DAY-TRIPPERS will face travel disruption every weekend for the rest of the month as Network Rail continues maintenance works on lines from Colchester to London, Ipswich, and Clacton.

Continued works on Beaulieu Park station three miles north-east of Chelmsford have meant the mainline linking Chelmsford and Witham will be closed all weekend.

With train services from Colchester to London Liverpool Street terminating at Witham on both Saturday 6 and Sunday 7, rail replacement bus services will be in place between Witham and Ingatestone before a train completes the journey to the capital.

It means passengers may be travelling for as long as two hours to get from Colchester to London, with people required to take a 14-minute train journey from Colchester to Witham, a 52-minute bus from Witham to Ingatestone, and then a 29-minute bus from Ingatestone to London Liverpool Street.

Gazette: Journey – travel times will be increased significantly as rail replacement buses come into force over the next four weekendsJourney – travel times will be increased significantly as rail replacement buses come into force over the next four weekends (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

The following weekend, passengers will be unable to take the train from Colchester Town to Clacton or Walton due to track renewal works and overhead line maintenance.

Instead, bus replacements will run from North Station to Clacton and Walton on both Saturday 13 and Sunday 14, with one stop at Thorpe-le-Soken.

The journey, which would normally take less than half an hour by train, will take as long as one hour and four minutes.

Passengers will be hit with the same problems the following weekend on Saturday 20 and Sunday 21.

The same weekend, rail replacement bus services will come into effect between Colchester and Manningtree whilst National Rail carries out track renewal works.

Gazette: Disruption – there will be no train service from Colchester Town to Clacton or Walton on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 Disruption – there will be no train service from Colchester Town to Clacton or Walton on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 (Image: Newsquest)

A direct bus, with no stops, is estimated to take 42 minutes – though this is more than double the normal journey time by train.

On the final weekend of the month, the same rail replacement bus services will return between Colchester and Ipswich, as well as Colchester and Harwich.

There will also be delays on journeys from London Liverpool Street to Colchester on Sunday morning due to works taking place between Forest Gate and Seven Kings.

With Greater Anglia and the Elizabeth line operating on two lines instead of four, Greater Anglia services will take 15 minutes longer between Liverpool Street and Stratford.