RAIL user groups have branded the £6million redevelopment of Blackburn Station 'a farce' after yet another delay put the scheme 14 months behind schedule.

And today Blackburn MP and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said the confusion and problems over the opening of the station were "a real shame."

Railtrack has apologised to passengers and insisted that the station will be the finest in the North West when it finally opens officially.

But rail users groups today said the project had gone beyond a farce and demanded action to get the station fully operational and open for business.

All construction work on the station is complete but red-tape delays are preventing the ticket office, information screens and lift being made available to the public for another month.

The old ticket office in the foyer needs a certificate from the Strategic Rail Authority before the new one on the platforms can open, while Railtrack has still to exchange legal documents with the manufacturers to open the lift.

Brian Grey, chairman of Railfuture North West, a group pressing for improvements to passenger and freight services, said: "There are so many bits and pieces and people or organisations that need to be consulted before the work can be finished," he said.

"It's not good for passengers and puts them in uncertainty. It doesn't help the image of the railways and just is a farce really.

"People don't look upon the railways as all those different bodies, but one entity. All the parties involved should get together to ensure the facilities are made available as soon as possible."

David Butterworth, chairman of the First North Western Sub committee of the pressure group, the Rail Passengers' Committee, said: "It has already become a farce, we are past the farce stage now. Now we have to be positive and look forward.

"The parties involved are making every effort now to get back on track.

"Everybody admits mistakes have been made and those are history now. There is nothing we can do about them."

A catalogue of delays have blighted the project since plans were first announced in early 1998.

January 1999: The start was delayed for two months after prolonged discussions between councillors and Railtrack about how long the subway would be open for everyday. The completion date was given as September 2000

May 1999: The demolition of the Victorian platforms was put back a month.

January 2000: Work to start the building work was delayed for three months because of contractual problems. The cost of the project soared by £500,000 to £6 million as a result.

November 2000: Railtrack said the delayed project would not be finished until Spring 2001, even though work was originally supposed to take 18 months. This was reiterated again in February.

July 2001: Railtrack announced work would be completed in another month.

August 2001: Work was delayed for three months because of a leaky roof and as several parts for facilities were yet to arrive from manufacturers.

November 2001: The waiting room was completed but its opening was delayed by a month because FNW wanted Railtrack to finish the computerised train arrival screens first so that station staff could keep a watch for vandals rather than sitting downstairs announcing trains.

December 2001: All construction work was finished. But the lift was kept shut for a month because staff had to be trained in health and safety. It was this week closed again when it emerged Railtrack and FNW were yet to exchange legal documents with the manufacturers.

And the new ticket office on the platform was still shut today more than six weeks after it was completed. Railtrack is waiting for the Strategic Rail Authority inspect it and issue the 'minor closure certificate'. This is to make sure that passengers will benefit by the closure of the existing office in the foyer.

And the clock on the station's front is still not fixed after being broken for five years.

Mr Straw was at the station last week seeing his daughter Charlotte off.

"The design of the station is brilliant," he said, "but it's a real shame so much effort has been put into it and it still isn't finished."

MP for Rossendale and Darwen Janet Anderson said: "I am concerned about the delay and work is long over due. This gives a bad impression to people visiting the town and I hope Railtrack do all they can -- despite all their current difficulties, to speed up the modernisation of the station."

The renovation has been carried out by Railtrack but the station has yet to be handed over to First North Western, which will run it on a daily basis.

Asked if the station's renovation had become a farce, Keith Lumley, media relations manager for Railtrack North West, said: "I cannot say whether it is a farce or not, that's for other people to decide."

Mr Lumley said: "The work should be done and handed over to First North Western in another month. It is a major scheme that will give the people of Blackburn the best station in the North West of England. Unfortunately it is complicated and is running late for which we apologise."

New features include: a dome roof, tiling of the subway connecting the front of the station to the platforms, artwork on platform four, the ticket office, the waiting room and the lift.