Merseyrail to cancel Friday train services as Met Office issues snow and ice warnings

Andrew Brown
3 Min Read
Merseyrail

Merseyrail is not expecting to be able to run a train service this Friday (8 January) after the Met Office issued a weather warning for snow and ice. 

People should stay at home and work from home if they can. Customers who do need to travel, for example key workers, are strongly advised to make alternative travel arrangements.

Snow showers and freezing fog are forecast to sweep the UK.

The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for snow and ice covering almost all of the UK throughout Thursday and Friday.

From Thursday until Friday morning, a yellow warning for ice covers the North and the entire east and west coasts of England and Wales. 

Rail replacement buses will not be in operation due to the scale of disruption, however season tickets will be accepted on Arriva, Stagecoach and Mersey Ferries.

If conditions improve, attempts will be made to run services if possible and passengers are advised to check @merseyrail on Twitter and the website regularly before travelling to a station.

Andy Heath, Managing Director at Merseyrail, said: “We have been working hard over the last few weeks to prepare the network for adverse winter weather conditions, covering the rail with anti-ice and running trains throughout the night to keep the lines clear.

“Through previous experiences when, following the anti-icing, we incur a combination of snow, sleet and rain fall on our electrified third rail as is forecasted, this can result in a new layer of ice which electricity cannot pass through and trains are unable to operate.

“As a result of this, we believe it is highly likely that trains will not operate on Friday. We hope that this advance notice will give passengers enough time to make alternative travel arrangements.

“We will be continuously working with Network Rail to run services as soon as is safely possible and apologise for any inconvenience this will cause our passengers.”

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