Passengers in England face a second day of travel chaos on Friday as the knock-on effect of a 90 second signalling failure on Thursday continues to wreak havoc across the network.
Electricity cut out in the main control hub for north-west England’s railways, the Manchester Rail Operating Centre, shortly before 2pm on Thursday. The failure lasted for just a minute and a half, but has caused widespread cancellations and delays which have spilled into Friday.
Rail bosses said further disruption is likely across the Midlands and North West because many trains and their crew “are not where they would normally be after this unexpected incident”.
Engineers are making “good progress” fixing signalling issues but there will be cancellations for the rest of Thursday night, Network Rail said, as some operators warned disruptions could continue until around midday.
Customers are being advised to expect disruption on a number of Northern Rail services until the end of the day.
Chris Wright, Network Rail’s North West route director, said: “I’m extremely sorry for the disruption today and the very difficult journeys many people have experienced.
“Our engineers are working tirelessly to restore the signalling systems impacted by the power cut at lunchtime.”
Train operators Northern and TransPennine Express (TPE) advised customers on Thursday afternoon not to travel, with the latter saying its trains were “unable to run safely” because of a failure in the communications systems on the network.
It is understood that Network Rail’s back-up power generators failed to activate immediately. An investigation has been launched into the incident.
Andrew McClements, customer experience and transformation director at TPE, said “sadly, we’re not out of the woods yet” following the “difficult incident to manage”.
“I’d urge people to ensure they check National Rail Enquiries before they set off on any planned journeys tomorrow, with further cancellations and delays likely”, he added.
TPE relaxed ticket restrictions for the whole day, meaning those with tickets purchased in advance will be able to travel at any time, he said, before thanking customers for their patience.
The chief operating officer of Northern apologised to all its affected customers.
Warrick Dent said: “We know how frustrating it is to have your journey delayed, cancelled, or disrupted, and I’m sorry for the impact this has had on people’s day.
“Our teams have been working hard alongside Network Rail and other train operators to keep customers moving and informed throughout.
“The scale of today’s disruption means customers travelling through Manchester tomorrow morning should also check before they travel, as some knock-on delays may continue.”
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander on Thursday afternoon said she is “receiving regular updates” while Network Rail works to resolve what she described as a “power outage”.
Ms Alexander added: “Disruption is expected during the rest of the day, so please check before you travel.”
The Manchester facility that experienced the outage was one of 12 operating centres built to eventually manage the entire British rail network, Network Rail said when it opened in 2014.
These facilities replaced 800 signal boxes and other operational locations then used to control trains.
It was planned that the Manchester Rail Operating Centre would control all of the railway in north-west England by 2034.
A wartime bomb being discovered near the railway between Tamworth and Burton-on-Trent also added to the disruption, with all lines blocked, National Rail said.
Greater Manchester, the Midlands and north-west England bore the brunt of the impact.
A National Rail spokesperson said: “If you’re travelling Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, London Northwestern, Northern, TransPennine Express, or Transport for Wales in the affected area, your train may be cancelled, delayed, or revised.”
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