Euston closure reminder: Do not travel on West Coast main line this weekend

Wednesday, 29 August 2018

West Coast main line train passengers are being urged not to travel to and from London this weekend when Euston station will be closed for the final stage of work to replace North Wembley junction.

Customers are instead being advised to plan their journeys on dates other than 1-2 September – or risk far longer, busier and less comfortable journeys than normal.

As part of Britain’s Railway Upgrade Plan, Network Rail is replacing North Wembley junction - a major intersection on Europe’s busiest mixed-use railway.

The junction is old and replacing it will mean passenger and freight users will benefit from better, more reliable journeys in future. Unfortunately doing this vital job requires shutting the line.

The least disruptive time to do this work, jointly agreed by rail industry partners, has been over three summer weekends. Work to replace the junction has been progressing well and to complete the final stage of work, Euston will be closed this weekend (1-2 September).

Train passengers are advised to plan their journeys in advance at www.nationalrail.co.uk/westcoast and using information on their train operators’ websites.

Customers are asked not to travel this weekend. If customers must travel, they’re advised to expect a very different journey to normal – busier trains, longer, diverted routes and train timetable changes.

Martin Frobisher, route managing director for Network Rail’s London North Western route said: “Our message to West Coast train customers this weekend (1-2 September) is: ‘Do not travel.’ Instead please plan your journeys on other days.

“If you absolutely cannot avoid travel on these dates, expect a very different journey to what you’re used to – busier trains, less chance of a seat, diverted routes taking far longer than usual.

“There is never an ideal time to shut the railway but these weekends have been the least disruptive times to do it.

“We have worked together for the past three years with train operators to carefully plan this closure of the railway in a way that minimises impact on customers.

“It’s vital the track at north Wembley is replaced to continue to safely meet the huge demand of passenger and freight rail services on the West Coast main line. This work will result in better, more reliable journeys in future.”

Peter Broadley, executive director for customer, operations and safety at Virgin Trains on the west coast, said: “With no services into or out of Euston we strongly advise our customers to avoid travelling to London on the days affected. We know this will impact on people’s travel plans, so we encourage customers to plan ahead and where possible travel at other times.”

Andrew Conroy, customer experience director for London Northwestern Railway said: “Our aim is to keep people moving if they have to travel on these dates. Improvement works are never convenient for anyone, but we have a tried and tested plan for operating buses to connect with alternative routes to and from London when Euston is closed. We still advise customers to travel on alternative days as these options will take significantly longer.”

The second of three stages of work to replace the junction was completed over the bank holiday weekend and the West Coast main line fully reopened on Tuesday (28 August) on time, as planned, with services running to a normal timetable.

Euston’s shops and access to London Underground will remain available this weekend.

All customers are urged to check www.nationalrail.co.uk/westcoast for the very latest travel information.

For further information on this release, call our press office on 03300 955150 or email [email protected]

About West Midlands Trains

West Midlands Trains operate both West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway services.

• London Northwestern Railway services operate between Liverpool and Birmingham, and on the West Coast mainline to and from London Euston.

• West Midlands Railway services operate to destinations across the West Midlands via Birmingham New Street.

For more information on these services visit westmidlandsrailway.co.uk or londonnorthwesternrailway.co.uk

The West Midlands Trains franchise started on 10 December 2017 and will run until 2025/26.

West Midlands Trains operate 1,300 services a day, manage 150 stations and provide over 70 million passenger journeys a year. Over the course of the franchise, West Midlands Trains will be investing £1 billion into the rail network to deliver new trains, improved routes and station upgrades. This will include 400 new train carriages across the network and space for an extra 85,000 passengers into Birmingham and London at peak times.

The franchise is a joint venture between Abellio (70.1% share) and East Japan Railway Company / Mitsui & Co., Ltd (29.9% share in a 50:50 split). Abellio is the international passenger transport subsidiary of the Dutch national railway company, Nederlandse Spoorwegen. In the UK, Abelllio operate ScotRail and Greater Anglia train services, Merseyrail services in a joint venture with Serco and buses through Abellio London. For more information visit www.abellio.com

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