday 22 October and will re-open at 23:59 on Friday 30 October. This is to set up the area and facilitate the safe operation of replacement buses.
The car park located on the north side of the station accessed via Station Approach will remain open and available for you to use.
Bosham
The entire car park will be closed from 00:01 on Friday 23 October to 23:59 on Saturday 31 October. This is because the area will be used for a site compound for Network Rail engineers who are carrying out works on the railway nearby.
Other closures on the route
Please be aware that on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 October, buses will replace trains between Havant and Southampton Central all weekend.
In addition, on Sunday 1 November, buses will replace trains between Woolston and Southampton Central.
You can find the details of these and all other closures affecting services across our network in our planned works calendar.