Rail service chaos as bridge collapses onto tracks

The Barrow upon Soar bridge collapse has caused major disruption to services between London and the East Midlands

Network Rail handout photo of the partial bridge Barrow upon Soar, near Loughborough in Leicestershire (PA)

Rail passengers travelling between London and the East Midlands are experiencing major disruptions after a bridge partially collapsed onto the tracks in Leicestershire.

Network Rail said the incident at Barrow upon Soar, near Loughborough in Leicestershire, meant no direct trains are operating between St Pancras and stations north of Leicester, including Sheffield and Nottingham.

Pictures of the incident shows nearly half wall and a large section of the brickwork from one side of the bridge has collapsed onto the tracks, leaving the edge of the road above gaping over the exposed area.

It collapsed and fell at around 2am and Network Rail teams have been working through the night to remove the debris from the railway, according to East Midlands Trains.

The operator said the line is not expected to reopen fully on Tuesday, warning that “there will be severe disruption and a significantly reduced service running between Leicester and London St Pancras”.

A Network Rail spokeswoman said train services between Leicester and Loughborough will be disrupted and while the operator is working to clear the track and reopen the line as quickly as possible, “passengers are advised to check before they travel and allow extra time for their journeys”.

"This will affect journeys on the London St Pancras / Nottingham / Leicester and the Leicester / Lincoln / Grimsby routes,” they added.

Local people said part of a footpath in Grove Lane, which passes over the bridge, had recently started to subside.

Residents told the BBC that works had been due to be carried out on the bridge this week. One person told the broadcaster: "The path on the left hand side has decided to sink gradually over time. They scheduled for the road to be closed for the next three nights and then this."

A spokesman for Severn Trent confirmed that the collapse damaged one of its water mains but no customers had been affected and the pipe had already been repaired.

Additional reporting by Press Association