Closure of main UK rail line causes chaos

UK rail network is being checked after the Hatfield disaster

LONDON, England -- Rail passengers face severe disruption after the company in charge of the national network announced at short notice a three-day closure of a main line between Scotland and England.

The delays further compounded widespread disruptions to UK passenger rail services in the wake of the Hatfield derailment, just north of London, that claimed four lives last week.

Railtrack said it was closing the West Coast Main line between Glasgow and Carlisle from 8.00 am (0700 GMT) on Wednesday for safety checks.

There were further delays in the West Country after the Great Western train company introduced a temporary timetable following the introduction of speed restrictions in response to the accident.

Railtrack Chief Executive Gerald Corbett said the company had also put speed restrictions across the network to enable them to carry out safety checks.

Railtrack said it had decided to inspect and repair the West Coast work in one operation to avoid passengers being inconvenienced by weeks of speed restrictions on the key route.

Almost £6 billion is being spent on a modernisation project for the line.

"I know in the short term that it is going to be awkward for passengers, but in the long term that is actually the right way to run the railway," Corbett said.

He defended the decision to close the line: "You have to make these decisions very quickly. Our local people have the accountability for safety. If they get it wrong and make a wrong judgement, they can get prosecuted," he said.

Railtrack boss Gerald Corbett: Decisions must be taken quickly

The Hatfield crash, Britain's third major train disaster in three years, led to drastic speed reductions along dozens of similar stretches of track, causing major delays.

Rail experts slammed the closure decision, saying passengers had not been given enough warning about changes to the schedule.

"I think 'fed up' would be an understatement at the moment from rail passengers," a spokesman for the Central Rail Users' Consultative Committee said.

"Safety is paramount, we accept that. But information is the key. At least there is a chance then of passengers going with the railway as they go through what is going to be a very rocky period indeed," he said.

Passengers affected by the closures also expressed their anger at the delays.

"They should give seven days' notice when they are going to close a line, not two hours. It is a totally unacceptable way to treat people," said Stephen Leeman, 18, of Glasgow.

There appeared little respite for those caught up in the delays between London and Glasgow.

Managers on the main alternative service -- East Coast Main Line -- warned passengers to avoid switching to this service.

"Our trains are absolutely full and are subject to post-Hatfield speed restrictions," said a spokesman for Great North Railways, which runs the east coast line.

British Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott said on Tuesday that the Hatfield crash had prompted an investigation into the make-up of the whole of Britain's rail industry.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Four die in UK train crash
October 17, 2000
UK rail chief to keep job after tragedy
October 19, 2000

Railtrack
Great North Eastern Railways

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