The West Coast Main Line is a key strategic railway line in the United Kingdom. It links the cities of London, Glasgow, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Lancaster and Carlisle. Virgin Trains took on the franchise to run train services on the routes in 1997 and as part of the agreement wanted an upgrade to the railway line to allow for faster more frequent trains to grow the business.[1] On December 23 1994 the feasibility study was published.[2] The upgrade started in 1998 and was completed in 2009.[3] It came under parliamentary and media scrutiny because of cost and schedule overruns.[4] Further improvements such as the Norton Bridge rail flyover were completed after these dates.[5] The project is sometimes given the acronym WCRM - West Coast Route Modernisation.[6]
- ^ "UK West Coast Route Modernisation Project - SEBoK". www.sebokwiki.org. Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
- ^ "West Coast Main Line Modernisation feasibility study" (PDF). UK government. 23 December 1994.
- ^ "Transformation of the West Coast Mainline" (PDF). Campaign for better transport. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 July 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
- ^ "The Modernisation of the West Coast Main Line - National Audit Office (NAO) Report". National Audit Office. 22 November 2006. Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
- ^ "First trains use Norton Bridge rail flyover". A Little Bit of Stone. 29 March 2016. Archived from the original on 9 September 2019. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- ^ "West Coast Main Line - Railway Technology". Railway Technology. Archived from the original on 27 August 2011. Retrieved 21 July 2021.