West Coast Main Line shuts for Carstairs junction overhaul

More than 200 services a day pass through Carstairs on an average weekday

The West Coast Main Line is being shut for 16 days as part of a major overhaul at Carstairs junction.

The closure of the rail route from 4 to 19 March is the first phase of a three-month programme of work.

It will see trains diverted and journey times extended between Glasgow and Edinburgh and Carlisle.

Network Rail said the £164m Scottish government investment would modernise the key junction for passenger and freight services.

The line runs between London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh.

North of Carlisle it has a stop at Lockerbie before the junction at Carstairs where the line splits towards Glasgow and Edinburgh.

The work at the South Lanarkshire site - which sees more than 200 services pass on an average weekday - is intended to simplify and upgrade the track layout.

Network Rail said the phasing of the overhaul was aimed to manage the effect on services in the "least disruptive way".

During the first phase of the project there will be no direct services to Glasgow Central and Edinburgh on the West Coast Main Line through Carstairs.

The closure of the junction will affect cross-border operators including Avanti West Coast, Caledonian Sleeper, CrossCountry Trains, London North Eastern Railway and TransPennine Express which will use diversionary routes or offer alternative services.

There will also be no ScotRail services operating between Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley via Carstairs.

Infrastructure at the junction in South Lanarkshire is said to be approaching the "end of its life cycle"

Liam Sumpter, route director with Network Rail Scotland, said the junction was "coming to the end of its life cycle".

"By completing this crucial upgrade work we will improve the capabilities and reliability of this strategically important junction, providing better future journeys for passengers and more capacity for freight," he said.

"There's never a good time to close such an important line but this is a huge and extremely complex piece of work that will safeguard the future of the route for years to come.

"We appreciate that this will cause some inconvenience and would like to thank customers for their patience during this time."

Passengers have been advised to check on www.nationalrailenquiries.co.uk or with their train operator for the alternative travel plans for their route.

Phase two of the work from 20 March to 21 April will see part of the junction reopening to allow some trains to run directly on weekdays to Edinburgh and via diversion routes to Glasgow but with longer journey times.

The final phase - from 22 April to 4 June - will see most services return to normal during weekdays with the junction fully closed each weekend.