Leeds Disruption - 26/07/25

[noddingdonkey]

Presumably this is going to affect units required at Neville Hill for maintenance tonight?

 

[northernchris]

I’m not huge fan of Northern and some of their decisions, but on this one I really don’t know what else they could have done!

Discouraging those from travelling who hadn't started their journeys was wise, but the lack of info is unforgivable. LNER had managed to source some replacement buses for Doncaster, and had staff on Wellington Street to assist, but Northern effectively gave up, the only advice being to claim a refund. Expecting Northern to match the support LNER and TPE were providing shouldn't be a big ask, but their staff disappeared. It's also poor how nearly all of Northern's last trains out of Leeds are cancelled.

 

[800001]

I’ve managed to catch a train into Leeds from Sandal & Agbrigg, and we’ve passed Wakefield Westgate so there’s no going back now

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Presumably with it being Sunday tomorrow, there could be residual disruption from this continuing into Monday?

Monday should be fine. Tomorrow may have alterations as they rebalance the fleet to the correct locations.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

I'm supposed to be on the 1944 Newcastle to Manchester. At the moment TPE are saying it's running, but I'm sceptical.

What did you end up doing? The 1944 TPE service starting from Newcastle does seem to have run, albeit some 15-20 mins down.

 

[Richard101]

What do you suggest they do, when the whole of West Yorkshire (and beyond) is crippled?

A civil emergency should be declared when there is an incident as major as this - emergency centres should be opened for people to stay. Bus services should be reduced to make drivers and vehicles available.

 

[liamf656]

A civil emergency should be declared when there is an incident as major as this - emergency centres should be opened for people to stay. Bus services should be reduced to make drivers and vehicles available.

Reduce bus services and disrupt even more people!?

 

[dk1]

Deleted

 

[Hophead]

A civil emergency should be declared when there is an incident as major as this - emergency centres should be opened for people to stay. Bus services should be reduced to make drivers and vehicles available.

Scummy bus passengers obviously being a lower priority than nice train travellers of course

 

[Class 170101]

I'm guessing the route between York and Brighouse via Wakefield Kirkgate and Heaton Lodge Jn (avoiding Leeds) wasn't available as an alternative to keep those that didn't want Leeds area destinations moving?

 

[Crossover]

I'm guessing the route between York and Brighouse via Wakefield Kirkgate and Heaton Lodge Jn (avoiding Leeds) wasn't available as an alternative to keep those that didn't want Leeds area destinations moving?

I believe Mirfield area was equally shafted (certainly there was a passenger train stuck in the Leeds bound platform and a freight behind it)

The issue quite literally floored West Yorkshire

 

[dk1]

A civil emergency should be declared when there is an incident as major as this - emergency centres should be opened for people to stay. Bus services should be reduced to make drivers and vehicles available.

But if I was a bus driver why would I come off my diagram anymore than I would as a train driver if it didn’t suit me?

 

[1D53]

I'm guessing the route between York and Brighouse via Wakefield Kirkgate and Heaton Lodge Jn (avoiding Leeds) wasn't available as an alternative to keep those that didn't want Leeds area destinations moving?

The section of line between Ulleskelf and Church Fenton is controlled by Leeds East workstation which was one of the five impacted.

 

[LittleAH]

All very well to say "do not travel", but at that time of day that's a bit late - most people will be trying to get home. I cuold so easily have been among them as I would have been at Ribblehead when it all went wrong, and would have been stranded at Leeds overnight. At least it's a mild one.

It’s CSL2 Black, encouraging those who don’t need to travel not to travel is very sensible.

A civil emergency should be declared when there is an incident as major as this - emergency centres should be opened for people to stay. Bus services should be reduced to make drivers and vehicles available.

So local bus users should suffer? Incredibly selfish.

 

[dk1]

So local bus users should suffer? Incredibly selfish.

it’s okay, it’s never going to happen.

 

[Class 170101]

The section of line between Ulleskelf and Church Fenton is controlled by Leeds East workstation which was one of the five impacted.

Does that workstation cover as far as Colton Jn?

 

[Richard101]

It’s CSL2 Black, encouraging those who don’t need to travel not to travel is very sensible.

So local bus users should suffer? Incredibly selfish.

Not selfish - it is sharing resources. Instead of a bus every ten minutes you get one every 20 minutes. Just a minor irritation in what is a major crisis. Everyone needs to pull together when there is emergency and did when a major incident was declared here due weather

 

[NorthernSpirit]

What do you expect the Train companies to do.

What I'd expect would be some formal agreement in place between rail operators and local bus companies in the event of a signalling meltdown or other serious issue, passengers would be able to use their rail ticket on the local bus service(s), to get them to their destination. Not ideal, but it does keep things moving. E.g someone stranded at Hebden Bridge would be permitted to use First Halifax services 590/591/592 to Halifax, then Arriva Yorkshire service 255 to Leeds.

 

[Andyh82]

Not selfish - it is sharing resources. Instead of a bus every ten minutes you get one every 20 minutes. Just a minor irritation in what is a major crisis. Everyone needs to pull together when there is emergency and did when a major incident was declared here due weather

So you are suggesting a local bus driver stops doing a short route from the city centre to an outer suburb and suddenly becomes a rail replacement, running long distance, with no route learning and probably not enough driving hours?

 

[matthewjohnson]

Not selfish - it is sharing resources. Instead of a bus every ten minutes you get one every 20 minutes. Just a minor irritation in what is a major crisis. Everyone needs to pull together when there is emergency and did when a major incident was declared here due weather

You've clearly never used a bus service in West Yorkshire. Lucky if we get a normal bus service of one every half hour!

 

[Ecmlleeds]

chaotic today! Does anyone know the score with a priv ticket and having to get a taxi? Can it still be claimed from the TOC as a customer would? I had to get a taxi from Garforth to York (in order to meet a train from my own toc, to go further north) as, in typical fashion for when I travel for leisure, I got to the station and it all went wrong

 

[GordonT]

A civil emergency should be declared when there is an incident as major as this - emergency centres should be opened for people to stay. Bus services should be reduced to make drivers and vehicles available.

When I first read your post I was in admiration of it thinking it was a well crafted tongue in cheek parody of an over the top response post.

 

[Sakuradori]

NRES refer to a signalling fault. Something this large would suggest a complete loss of signalling in a panel(s)

Yup. Every workstation I believe, and multiple points out of correspondence
Actually, If I was signaller, what would my day look like after a total loss of signalling?

 

[MichaelTrains]

We had to fight tooth and nail (my mother is diabetic and was at the point of nearly passing out) to be given a taxi back home, along with another stranded passenger.

Chaotic is an understatement. There were still 50+ people stuck when we got our taxi.

 

[1D53]

Does that workstation cover as far as Colton Jn?

It doesn't. Hence the main ECML was still able to run, platform congestion at York and Doncaster aside.

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We had to fight tooth and nail (my mother is diabetic and was at the point of nearly passing out) to be given a taxi back home, along with another stranded passenger.

Chaotic is an understatement. There were still 50+ people stuck when we got our taxi.

Again, it's supply and demand of taxis, in the same way as supply and demand of buses. You will never generally have this much contingency in a system to account for the very rare, very significant failures. See also: Heathrow etc etc.

 

[MichaelTrains]

Presumably this is going to affect units required at Neville Hill for maintenance tonight?

I have to travel to Liverpool for essential work tomorrow, so I’m praying that everything is running smoothly from Leeds along the corridor.

 

[godfreycomplex]

Actually, If I was signaller, what would my day look like after a total loss of signalling?

Like the kind of day you need a glass of wine after!

Non-facetious answer, once you’ve brought all the trains in your area to a stand, you work out where all your trains are, work out which ones need moving into platforms, work out how you’re going to achieve that, and put those steps in motion. Then you work out each piece of equipment that’s failed and how it’s failed, and how it’s going to affect you. You’re in constant communication with crews, signallers, maintenance and control. You’re keeping manual watch of where all your trains are on your own with few, if any, technical aids, because in degraded working there’s a very real possibility of a collision whilst all this is going on, if you, or someone else, does something even slightly wrong. Did I mention A - that’s all within the first 15-20 mins of an incident like this and B - you’re doing all of this at the same time?

So quite busy, in other words

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 27 Jul 2025 ==

chaotic today! Does anyone know the score with a priv ticket and having to get a taxi? Can it still be claimed from the TOC as a customer would?

It can indeed

 

[JordR]

If the signalling has failed how does authorising trains to move work? Is the general principle that passenger trains go to the next suitable platform only and then terminate?

 

[Belperpete]

Yup. Every workstation I believe, and multiple points out of correspondence

Sounds like a loss of all Comms links into the ROC. Points showing OOC would be the result of loss of detection information from the interlockings I suspect.

 

[godfreycomplex]

If the signalling has failed how does authorising trains to move work? Is the general principle that passenger trains go to the next suitable platform only and then terminate?

More or less. The priority is to get trains into platforms (even if only partially) if possible then go from there.

Basically all the components that are normally detected by the interlocking have to be proved. If points are out of correspondance they need to be secured, the route must be blocked to other trains entering on conflicting routes, etc etc

 

[1D53]

You can also use Emergency Permissive Working to put two trains into platforms where you wouldn't normally be able to do so to stop them being stranded and to allow people off. There was 28 stranded trains in this incident and 21 were able to move but 7 were stuck with points ahead and in rear that had no detection.