Major disruption between London and Cambridge / Peterborough expected until the end of service 

Route(s) affected

Grand Central between London Kings Cross and Bradford Interchange / Sunderland

Great Northern between Moorgate and Letchworth Garden City and also between London Kings Cross and Letchworth Garden City / Royston / Cambridge / Ely / Kings Lynn

Hull Trains between London Kings Cross and Hull / Beverley

LNER between London Kings Cross and Lincoln / Leeds / Bradford Forster Square / Harrogate / York / Sunderland / Newcastle / Edinburgh / Aberdeen

Lumo between London Kings Cross and Edinburgh

Thameslink between Brighton and Cambridge, between Horsham and Peterborough and also between London Kings Cross and Cambridge / Peterborough

Description

Damage to the overhead wires between Stevenage and Hitchin means all lines are blocked. As a result, trains running between London and Cambridge / Peterborough may be cancelled, severely delayed by up to 120 minutes or revised.

Southbound lines towards London Kings Cross are likely to remain closed for the rest of the day and no trains will be able to operate.

Major disruption is expected until the end of service.

Customer advice:

Grand Central

You can use your ticket dated Friday 9 August for travel today (Saturday 10 August) at no extra cost.

To help you complete your journey, you can use your Grand Central ticket at no extra cost on East Midlands Railway services between London St Pancras International and Sheffield.

Please speak to station staff for onward travel to your destination.

Great Northern and Thameslink

All lines are closed between Stevenage and Hitchin due to damage to the overhead electric wires.

This incident is causing severe disruption to Thameslink and Great Northern services, as well as long-distance trains in this area.

The following Thameslink and Great Northern routes are most significantly affected:

• Brighton - Cambridge

• Horsham - Peterborough

• London Kings Cross - Letchworth Garden City / Royston / Cambridge / Ely / Kings Lynn

In reaction to congestion, some local services on the following routes are also disrupted:

• Moorgate - Welwyn Garden City

• Moorgate - Gordon Hill / Hertford North / Stevenage

It is recommend that you avoid travelling at present, unless there is an alternative route which covers your journey.

If you are using an alternative route, it is recommend tha you check journey times, as you may need to leave around 30-60 minutes of extra time.

If you're waiting on a train which is delayed between stations:

If your train is delayed between stations, please remain where you are and listen to announcements, or speak to staff for further information. Staff will get you moving as soon as possible. Staff are aware of your location, and teams will be doing everything they can to help you continue your journey.

Please don't leave the train unless you are asked to do so. Other trains may still be moving in the area, and the track is also a very hazardous environment.

Ticket acceptance on alternative routes:

Your ticket for this route will be accepted at no extra cost on:

North of London:

• Greater Anglia between London Liverpool Street and Cambridge

• Greater Anglia between between Cambridge and Ely

• East Midlands Railway between London St Pancras International and Bedford

• Thameslink between London St Pancras International and Bedford

• Uno Buses route 602 between Hatfield, St Albans and Radlett

• Uno Buses route 610 between Luton, Harpenden, Hatfield, Welham Green, Brookmans Park and Potters Bar

• Uno Buses route 635 between Hitchin, Stevenage and Hatfield

• Uno Buses route 653 between St Albans, Hatfield and Welwyn Garden City

London area:

• London Underground services across Central and North London

• London Buses via any reasonable route serving stations between Central London and Potters Bar (if you are asked by the bus driver, please state PrePay Reference 604)

South of London:

• Southern services between London and Brighton / Horsham (some trains via Horsham will stop additionally at Ifield and Littlehaven)

• Gatwick Express services between London Victoria, Gatwick Express and Brighton

• Grest Western Railway services between Redhill and Gatwick Airport

Tickets for today will be valid tomorrow:

You can use your ticket for (9 August) on services today (10 August) instead.

You'll only be able to do this on trains which are operated by Southern, Gatwick Express, Thameslink and Great Northern. Please speak to other train companies if you need help travelling on their services.

Replacement buses:

Great Northern and Thameslink been able to resource some replacement buses. However, these are now mainly being used to meet trains which are delayed between stations.

If a timetabled for service can be provided, this message will be updated.

Planning your journey:

You can check train departures from your station here:

• Thameslink live departure boards

• Great Northern live departure boards

You can view live maps of our network here:

• Thameslink live route map

• Great Northern live route map

You can also see our alternative route guides here:

• Thameslink alternative route guide

• Great Northern alternative route guide

If you're travelling in the London area, you can plan journeys on alternative routes by using the TfL Journey Planner here.

Hull Trains

Customers can use their ticket for Friday 9 August on services today (Saturday 10 August) instead.

To help you complete your journey, you can use your ticket on CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Northern and TransPennine Express services via any reasonable route.

LNER

Customers may use their tickets dated for travel Friday 9 Auguest to travel today, Saturday 10 August at no extra cost.

If you are unable to defer your journey LNER have arrangements in place to assist you to complete your journey. Please note that due to the time of day, alternative options are limited and LNER would advise deferring your journey.

You can use your ticket on the following services at no extra cost:

• Avanti West Coast between London Euston and Manchester

• TransPennine Express between Manchester, Leeds and York / Newcastle

• East Midlands Railway between London St Pancras International and Sheffield

• Northern via any reasonable route, including services from Sheffield, Manchester, Leeds

You can see an alternative route map for journeys to / from London Euston here.

An alternative route map for journeys to / from London St Pancras International is available here.

Lumo

Road transport will run where required. For further information please speak to station staff or onboard staff about completing your journey.

Can you tell me more about the incident?

A train has detected a fault with the overhead wires between Stevenage and Hitchin. There is now a report that the wires have been damaged and that the railway through this area cannot be used at present.

Teams are working with Network Rail to assess and deal with this as quickly as possible, but this will take a considerable amount of time.

We were since informed of further power supply issues affecting the overhead wires between Finsbury Park and Welwyn Garden City. These have now been dealt with.

Check before you travel:

You can check your journey using the National Rail Enquiries real-time Journey Planner.

For helpful advice if you need to travel on a rail replacement service, including accessibility information, please use our travel information pages.

You can find the location of your replacement bus by checking station signs or by searching for your station on our station information pages.

Compensation:

You may be entitled to compensation if you experience a delay in completing your journey today. Please keep your train ticket and make a note of your journey, as both will be required to support any claim.