Cumbria rail passengers warned of delays for upgrade work

Rail replacement buses will be in place from Carlisle for passengers travelling to Scotland

Rail passengers are being warned of delays from Saturday as major work is carried out north of Carlisle.

Part of the West Coast Main Line will be closed for 16 days while a junction upgrade is completed in Scotland.

It means no direct trains to Glasgow or Edinburgh between 4 and 19 March, with over an hour added to journey times.

Meanwhile, improvement work at Preston will rule out journeys to Manchester and the south on Saturday and Sunday, with further delays expected.

The upgrade will also affect services to Preston and beyond on Sunday 12 March.

A rail replacement bus service is set to run between Wigan North Western, Preston and Lancaster.

Passengers are being urged to check before they travel

The work being carried out north of Carlisle is part of a £164m modernisation project, funded through the Scottish government, at the Carstairs Junction for passenger and freight services, which is said will make the route more reliable.

Avanti West Coast services will only operate between London and Carlisle, with replacement buses onwards or a limited rail service via Dumfries.

Barry Milsom, executive director of operations, said: "This closure of the West Coast Main Line in Scotland will enable Network Rail to carry out the first phase of their major upgrade.

"During this time, there'll be no direct trains to or from Glasgow and Edinburgh for 16 days from Saturday 4 March and as a result, we'll be operating a reduced timetable north of Carlisle."

People should check before they travel.