Major West Coast main line overhaul to shut Europe’s busiest track for weeks at a time

Rail passengers on much of the northern part of the West Coast main line face several years of disruption due to a Network Rail project named “Trilink”.

The aim: to bring infrastructure installed in the 1970s up to 21st-century standards, increasing capacity for more passenger and freight trains and accelerating journeys.

Instead of just the usual weekend and bank holiday closures, the line connecting London Euston with northwest England and southern Scotland will be repeatedly shut for two weeks, according to information in the rail press.

The provisional start date for the first fortnight closure is expected to be 1 January 2026 – coinciding with the closure of the M6 motorway in Cumbria for the replacement of a railway bridge. But Network Rail, which is coordinating the project, says no work plans have been confirmed yet.

What is the background?

The West Coast main line is the busiest mixed-use railway in Europe. The current infrastructure, including track and overhead line equipment, is wearing out, and the signalling system does not allow for efficient use of capacity by 21st-century trains.

“Trilink” is the name given to the West Coast Main Line North programme. The aim: to modernise the 150-mile stretch of line from Warrington in Cheshire to Gretna in southern Scotland, just north of Carlisle. Unlike much of the southern half of the line, this is almost all two-track rather than four-track.

The improvements might even see main-line trains calling once again at Carnforth station in Lancashire – the setting for the iconic film Brief Encounter.

What is planned?

A series of individual projects will combine to improve the line, allowing faster journeys and extra freight trains to run. A key feature is equipping the line and the rolling stock with the European Train Control System (ETCS), which provides “in-cab signalling” and dispenses with the need for physical signals.

Trilink should also reduce disruption due to equipment failures and congestion.

Network Rail calls the project: “A major renewals programme on the West Coast Main Line (which includes deploying digital signalling) focused on getting the railway between Warrington and Carlisle ready for the future.”

Is this anything to do with HS2?

Not directly. But the original plans for a new high-speed line linking northwest England and…