SO it looks like another summer of strife for train travellers just when no-one needs the extra woe.

Network Rail is to close a section of the West Coast Main Line for 16 days at the height of summer for essential works.

And while the impact of that is going to be nowhere near as devastating for people around here as last summer when trains on the Furness and Lakes lines took on the appearance of mythical beings, it is still going to cause issues.

Cumbria tourism chief Gill Haigh is furious about the latest shutdown and blasted: “This news is a shock and totally unacceptable for tourism businesses.

“We are already in the midst of a marketing campaign to rebuild people’s confidence in rail services and to inspire visitors to travel by train.

“Following our complaints about the Easter disruption, we were assured that Network Rail would take our views on board and help mitigate against further disruption. However, this does not appear to be the case.”

Yes it’s not great but the work is essential and perhaps the impact would be felt more if it was stopping commuters getting to work.

But other countries seem to manage to get their works done without affecting tourists or workers.

Surely we could too.