Rail passengers in West Yorkshire are being urged to plan ahead this Christmas as major upgrade work continues across the TransPennine Route Upgrade (TRU) programme, bringing the region closer to faster, more reliable and greener rail travel.

Mirfield station will close from Tuesday 23 December, reopening on Saturday 27 December, to allow teams to complete a key phase of its rebuild. When the station reopens, customers will see two new, longer platforms offering more seats, alongside accessibility improvements. As part of the same package of work, engineers will realign track through Mirfield to support quicker and more frequent services, while new signalling equipment will be installed to strengthen reliability along the route. Passengers are being reminded to check journey plans in advance via their train operator.

Once this phase is complete, further work will follow, including new drainage in the car park, permanent lighting on the station approach, and improvements to Station Road beneath the railway bridge. During this period, Platform 3 will remain in use alongside the newly completed Platforms 1 and 2.

Elsewhere in the region, the rebuild of Deighton station continues, with the site remaining closed. Over Christmas Day and Boxing Day, crews will demolish Whitacre Street overbridge ahead of its replacement with a taller, wider structure that will support new track alignment and future electrification — a step towards cleaner, electric trains serving the area.

Andrew Campbell, TRU Sponsor, said:

“These upgrades form a pivotal part of our wider programme with it being a key location on our route, and I’d like to thank customers and local residents for their support and understanding as this work is undertaken. The festive period is one of the quietest times on the railway, meaning we can carry out such important work with less disruption than usual. Mirfield’s upgrade is almost complete, and we’re excited to reveal the major upgrade of the town’s station which will help unlock faster, more frequent trains with more seats travel through the area and beyond.”

Joe Munro, TRU Customer Lead at Northern, said:

“Mirfield station has already seen significant changes since the TRU programme started work on the station in 2024. This upcoming Christmas period will see a major milestone as part of the project, as the rebuilt island platforms will be completed. To deliver these works, on Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 December, no trains will be able to run through Mirfield station, with amended timetables in place and rail replacement buses in operation between Dewsbury and Halifax/Huddersfield to connect into rail services. We've worked closely with TransPennine Express to keep customers moving. Northern will be strengthening our services with more carriages between Leeds and Manchester Victoria via Bradford Interchange, and TransPennine Express will provide further capacity by serving some local stations on the Calder Valley route between Manchester Victoria and Brighouse. Our advice to customers travelling over the Christmas period is to plan ahead and check before they travel.”

Chris Nutton, Major Projects & TRU Director, said:

“It’s great to see that the investment in Mirfield station by the TRU programme is bearing fruit. Whilst these works take place, no train services will be able to run between Huddersfield and Dewsbury. TransPennine Express services will terminate at Huddersfield from the west and at Dewsbury or Leeds from the east, with rail replacement bus services running between Huddersfield and Dewsbury, Leeds, and Wakefield Kirkgate. We have also worked together with Northern to support our customers, with TPE picking up local services between Manchester Victoria and Huddersfield via the Calder Valley, enabling Northern to strengthen services between Leeds and Manchester Victoria via Halifax. Given the scale of these works, we urge everyone to check before travelling on the days leading up to Christmas. Also, please be mindful that services will finish earlier than normal on Christmas Eve and no trains will run on Christmas Day and Boxing Day."

Image: Network Rail