Live travel information to be displayed on Euston advertisement screen after passenger feedback

Posted by Admin December 10, 2024 Travel

Tuesday 10 Dec 2024

Live travel information to be displayed on Euston advertisement screen after passenger feedback

Region & Route:: North West & Central

Network Rail will switch its screen back on as part of a trial to provide clearer and more visible travel updates for passengers.

As part of Network Rail’s five-point plan to improve the passenger experience at London Euston, rail engineers will begin tests on Wednesday evening (11 December) to display live travel information on the large screen where the station’s departure boards used to be.

The former advertisement board will give passengers live updates about their train services.

The improvements are being made in response to feedback from passengers wanting to see a return of a large focal point on the concourse for travel information.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said: “I’m pleased to see Network Rail taking action and making progress on its five-point plan to alleviate some of the issues faced at Euston – particularly at this time of year, when the festive period brings an increase in passengers.

“We’ve been clear the station simply hasn’t been good enough for customers, and that’s why we recently tasked Network Rail with making immediate improvements to address crowding and give passengers the experience they deserve.”

Gary Walsh, Network Rail’s West Coast South route director, said: “After listening to our passengers, we’re pleased to launch a trial to display travel information on Euston station’s large screen this week. Our five-point plan is all about making quick and effective improvements to make journeys smoother for everyone and we’re really pleased to be able to deliver this in time for the busy festive travel period.”

“While initial testing starts on Wednesday evening this week, we’re urging passengers to continue to use the screens in the middle of the concourse for accurate travel information. We’ll let passengers know when the large screen is fully up and running, which we expect to be from next week.”

Following a review of its use, when the screen was switched off in October, the trial will see a large section of the display repurposed to help passengers on their journeys from Euston station.

Testing of the screen will take place from the evening of Wednesday 11 December, with plans to fully activate the screen from next week. During the testing phase of the screen, passengers are advised to continue to refer to the screens in the middle of the concourse for accurate travel information. Messaging about the testing will also be displayed in the station to keep passengers fully informed.

The trial of using the advertising screen for customer information builds on the success of other initiatives introduced as part of Network Rail’s five-point plan, including the earlier boarding of Avanti West Coast and London Northwestern Railway trains.

When surveyed by Network Rail staff, the response from passengers who’ve been able to board trains earlier has been positive, with many people expressing an improvement to their travel experience. By allowing passengers to board at a more relaxed pace, early boarding has created a calmer station environment, especially during peak times.

Passengers travelling to and from London Euston over the festive period have been advised the station will be extremely busy this year due to engineering work affecting other major routes into London*. For a smoother journey, passengers travelling to or from London Euston on the West Coast Main Line, are advised to travel before Tuesday 24 December or after Thursday 2 January.

For more information about travelling to and from London Euston station this Christmas, passengers can visit www.networkrail.co.uk/wcml

Notes to Editors

*Christmas rail works affecting journeys into London Paddington and London St Pancras stations, mean more passengers are expected to travel through London Euston over the festive period.

Between Friday 27 December and Sunday 29 December, some GWR services will be diverted to/from London Euston, although the majority of trains will start/stop at Reading and Ealing Broadway. Passengers for London will be able to change at Ealing Broadway and take a Transport for London service into the city, using either the District or Central lines.

Between Saturday 21 December and Sunday 29 December, passengers who usually travel to and from London St Pancras will need to use different London stations and use connecting buses to reach their destinations. East Midlands Railway (EMR) passengers can take West Coast Main Line services from London Euston to Milton Keynes to catch buses to Bedford where they will join their EMR train.

About Network Rail

We own, operate and develop Britain’s railway infrastructure; that’s 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK’s largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country’s train operating companies.

Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain’s railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation’s railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced – a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.