Rail passengers in south-east London and Kent are being urged to plan ahead for a major upgrade at Dartford Junction during the February half-term, with just over six weeks to go.

Dartford Junction, the busiest rail junction in Kent, will undergo a £10 million track renewal to improve reliability for services between Kent and London. To make use of the line closure, a range of station improvements will also be carried out.

From Saturday 14 February to Sunday 22 February, accessible replacement buses will operate between Gravesend and Dartford towards Crayford, Barnehurst and Slade Green. Services into London via the Sidcup, Bexleyheath and Woolwich routes will continue to run, though timetables will change and there will be extra services on the Bexleyheath line. Passengers should allow additional time, especially at peak periods when queues for buses are possible.

During the works, no Southeastern or Thameslink trains will run between Slade Green, Barnehurst, Crayford and Gravesend via Dartford. No Thameslink services will operate between Plumstead and Gravesend, though an hourly Thameslink shuttle will run between Gravesend and Rainham. Highspeed services to and from St Pancras via Gravesend will operate as normal.

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Buses will replace trains at Dartford, Stone Crossing, Greenhithe for Bluewater, Swanscombe and Northfleet. Replacement services will run: between Gravesend and Slade Green calling at Northfleet, Swanscombe, Greenhithe, Stone Crossing and Dartford; between Dartford and Crayford; between Dartford and Barnehurst; and between Dartford and Slade Green.

Rail engineers will renew 10 switches and crossings (points) and install around 400 yards of new rail between Slade Green and Dartford. Station works include new tactile paving at Dartford to improve accessibility, fencing repairs at Stone Crossing, refurbishment of the accessible toilet at Greenhithe, deep cleaning at Swanscombe, and new LED lighting plus extra customer information screens at Northfleet. All stations closed during the works will also be repainted.

While the main upgrade runs from 14 to 22 February, additional closures are scheduled for Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 February for preparation, with follow-up work on Sunday 1 March and Sunday 5 April. Replacement buses will run on these dates as well.

David Davidson, Chief Operating Officer for the South Eastern Railway, said: "The work at Dartford Junction, where 650 trains pass every day, is a vital investment in the long-term resilience and efficiency of one of the busiest junctions of our network. We want to thank customers for their patience while we carry out this essential upgrade.

"We've deliberately chosen the half-term to minimise disruption as schools are on holiday and fewer people are commuting. We will be making the most of the time available when trains are not running to carry out station refurbishments, including installing tactile paving at Dartford station to improve accessibility and safety.

"We understand that this will be disruptive and we're working hard to ensure passengers are fully informed about the closure so that they can make their alternative travel arrangements. By doing the work over the February half-term, we can fit everything we need to do into one nine-day closure. The alternative would be up to 30 weekends, which would be much more disruptive over a longer period."