Storm Franklin UK travel: list of train services affected by strong winds as Met Office issues weather warning

Rail passengers have been warned to “avoid travel if possible” on Monday (21 February) with many services expected to be affected by the lashing rain and gale-force winds.

National Rail warned that anyone travelling today would face “major disruption across most of Great Britain” - including cancellations, delays and slower speeds onboard.

The Met Office has issued a yellow wind warning for Wales, Northern Ireland, most of England and parts of Scotland with Storm Franklin moving in.

What is the Storm Franklin weather forecast?

The yellow warning is in place until 1pm on Monday - with the Met warning that it is likely there will be travel disruptions, damage to buildings and trees or branches falling.

Gusts could reach around 65-75mph in coastal areas, while it is likely to be around 50-60mph in inland areas.

The forecaster warned that the south of the country will be particularly hard-hit by stormy weather during the morning rush hour.

There are no more weather warnings currently in place for the rest of the week with the winds set to be replaced by heavy rain across a lot of Britain.

What has been said about travel during Storm Franklin?

National Rail said: “Please check before you travel if you plan to use train services on Monday.

“The poor weather conditions may cause flooding, and any trees already weakened by Storm Eunice may fall down.

“Where conditions worsen, speed restrictions could be put in place to ensure you can travel safely.”

TransPennine Express (TPE) is strongly urging customers to “avoid travel if possible”, particularly those planning to travel north of Preston in Lancashire before 10am.

Speaking on Sunday evening, TPE operations director Paul Watson said: “Due to the impact of Storm Franklin, train services are disrupted along the West Coast Mainline.

“The safety of our customers and staff is our priority and we are warning customers not to travel between Preston and Edinburgh/Glasgow until after 10am tomorrow.

“Anyone planning on travelling by train today or before 10am tomorrow can choose to defer their travel or claim a refund.”

The operator said any services which are running are expected to be “very busy”.

Great Western Railway (GWR) reiterated the same plea for customers to travel only “if absolutely necessary” as services are expected to be “significantly disrupted across the network” on Monday.

South Western Railway also urged customers not to travel, warning the weather conditions were “likely to hamper efforts to help stranded customers”.

Which train operators are affected by Storm Franklin?

National Rail said the following train operating companies will be affected:

– Avanti West Coast

– c2c

– Caledonian Sleeper

– Chiltern Railway

– CrossCountry

– East Midlands Railway

– Great Northern

– Great Western Railway

– Greater Anglia

– Heathrow Express

– London Northwestern Railway

– LNER

– Merseyrail

– Northern

– ScotRail

– Southeastern

– Southern

– South Western Railway

– Stansted Express

– TfL Rail

– Thameslink

– TransPennine Express

– Transport for Wales

– West Midlands Railway

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