Rail shutdown spells misery for passengers this Christmas

PASSENGERS face one of the worst ever Christmas rail engineering shutdowns - as an unprecedented 32 days of works close main lines and hit 2,500 trains.

- BY ALISTAIR GRANT

Some journey times will treble as 15 million people take the train over the Yuletide fortnight to visit loved ones.

Network Rail's £130million works spree is one of the highest amounts spent during a festive season, with more than 20,000 rail engineers called in.

The London-Glasgow West Coast main line, the busiest in Britain, will be partly closed for 22 days from December 24 to January 15, spelling misery not just for Christmas but also the New Year.

The line will be severed in four places - near Milton Keynes, Preston, Carlisle and Oxenholme in Cumbria.

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Journeys from Preston to Edinburgh, usually two-and-a-half hours direct, will take seven hours via three trains plus a bus from January 1.