Easter travel chaos alert: North West railways warn of longer journeys and busier trains

Rail passengers travelling in the North West this Easter are being reminded to check before they travel while major railway upgrades take place to improve future journeys.

Network Rail is investing around £5m across its North West route on a raft of upgrades to tracks, signalling systems and essential railway equipment this weekend.

The upgrades will see:

Multiple railway track upgrades along the West Coast main line between Lancaster and Carlisle (8- 11 April).

Switches and crossings - moving parts of the track which allow trains to change lines and cross paths - being upgraded at Weaver junction in Cheshire on Easter Sunday. This means no direct services from Crewe to Liverpool.

Improvements to signalling – traffic lights for trains – in Crewe (7-11 April), resulting in longer journey times.

Ongoing work track upgrades so more trains can run in future on the Hope Valley line between Sheffield and Manchester.

Changes to West Coast main line journeys in Scotland because of ongoing work to upgrade Carstairs junction.

The improvements with the biggest impact on journeys will be the upgrades between Lancaster and Carlisle, which will close the route all day on Easter Sunday and Easter Monday (9 and 10 April).

The railway closure also means the Lakes line between Oxenholme and Windermere will be served by rail replacement buses on Easter Sunday and Easter Monday.

Network Rail is advising that the best time to travel on this stretch of the West Coast main line will be before 9pm on Saturday 8 April and after the work is complete from first service on Tuesday 11 April.

Passengers needing to travel on the days in between will have longer journeys, any trains running will be busier with fewer available seats, and where the railway is closed people will need to use rail replacement buses.

To plan journeys and for the latest travel information the advice is to visit www.nationalrail.co.uk

Phil James, Network Rail’s North West route director, said: “Once again we’re carrying out major railway improvements across the North West to ensure the railway is safe and reliable for passengers and freight in the future. We know there’s never an ideal time to close the railway, but the four-day Easter bank holiday remains the least disruptive time for carrying out complex upgrades to tracks – especially on major sections of the West Coast main line.

“I’d advise people to please plan ahead and check National Rail Enquiries so you know exactly what to expect – and that’s longer journeys with rail replacement buses from Good Friday to Easter Monday on some routes.”
Meanwhile passengers travelling south on the West Coast main line to London are advised that all trains will terminate at Milton Keynes from Good Friday to Easter Monday.

It’s for the final phase of major improvements to a railway junction in Watford which will enable more trains to pass through the area in future.

Euston station will be completely closed over the four-day bank holiday while that work in Watford is carried out.

Read more: Why is Euston station closed this Easter 
Passengers should plan ahead at www.nationalrail.co.uk  or check with their train operator for the latest journey information. People can follow the progress of improvement work using the #EasterRailWorks hashtag on Twitter.