Whilst some work has been carried out to check the Class 800 trains have been carried out in the past 48 hours, it seems that cancellations will be spreading into the working week. Both Great Western Railway and London North Eastern Railway have their operations heavily impacted.
Great Western Railway (GWR)
GWR state that disruption is expected to continue during the week. The train company is working on timetables, which are a work in progress.
Currently, Customers with tickets for long-distance services are advised not to travel on Monday 10 May. Tickets dated for travel between Saturday 08 May and Sunday 16 May, can instead be used on any alternative day between Monday 10 May and Sunday 16 May inclusive.
You should not attempt to travel on the following long-distance routes:
- London Paddington – Swindon – Bath Spa – Bristol Temple Meads.
- London Paddington – Swindon – Bristol Parkway – Newport – Cardiff Central – Swansea.
- London Paddington – Reading – Taunton – Exeter St Davids – Plymouth – Penzance.
- London Paddington – Reading – Oxford – Evesham – Worcester – Great Malvern – Hereford.
- London Paddington – Reading – Swindon – Gloucester – Cheltenham Spa.
Ticket Acceptance
Avanti West Coast, SWR, CrossCountry, Chiltern and West Midlands Railway are conveying passengers via any reasonable route until further notice. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys.
London North Eastern Railway (LNER)
LNER is advising they are operating a reduced timetable and there will be some cancellations across the LNER route between Monday 10 and Friday 14 May 2021. You will need to check before you travel.
If your train is running, you can travel as planned. LNER is operating as “reservation only” and you should only travel on a train you have a confirmed reservation for.
You can make a seat reservation here.
If your train is cancelled between Monday 10 to Friday 14 May your ticket will be accepted on another LNER train to the same destination. If you are unable to travel on the same day, your ticket will be accepted any day between Monday 10 and Sunday 16 May. You must reserve a seat on the new train before travelling. LNER advises that trains may be busy. If the trains around your original time are full, you may need to be flexible and travel earlier or later.
Ticket Acceptance
LNER tickets will be valid with the following train operating companies:
- Avanti West Coast between London Euston and Manchester / Scotland
- East Midlands Railway between London St Pancras International and Sheffield
- Northern services via any other reasonable route
- Thameslink services between London St Pancras and Peterborough
- Grand Central via any reasonable route
- ScotRail between Edinburgh and Aberdeen / Inverness
Allow extra time for your journey – and plan ahead
With the Hitachi Rail Class Class 800/801/802 being sidelined for checks, travel disruption is going to be major for the next few days.
As trains are released back into service, we can hope for a semblance of a normal timetable to be implemented.
For now, check before you travel at National Rail Enquiries, Great Western Railway and LNER sites.
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