Rail stations to get urgent upgrades

Major railway stations including Euston, Victoria, Waterloo and King's Cross are to be upgraded urgently to stop them being overwhelmed by the volume of passengers.

The decision by Network Rail comes as managers at some of the country's busiest stations drew up emergency plans to prevent overcrowding.

At least 30 stations have been highlighted for the upgrade which will involve expanding the concourses. More escalators and wider ramps will also be installed.

Iain Coucher, Network Rail's deputy chief executive, said: "Many of our major stations are creaking at the seams and urgently need to be redesigned to cope with the extra numbers using them."

Britain has the fastest growing railway in Europe with more than a billion train journeys last year, the highest number since 1959. Network Rail admitted that the rising number of passengers contributed to delays on the trains.