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A landslide on one of Britain’s busiest railway lines has caused serious disruption for tens of thousands of rail passengers as repair work continues.
Network Rail said the West Coast Main Line between London Euston and Birmingham New Street was closed due to an accident between Coventry and Rugby.
Avanti West Coast and London North Western Railway services are affected.
Some passengers face additional hours taking to complete their journey due to long-distance diversions between Coventry and Northampton and the use of rail replacement buses.
Following Sunday’s landslide, Network Rail closed the line in both directions on Monday night for repair work.
The route is expected to reopen on Tuesday afternoon.
Phil Burns, Network Rail Operations Director, said: “Network Rail engineers have been clearing vegetation from the embankment to enable a more accurate assessment of the landslide near Rugby.
“Plans are now in place to inspect the track and remove the soil before it can be put into service.
Our teams are working around the clock to get trains running again as soon as possible. We apologize for any disruption this may cause to your travels.
Phil Burns, Network Rail
“To do this safely, we will be closing both lines overnight on Monday and Tuesday morning. We are working to reopen both lines on Tuesday afternoon.
“Our teams are working around the clock to get trains running again as soon as possible. We apologize for any disruption this may cause to travel.”
Jonny Wiseman, Customer Experience Director at London North Western Railway, said:
“If you are traveling between Birmingham New Street and London Euston on Tuesday, please continue to check the status of your journey before departing and consider taking an alternative route if possible.”
Dave Whitehouse, director of safety and security at Avanti West Coast, said: “Due to a landslide between Rugby and Coventry, service will be suspended in both directions between the West Midlands and London Euston until Network Rail completes emergency repairs. This means that services will not be able to operate as usual.”
Last month, the Chiltern main line linking London Marylebone with Birmingham Moor Street and Oxford was closed due to a landslide near Bicester, Oxfordshire, causing widespread disruption.