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Wednesday 5 Mar 2025

Weekend West Coast Main Line signal renewals this Spring

Region & Route:

North West & Central

| North West & Central: North West

Standard renewals to signalling systems will begin this Spring to improve future journeys for passengers and freight on the West Coast Main Line between England and Scotland.

Network Rail and its contractors will begin a £60m project to renew signals and the lineside equipment which manages train traffic north of Carlisle from Saturday 29 March.

To minimise disruption to passengers, work will take place over nine weekends*, including bank holidays, when traditionally fewer people travel.

While essential railway work is always planned to cause the least disruption possible, the signalling improvements will see some changes to weekend West Coast Main Line train services over the coming months.

For that reason, passengers are being advised to check before they travel by planning journeys in advance by visiting www.nationalrail.co.uk.

Between Saturday 29 March and Monday 9 June, the improvements will see:

• 16 points replaced - movable sections of track that allow trains to move from one line to another
• 26 new signals installed 
• Improvements to Floriston level crossing 

Once complete, the new signalling equipment and track renewals will mean smoother and more reliable journeys. 

Christian Irwin OBE, Network Rail Capital Delivery Director for the North West and Central region, said: “The West Coast Main Line is a crucial Anglo-Scottish railway for both passengers and freight so keeping it in the best condition for trains to run smoothly and on time is our top priority.

“Our major investment north of Carlisle is part of our long-term plan to ensure this busy mixed-used passenger and freight route continues to serve communities and business. The scale of these renewals will mean some changes to journeys between March and June, and I’d encourage people to plan their trips in advance by visiting the National Rail Enquiries website.”

 

Chris Liptrot, Operations Director at Avanti West Coast, said: “This closure of the West Coast Main Line north of Carlisle will enable Network Rail to carry out planned renewal work to make the railway more reliable. During this time, there’ll be no direct trains to or from Glasgow and Edinburgh and as a result, we’ll be operating a reduced timetable north of Carlisle. Rail replacement services will also be in place.

We would like to thank our customers for their patience and strongly advise they plan their journey, as well as check the Avanti West Coast website for the latest updates before travelling.”

 

Andrew McClements, customer experience & transformation director for TransPennine Express said: “While this work is being carried out on the weekends and bank holidays, TransPennine Express (TPE) will operate an amended timetable on its services between Liverpool/Manchester to Glasgow/Edinburgh via Preston and Carlisle.

We’d encourage customers to check carefully before they travel and plan ahead by visiting the TPE website for the latest updates on engineering work."

Other railway improvement projects on the West Coast Main Line have been planned to make use of the same weekend closures, including:

• Structural and track improvements to a concrete railway viaduct over the River Esk
• In Scotland, teams will be carrying out track renewal, drainage improvement and infrastructure maintenance works at locations between Carstairs and the border for 11 weekends from March 30 until June 8*.

For more information on how Network Rail improves the railway you can visit: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/running-the-railway/looking-after-the-railway/.