The following is a look at the preparations and warnings given ahead of Storm Eunice. You can read about the impact of the storm from a more recent report here.
Ahead of Storm Eunice on Friday (18 February), Network Rail has said that every Railway will be closed in Wales as it is hit by potentially the biggest storm it has suffered in a decade.
A rare red warning has been issued by the Met Office for the southwest coastal areas of the UK, which will brace for gusts of up to 90 miles per hour.
And in many regions, rail passengers are being warned against travelling.
Where lines are running, Network Rail has put speed restrictions in place to keep services operating as safely as possible.
Wales to suspend all rail for the day
Network Rail has predicted Wales will undergo winds of up to 100 miles per hour.
Train services will be suspended for the whole of Friday, with disruption likely to continue into the weekend, so that more than 1,000 miles of track can be checked and cleared of debris and fallen trees.
These will be felt around the Pembrokeshire coastline, while winds of between 60 and 80 miles per hour could impact inland across Wales and the borders area.
Transport for Wales (TfW) is allowing passengers with tickets for tomorrow (18 Feb) or Saturday (19 Feb) to travel today or over the weekend, or Monday, if services have resumed by then. Original tickets will be valid for these journeys.
Great Western Railway is also allowing passengers to travel on alternative days with tickets valid today through to and including Monday 21 February.
Avanti West Coast passengers with tickets for Friday can use their tickets today or on Saturday 19 February.
Bill Kelly, Network Rail Wales & Borders route director, said: “The decision to temporarily close the railway in Wales has not been made lightly but the safety of passengers and staff is our top priority.
“Storm Eunice is expected to bring extreme high winds of up to 100mph and in places it is very likely trees and debris will be blown onto train lines.
“We are sorry for the disruption caused by closing the railway and we will continue to work hard, along with our train operator colleagues, to get train services back up and running as soon as it is safe to do so.
“Passengers who are planning to travel over the weekend are strongly advised to check before they travel as the unpredictable nature of storms such as Storm Eunice means the impact on services can change quickly.”
Martyn Brennan, operations director at TfW, said: “The safety of our customers and our colleagues sits at the very heart of what we do and for this reason, we have taken the difficult decision to suspend all TfW services Friday until it is safe to re-open. The extreme weather forecast for Storm Eunice is very concerning, so we are strongly advising people not to attempt to travel during this time as services will not be operating.
“For those who have already purchased a ticket to travel during Storm Eunice, they can choose to either travel today, Thursday 17, on Saturday 19 or on Sunday 20. Alternatively, customers can claim a full refund in the normal way. I would like to thank customers for their understanding and support.”
London Northwestern, TransPennine Express & West Midlands among those that say “do not travel”
LNR is one operator that has issued a warning and cut down services.
The following timetable changes will apply on Friday:
- A significantly reduced service between Birmingham, Northampton and London Euston
- No service between Crewe and London Euston
- No service on the Marston Vale Line between Bedford and Bletchley
Lawrence Bowman, LNR customer experience director, said: “Storm Eunice is expected to be one of the biggest storms in recent years and we expect significant disruption to train services.
“The message to our customers is clear – do not use the train on Friday. Customers with tickets for travel on Friday will be able to travel today and Saturday instead.”
Paul Watson, operations director for TransPennine Express said: “Storm Eunice will be the second storm to impact our services this week and it is likely to cause major disruption to train services, right across the North of England and into Scotland.
“The most important thing is that our customers and staff are kept safe, and we are urging customers not to travel by train on Friday 18 February. We are instead asking customers to make their journeys on either Thursday 17 or Saturday 19 February.
Jonny Wiseman, West Midlands Railway customer experience director, said: “Storm Eunice is expected to be one of the biggest storms in recent years and we expect significant disruption to train services.
“The message to our customers is clear – do not use the train on Friday. Customers with tickets for travel on Friday will be able to travel today and Saturday instead.”
John Robson, CrossCountry regional director North West and West Midlands, said: “Storm Eunice is expected to cause significant disruption to services across our network on Friday. We will be running a much reduced service and journey times will take longer as blanket speed restrictions – 50mph in most places – will be imposed for safety reasons across large swathes of the UK. We strongly advise that customers avoid travel on Friday and re-plan their journey for another day. We will be assessing the service that can be offered for the rest of the weekend once we have further details about the extent of the storm. Full information can be found on our website.”
Chris Jackson, regional director for Northern, said: “Storm Eunice will cause widespread disruption across the network tomorrow, affecting all operators in the region.
“As such, we are advising passengers not to travel and to consider whether the journey is necessary.”
Sarah Reid, East Coast route director for Network Rail, said: “Running a railway through extreme weather is always a challenge. We have extra workers out on the network at key locations, ready to react quickly to Storm Eunice and repair the railway wherever it’s safe to do so. As the weather worsens I’d advise passengers to avoid travelling on Friday and, wherever possible, try to replan your journey when conditions improve.”
Midlands hurries to clear debris before second storm
After Storm Dudley blew trees and debris across the Midlands on Wednesday night, with the threat of Storm Eunice looming, teams rushed to clear the lines.
The wind had thrown about everything from trees to a flyaway mattress.
Denise Wetton, Network Rail’s Central route director, said: “With such strong winds expected from Storm Eunice we know that disruption to passengers’ journeys is inevitable and we strongly recommend people do not travel on Friday. We have rapid response on standby to clear routes impacted by the bad weather and keep train passengers safe.”
Lucy Wootton, head of the Grand Railway Collaboration, which represents train operators and Network Rail in the West Midlands and surrounding areas, said: “We will do all we can to keep trains moving safely and the rail industry will react as quickly as possible to resolve any storm-related issues. However, we would urge people to decide if their travel on Friday is vital and if not, to travel on another day if at all possible.”
Great Western Railway – restrictions will be dictated by the severity of the storm
Speed and service restrictions could alter to adapt to the severity of the storm, said Great Western Railway (GWR).
GWR managing director Mark Hopwood said: “Speed restrictions will be put in place on our network, but the extent of those restrictions can only be determined by conditions on the ground and are likely to change throughout the day.
“We will continue to run as many trains as we can but those who need to travel travel should be aware that we will have to reduce the number of trains we can run, journey times will take longer, and those trains we can run will be much busier.
“Please do heed the usual advice to check before you travel, and if you hold a ticket for tomorrow [Friday 18 February] and would like to travel today or up to Monday, we have eased restrictions so that you are able to do so.”
Greater Anglia, Merseyrail, East Midlands & more: only travel on route if it is essential
Greater Anglia has said that it is reducing its train services. The reductions service for Friday include:
Half hourly service
- Southend Victoria to London Liverpool Street
- Stansted Airport to London
Hourly service
- Norwich to London Liverpool Street Intercity service
- Cambridge, Bishop’s Stortford to London Liverpool Street
- Ipswich, Colchester, Chelmsford to London Liverpool Street
- Meridian Water to Stratford
- Southminster – Wickford
- Harwich – Manningtree
- Walton-on-the-Naze – Thorpe-le-Soken
- Clacton-on-Sea – Colchester
- Hertford East – Broxbourne
- Marks Tey to Sudbury
- Norwich to Cambridge,
- Norwich to Great Yarmouth
- Norwich to Lowestoft
Two hourly (once every two hours)
- Norwich to Sheringham
- Ipswich to Cambridge
- Ipswich to Lowestoft
- Ipswich to Felixstowe
- Ipswich to Peterborough
Greater Anglia has said will be contacting any customers who have booked passenger assistance on affected services. They can also call Greater Anglia to check or rearrange their journey by calling 0800 028 2878 (free from a landline), text type 18001 0800 028 2878 or call from a mobile phone on 0345 6007245.
Customers who have booked tickets for travel on Friday 18 February can use them on another day. Customers can choose to rearrange their travel plans free of charge, which can be done where they bought their tickets.
In the event of any additional service disruption, Greater Anglia will do its best to provide a rail replacement bus service but it is likely to be limited and subject to disruption on the roads due to storm damage.
Jamie Burles, Greater Anglia managing director said: “We are very sorry to inconvenience customers, but we want to make sure that we run a safe and reliable service in the extreme conditions that have been forecast.
“High winds can cause damage to overhead lines and tracks caused by debris or fallen trees, which it may not be safe to fix immediately until wind levels have dropped.
“There is also a danger of flooding on some of our lines, which could lead to landslips or tracks becoming unstable.
“Passengers are advised to check before they travel, expect longer journey times and be aware that there may be short notice cancellations due to trees blocking the line or objects blown onto overhead wires preventing trains from running.”
Ellie Burrows, Network Rail’s route director for Anglia, said: “We will be doing everything we can to keep as many services as possible running safely and reliably, but with such strong winds expected we know that disruption to passengers’ journeys is inevitable.
“We ask passengers to please consider whether your journey is necessary and if you need to travel please be aware that there may be changes and cancellations at short notice.”
Greg Suligowski, head of customer strategy for Merseyrail, said: “Strong winds are forecast on Friday 18 February and we expect disruption to services from midday.
“Passengers are advised not to travel unless necessary and to prepare alternative transport for the afternoon in case services can no longer run, as it is unlikely rail replacement busses will be able to operate.”
Matt Stacey, head of stations at East Midlands Railway, said: “We strongly advise customers who need to make a journey with us in the next few days to choose either today or Saturday. The strength of Storm Eunice will mean that on Friday there is likely to be widespread disruption to services across the country’s rail network.
“However, we understand that not everyone can rearrange their travel plans and customers may still need to travel by rail. If this is the case, we suggest customers leave themselves plenty of extra time to reach their destination.”
Alex Cropper, interim head of operations at Transport for Greater Manchester, said: “Storm Eunice is expected to bring heavy winds which could severely affect public transport across Greater Manchester.
“There is a risk that debris such as trees or branches could be blown onto tracks, disrupting services and damaging equipment.
“With the Met Office warning that the weather could result in a danger to life, I’d strongly urge people to stay safe and think carefully before travelling and travel only if absolutely necessary.”
