Easter rail works plan announced by Network Rail

The £60m works at Easter are part of a £40bn railway upgrade, Network Rail said

Network Rail has announced a major programme of works to take place over the Easter weekend.

The work, mostly taking place across the West Midlands and Staffordshire, means passenger services will be disrupted.

A spokesman said travellers were advised to check before setting out over Easter and, in some locations, after that.

The work should remove bottlenecks on the West Coast Mainline route, he said.

Engineering works will take place at:

• Norton Bridge, between Stafford and Crewe, where a new flyover is being completed

• The line between Birmingham and Wolverhampton where a major junction is being replaced

Services between Birmingham and Manchester and Birmingham and Shrewsbury will be amongst those affected.

A spokesman for Arriva Trains Wales said rail replacement buses would be running over Easter. Easter Sunday is on 27 March.

Services across London Midland, CrossCountry and Virgin which go through Stafford will be affected from the last services of 24 March to the first services on 29 March.

A Network Rail spokesman said the £60m works, part of a £40bn railway upgrade plan, has been timed to take advantage of a quieter time of the year, when fewer people than usual use the railway.