East Midlands Railway will close branch line services tonight at 8 p.m., urging passengers to travel early due to impending Storm Goretti. The storm is expected to bring heavy snow and strong winds, prompting the Met Office to issue amber weather warnings for snow and rain. Network Rail and East Midlands Railway (EMR) will start closing services on branch lines in the region's east at 2000 today (Thursday).
While trains will resume as soon as possible, likely from 1000 on Friday, the decision has been made to prioritize safety. Dan Matthews, Network Rail operations director, explains that remote network parts may struggle with road impacts, making it challenging for staff to reach signal boxes and respond to incidents. Consequently, late evening and early morning services have been removed.
Paul Barnfield, Operations Director at East Midlands Railway, emphasizes the safety and well-being of customers and colleagues as the top priority. He advises customers to complete their journeys before 2000 today, even on less affected routes. Ticket restrictions have been relaxed, allowing travel on Thursday or Friday to be rescheduled for earlier on Thursday or Saturday, January 10. Refunds are available for canceled journeys.
The affected routes include:
- Liverpool Lime Street to Norwich
- The Hope Valley line between Sheffield and Manchester, closed from 1800 on Thursday until Saturday, January 10.
- Crewe/Derby/Nottingham/Lincoln: The railway between Derby and Crewe will be closed after 2000 on Thursday and reopen after 1000 on Friday.
- Matlock/Derby/Nottingham/Lincoln/Cleethorpes: The railway between Derby and Matlock will be closed after 2000 on Thursday and reopen after 1000 on Friday.
- Nottingham/Mansfield/Worksop: The railway between Nottingham and Worksop will be closed after 2000 on Thursday and reopen after 1000 on Friday.
Snow and ice can hinder safe train operations, with ice coating overhead power cables and icicles damaging trains and infrastructure. The storm's impact on roads may further challenge staff access to signal boxes and incident response.
