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| Thousands face further rail chaos | Thousands face further rail chaos |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Rail passengers are facing long delays after a power failure halted all trains in and out of London Euston. | |
| London Midland and Virgin services to and from Euston have been suspended after cables came down in north-west London as a train was passing through. | London Midland and Virgin services to and from Euston have been suspended after cables came down in north-west London as a train was passing through. |
| Travel to Birmingham and north-west England is affected, as are regular commuter lines in and out of London. | Travel to Birmingham and north-west England is affected, as are regular commuter lines in and out of London. |
| Engineers are working to fix the lines and Network Rail said it hoped to have a limited service restored soon. | |
| When lines reopen. Virgin is expecting to operate a reduced service of two trains per hour from Euston to Birmingham and Manchester and one an hour to Chester, Liverpool and Glasgow. | |
| London Midland will also run a reduced service. | |
| A spokesman said a string of problems on the West Coast Main Line in recent days appeared to be unrelated and "unfortunate coincidences", but added that they were being investigated. DAYS OF DELAYS Wednesday - cable failure near WembleyTuesday - overhead wire problems in Rugby and BletchleySunday and Monday - cable problems at WatfordFriday - Line is shut after a plane crash in Stafford | |
| The affected stretch of line is between North Wembley and Kings Langley, Hertfordshire, following the incident at Kenton on Tuesday evening. | The affected stretch of line is between North Wembley and Kings Langley, Hertfordshire, following the incident at Kenton on Tuesday evening. |
| Passengers have been urged to delay their journeys until later in the day where possible. | Passengers have been urged to delay their journeys until later in the day where possible. |
| Virgin Trains, which runs services from London to Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow, said trains were not expected to be up and running at Euston until the afternoon. | Virgin Trains, which runs services from London to Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow, said trains were not expected to be up and running at Euston until the afternoon. |
| It said: "All services in and out of London Euston remain suspended due to damage to the overhead power lines in the Wembley/Watford areas. | It said: "All services in and out of London Euston remain suspended due to damage to the overhead power lines in the Wembley/Watford areas. |
| "Network Rail is working to carry out repairs on site and while this is happening no train services are able to operate. | "Network Rail is working to carry out repairs on site and while this is happening no train services are able to operate. |
| "Passengers are strongly advised to delay their journeys until later in the day, wherever possible." | "Passengers are strongly advised to delay their journeys until later in the day, wherever possible." |
| Limited service | Limited service |
| BBC transport correspondent Tom Symonds said Virgin Trains had described the situation as a mess. | BBC transport correspondent Tom Symonds said Virgin Trains had described the situation as a mess. |
| The train firm told him problems on the west coast line meant 70% of trains had been running late since the start of the new year. | The train firm told him problems on the west coast line meant 70% of trains had been running late since the start of the new year. |
| Virgin Trains services are stopping furthest south at Milton Keynes with bus replacements laid on to get people into London, Network Rail said. | Virgin Trains services are stopping furthest south at Milton Keynes with bus replacements laid on to get people into London, Network Rail said. |
| London Midland services are stopping between Northampton and Hemel Hempstead. | London Midland services are stopping between Northampton and Hemel Hempstead. |
| Samantha Buckley, 21, had returned from a skiing holiday in France and expected to catch the 0820 GMT Manchester Piccadilly service home to Wilmslow, Cheshire. | Samantha Buckley, 21, had returned from a skiing holiday in France and expected to catch the 0820 GMT Manchester Piccadilly service home to Wilmslow, Cheshire. |
| Thousands of commuters and long-distance travellers have been affected | |
| "I don't really know what's going on. I don't know what I'll do now," she said. | "I don't really know what's going on. I don't know what I'll do now," she said. |
| Twins Alastair and Rory Mitchell, 23, from Fulham, south west London, had been due to catch the 0830 GMT Virgin service to Glasgow to visit a friend. | Twins Alastair and Rory Mitchell, 23, from Fulham, south west London, had been due to catch the 0830 GMT Virgin service to Glasgow to visit a friend. |
| The brothers said they now planned to go to King's Cross station to catch a different service to Scotland. | The brothers said they now planned to go to King's Cross station to catch a different service to Scotland. |
| Alastair added: "We were spending most of the trip on trains anyway so it's not great news." | Alastair added: "We were spending most of the trip on trains anyway so it's not great news." |
| One passenger trying to go home to London from Manchester on Tuesday night spoke of hundreds of people waiting for replacement coaches to ferry them home. | One passenger trying to go home to London from Manchester on Tuesday night spoke of hundreds of people waiting for replacement coaches to ferry them home. |
| "The train I was on got slower and slower after leaving Milton Keynes," he said. | "The train I was on got slower and slower after leaving Milton Keynes," he said. |
| "There are up to 200 people waiting here for these coaches and we don't know when they're going to arrive." | "There are up to 200 people waiting here for these coaches and we don't know when they're going to arrive." |
| RAIL INQUIRIES For more information on train times call 08457 48 49 50 National Rail Inquiries The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites | RAIL INQUIRIES For more information on train times call 08457 48 49 50 National Rail Inquiries The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites |
| The power failure comes after travellers were disrupted on Monday as engineers worked through the night to repair damaged power lines which had stopped trains running on the West Coast Main Line. | The power failure comes after travellers were disrupted on Monday as engineers worked through the night to repair damaged power lines which had stopped trains running on the West Coast Main Line. |
| And on Saturday the West Coast Main Line was closed when a plane ploughed into it in Little Haywood, near Stafford, at noon on Friday. | And on Saturday the West Coast Main Line was closed when a plane ploughed into it in Little Haywood, near Stafford, at noon on Friday. |
| The crash claimed three lives and left thousands of rail passengers stranded as services were brought to a halt. | The crash claimed three lives and left thousands of rail passengers stranded as services were brought to a halt. |
Are you affected by the problems on the train routes this morning? Are you struggling to get into work? Tell us about your experience. | Are you affected by the problems on the train routes this morning? Are you struggling to get into work? Tell us about your experience. |
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| At no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws. | At no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws. |