Do I have to wear a face covering on your trains?

Published on: Wednesday, 26 January 2022
Last updated: Friday, 29 April 2022

  • Your journey

For more up to date information, see our Coronavirus Travel Advice.

We’d like you to carry on wearing a face covering if you can when you’re on our trains and stations, please. Public health advice is still to wear a face covering in crowded and enclosed places, such as trains and stations. So please keep wearing your face covering out of respect for other passengers. Thank you to all our customers who wear their face coverings when travelling with us. It’s a simple way for us all to keep each other safe.

Is it safe to travel on your trains?

Yes, you can travel with confidence on our trains. We have spent extra money on new equipment and staff to clean and sanitise our trains to keep you safe. We have fogging guns which spray a fine mist of disinfectant, powerful vacuum cleaners which clean the air as well as the upholstery and biological testing equipment we use to double check our cleaning regime is effective. You can see them in action in this video.

We have even been carrying out random Covid tests on our trains and every single one of them has been negative.

We’ve got ventilation covered too. Our new and refurbished trains have air conditioning, which sucks in fresh air every six to nine minutes. Trains without air con have opening windows – and all trains have doors which open at stations, so while you’re travelling you’ll still get some fresh air.

Is it busy on your trains?

Some of our trains are getting busier again and we’re expecting passenger numbers to grow in coming weeks as companies prepare to welcome workers back into offices. We expect our commuters will reflect changing working patterns, with people doing a mixture of working from home and going into the office and mid-week days being the most popular for travel to work. We’re monitoring passenger numbers so we can match our services to the level of demand for them. We’ll keep you updated about any changes we make.

If you have the flexibility to travel at a different time, you may be able to use our less busy train tool for help with finding a peak time train that has fewer passengers on board.

On our new trains, you can check which carriages have more free seats by looking at the passenger information screens in every carriage. There is a diagram showing all the carriages and toilets on the train. If your carriage is full, head for a green carriage where there will be fewer people.

What can I do to keep myself safe on the trains?

As well as wearing your face covering – and please cover your face and nose - remember also to keep up the good habit of washing or sanitising your hands. We’ve got hand sanitiser available at all our staffed stations, but it’s a good idea to pop a little bottle of hand sanitiser and a face covering in your pocket or bag when you travel in case you need them.

Use the full length of the train and platforms. Please stand back and let people off the train before you board. There’s more room for everyone to walk to the ticket gates on the platform than through the train, so please don’t gather at the front of the train while you’re waiting for it to arrive.

You can also buy tickets online or via our app to minimise the time you have to spend at the station. It’s easy to do – you can find out how in this blog, which also explains how to get a great value fare How to save money while travelling with Greater Anglia | Greater Anglia .

And of course, if you have any Covid-19 symptoms, please stay at home and get a test.