Railway passengers are being asked to take some simple steps to keep themselves and others safe this Christmas.

This comes as South Western Railway (SWR) prepares to keep people moving over the festive period whilst Network Rail carry out essential engineering work on the railway.

Following the announcement that coronavirus restrictions are set to be eased between 23rd and 27th December, SWR is continuing to roll-out enhanced cleaning regimes and is providing as many carriages as possible to ensure customers can travel with confidence.

But SWR is also asking customers to take the following simple steps to help keep themselves and others safe:

1. Plan ahead and buy mobile tickets to avoid unnecessary contact.

1. Wear a face covering on trains and at stations, unless exempt.

1. Regularly wash your hands and use the hand sanitiser machines provided at stations.

1. Keep your distance from others and try to spread out when choosing where to sit.

Commenting, SWR's Chief Operating Officer, Mike Houghton, said:

"Working together with our customers, we want to make sure that every single one of our passengers can travel with confidence over the Christmas period. We're working hard to provide enough capacity for our passengers to travel safely, but we also need our customers to follow some simple steps, such as planning ahead and wearing a face covering".

While SWR staff are working flat out to keep customers moving, Network Rail will be carrying out engineering works on parts of the network over the festive period to improve the resilience of the railway for years to come.

The line between Clapham Junction and London Waterloo will see vital upgrade work at the Nine Elms junction, resulting in a reduced service between Sunday 27 December and Sunday 3 January. Vauxhall and Queenstown Road stations will be closed.

Works are also taking place between Basingstoke and Salisbury to strengthen bridges and improve Andover station. Engineers will need to close the line meaning replacement buses will be in operation from Sunday 27 December through to Sunday 3 January.

In the Portsmouth area, Network Rail are replacing track and renewing a railway bridge which will mean buses replace trains between Fareham and Portsmouth Harbour from New Year's Day through to Sunday 3 January.

Passengers are being urged to check before they travel over the Christmas period by visiting HERE before setting off.

Whilst there is never a good time to close the railway, the Christmas and New Year period sees fewer customers using the railway which minimises the impact of fewer trains running.

These works are part of the ongoing multimillion-pound investment to renew railway infrastructure and improve the reliability of train services for all customers.