STORM Babet caused severe disruption across much of the UK rail network on October 19, leaving routes unfit for use with severe flooding, damage to buildings, and trees and debris thrown across the track.
The clean-up could take several weeks. Network Rail has conducted helicopter response surveys to establish whether there is any long-term damage to embankments and structures, and a host of speed restrictions are in place.
While eastern Scotland probably suffered the worst of the gales, with very few services running, there was also disruption to the East and West Coast, West of England, and Midland Main Lines.
The sudden termination of trains and station shutdowns, as the winds became stronger, resulted in heavy overcrowding and passengers left stranded. In many cases, replacement buses could not be provided because roads were also closed.
LNER suffered particularly badly
-at King’s Cross, the station had to be closed on October 21 due to severe overcrowding. Congestion in the capital was exacerbated by thousands of people arriving via the Underground for apro-Palestinian march.
East Coast passengers were left stranded after LNER struggled to get its trains and crews back in the right places due to flooding at several locations -including between Doncaster and Wakefield, Newcastle and Morpeth, and north of Edinburgh.
Avanti West Coast asked customers not to travel between
Crewe and North Wales or between Preston, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Northern said all lines between Cheadle Hulme and Wilmslow were blocked due to damage to overhead wires, while Merseyrail services between Rock Ferry and Ellesmere Port were suspended because of flooding at Hooton. The Chester-Ellesmere Port line also suffered disruption.
The Midland Main Line from London to Sheffield was closed north of Derby because of flooding, as was the line to Matlock.
East Midlands Railway cancelled services from Sheffield to Nottingham and Lincoln because the lines were impassable, and between Peterborough-Lincoln and to Skegness.
Great Western Railway was unable to provide a service into South Wales because the track was submerged at Swindon and Wootton Bassett. Services between Swindon-Westbury and to Cheltenham Spa were also affected. Transport for Wales cancelled some services over the Wales and
Borders route, and advised people not to travel from Cardiff to Shrewsbury and Chester, on the Heart of Wales line,Wrexham-Bidston, andShrewsbury-Birmingham.
CrossCountry was able to run between Bristol Temple Meads and Cheltenham vi
