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UK weather: rail lines and roads flooded after heavy rain Heavy rain and flooding frustrate pre-Christmas travellers in UK
(about 5 hours later)
Persistent downpours cause transport disruption with weekend washout forecast Rail and road trips disrupted on what is expected to be one of busiest travel days of year
Heavy rain and flooding have caused severe disruption in parts of southern England, forcing one rail operator to advise against travelling by train. Heavy rain and flooding have wreaked havoc on railways and roads in parts of the UK as pre-Christmas travel is expected to peak.
Some areas of the UK have had more than 50mm of rain in a day and a half. The village of Cardinham in Cornwall had 52mm of rain in 36 hours, while an area further inland, outside Launceston, got 53.4mm. Libanus in the Breacon Beacons, south Wales, had 43mm. Journeys were disrupted in southern and eastern England on one of the busiest travel days of the year, combining many commuters’ last working day before Christmas with a surge in getaway traffic. About 17 million drivers were expected to travel on Britain’s main roads and motorways on Friday.
All northbound trains from Brighton have been cancelled due to flooding in the Balcombe area. Victoria Express trains and Thameslink services were halted, and announcements at Brighton station were “strongly advising” commuters to cancel trips into London on Friday. Some areas of southern England and Wales recorded around 5cm of rain in 36 hours, and the Met Office issued dozens of flood warnings across England, with rain forecast to persist in some areas until Sunday.
Passengers trying to reach Gatwick airport are having to take a circuitous route by taking the Southampton train as far as Barnham and waiting for a connecting train to the airport. Flooding in Sussex put part of the railway line between Brighton and London underwater, causing all northbound trains from the coastal city to be cancelled on Friday morning.
Southern Rail said persistent rainfall had caused water levels to reach the height of the rail tracks in places. “Alternative routes to reach your destination are limited, so you should make your own way to your destination,” its website said. “Please be mindful that roads will also be suffering from the increased rainfall.” The rail and road problems meant travellers struggled to reach Gatwick airport. Rail passengers were advised to make alternative arrangements while Network Rail worked to restore services on the Thameslink route, with some express trains from the capital also affected. The motorway serving the airport, the M23, was also shut after a nearby river burst its banks.
Commuters were advised that on Friday morning there was only a limited bus replacement service and the earliest they could expect to reach London was about 1pm. Landslips closed rail lines near Maidstone, in Kent, and Guildford, in Surrey, affecting trains on the South Western and Southeastern franchises.
Network Rail maintenance teams have been dispatched to assess situations and take appropriate action. “There is flooding in Balcombe tunnel between Three Bridges and Balcombe,” the company tweeted. “This means the up line to London is currently blocked.” In Devon and Cornwall, police said flooding in the region had made a number of roads impassable, while Norfolk and Suffolk police said roads in both counties were affected by flood water.
The line was closed for nine days earlier this year for engineering work costing £67m. There were extensive drainage works in Balcombe tunnel, one of the south-east’s longest railway tunnels, and 600 metres of track was replaced. The Met Office said localised flooding was likely to cause delays in some areas through the weekend.
Flooding has affected swaths of southern England and the Midlands, with 45 flood warnings and 192 alerts put in place by the Environment Agency. Festive travel congestion was expected to peak on Friday afternoon, although motoring organisations said drivers could face lighter traffic than usual because of staggered holidays and a midweek Christmas.
Yellow warnings for rain are likely to remain in place across many parts of the south until midday on Sunday. However, forecasters predicted conditions in Cornwall would improve. The AA said polling of its members showed traffic would decline after Friday night, but indicated potential last-minute shopping jams on Saturday. The worst traffic was expected on stretches of the M40 approaching Bicester village, with delays forecast on Saturday afternoon by the RAC breakdown service.
“There will be some showers around but nowhere near as much rain as today,” a Met Office spokesman said. “More rain is coming from the south through the night and tomorrow. Most of the rain will be in eastern England and Scotland, gradually improving throughout the day. It does look, as we head into next week, that the weather will turn drier.” The worst hotspots for traffic delays were expected on motorways, including the north-western M25, the M5 between Bristol and Weston-super-Mare and the M6 around Birmingham, the AA said.
Elsewhere, sunny spells and scattered showers were expected on Friday. The RAC said there could also be long queues on the northbound M1 on Sunday afternoon, according to data from the traffic analysts Inrix.
Norfolk and Suffolk police said parts of both counties had been inundated on Friday morning. Norfolk police tweeted: “Various reports from our teams out this morning of standing water on the roads around the county. Please drive with caution on your morning journeys.” However, it said people driving home for Christmas early next week could expect a quieter journey, with work and business traffic falling away. Weather conditions should also be much drier from Sunday night onwards, according to Met Office forecasts.
Suffolk police instructed motorists to reduce their speed when necessary. “We are getting reports of standing water on main carriageways throughout the county,” it tweeted. Highways England said 98% of England’s motorways and major A-roads would be clear of roadworks between Friday and 2 January. And Network Rail said the vast majority of the UK’s railways would be open, apart from a two-day closure of the entire network on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, when more than 20,000 staff will be involved in £100m of engineering projects.
The Environment Agency advised against driving through floodwater. “Heavy showers could bring disruption to communities in parts of southern and central England as rain falls on already wet ground,” it said. Work on the Great Western railway means there will be no trains from London Paddington between 24-27 December, and a reduced timetable between 28-31 December. And engineering works at London King’s Cross will affect services running north until late on Friday 27 December, while work near Liverpool Street station will affect Greater Anglia services over the holidays.
The busiest day at Heathrow airport is expected to be on Saturday, when 255,133 passengers are due to fly in or out.
For those tempted to make their flights more festive, the UK aviation industry relaunched its “One Too Many” campaign to warn passengers of the potential consequences, including £80,000 fines for drunken passengers who disrupt flights.