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Thursday 9 Mar 2023

“Check before you travel” due to snow

Region & Route:

Eastern

With further snow forecast over the next 48 hours, Network Rail and train operators are advising people to check their journey before setting off with National Rail Enquiries (www.nationalrail.co.uk).

 

The Met Office has issued Yellow and Amber weather warnings for snow and ice across many parts of England, Wales and Scotland. The poor weather warnings continue throughout today and Friday.

Network Rail is working with the Met Desk to monitor forecasts and extra staff are on call, ready to respond to any incidents. We are currently planning to start the Friday morning service as normal, but are anticipating having to run slightly fewer trains on routes which are particularly badly affected. Our advice to passengers is very much to check on the status of your journey before setting off – particularly in the early morning. 

Some routes are expected to be at greater risk of disruption, including:

• Leeds-Carlisle
• Bradford FS to Ilkley and Leeds
• Calder Valley (Leeds to Blackpool/Manchester via Bradford)
• Hope Valley (Sheffield to Manchester) 
• Penistone line (Sheffield to Huddersfield)
• Buxton line (Buxton to Manchester via Hazel Grove)

Matt Rice, Route Director for Network Rail’s North and East Route said: “The railway is maintained throughout the year to cope with extreme temperatures and conditions – both hot and cold - but short bursts of particularly heavy snow and ice do occasionally cause some short-term disruption, so please check your journey is possible before you travel and take extra care around stations and level crossings.”

The heaviest of the snow is expected to fall towards the end of today (Thursday) and overnight into Friday. Tonight we will be sending special ‘route proving trains’ (sometimes known as ‘ghost trains’) across our network to gather intelligence on the levels of snow, and to determine that routes are safe to operate for the start of service.  

These route proving trains are also useful for keeping the tracks clear but we also have a fleet of specialist trains – including snow ploughs – should they be needed in more extreme circumstances, as well as other kit for clearing snow and ice from bridges and electrical equipment. 

From now until the snow clears we have additional response teams on hand to fix any issues as they arise and to keep passengers moving safely. The infrastructure itself is maintained throughout the year to be able to cope with extreme temperatures and conditions – both hot and cold - and we have lots of remote monitoring tools and equipment like points heaters to let us know where issues may arise. 

For more information about the railways and snow & ice visit our website.

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