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| Rail chaos 'due to rushed work' | |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Disruption on a major rail line was caused by a "rush" to upgrade the route, it has been claimed. | |
| The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said the West Coast Main Line upgrade had been completed in haste, leading to a string of problems since new year. | The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said the West Coast Main Line upgrade had been completed in haste, leading to a string of problems since new year. |
| Services in and out of London Euston were halted earlier after a power cable collapsed. Lines have now reopened. | |
| Network Rail said it was too early to know what caused the latest fault - the fourth major disruption in six days. | Network Rail said it was too early to know what caused the latest fault - the fourth major disruption in six days. |
| All routes in and out of Euston remain affected, but limited services have now resumed. This will feel like deja vu to many customers on the west coast line Theresa Villiers, shadow transport secretary | |
| The line will be closed again later for emergency works with the aim of getting services back to normal for Thursday morning. | The line will be closed again later for emergency works with the aim of getting services back to normal for Thursday morning. |
| From 2130 GMT Virgin Trains will not run services between Euston and Milton Keynes. | From 2130 GMT Virgin Trains will not run services between Euston and Milton Keynes. |
| Buses will operate between Milton Keynes and Luton so Virgin customers can catch East Midlands trains in and out of London. | Buses will operate between Milton Keynes and Luton so Virgin customers can catch East Midlands trains in and out of London. |
| And London Midland will not run services between Euston and Watford from 2130 GMT. Replacement buses will instead operate. | And London Midland will not run services between Euston and Watford from 2130 GMT. Replacement buses will instead operate. |
| Some Tube services will also be affected. | Some Tube services will also be affected. |
| £38m lost | |
| The latest power failure was the fourth incident in a week to disrupt the West Coast Main Line, which has led to 70% of all Virgin services running late since the start of the year. | |
| BCC director general David Frost said: "Businesses have lost a staggering £38m in just three days because Network Rail have again failed to adequately deliver. | BCC director general David Frost said: "Businesses have lost a staggering £38m in just three days because Network Rail have again failed to adequately deliver. |
| "The BCC questioned Network Rail's decision to bring forward the deadline of the west coast upgrade last year. | "The BCC questioned Network Rail's decision to bring forward the deadline of the west coast upgrade last year. |
| "We believe the recent disruptions have occurred because this vital project was rushed." | "We believe the recent disruptions have occurred because this vital project was rushed." |
| Shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers said: "This will feel like deja vu to many customers on the west coast line. | Shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers said: "This will feel like deja vu to many customers on the west coast line. |
| "If there is any truth in the claim that disruptions have been caused by rushed work by Network Rail this would be a serious problem." This is not the best start to the new year for passengers Passenger Focus' Anthony Smith | |
| The latest power failure followed problems on Tuesday at Rugby in Warwickshire and Bletchley in Buckinghamshire. | |
| Before that travellers were disrupted on Sunday and Monday as engineers worked at Watford Junction to repair damaged power lines. | Before that travellers were disrupted on Sunday and Monday as engineers worked at Watford Junction to repair damaged power lines. |
| And on Friday and Saturday the line was closed after a plane crashed near the tracks in Staffordshire, killing three people. | And on Friday and Saturday the line was closed after a plane crashed near the tracks in Staffordshire, killing three people. |
| A Network Rail spokesman said a "full investigation" was being carried out into the cause of all the problems. | |
| "At this stage there is no suggestion that the new timetable is a factor in this. | "At this stage there is no suggestion that the new timetable is a factor in this. |
| "We understand that passengers are frustrated by what's happened this week. We have worked very hard to rectify the problems." | "We understand that passengers are frustrated by what's happened this week. We have worked very hard to rectify the problems." |
| The TSSA rail union has called for passenger to be given full refunds. | |
| And Anthony Smith, chief executive for the national rail watchdog Passenger Focus, said: "This is not the best start to the new year for passengers and we hope that a normal service will resume as soon as possible - especially since passengers are now paying more to use the train." |