Trains suspended as heatwave causes rails to buckle

West Midlands Railway services between Coventry and Leamington Spa are currently suspended after a rail buckled in Leamington in the extreme temperatures.

Trains visiting the station are also being delayed or cancelled due to the defective track - with trains travelling towards London running at a reduced speed.

The disruption is expected to last until 20:00 BST, affecting Chiltern Railways routes between London, Stourbridge, Birmingham, Stratford-upon-Avon and Banbury.

CrossCountry and West Midlands Railway (WMR) routes via Nuneaton and Worcester are also affected.

WMR said it was not unusual for extreme heat to cause rails to expand and buckle, meaning that when temperatures reach certain thresholds, trains must run more slowly to keep services safe.

It asked passengers to travel only if necessary due and said it would continue to operate a reduced timetable on Friday to keep services safe.

Routes with reduced service levels on Thursday and Friday include:

• Cross City Line - Lichfield - Redditch / Bromsgrove via Birmingham
• Rugeley Trent Valley - Birmingham International
• Wolverhampton - Walsall via Birmingham
• Camp Hill Line - Birmingham New Street - Kings Norton
• Snow Hill Lines - Worcester stations - Stratford-upon-Avon via Birmingham

Jonny Wiseman, WMR customer experience and commercial director, said: "With the ongoing heatwave continuing to cause significant disruption to rail services, we are again asking our customers to only travel on Friday if their journey is essential.

"Customers holding tickets for travel can use them on any day up until next Tuesday, or return them to their place of purchase for a full refund."

Earlier in the week, Network Rail appealed to passengers to only travel on trains if their journeys were really necessary.

That plea has now been extended until the end of Friday, as temperatures remain high at the end of the week.

Denise Wetton, Network Rail's Central route director, said: "While all railway lines will remain open, running fewer trains will help us manage the impact of the hot weather and keep passengers and colleagues safe.

"We strongly advise customers to think carefully about their plans and only travel if it's absolutely necessary in the areas most affected by the highest temperatures.

"If you do need to travel, please allow extra time, carry water to stay hydrated and be prepared for services to be busier than usual."

Network Rail added the tracks, power and signalling systems can all be affected by extreme heat.

On a 30C day, it said steel tracks could reach more than 50C at ground level, leading to rails expanding, overhead lines sagging, and infrastructure potentially failing.

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