Travellers told to delay plans amid storm and rail chaos
Thousands stranded after post-christmas disruption extends to roads, sea and air
TRAVELLERS have been told to delay their post-christmas journeys after storms and rail chaos left thousands stranded across the country.
Rail firms told passengers to go home and try again today or tomorrow as floods, snow and wind brought services to a standstill on dozens of routes.
The combination of Storm Gerrit, engineering works and staff shortages caused hundreds of trains to be cancelled.
Even those trying to leave the country did not avoid the disruption, with three-hour queues at Dover blamed on illness among French border officials.
Scotland bore the brunt of the storm as 80mph gusts left thousands of homes without power, cars became stuck in snow-logged roads and flights were cancelled.
Weather warnings were on course to be lifted this morning, but transport operators will have to address a backlog of cancellations.
Workers trying to get back to the office are being hit by disruption, while New Year revellers are being encouraged to plan ahead in case festivities are affected this weekend.
Train companies are facing scrutiny over preventable cancellations, with MPS urging the Government to explain why rail services did not have enough staff to operate during the festive period.
Sir Robert Goodwill, the Tory MP and former transport minister, said: “There certainly have been cancellations because drivers are not available. We need to know why that is. Train companies didn’t train enough drivers during the pandemic.
“Also we cannot oblige drivers to work at weekends, which can result in cancelled trains. I’m sure ministers will be briefed about what happened and what can be done to mitigate that. The contracts should be updated to make sure drivers are rostered to work on the weekends, like workers in other sectors.”
Major disruption hit 12 train operators yesterday, with minor delays affecting a further five as passengers were forced to sit on the floor.
Floods stopped trains on the West Coast Main line going north of Preston, with all services to and from London terminating in Lancashire.
Although passengers were urged to travel today or tomorrow, they were told their tickets would not be accepted by other operators.
On the east coast, LNER told customers not to travel, warning of “significant delays, short-notice alterations and cancellations” and encouraging people to wait until today or tomorrow before setting off.
Hundreds were left stranded on the concourse at King’s Cross after flooding blocked the line between Newcastle and Edinburgh.
Services to the South West were also disrupted as Paddington Station was closed for planned engineering works while there was a reduced service on the Crosscountry network. In Scotland, passengers were rescued from a Scotrail inter-city service after a tree smashed through the train’s windscreen.
Caledonian Sleeper customers were asked not to stay onboard overnight, causing some services between Euston and the Highlands to be cancelled.
At least two problems on the network yesterday were linked to engineering works with repairs overrunning by four
and a half hours in Kent, after a section of new track installed was too short to weld to the next section. Network Rail said it was “very sorry for the extensive disruption to passengers” after a signalling problem linked to upgrades caused disruption out of London St Pancras.
Long-running issues over staffing meant at least six LNER services were scrapped because of a shortage of train crew while on the West Coast main line at least 18 services were affected by staff shortages.
Avanti West Coast blamed “resourcing challenges” owing to “historic leave arrangements” for services cancelled or terminated early owing to staffing.
Among those whose train was cancelled amid crew shortages was Mark Davies, 56 who had intended to travel from King’s Cross to York yesterday to visit family. Mr Davies, 56, who was travelling with his 15-year-old son, Alec, said the station was “chaos” at 10.30am and his train was cancelled 10 minutes before its departure time.
He said the train he managed to board was standing room only with passengers from four trains on board. The service then unexpectedly terminated in Doncaster. “It’s incredibly frustrating,” he said.
“Everyone understands when the weather or other challenges get in the way, but so much of this chaos is avoidable. It’s shaming to see the neglect and under-investment in our public services and how that damages our reputation and causes such inconvenience for so many people.”
Those who opted to drive home did not escape the disruption as the Severn Bridge, the main route connecting England and Wales, was shut. Drivers taking the route on the M4 across the Prince of Wales bridge faced further misery as an accident caused 90-minute delays.
Snowfall led to major incidents being declared above the border, with drivers stuck for hours in heavy traffic on the A9 in Dalnaspidal, Perthshire, and “miles of vehicles” stuck in “very severe conditions”, Highland council said.
There was also disruption for those flying home from Scotland as British Airways was forced to cancel 18 flights from Heathrow, including several domestic journeys to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester. Loganair, Scotland’s regional airline, grounded several flights from the Highlands and Islands.
At the ports, ferry operator Red Funnel, which provides services between Southampton and Cowes on the Isle of Wight, cancelled its Red Jet passenger services as strong winds battered boats. Hovercraft services between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight were suspended while at the Port of Dover, ferry passengers faced three hour delays because of a bug among French border officials.
Four yellow weather warnings which caution over travel disruption remained in force last night with two lasting until early this morning. More flooding is expected with over 150 alerts and warnings in place. Nearly half a month’s worth of rain – 3in – fell at the Great Langdale Valley in the Lake District yesterday, the Met Office said, while winds of 86mph were recorded at Inverbervie on the north-east coast of Scotland. Residents of Cupar, Fife, were rescued from flooded properties as Storm Gerrit cut off power to about 27,000 properties.
John Hayes, another former transport minister, questioned whether train operators were overreacting to bad weather. “It does seem that whenever there are adverse weather conditions the trains stop. This is odd and it’s gotten worse over the years.”
He added that train companies should foot the bill for cancellations.
The chaos is set to continue today, affecting firms who are expecting workers in the office between Christmas and New Year, as further disruption threatens to disrupt New Year’s celebrations.
Louise Haigh, Labour’s shadow transport secretary, said: “After another year of Christmas chaos for passengers, it is clear the Tories have run our railways into the ground.”
A Department for Transport spokesman said: “While staffing is a matter for industry, we are working with them to ensure they are able to deliver the services that passengers need.”
‘It’s shaming to see the neglect and underinvestment in our public services’