Rail passengers endure 14-hour London-Scotland nightmare after train breakdown delays over 1,000 travellers

Up to 2,000 rail passengers were delayed up to eight hours or more after a cross-Border train broke down causing chaos to one of Britain’s busiest lines.

The incident sparked anger from travellers about the way they were treated in the disruption, which comes weeks after an official study called for a greater focus on passenger welfare when trains were stranded.

In a highly unusual event, a London-Glasgow Avanti West Coast Pendolino service developed a fault near Abington in South Lanarkshire, with more than 350 passengers having to be evacuated to another train.

The incident on Monday night blocked the west coast main line, delaying ten other Scotland-bound services. One Avanti train to Edinburgh arrived after 4am, nearly eight hours late. Two southbound services were also disrupted.

Knock-on disruption cancelled at least 13 Avanti services on Tuesday between London and Glasgow over all or part of the route. Avanti said some 1,000-2,000 passengers were affected.

Passenger watchdog Transport Focus urged every affected passenger to claim compensation.

An Avanti West Coast Pendolino train arriving at Glasgow Central | The Scotsman

Avanti said its 1.30pm London Euston-Glasgow Central service broke down around 5.30pm, with more than 350 passengers on board being moved via a ramp to another train, which pulled alongside four hours later.

It said the operation had taken longer than normal because of the remote location, with the rescue train having to initially travel south to be able to cross over onto the other track then run at reduced speed as it was travelling in the opposite to normal direction.

The operator also said several other trains, including freight services, had to be moved out of that lengthy section of track before the evacuation could start.

Transport is a vital issue for Scotland - subscribe to Alastair Dalton’s weekly newsletter Avanti said the cause was still being investigated. But an industry expert told The Scotsman: “It’s very rare that a Pendolino fails completely as they have so much built-in duplication.”

Non weather-related disruption on the line is normally caused by problems with overhead power lines and signalling, which are the responsibility of Network Rail, or broken-down freight trains.

Author Judy Darley, among dozens of delayed passengers who took to social media to seek information or express their frustration, posted on X at 9.50pm on Monday: “Finally on the Avanti West Coast rescue train.

“Standing room only and passengers are still boarding from our broken-down train, more than four hours after it suffered an electrical fault and stranded more than 300 people 35 miles from Glasgow. Hopefully we’ll resume our journey soon.”

Later, Rebecca Barr tweeted: “It’s 1am. I’ve been on this train [Euston-Glasgow] since 15:30. Can someone tell us more than ‘we hope to move you soon?’.”

Another passenger, tweeting as Bun, posted at 3.50am: “Now stranded in Glasgow city centre because surge pricing at the station has meant my usual £8 taxi ride costs £45. There’s no buses until half 5. So I’m cold, tired, hungry, still without my meds and stranded.”

Another passenger, Ilaria, tweeted at 8.20am “I'm still not home after the disaster of yesterday's 16-hour train journey from London to Edinburgh”, which she described as “appalling”.

She posted: “Surely I deserve more than the refund of my ticket?”

Claire Bath, from Perthshire, who had tweeted Avanti through the night about her daughter being on a delayed train from London, said she had got home in Edinburgh at 6.40am, eight hours late.

She posted: “Reclaiming the cost of the ticket will go no way to reinstating any confidence we had in Avanti after last night’s dreadful handling of the situation.”

A joint report published on August 1 by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) industry regulator and Transport Focus called for passengers to be better looked after in such incidents.

It concluded: “A key theme for improvement identified by interviewed passengers was the need for greater support for their onward journey after they have been evacuated from the train, but remain far from their destination.”

Transport Focus director Natasha Grice said: “Passengers can reasonably expect that the rail industry responds faster and more effectively to stranded trains situations. The railway’s responsibility to passengers doesn’t end when they eventually get off a stranded train.

“The industry must up its game to ensure passengers are properly looked after even once they are rescued, including onward travel and where needed hotels.”

ORR director of strategy, policy and reform Stephanie Tobyn said: “Rail operators and Network Rail need to improve training and preparedness to implement established procedures so that they can mobilise more quickly to give passengers effective assistance on the train, and should evacuation be required, in supporting them to complete their journey.

“Being stranded on a train for a lengthy period of time is thankfully rare, but when it does happen, rail operators and Network Rail need to work together quickly to assess the situation from a passenger perspective and create a workable plan to safely manage the situation.”

An Avanti West Coast spokesperson said: “At approximately 5:30pm yesterday, we were made aware of a fault on the 1:30pm Euston to Glasgow service, leaving it without power at Abington between Lockerbie and Motherwell.

“The line towards Glasgow Central was subsequently blocked. Passengers were evacuated onto a replacement train just after 9.30pm to take them to safely to their destination.

“We apologise to any customers for their experience yesterday and would encourage anyone caught up in the disruption to claim for compensation.”

An ORR spokesperson added: “When trains are stranded, it is important that train operators and Network Rail mobilise quickly to assess the situation from a passenger perspective and create a workable plan to safely manage the situation.

“We know from our recent work that industry improvements are needed, and ORR is bringing rail operators and Network Rail together to help companies not only mobilise more quickly, but ensure they consider passenger welfare, including helping them complete their onward journey.”