Network Rail will be undertaking some essential planned maintenance work over the Easter weekend which will have a significant impact on Virgin Train services.
Full details can be found here:
https://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/news/check-before-you-travel-on-the-west-coast-main-line-over-easter-and-early-may-bank-holidays
Whilst the agreed industry message is to avoid travel, we wanted to share with you some of the steps we have taken to manage customer expectations and ensure the best possible travel experience over the weekend.
London Euston will be closed for four days
The most significant impact is at London Euston which will be from Maundy Thursday until Easter Monday. It is due to reopen in time for the return to work on Tuesday 23 April. This information has been shared with customers since early February, both online and at stations. Where possible we are trying to encourage those who can, to travel either side of the weekend.
On Good Friday and Easter Monday we are able to run a limited service to and from Harrow & Wealdstone. This will provide connections into the Transport for London services on the Bakerloo line and Overground services.
With just three trains per hour, we can only run a small number of our normal services which is why we are making customers aware of both alternative routes and the option to travel either side. Journey times will be longer, and our services will be busier than usual.
On Easter Saturday and Sunday our services will be starting and finishing at Milton Keynes.
We are also able for the first time to take advantage of the newly-electrified route via Bolton. A number of our services will therefore divert via Manchester to and from Preston, thus removing the need for rail replacement services for a significant number of customers over the weekend.
We have taken the following steps to mitigate the impact both for customers travelling to and from London:
- We have relaxed afternoon peak ticket restrictions from Euston on Thursday 18th April (Maundy Thursday). This is typically our busiest day and will allow people to start their weekend early and save money in the process
- We have agreed ticket acceptance with Transport for London, to offer connections to the London Underground (Bakerloo Line) and Overground services on Good Friday and Easter Monday as far as Paddington
- Additional Standard Class capacity has been created on our Liverpool and Manchester routes on Good Friday and Easter Monday by de-classifying our First Class carriages on selected services
- Working with CrossCountry we will be running one service per hour between Manchester Piccadilly and Birmingham International on Saturday and Easter Sunday with our Pendolino trains. This will provide additional capacity between Manchester and the West Midlands; and allow CrossCountry to strengthen their services between Birmingham and Reading
Alternative routes to and from London are available for those who unable to travel at other times. More details are available on the Virgin Trains website here -
https://www.virgintrains.co.uk/travelling-at-easter
For any further information about this issue, please contact richard.stanton@virgintrains.co.uk
