The usually packed Charing Cross station is very quiet at the moment to allow for a once-in-40-year major track-replacement programme. Although Charing Cross has only six platforms, around 600 trains normally use them every day, making it one of the capital’s most intensively used stations. Rebuilding the railwayAlthough the line between Blackfriars Junction and Charing Cross has been closed, the worksite is far from straightforward. Many of these station improvements were planned following the merger of Network Rail’s Kent route with Southeastern, allowing the infrastructure and train operating teams to coordinate engineering work more closely. More than just replacing trackThe primary reason for the closure is simple: the railway outside Charing Cross had reached the end of its working life and needed to be replaced to reduce future delays and improve reliability.