Posted 20th February 2013 | 1 Comment
Second overhead line failure strands hundreds
NETWORK RAIL engineers are battling to repair a kilometre of overhead power lines which were apparently dragged down by a train on the East Coast Main Line last night.
The failure, at Little Barford near St Neots, has blocked the ECML between Peterborough and Biggleswade, stopping all traffic. Special timetables have been introduced on either side of the blockage, but all operators are warning of delays of up to an hour.
First Capital Connect, whose Great Northern route is one of those affected, said buses are replacing trains between Biggleswade and Peterborough, and buses are also running between St Neots, Sandy and Bedford to connect with Thameslink services to central London.
Some East Coast services have been diverted via Cambridge, although the operator was hoping to run a limited service directly between Peterborough and London after midday, using diesel HSTs. East Coast said this would be a shuttle service, connecting at Peterborough with trains running north.
Network Rail warned that repairs would take some time, and that the cause of the failure was not yet known. Investigations are still continuing into the cause of a similar failure on the Midland Main Line at Radlett last week, in which overhead wires collapsed over about a kilometre and caused several days of disruption.
There has also been criticism following the plight of an estimated 200 passengers who were stranded at London King's Cross after the incident last night, which caused the cancellation of the last train to Leeds.
A replacement coach which was provided in the small hours of the morning also ran into difficulties in the Huntingdon area, where it became involved in 'a minor incident', although there are no reports of any injuries.
One passenger told the BBC that his family had boarded the 23:30 departure from King's Cross and 'were kept on for about four hours with no information', and then transferred to a coach to Peterborough.
The passenger explained: "We were heading up the motorway and found ourselves careering through the central reservation. I'm here with my 12-year-old son, my 15-year-old son, my wife and 80-year-old mother. It's bit of a nightmare."
Reader Comments:
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John Gilbert, Cradley, Herefordshire
It is terrible that there have been so many OHLE failures recently, even though, on the ECML with its poor original specification they can perhaps be espected. But I hope that blame will not be placed on the use of Headspan OHLE structures on many of these lines, as I have seen suggested in at least one reputable member of the railway press. Any visit to the Continent will show immediately that Headspan construction is very commonly used there and has been for decades. Let us, while finding out what went wrong, beware of making wild assertions without evidence to back them up, and, as I say, evidence from the ECML is not admissable I suggest due to the original poor specification of that scheme - due as usual to the politicians of the day!.