Easter rail upgrades: changes to journeys between Euston and Milton Keynes

Passengers travelling on the West Coast Main Line over the Easter period are being urged to plan ahead during essential railway upgrades between London Euston and Milton Keynes.

Between 3 - 8 April, engineers will carry out a large programme of improvements to modernise ageing railway infrastructure, increase reliability and support future growth on Europe’s busiest mixed-use railway.

The journey improving work includes:

• £8.4m of essential track work will take place at Willesden including the renewal of switches and crossings (moveable sections of track that guide trains from one track to another), and installing new railway foundation stone (ballast).
• A bridge in Ledburn, just south of Leighton Buzzard will see a £6.6m investment in waterproofing the bridge to prevent future damage to the structure. Engineers will also complete over £7m of signalling upgrades nearby, which will help to reduce failures and improve the reliability of journeys.
• Over £8m will be spent on a renewal of overhead line equipment near Wembley to enhance safety and power resilience.
• £2m of enabling works will be carried out in Bushey as part of a project to upgrade the power supply that keeps trains moving in and out of London.
• Harrow & Wealdstone station will see a £5.8m investment in repairs to the station canopies and platform upgrades.

The scale of the projects means that no main line services will run between Euston and Milton Keynes Central for 6 days, with trains starting and terminating north of the closure.

Rail replacement services will be in operation to keep passengers on the move.

Passengers are encouraged to plan ahead by using www.nationalrail.co.uk, allow extra time to travel, expect any trains running to be busier and be prepared for part of their journey to be by rail replacement bus.

Gary Walsh Network Rail’s West Coast South route director, said: “There is a large amount of work taking place over the Easter bank holiday and until 8 April to improve the reliability of the West Coast Main Line for the millions of passengers and freight operators who rely on this route.

“There will be some major changes to journeys between Euston and Milton Keynes in this six-day period so we’re urging everyone who plans to travel over Easter to check their journey in advance at National Rail Enquiries.”

Jonny Wiseman, customer experience director for London Northwestern Railway, said: “I would like to thank our customers for their patience while Network Rail carries out these essential upgrades to the railway over the Easter period.

“During this time it is important for passengers to plan their journeys carefully as rail replacement transport will be in operation and travel times will be extended.”

Chris Liptrot, Operations Director at Avanti West Coast, said: “While Network Rail carry out this essential work, we’ll be operating an amended timetable with journeys to and from London Euston involving changes or rail replacement buses. We strongly advise customers making journeys to or from London Euston between 3 and 8 April to plan ahead and check the National Rail website before travelling.”

During Easter, the West Coast Main Line will see the continuation of a huge programme of improvements set to make the railway more reliable for passengers.

• Read more: Huge improvements planned across the West Coast Main Line this Easter

The programme of work includes:

• Signalling and track upgrades between Preston and Oxenholme.

• Overhead line equipment improvements between Preston, Lancaster and Fylde.

This work is all part of a £400m scheme of upgrades across Europe's busiest mixed-use railway.

Once completed, these improvements will create a more reliable and resilient railway for passengers.

To plan rail journeys in advance please use www.nationalrail.co.uk for the latest travel information.