Rail passengers face more line disruptions
Rail passengers face more disruption over the remainder of the school holidays with further closures to the West Coast Main Line starting this weekend.
The extensive maintenance work affects travellers wanting to go between the West Midlands and London and means alternative routes will have to be used to travel in and out of the capital.
Network Rail had originally planned a 16-day closure in August and a nine-day closure in February 2015 to replace three critical junctions north and south of Watford.
But the plan was revised to eight weekend and bank holiday closures, resulting in less disruption for passengers.
With two closures still to take place this month, passengers are being urged to plan their journeys and check before they travel.
Jim Syddall, acting route managing director for Network Rail, said: "The first stage of this month's work has been successfully completed but there is still a significant amount left to do over the next two weekends.
"The section of track at Watford is one of the most intensively used, high-speed pieces of railway in Britain and has seen tremendous growth in traffic and passengers over the last five years.
"There is never a good time to close the railway and we apologise for the inconvenience caused but this work is essential to maintain reliable train services."
Currently, the line caters for some 31.9 million journeys a year.
Further closures are also planned over Christmas. Passengers are advised to check details with National Rail before travelling.
