Media centre

Friday 10 Jan 2025

Busy weekend expected for Midlands and London Euston services

Region & Route:

North West & Central

Football fixtures and planned engineering work expected to impact services this weekend.

Passengers travelling between London, the West Midlands, and the North West are urged to check before they travel ahead of an especially busy weekend.

With several FA Cup football fixtures scheduled for both Saturday and Sunday, and planned engineering works, services are expected to be busier than usual.

Passengers are also advised to take extra care and plan ahead as cold temperatures and icy conditions are expected to continue into the weekend.

The following engineering work is taking place across the region:

• Track renewal and drainage work will be taking place this Sunday 12 January, between Milton Keynes Central and Rugby. An amended service will run with trains diverting via Northampton.

 

• An amended timetable will be in place between Euston and Birmingham New Street on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 January due to essential track upgrades, with rail replacement buses in operation.

 

• Some journeys between Birmingham and Wolverhampton will take slightly longer on Saturday 11 January and Sunday 12 January due to planned work in the Smethwick area. Replacement buses will be in operation for all stations between Birmingham and Wolverhampton.

 

• Track improvement work taking place in High Wycombe on Saturday 11 January and Sunday 12 January. Buses will replace trains between Gerrards Cross and Princes Risborough and between Aylesbury Vale Parkway and Bicester North.

 

• Track upgrades between Preston and Carlisle on Saturday 11 January and Sunday 12 January. The work will result in changes to some services from Preston.

 

Phil James, Network Rail’s North West route director, said: “With a busy weekend ahead, it’s important to us that passengers get to where they need to be in a safe and timely manner."

Network Rail engineers will be working around the clock to maintain the track to improve the reliability of the railway and this is happening alongside football fixtures and cold weather.

With this in mind, services are expected to be impacted so we advise passengers to check their journeys ahead of time so they can enjoy their weekend plans.”

The RMT union has announced strike action affecting Avanti West Coast on Sundays from 12 January to 25 May 2025. Industrial action is likely to cause short notice disruption to services and passengers are advised to check before they travel and plan their journey at www.nationalrail.co.uk.

The latest travel information is available at www.nationalrail.co.uk or @NationalRailEnq.