For the next three months, train services through Carstairs will be disrupted because of major engineering works to remodel Carstairs Junction, which is a key point in the West Coast Mainline linking Glasgow and Edinburgh to London.

The junction is currently a bottleneck to services, but between 4th March and 30th May, the junction will be remodelled in a £ 164 million project to simplify and upgrade the track layout to clear the bottleneck to make it more reliable and better able to cope with traffic demands.

Whilst the works are taking place, services between Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley via Carstairs will be affected, which will also affect customers in Carstairs, Carluke, Wishaw, and Motherwell, and passengers from those stations should plan ahead and know their travel options. The work will also affect Avanti West Coast, TransPennine Express, Caledonian Sleeper, London North Eastern Railway, and CrossCountry services, and customers using these services should check with their operator to see how their journey will be affected.

From Saturday, 4th March no services will operate between Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley via Carstairs. However, ScotRail will operate the following amended peak-time services:

• 07.05 Glasgow Central to Edinburgh via Carstairs will be diverted via Shotts. Buses will be provided from Carstairs, Carluke, Wishaw and Motherwell so that customers can connect at Bellshill.
• 07.18 Carstairs to Glasgow Central High Level and 07.39 Carstairs to Garscadden via Glasgow Central Low Level will start at Wishaw.
• 17.37 Anderston to Carstairs will terminate at Wishaw.

Valid train tickets between Carstairs and Glasgow Central will be accepted on Stuarts Coaches’ 37 and 137 services between Carstairs and Lanark, where customers will be able to connect with ScotRail services between Lanark and Glasgow Central High Level and provide customers in Carstairs with an hourly service to and from Glasgow.

Customers in Carluke, Wishaw, and Motherwell, will all be able to use the half-hourly ScotRail service between Lanark and Glasgow Central.

For customers travelling travel to and from Edinburgh Waverley, a replacement bus service will run approximately every two hours, between Carluke, Carstairs, and Fauldhouse, where customers can connect with services from Glasgow Central to Edinburgh Waverley via Shotts.

ScotRail recommends that customers from Carluke, Wishaw, and Motherwell, should use the Lanark to Glasgow Central service and change trains at Bellshill and travel to Edinburgh on services from Glasgow Central to Edinburgh Waverley via Shotts. Customers should be aware that the journey will take longer than the normal service via Carstairs.

Throughout the upgrade works, the ticket office at Carstairs station will be closed, and customers are recommended to buy their tickets via the mTicket system on the ScotRail app. A valid ticket will be required before boarding rail replacement buses.

Further information about the Carstairs Junction improvement work can be found at scotlandsrailway.com/projects/carstairs-modernisation

David Simpson, ScotRail Service Delivery Director, said: “The remodelled layout and enhancements Network Rail is carrying out at Carstairs will deliver increased reliability and resilience of the infrastructure which will benefit ScotRail customers for years to come.

“It’s all part of our ongoing commitment to deliver a modern, reliable, efficient rail network that is fit for the future.
“We’re urging customers to plan ahead and know their travel options as their normal journey might be different while this work is taking place. Some journey times will be longer, but we will keep you moving.

“You can find out more about our alternative travel plan and what it means for your own journey by visiting the ScotRail website or by downloading our free mobile app.”
Liam Sumpter, Network Rail Scotland Route Director, said: “Carstairs Junction is coming to the end of its life cycle and with the volume of freight and passenger trains passing through each week it’s important that we modernise this part of the network.

“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.

“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.”