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UK travel news: Millions passengers face disruption amid heavy floods

Millions of travellers are expected to travel for Christmas today

Friday 20 December 2019 09:26 GMT
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UK weather: Flooded railway tracks lead to major travel disruption in south east England

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For the next two weeks, millions of rail passengers will find journeys across Britain difficult. They will be hit by a combination of Network Rail engineering work, strikes and nature.

UK airports will also be busy over the festive period, with millions of passengers expected to pass through on midwinter trips.

Due to a landslip, all rail lines between Redhill and Guildford in Surrey are blocked.

There are engineers on site to assess the situation, but disruption is expected until 4pm today.

Cathy Adams20 December 2019 09:56

The Met Office is forecasting plenty of heavy rain this morning, and is advising motorists to take care on the roads.

Cathy Adams20 December 2019 10:01

In Suffolk, Greater Anglia is warning that due to a landslip in Woodbridge, some lines are blocked.

Disruption is expected until 12pm today.

Cathy Adams20 December 2019 10:13

At Gatwick, the busiest single-runway airport in the world, delays are building – an easyJet flight to Montpellier and British Airways to Lanzarote are three hours late, with some other easyJet, BA and Tui flights suffering shorter delays.

It is believed that some of these are caused by staff being unable to get to work.

helen.coffey20 December 2019 10:35

As the country readies itself for the festive period, 126,554 car breakdowns are expected to take place on UK roads in the days leading up to Christmas (20-25 December 2019) - the equivalent of 15 breakdowns a minute.

Breakdown cover provider Green Flag is urging drivers to check their vehicles before making trips, including tyre pressure, oil levels and vehicle lights.

helen.coffey20 December 2019 10:51

London hasn't escaped the travel chaos, with several lines experiencing severe delays.

On the London Overground, there's currently no service between Camden Road and Richmond/Shepherd's Bush, with severe delays between Shepherd's Bush and Clapham Junction and between Camden Road and Stratford due to overhead line problems at Willesden Junction.

On the Metropolitan line, there's no service between Wembley Park and Aldgate and severe delays on the rest of the line due to a signal failure at Wembley Park. 

And on the DLR there are severe delays between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank/Stratford International and between Beckton and Tower Gateway due to faulty trains.

helen.coffey20 December 2019 11:17

At London Waterloo, adding to the problems of the South Western Railway strike, the main line to Portsmouth is blocked because of a landslip.

South Western Railway is telling travellers: "Trains between Waterloo and Portsmouth may be diverted via Basingstoke, run between London Waterloo and Guildford or between Portsmouth and Haslemere. To help with your journey, tickets will be accepted on Southern services via any reasonable route."

Cathy Adams20 December 2019 11:20

Radar from the Met Office shows that there's a lot of rain across the UK today.

Cathy Adams20 December 2019 11:32

It's not all doom and gloom at Gatwick - if you're travelling through the South Terminal today, keep your eyes peeled for some festive entertainers...

Cathy Adams20 December 2019 11:58

The rail disruption continues across the Channel too, as Eurostar has delayed its first Ski Train of the winter season.

The train, which was due to leave London tonight and arrive in Bourg St-Maurice early on Saturday, has been rescheduled to leave St Pancras tomorrow morning.

Simon Calder has all the details:

Cathy Adams20 December 2019 12:16

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