Media centre

Tuesday 31 Aug 2021

Railway open for business after major August bank holiday upgrades

Region & Route:

North West & Central

Network Rail has completed essential upgrades to the railway between Euston, the Midlands and North West over the August bank holiday.

Between Saturday 28 and Monday 30 August, teams carried out vital work on the railway to improve passenger and freight services on the West Coast main line – the Backbone of Britain.

The £17m improvement projects in Network Rail's North West and Central region as part of Britain’s Railway Upgrade Plan saw:

• Railway track replacement, bridge improvements and upgrading of lineside equipment in Water Orton, Nuneaton and Birmingham as part of HS2 work.
• Work at London Euston to build HS2 – Britain’s new high-speed railway.
• Railway track replacement between Congleton and Cheadle in Cheshire
• Railway bridge strengthening between Birchwood and Hunts Cross in Cheshire
• Signalling – the traffic lights of the railway – being upgraded in Bicester in Oxfordshire and at Trafford Park in Manchester.

Tim Shoveller, managing director for Network Rail’s North West & Central region, said: “I’d like to thank passengers for their patience while we carried out these essential upgrades to the West Coast main line and routes which feed into it over the August bank holiday.

“I’m immensely proud of the hundreds of Network Rail staff and our contractors who continue to make the West Coast main line more reliable for our passengers and pave the way for HS2, which will bring much-needed extra railway capacity as the country builds back better from the pandemic.”

Network Rail planners worked hard to reschedule planned maintenance to try to minimise disruption over bank holidays this year.

With domestic tourism in high demand this summer across the country, Network Rail’s bank holiday engineering work was planned to minimise disruption to passengers with very few lines, stations and destinations impacted by the national £90m investment programme.

Meanwhile, passengers are advised to continue following government guidance and wear a face covering in busy indoor settings unless they are exempt.

With good ventilation systems on trains, extra cleaning and improved information about quieter times, passengers can continue to travel with confidence.

For more information visit www.nationalrail.co.uk.