Work on the next phase of a £46million programme that will transform travel on the Southend Victoria line will take place on week nights from January to May as part of Network Rail’s Railway Upgrade Plan.

The work to reduce delays and improve reliability on this part of the railway will begin on January 15 between Shenfield and Hockley.

This will affect services from 9.30pm on weeknights from Monday to Thursday each week for a five-month period.

Weeknight closures will fast-track the programme by one year, so that passengers will benefit from the upgrades earlier.

Jamie Burles, Greater Anglia managing director, said: “We are working with Network Rail to make a railway for now and for future generations.

"We are sorry that customers are inconvenienced by this work, but combined with the brand new trains we’re getting from 2019, it will transform journeys on the Southend Victoria line.

"We know our customers would rather stay on the train until they reach their destination, but we will still make sure they can complete their journey, even if part of it is by bus.”

The wires and structures that are currently in place form a system that is one of the oldest in the country, having been installed in the Fifties.