Media centre

Friday 24 Jan 2025

Plan ahead - essential track upgrades to impact services on the West Coast Main Line and Trent Valley line

Region & Route:

North West & Central

Passengers travelling on the West Coast Main Line and Trent Valley line are being encouraged to check their journeys before travelling, as essential track upgrade work is planned across multiple weekends in the end of January and the beginning of February. This will result in longer journey times between Euston, the North West of England and Scotland.

The scheduled improvements will ensure the continued reliability and safety of the rail network but will require changes to normal service patterns, including the use of rail replacement buses.

With FA Cup football fixtures scheduled on all weekends, along with planned engineering works, services are expected to be busier than usual.

Passengers are also advised to take extra care and plan ahead as Storm Eowyn is expected to bring high winds in the North West of England and Scotland.

Key dates:

• Sunday 26 January: Renewal of over 400 metres of track between Rugby and Tamworth/Rugeley Trent Valley will close all lines. An amended timetable will be in place, and rail replacement buses will operate.
• Sunday 2 February: Over 400 metres of track upgrades between Stafford and Crewe will require rail replacement buses along the affected routes.
• Saturday 8 February and Sunday 9 February: An amended timetable will be in place. Over 600 metres of track upgrades between Nuneaton and Stafford will result in train diversions via Birmingham, with rail replacement buses supporting travel needs.

Passengers are reminded that services on the East Coast Main Line will be affected and London King’s Cross station will be closed on Saturday 25 - Sunday 26 January and Saturday 1 - Sunday 2 February, as vital improvements are made to the track, drainage and overhead lines which power trains. This may result in the West Coast Main Line services to Scotland being busier than usual.

Gary Walsh, route director for Network Rail’s West Coast South, said:
“Upgrading our track is vital for maintaining a safe and reliable railway. These improvements that will be made over the next few weekends will help us deliver better journeys for passengers in the long term.

I'd like to apologise to passengers affected by the disruption and thank them for their patience. With King’s Cross station closed on two of the weekends and extreme weather expected, I urge passengers to please check before they travel as services may be very busy.”

The RMT union has announced strike action affecting Avanti West Coast on Sundays from 2 February to 25 May 2025. Timetables and operating hours will be significantly reduced during this industrial action and trains that do run are expected to be busy. Passengers are advised to check before they travel at www.nationarail.co.uk and www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk/strike

For more information and journey planning, visit National Rail Enquiries or contact your train operator directly.