No c2c or Greater Anglia trains on 25 or 26 December, and both finish early on Christmas Eve. What ran last year from Basildon, Billericay and Wickford.
The borough has two railways and they behave differently at Christmas. Basildon, Laindon and Pitsea are on c2c to Fenchurch Street. Billericay and Wickford are on the Greater Anglia line from Southend Victoria to Liverpool Street via Shenfield.
Neither operator has published its Christmas 2026 plans yet. Both have done the same things for years: early finishes on Christmas Eve, no trains on Christmas Day or Boxing Day, and London terminus changes when Network Rail closes lines for engineering work in the quiet week after.
The quick answer
- No trains on Friday 25 or Saturday 26 December on either line, going by every recent year
- Christmas Eve finishes early. c2c said so last year without giving times; Greater Anglia’s 2024 services finished by 22.15 at the latest
- 2026 details are not out yet. c2c announced last year’s on 12 November 2025; Greater Anglia announced 2024’s on 10 October 2024
c2c: Basildon, Laindon and Pitsea
This is what c2c announced for Christmas 2025/26 on 12 November 2025 (c2c). It is last year’s plan, not this year’s.
| Date (2025/26) | c2c service |
|---|---|
| Christmas Eve | Services finished earlier than usual |
| Christmas Day and Boxing Day | No trains |
| 27 and 28 December | Weekend timetables, all trains to and from Fenchurch Street (Liverpool Street closed) |
| 29 and 30 December | Saturday service |
| New Year’s Eve | Saturday service |
| New Year’s Day | Sunday service |
| 2 January | Normal weekday timetable |
| 3 and 4 January | Buses between Leigh-on-Sea and Shoeburyness |
A year earlier, for 2024/25, c2c published on 15 October and ran all trains to Fenchurch Street from 27 to 31 December, with buses replacing trains between Laindon or Stanford-le-Hope and Leigh-on-Sea in the early hours of 30 December (c2c, 2024).
The pattern for Basildon passengers: most of the Christmas week runs at Saturday levels, and London trains go to Fenchurch Street. Anyone who normally travels on to Liverpool Street should plan for that.
Greater Anglia: Billericay and Wickford
Greater Anglia has not published a 2025/26 or 2026/27 Christmas notice on its news pages that we could find. Its most recent is for 2024/25, published on 10 October 2024 (Greater Anglia). That year:
- Christmas Eve: an early shutdown with all services finishing by 22.15 at the latest
- Christmas Day: no services. Boxing Day: only a revised Stansted Express
- London Liverpool Street closed from 25 December to 1 January inclusive. Great Eastern Main Line trains, which include the Southend Victoria line through Billericay and Wickford, started and finished at Stratford, for the Elizabeth line and the Underground
- Rail replacement buses between Billericay and Witham on 27 and 28 December, for work on the new Beaulieu Park station
- New Year’s Eve: most normal services. New Year’s Day: bank holiday timetable. Normal services from 2 January
The Beaulieu Park work is specific to that year. The Stratford terminus is the part that recurs whenever Liverpool Street shuts, and it is the one to look for in this year’s announcement.
The line through Wickford only reopened on 26 August after the derailment (see Wickford derailment: the RAIB investigation). Any further repair work the RAIB findings require could land in the Christmas engineering window. Nothing has been announced.
Last trains on Christmas Eve
Neither operator has published 2026 Christmas Eve last-train times. c2c’s 2025 notice sent passengers to National Rail Enquiries for the exact times, which appear in its journey planner once the Christmas timetable is loaded.
Christmas Eve 2026 is a Thursday. Plan on the last trains from London being earlier than a normal Thursday night, and check the day before.
Parking and roads over Christmas
Basildon Council’s car parks in Billericay and Wickford have been free at weekends since April 2026, covered on our parking in Basildon page. Last Christmas the council also made parking free on the days of the Wickford lights switch-on and Christmas market, Small Business Saturday and the Billericay Christmas Market (Basildon Council, 2025). No 2026 list has been published.
For road closures see Basildon roadworks, and for the normal service see Basildon train times to London.
What is still to be confirmed
- c2c’s 2026 Christmas plan, expected in mid-November going by 2025
- Greater Anglia’s 2026 Christmas plan and whether Liverpool Street closes
- Christmas Eve last trains from Fenchurch Street and Liverpool Street
This page will be updated when each one appears. Also for the holidays: Basildon Christmas bin collections and school term dates.
Have your say