Flooding in the Hooton area

[Old Yard Dog]

Trains through Hooton were cancelled all day yesterday (Sunday 27th Aug) and earlier today due to flooding in the Hooton area. This did not surprise me as I was caught in a biblical downpour about 2230 on Saturday night and sat in my car outside my house for almost half an hour as I didn't want to get drenched going in! Sadly this was the same storm which caused two pensioners to lose their lives in Liverpool (see earlier thread). I am surprised the last late night trains actually ran on Saturday.

Merseyrail provided a shuttle between Liverpool and Rock Ferry on Sunday and Monday with replacement buses from there to Chester and Ellesmere Port. Trains alternated between the little used bay platform 3 and the usual Liverpool bound through platform 2, outward services using the facing crossover north of Rock Ferry in each case. The first service to Chester today left Rock Ferry at 1228 (having started at 1159 and gone round the loop). The first service to Ellesmere Port left Rock Ferry much later at 1805 (having started at 1730 and gone round the loop).

When I arrived at Little Sutton at 2002 on a later train, the platform indicators were still showing "Service suspended due to flooding, bus replacement in operation" a couple of hours after trains had actually resumed,. This could have caused prospective passengers to miss their trains waiting outside the station for a non-existent bus. As far as I can make out, no timings were given for the replacement buses on the Ellesmere Port branch on either day, either at the station or online.

 

[Purple Train]

I was caught up in this going to Chester on Sunday afternoon. As you say, no RRB timings were given. There were loads of staff members at Rock Ferry directing people. Buses to Ellesmere Port ran only from Hooton, with Chester buses running through. Where particularly was the flooding? There was none visible from the bus although a road in the Capenhurst area was flooded deep when we passed.

 

[73001]

The flood water had some affect on the signalling system which is why it was a bit longer than for just waiting for the water to drain away.

 

[Old Yard Dog]

Staff were conspicuous by their absence at Rock Ferry station this morning when the missus dropped me off. I didn't trust the RRBs from Little Sutton, not knowing if or when they might run, or where to.

 

[TheSel]

I was caught up in this going to Chester on Sunday afternoon. As you say, no RRB timings were given. There were loads of staff members at Rock Ferry directing people. Buses to Ellesmere Port ran only from Hooton, with Chester buses running through. Where particularly was the flooding? There was none visible from the busite although a road in the Capenhurst area was flooded deep when we passed.

The flood water had some affect on the signalling system which is why it was a bit longer than for just waiting for the water to drain away.

This was Hooton on Sunday morning, after the worst of the flooding had receded. (Pic below shows flooding of the lines north of Hooton, taken from the road overbridge)