A derailed train that is stranded on the West Coast main line has blocked two of the four tracks. As a result, a number of trains to and from London Euston were delayed, with a few being cancelled completely.
The train, a London Northwestern Railway Class 350, was travelling empty when it came off the tracks at 12:27 on Thursday 26 June. Only the driver and a few railway staff members were on board, and no one was injured.
The incident happened at low speed and one bogie became derailed. Specialist teams were deployed to move the derailed train, repair the affected track and fully reopen the railway as soon as possible.
Steve Hopkinson, operations director for Network Rail’s West Coast South route, said: “We’re working at pace to move a train which is blocking some lines through Milton Keynes, following a low-speed derailment on Thursday afternoon.
“Once our teams have safely moved the train, we’ll be able to fully assess the damage to the track and plan our repairs to restore a full timetable for passengers.
“I’m really sorry for the ongoing disruption affecting journeys to and from London Euston and urge people to check before they travel.”
For safety reasons, all lines between Milton Keynes and Bletchley were temporarily closed, although two lines were later reopened. The incident is expected to cause significant disruption to journeys on Thursday and Friday while engineers work to move the train, plan repairs to the affected track and restore a full timetable as soon as possible.
Jonny Wiseman, customer experience director of London Northwestern Railway, said on the morning of Friday 27th: “Services on the West Coast main line have been subject to delays and cancellations.
“This is due to a low-speed derailment of a non-passenger train in the Bletchley area which happened at approximately 12:30 yesterday (Thursday).
“We are working closely with Network Rail to resolve the disruption as soon as possible.”
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