Network Rail Improvement Work Means Changes to Virgin Trains' Services Over the Diamond Jubilee Bank Holiday Weekend

LONDON, May 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --



There will be alterations to services over the Diamond Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend because of route improvement work but the principal travel days of Friday and Bank Holiday Tuesday will see full scheduled services operating.  

On the Saturday, Sunday and Monday of the holiday weekend there will be work taking place at various times between Liverpool and Crewe, Warrington and Crewe, Lockerbie and Lancaster, Stafford and Birmingham New Street, and at Birmingham New St station.  

Friday, 1 June

There will be a normal Friday service which includes extra services to Preston.

Saturday, 2 June

After 10:00 trains will be unable to run between Crewe and Liverpool Lime Street with Runcorn served by replacement coaches.  Passengers travelling between London and Liverpool are advised to travel via alternative routes.

Because of route improvement work between Crewe and Warrington Bank Quay from 10:00, Birmingham to Scotland services will be diverted via an alternative route and will terminate at Lancaster.  Replacement coaches will then convey passengers to Oxenholme where services to Carlisle, Glasgow and Edinburgh will restart.  Passengers travelling between London and Scotland are advised to use the East Coast route, although there will be some direct early morning services in both directions between Euston and Glasgow.

Sunday, 3 June

Trains will be unable to run between Crewe and Liverpool Lime Street with Runcorn served by replacement coaches.  Passengers travelling between London and Liverpool can travel via alternative routes.

The route between Crewe and Glasgow is closed to allow Network Rail to carry out route improvement work at various locations.  Connecting replacement coaches will run in three separate sections - Crewe to Warrington and Warrington to Wigan (both for local journeys), Lancaster to Carlisle and Carlisle to Lockerbie (both until 15:30), and Lancaster to Oxenholme after 15:30.  Passengers travelling between London and Scotland are advised to use the East Coast route between Kings Cross and Edinburgh.

Trains will be unable to run between Birmingham New Street, Wolverhampton and Stafford until 16:00.  Trains will be diverted not calling at Wolverhampton or Stafford, but replacement coaches will run in two sections, Birmingham New Street to Wolverhampton and Wolverhampton to Stoke via Stafford.        

Bank Holiday Monday, 4 June

Trains will be unable to run between Crewe and Liverpool Lime Street until 21:00 with Runcorn served by replacement coaches.  Passengers travelling between London and Liverpool are advised to travel via other routes.

Route improvement work will be taking place between Crewe and Warrington all day and between Lancaster and Oxenholme until 10:00. This will mean that services on the Birmingham to Glasgow/Edinburgh routes will commence a little later than usual and will be diverted between Crewe and Preston.  There are no services between Euston and Glasgow Central all day and passengers are advised to use the East Coast route.

Two of the four tracks between Rugby and Euston will be closed until 12:00 while engineers carry out route improvement work.  During this time the Euston to Birmingham services will have two services each hour instead of the normal three and North Wales and Chester services will only operate between Holyhead and Crewe.

Because of station reconstruction work at Birmingham New Street some Euston to Wolverhampton trains will not serve Birmingham New Street.              

Bank Holiday Tuesday, 5 June

A normal weekday service will operate.    

Notes to editors

Virgin Trains is the brand name of Virgin Rail Group (VRG), which is owned 51 percent by Virgin Group and 49 percent by Stagecoach. We have operated the West Coast passenger train franchise since 1997.

The current franchise was due to run until 31 March 2012, but the Department for Transport announced on 27 October 2011 that it would be extended until 8 December 2012. We have been short-listed for the new franchise that will start on 9 December 2012 and run until 31 March 2026, with an option to be extended by up to 20 months.

For further information passengers should visit http://nationalrail.co.uk or telephone +44(0)8457-484950.