Britons face a day of post-Xmas travel chaos: ALL trains out of London Euston are cancelled with other rail ro
- Avanti West Coast passengers at Euston impacted by three separate incidents
- No trains in or out of London Paddington while LNER also has major disruption
Passengers again faced major rail disruption today as all services were cancelled at both London[2] Paddington and Euston stations after two people were hit by trains.
Avanti West Coast travellers were affected by three separate incidents as a person was struck by a train at Harrow in London; a tree fell on overhead wires between Rugby and Lichfield; and heavy rain caused delays between Lockerbie and Carstairs.
Former Conservative MP Edwina Currie was among those affected by the disruption, tweeting a picture of a cracked window from her seat on an Avanti West Coast train. She wrote: ‘Oh my… train from Manchester to London, just outside Euston (and very late), just been hit by something that’s smashed a window. So now we’re parked up.’
The incident also impacted London Northwestern Railway services between Euston and Birmingham[3] New Street, London Overground[4] services between Euston and Watford Junction and Southern services between Clapham Junction and Watford.
At the other end of the West Coast Main Line, huge queues formed outside Glasgow[5] Central in the rain as passengers tried to get on London-bound trains following major disruption yesterday that led to a ‘do not travel’ warning north of Preston.
Separately, all Great Western Railway services at London Paddington were axed this morning after a person was hit by a train near Slough, which also resulted in the Elizabeth line having no service between Hayes and Harlington and Reading.
LNER said there would be no trains between Edinburgh[6] and Aberdeen or Inverness for the rest of today due to the conditions, with customers told to delay travelling until tomorrow. ScotRail also had no trains on the Aberdeen route due to a landslip.
Passengers wait for information at London Euston station today amid major rail chaos
Chaotic scenes at London Euston once again today as passengers wait for travel updates
Former Conservative MP Edwina Currie among those stuck on a train outside Euston today
Avanti West Coast travellers are affected by three separate incidents at London Euston today
Rail passengers queue to get inside Glasgow Central station today to get a London-bound train
Passengers wait for information at London Paddington today while all services are suspended
A departure board at Stirling station in Scotland this morning amid major disruption to trains
Rail passengers queue inside Glasgow Central station today for a London-bound train
Elsewhere, trains between Inverness and Wick could only get as far north as Ardgay, services from Inverness to Perth via Stirling were suspended; and those between Glasgow Central, Ardrossan Harbour and Largs were being terminated early.
UK rail disruption on December 28, 2023
Avanti West Coast, London Northwestern Railway and London Overground: All trains suspended in and out of London Euston after three separate incidents – someone hit by a train at Harrow in North West London; a tree falls on overhead wires between Rugby and Lichfield; and heavy rain between Lockerbie and Carstairs.
Southern: Services impacted between Clapham Junction and Watford after person is hit by a train at Harrow.
Great Western Railway and Elizabeth line: All services going out west from London Paddington are suspended this morning after a person is hit by a train at Iver in Buckinghamshire. Elizabeth line has no service between Hayes and Harlington and Reading.
LNER: No trains between Edinburgh and Aberdeen or Inverness for the rest of today due to the conditions, with customers told to delay travelling until tomorrow.
ScotRail: No trains between Edinburgh and Aberdeen due to a landslip. Elsewhere, trains between Inverness and Wick can only get as far north as Ardgay, services from Inverness to Perth via Stirling are suspended; and those between Glasgow Central, Ardrossan Harbour and Largs are being terminated early. Trains between Glasgow Central, Oban and Mallaig are cancelled, while those from Glasgow Central to Carlisle via Dumfries being terminated at Kilmarnock.
South Western Railway: Services between Leatherhead and Dorking were impacted by a ‘precarious tree’ near Box Hill & Westhumble station, meaning some lines were blocked.
Thameslink: Services between Bedford and Brighton, St Albans and London Blackfriars and Luton and Rainham are still being affected today by a major signalling fault which also caused chaos to passengers yesterday.
East Midlands Railway: Disruption between Derby and Stoke-on-Trent due to a tree blocking the railway outside Uttoxeter.
CrossCountry, Lumo, LNER and TransPennine Express: Disruption between Darlington and Northallerton due to damage to the overhead electric wires.
Great Western Railway: Train fault impacting services between Plymouth and Gunnislake. And a tree is blocking the railway between Gloucester and Swindon.
Transport for Wales: Heavy rain across the network impacting services into the new year, with trains suspended between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog. Heavy rain flooding the railway between Fernhill and Aberdare meant all lines were blocked, with the route between Swansea and Shrewsbury was also closed.
Southeastern: No services at London Victoria until January 1 inclusive, with trains instead using alternative London terminals.
Greater Anglia: Journeys between London Liverpool Street and Norwich, Ipswich and Colchester are being disrupted through the Chelmsford area until January 1 inclusive.
London Underground: Minor delays on the Central line due to a shortage of trains. No Bakerloo line between Stonebridge Park and Harrow & Wealdstone due to a casualty on the track. Severe delays on the District line between Upminster and Tower Hill due to an obstruction on the track. No service on the District line between Earls Court and Kensington Olympia until January 1 inclusive.
Docklands Light Railway: No service between Bank and Tower Gateway and Poplar and Canary Wharf until December 30 inclusive.
Elizabeth line: No service between Hayes and Harlington and Reading, and minor delays between Paddington and Heathrow Terminals while ’emergency services deal with a casualty on the track’.
London Overground: No service between Highbury and Islington and New Cross Gate, New Cross and Clapham Junction until December 29 inclusive. No service between Sydenham and West Croydon; and between Camden Road and Stratford.
Advertisement
Trains between Glasgow Central, Oban and Mallaig were axed, while those from Glasgow Central to Carlisle via Dumfries were being terminated at Kilmarnock.
And ferry operator DFDS said sailings between Dover and France[7] were delayed due to strong winds in the Channel.
Passengers were told to check in and they would be put on the first available sailing. It comes after three-hour delays at the Kent port yesterday.
At Paddington, services were suspended after a person was struck and killed by a train near Iver station in Buckinghamshire at around 7.15am this morning.
All lines between Paddington and Reading were blocked, causing major disruption to Great Western Railway, Elizabeth line and Heathrow[8] Express.
Some lines were reopened by 10am today but delays and cancellations continued at Paddington, which is the UK’s second busiest railway station.
A British Transport Police (BTP) spokesman said: ‘Officers were called to the line near Iver railway station at around 7.15am today following reports of a casualty on the tracks.
‘Paramedics also attended; however, sadly, a person was pronounced dead at the scene. The incident is not being treated as suspicious and a file will be prepared for the coroner.’
A Great Western Railway spokesman said: ‘It is with great sadness that we report a person has been struck by a train. Some lines have now reopened to allow the movement of trains once again but it will take a while to reintroduce a full service.
‘Until that is in place, where we can, we will divert trains to run on other lines around the affected area. There may be certain instances of trains being held at stations some distance from the incident.
‘This is due to congestion and such action will avoid any trains becoming stranded in open country.’
Paddington was closed for engineering work for the previous four days – and it was repeatedly affected by infrastructure faults in the previous weeks, including a major incident on December 7 when passengers were stuck on trains for hours.
Meanwhile South Western Railway services between Leatherhead and Dorking were impacted by a ‘precarious tree’ near Box Hill & Westhumble station, meaning some lines were blocked.
Elsewhere Thameslink services between Bedford and Brighton[9], St Albans and London Blackfriars and Luton and Rainham were still being affected today by a major signalling fault which also caused chaos to passengers yesterday.
East Midlands Railway warned of disruption between Derby and Stoke-on-Trent due to a tree blocking the railway outside Uttoxeter.
Passengers using CrossCountry, Lumo, LNER and TransPennine Express faced disruption between Darlington and Northallerton due to damage to the overhead electric wires.
And Great Western Railway said a train fault was impacting services between Plymouth and Gunnislake. And a tree was blocking the railway between Gloucester and Swindon.
CrossCountry said that fewer trains were able to run between Birmingham New Street and Nottingham[10] due to a shortage of train drivers.
Merseyrail warned of disruption because of power supply problems at Hamilton Square, while London Northwestern Railway said damage to the overhead electric wires between Watford Junction and St Albans Abbey meant trains could not run and were being replaced by buses.
Transport for Wales said heavy rain across the network would impact services into the new year, with trains suspended between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog.
Heavy rain flooding the railway between Fernhill and Aberdare meant all lines were blocked, with the route between Swansea and Shrewsbury was also closed.
It comes on top of planned engineering works – with no services on Southeastern at London Victoria until January 1 inclusive, as trains instead use alternative London terminals.
And Greater Anglia journeys between London Liverpool Street and Norwich, Ipswich and Colchester were being disrupted through the Chelmsford area until January 1 inclusive.
Scotland’s rail network experienced widespread cancellations and delays yesterday with a train driver’s cabin hit by a falling tree.
Passengers at Paddington today as rail services at the UK’s second busiest station are axed
Departure boards show disruption at London Paddington railway station this morning
Passengers at Paddington today as rail services at the UK’s second busiest station are axed
Major disruption at London Paddington today after a person was hit by a train this morning
Departure boards show disruption at London Paddington railway station this morning
Passengers at Paddington today as rail services at the UK’s second busiest station are axed
Departure boards show disruption at London Paddington railway station this morning
Aslef Scotland confirmed the driver was uninjured and Labour MSP Paul Sweeney said passengers were also unharmed.
ScotRail suspended multiple train services until further notice, impacting trains travelling while other lines saw their timetables shelved until ‘a full inspection can be carried out’ on the railway network.
LNER, which runs services between London and Scotland on the East Coast Main Line, also advised customers not to travel yesterday due to the weather.
Customers stranded by the disruption were told to book hotels which they can claim back.
Avanti West Coast said its route to Scotland yesterday had become impassable with all services to and from London terminating at Preston.
Those with pre-booked tickets for travel between Preston and either Edinburgh or Glasgow can board trains today or tomorrow, the operator said.
Heathrow Airport cancelled 18 flights due to air traffic control restrictions yesterday, understood to be return routes from Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Jersey and Manchester, and to Barcelona, Berlin[11], Madrid and Paris.
Ferry operator Red Funnel, which provides services between Southampton and Cowes on the Isle of Wight, cancelled its Red Jet passenger services due to strong winds.
It added that while the vehicle ferry between Southampton and East Cowes was running, it could take longer. Disruption was expected until 6.30pm today.
Hovercraft services between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight were also suspended yesterday but resumed today.
Damaged houses are seen in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester, today after last night’s tornado
Residents in the Kinloss Park area of Cupar in Scotland start to clear up today after flooding
Flooded fields on the Somerset Levels today after Storm Gerrit brought severe weather
The Environment Agency has 156 flood alerts (in orange) and 23 warnings (in red) in place
It comes after Storm Gerrit swept through Britain yesterday, causing chaos with a fastest recorded wind gusts of 106mph at the Cairngorm mountain summit in the Highlands, followed by 86mph at Inverbervie in Aberdeenshire, 84mph at Fair Isle and 83mph at Capel Curig in North Wales.
The Environment Agency had 156 flood alerts and 23 warnings in place for England today after the deluge. Strong winds and heavy rain is forecast into the weekend, improving slightly with showers and sunny spells predicted for New Year’s Eve.
But the Met Office has warned the question of whether snow – potentially ‘significant amounts’ – would spread into England and Wales next week was ‘finely balanced’.
The storm also wrecked more than 100 homes as a tornado swept through Stalybridge in Greater Manchester with residents evacuated after roofs were torn apart.
References
- ^ Mark Duell (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ London (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Birmingham (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ London Overground (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Glasgow (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Edinburgh (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ France (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Heathrow (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Brighton (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Nottingham (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Berlin (www.dailymail.co.uk)