Media centre

Monday 22 Jan 2018

Passengers advised to check before travelling following heavy rain in Wales and Borders

Region & Route:

Wales & Western: Wales & Borders

| Wales & Western

Network Rail and Arriva Trains Wales are advising passengers to check before travelling following extreme rainfall.  

 Extremely heavy rain on Sunday caused a landslip at Dinas Rhondda, blocking the railway line. The line has been closed between Porth and Treherbert while engineers work to remove over 150 tonnes of debris from the track and make the area safe for trains.

Rail replacement buses are currently in service between Porth and Treherbert until further notice.

Bill Kelly, chief operating officer for Network Rail in Wales and Borders, said: “The railway between Porth and Treherbert remains closed due to a landslip caused by heavy rain over the weekend. The safety of passengers and staff is a key priority, and we are working hard to remove a large amount of soil and make sure it is safe to reopen the line.

“We are working with Arriva Trains Wales to keep passengers moving via a bus service until the railway line reopens. We thank passengers for their patience and advise people to check their journey before travelling.”

Bethan Jelfs, customer services director for Arriva Trains Wales said: “A landslip at Dinas Rhondda as a result of poor winter weather conditions is causing a challenging situation for some of our services.

“Customer safety is our upmost priority but it is also vital that customers still have travel options so we are working closely with our partners in Network Rail to minimise the effects of the disruption whilst providing a replacement bus service on the route.

“We would like to thank passengers for their patience and to advise them to check online for updates on their journey ahead of travelling.”

More heavy rain is forecast this week, which may impact on train services across Wales and Borders. Passengers are advised to check their journey before they travel via www.nationalrail.co.uk