Edinburgh Waverley: Long queues at station following major disruption to trains

Crowds of people have been pictured queuing at Edinburgh Waverley following major disruption on a main train line.

Trains arriving and departing from the Edinburgh station have been cancelled and delayed following damage to the overhead wires between Newcastle and Berwick Upon Tweed on Friday afternoon.

The disruption is expected to last for the rest of the day, according to Network Rail.

One passenger travelling with two young children said people are being “herded like cattle” through the station as crowds queue to wait for the next available services.

Crowds pictured queuing at Edinburgh Waverley after damage to trains cause disruption to services picture of train: Mark Fawcett

Passengers have been advised to check their journey via National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator and allow plenty of time.

Network Rail has confirmed engineers are carrying out repairs overnight to allow services to resume tomorrow morning.

Paul Rutter, Route Director for Network Rail’s East Coast route, said: “I apologise for the disruption that passengers on the East Coast Main Line are experiencing today as a result of the damage to the overhead wires.

“The safety of passengers and our teams is our main priority and we had to close a section of the line to complete safety inspections. We’ve managed to get some trains moving and work will take place tonight to repair the damage.

Crowds pictured at Edinburgh Waverley following major disruption to services.

“I want to thank passengers for their patience and advise those who need to travel to check before they do so.”

Some bus replacement services are in place to assist the crowds.

More as we have it.

A message from the Editor:

Picture of a train arriving at Edinburgh Waverley after it is understood to have hit overhead lines picture: Mark Fawcett

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by Coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.