RAIL passengers are being urged not to travel on the West Coast Main Line this bank holiday weekend, as London Euston station is closed for the second of three weekends so that major engineering work can take place.

Network Rail warned that passengers are ‘advised to plan their journeys on dates other than 25-27 August and 1-2 September – or risk far longer, busier and less comfortable journeys than normal’.

Engineers are renewing the junctions at North Wembley in a series of three possessions, and all operators serving Euston will be affected.

Through passengers between London and Birmingham are being advised to use Chiltern Railways between London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street.

Virgin services will be reduced, and no trains will run south of Milton Keynes Central. Only an hourly service will run from there to Liverpool and Manchester via Crewe, and passengers from Scotland are being advised to use other routes if they must travel. Services from Holyhead will only run as far as Crewe.

London Northwestern will also be severely disrupted, with just two trains an hour, between Hemel Hempstead and Rugby.

Caledonian Sleepers will run to London King’s Cross on Sunday and Monday, while London Overground services will also be cancelled between Euston and Watford Junction on Saturday and Sunday. On Monday, Overground trains will run only between Watford Junction and Kilburn High Road, while Southern services from East Croydon will run no further than Shepherd’s Bush throughout the three-day weekend.

Network Rail’ North Western managing director Martin Frobisher said: “Our message to West Coast train customers this August bank holiday (25-27 August) and on 1-2 September is: ‘DO NOT TRAVEL.’ Instead please plan your journeys on other days.

“If you absolutely cannot avoid travel on these dates, expect a very different journey to what you’re used to – busier trains, less chance of a seat, diverted routes taking far longer than usual.

“There is never an ideal time to shut the railway but these weekends are the least disruptive times to do it. We have worked together for the past three years with train operators to carefully plan this closure of the railway in a way that minimises impact on customers.

“It’s vital the track at north Wembley is replaced to continue to safely meet the huge demand of passenger and freight rail services on the West Coast main line.’