Rail passengers face disruption over Christmas as a series of signalling works and track improvements gets under way.

Services to and from Glasgow Central station will be suspended from Friday until the end of the day on Monday while signalling control is transferred to Cowlairs.

Buses will replace all train journeys in and out of the station's high level, which include routes to Lanarkshire, Ayrshire and Edinburgh. Virgin Trains travelling to London will also be affected, with passengers travelling by bus between Glasgow and Carlisle until Sunday and Glasgow and Motherwell on Monday.

Track improvements being carried out at Hilton Junction, near Perth, will affect some services to and from Inverness, Aberdeen, Ladybank and Dundee and replacement buses will be running from Boxing Day to Hogmanay.

David Simpson, route director for Network Rail in Scotland, said that the work was being carried out over Christmas because it was the quietest period of the year.

People travelling to visit family or those heading to the sales may face longer journeys and Steve Montgomery, operations and safety director at First ScotRail, said passengers should allow more time.

He said: "We have done everything possible to keep inconvenience to an absolute minimum by running as many services as possible. Full plans are in place to provide alternative transport arrangements where required."

Bus and ferry operators will run reduced services over the festive period, but with most operating none on Christmas Day or New Year's Day and some running a reduced timetable on Boxing Day and January 2.