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Rail delays warning due to overhead lines damage

Julia Bryson/BBC People inside Leeds railway station walking to the ticket barriers with the information desk and departure boards in the backgroundJulia Bryson/BBC
Passengers are warned some services will be delayed, diverted or cancelled

Disruption to trains between Leeds and Wakefield is expected to continue despite the line reopening earlier today.

The route was blocked due to damage to the overhead electric wires caused by a tree falling on them in high winds on Thursday night, and issues continued into Friday.

At 16:00 BST today LNER confirmed that trains were able to run between Leeds and Wakefield Westgate stations again, but that journeys would take longer. The operator added: "We will keep customers updated over the weekend via our website and social media channels."

Customers with pre-booked tickets can use Transpennine, Northern, CrossCountry and Grand Central services at no extra cost.

LNER A tree lies on a broken electric power line on a railway lineLNER
LNER shared this image of the tree that brought down the power lines

National Rail said the damage in West Yorkshire was caused by a tree falling on to the railway on Thursday night.

It said in a statement: "Due to the high-risk nature of the work, and the extent of the damage, it is expected to take some time whilst the fault is dealt with and repaired".

The incident will impact the following services:

  • CrossCountry between Edinburgh and Birmingham New Street/Bristol Temple Meads/Plymouth, and between Leeds and Plymouth, and also between Newcastle and Reading
  • LNER between Skipton/Bradford Forster Square/Harrogate/Leeds and London Kings Cross
  • Northern between Leeds and Knottingley/Doncaster/Sheffield

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