Chaos on Yorkshire trains as overhead line damage and flooding halts commuters

Delays and cancellations have been frequent on the East Coast Main Line after overhead lines were damaged between Peterborough and Grantham.

The LNER announced damage to the overhead electric wires on Saturday and Sunday (Dec 9 and 10) causing a halt to all trains, alongside a message advising people not to travel.

LNER lines between London Kings Cross and Lincoln, Leeds, Bradford Forster Square, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Aberdeen were all affected as was Grand Central between London Kings Cross and Bradford Interchange and Sunderland.

David Horne, LNER's managing director, explained on X (Twitter), teams worked over the weekend on all four lines but disruption is expected to continue until the end of today (Dec 11).

LNER confirmed East Midlands Railway, Hull Trains and Lumo services are no longer affected by this incident. But, trains running between Peterborough and Grantham may still be cancelled, delayed by up to 45 minutes or revised.

Commuters on Northern routes between Skipton and Leeds, and also to Bradford Forster Square and Carlisle, and LNER between London Kings Cross and Bradford Forster Square and Skipton, also faced delays and cancellations due to flooding.

Heavy rain caused flooding of the railway at Kirkstall Forge meaning that all lines are currently blocked, according to National Rail. Trains running between Leeds and Shipley and Ilkley may also be cancelled or delayed by up to 45 minutes.

Passengers travelling between Bradford and Leeds are currently being urged to travel via Bradford Interchange as all tickets will be accepted.

Passengers travelling between Leeds and Carlisle may travel via Preston using Northern services between Leeds and Preston and then TransPennine Express and Avanti services between Preston and Carlisle, in both directions.

National Rail anticipates this disruption will continue until 1pm today (Dec 11).