Upgrades on London North Western railway line complete as track fully reopens

As part of Network Rail’s railway upgrade plan, work was carried out from London to Lancaster as tracks were renewed, signals were upgraded and bridges refurbished over Christmas Day, Boxing Day and into the New Year.

Track renewal was carried out through Crick Tunnel between Northampton and Rugby.

Martin Frobisher, London North Western route managing director at Network Rail, said: “I’d like to thank train customers for their patience over the festive period. We understand that work of this magnitude can be disruptive, however the upgrades carried out by Team Orange will help deliver a bigger, better and more reliable railway to meet the ever-increasing demand for rail travel in future.”

Across Britain, 32,600 people worked round-the-clock on 260 projects.

One of the biggest pieces of work was in the Birmingham area and saw track and signalling upgrades completed between Birmingham New Street and Wolverhampton. The work finished on January 3 as planned.

Other completed work included waterproofing the Trent and Mersey Canal bridge, south of Stafford, on the West Coast main line; Wyre Viaduct upgrades between Lancaster and Preston, part of the Great North Rail Project; track renewal through platforms 13 and 14 at Manchester Piccadilly station, part of the Great North Rail Project; and further work at Liverpool Lime Street, part of the Great North Rail Project.