Rail passengers across the Midlands and north-west England are experiencing significant travel disruption following a 90-second power failure that halted trains across the region. The outage occurred at the Manchester Rail Operating Centre, the main control hub for the region's railways, near Ashburys station.
While the power failure itself was brief, its effects have been widespread, leading to cancellations and delays that are expected to continue for much of the day. Northern Rail has advised passengers to avoid travel before 10 a.m. on the day following the incident, and TransPennine Express has warned of a reduced service. Avanti West Coast reported short-notice cancellations and advised passengers to check their travel plans, as trains are likely to be busy.
Network Rail engineers worked through the night to restore signaling systems, which were fully back online late yesterday evening. Displaced trains have been returned to depots, allowing services to restart this morning. Chris Wright, Network Rail's North West route director, expressed apologies to passengers for the disruption and thanked them for their patience, noting that while most services are running, some disruption may still occur. He advised passengers to check for the latest travel information.
Passengers caught in the disruption faced considerable difficulties. Some were advised to take taxis, while others were stranded at stations for extended periods. One passenger reported having to pay a significant amount for an Uber to make a midwife appointment on time. Others expressed frustration over how to complete their journeys, with some needing replacement bus services to get home for childcare reasons or to reach family members stranded in different locations.
The Manchester Rail Operating Centre, which experienced the outage, is one of 12 such facilities built to manage the entire British rail network, replacing over 800 older signal boxes. It was intended to control all of north-west England's railways by 2034.
In a separate incident, major disruption also affected services in South Wales between Newport and Cardiff Central due to ongoing repairs from a trackside fire last weekend that damaged signaling equipment and overhead power lines. Additionally, a wartime bomb discovered near the railway between Tamworth and Burton-on-Trent temporarily blocked all lines, adding to the overall travel chaos.