BLACKBURN Railway Station is to have another £2 million spent on it, Railtrack announced today.

The company also revealed it was spending £6 million on refurbishment of Preston station as part of a £1 billion package of improvements at 2,500 stations across the country.

The first phase of work at Blackburn station was completed last year when the Victorian frontage was tidied up.

The second part will be designed to complement the recent revamp at the station.

Buildings and platforms are expected to be improved but a feasibility study will first take place to assess what needs to be done.

Work is expected to start in early 1998.

At Preston, the subway will be extended and the station will get a new roof.

North West area director Chris Leah said: "Railtrack is committed to playing a vital role in building a modern, safe and efficient railway network and 10 years from now Britain will have a railway that is second to none, both in the quality of its infrastructure and the dependability of its train service. "When you think nationally we own over 32,000 kilometres of track, 40,000 bridges, tunnels, viaducts and level crossings, not to mention the stations themselves, our regeneration programme on stations represents a significant investment and will go a long way to helping us achieve our goals."

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