Taunton area rail improvements

Updated February 2023

Taunton improvements – Monday 20 to Thursday 23 March 2023

This March, Network Rail will be carrying out essential improvement works through Taunton station.

This work is essential to protect the ongoing safety of the route and involves relaying life-expired track and replacing lineside equipment.

This page will guide you through what’s happening, highlighting the services affected and providing clear advice to help you travel as smoothly as possible during this time.

What’s happening

Download this map of improvement works in the Taunton area (PDF) (PDF, 458 KB).

What it means to our services

• A reduced number of long-distance trains between London Paddington and Devon/Cornwall will run, but these will be diverted. Journey times will be extended by around 60 minutes.
• No trains will run between Castle Cary/Weston-super-Mare and Tiverton Parkway. Replacement buses will run on these routes.
• Trains will also continue to run either side of the closure, although services may be reduced with departure times different to normal.

Our advice

• Check carefully before travelling, departure times may be different to normal.
• Journey times on diverted trains or replacement buses will be extended so allow plenty of time to arrive at your destination.
• If your journey involves a replacement bus, check where the bus will depart from as this may not be next to the station. Use our handy table further down this page.
• Car park spaces will be reduced at Castle Cary during these works. Please avoid parking here to connect with trains if you can.

Replacement buses

*Limited services at this stop

Where to catch our replacement buses

Buses will depart from the following locations:

More information about replacement buses

Some of our replacement bus routes for these works cover a large distance so it's important to know what to expect when travelling on these services.

Please visit our dedicated replacement buses page for all the information you need for travelling on replacement buses including:

• Types of replacement buses we operate
• Travelling with animals, bikes, pushchairs or large items of luggage
• On-board facilities
• Changing between train and bus
• Accessibility

CrossCountry services

CrossCountry trains will continue to run trains from the north as far as Bristol Temple Meads. However, you should change at Bristol Parkway for replacement buses towards Taunton or Tiverton Parkway.

Train services will also operate hourly between Tiverton Parkway and Plymouth with some running to/from Penzance.

Using Castle Cary station

Whilst these engineering works are being carried out, most trains towards London Paddington will depart from Platform 2 instead of Platform 1.

Only the 12:26, 14:31 and 15:34 departures to London Paddington are due to depart from Platform 1.

If you require step-free access at Castle Cary for any other services, you should use Westbury instead. An accessible taxi will be provided if you book assisted travel with us in advance.

Help with your journey

If you are not able to travel on our replacement services, an accessible taxi can be arranged for you. You can do this by:

• booking in advance at GWR.com/PassengerAssist
• speaking to a member of staff at the station on the day of travel*
• use the Help Point available at all of our stations on the day of travel*

*please allow additional time as an accessible taxi may not be available immediately. Booking in advance is the best way to ensure a smooth journey.

Other engineering work affecting services

In addition to these works, here is a summary of other improvement work that will affect trains in the Taunton area. For more details see our dedicated Planned Engineering page.

Still have questions?

If there is something you would like to ask us, get in touch with our team on social media on Facebook or Twitter.