Travel news - live: London Underground suffers delays and suspensions on all but two lines amid Storm Eunice
Following Storm Dudley, Storm Eunice is set to cause delays and cancellations for travellers
Storm Eunice is causing UK-wide travel disruption as the country is battered by winds of up to 100mph.
GWR, Great Anglia and Southeastern have all suspended all services for the rest of the day; as have South Western, Chiltern Railways, and the Heathrow and Stansted Express.
In the capital, the London Underground could grind to a halt as extreme weather has affected all but two lines on the Transport for London (TfL) network.
Meanwhile, all trains from Euston station have been cancelled.
A red weather warning is now in place across various parts of the country, with turbulent winds causing havoc for pilots trying to land at Heathrow airport; earlier today, London City Airport suspended all flights.
Train operators and ferry firms are also warning people not to attempt to travel today. All rail services in Wales are suspended for the entire day, with disruption to services expected to continue into the weekend.
Rail passengers who do try to make journeys face much slower trips, with emergency speed restrictions in place and sharply reduced services.
On the Irish Sea, some ferries have been cancelled amid the wild weather.
Many trains cancelled at London Paddington, including Heathrow airport services
Passengers at Paddington station, the London hub for GWR trains to the West of England, South Wales and the Cotswolds, are finding that around three-quarters of trains are being cancelled.
With all train services in Wales already cancelled for Friday, it was known that services would go no further west than Bristol. But since the start of the day, dozens more trains – including many serving Heathrow airport – have been axed.
GWR is trying to run an hourly service between Bristol Temple Meads and London Paddington, with connecting services to Oxford and Cheltenham Spa.
The train operator said: “We are advising customers not to travel unless their journey is absolutely essential.
“The priority will be to keep trains running and customers moving safely where we can, but we have had to make significant changes to our services across the network to allow that to happen.”
Dozens of trains cancelled across UK
Rail services nationwide will be disrupted by Storm Eunice today, as the country sees winds of up to 100mph in some parts. All train services are cancelled in Wales for the remainder of the day.
Many train operators are recommending that you do not travel today unless you absolutely have to.
At London St Pancras, the 08:18, 08:47 and 09:15 to Corby are all cancelled; as are the 08:25 to Ramsgate, the 08:30, 09:00 and 09:10 to Bedford and the 08:35 to Nottingham.
The 08:55 to Faversham and 09:02 to Sheffield are both cancelled.
Read the full list of cancellations below:
All the trains that have been cancelled as Storm Eunice hits UK
Hundreds of flights cancelled or diverted
Hundreds of flights are being delayed or cancelled ahead of the arrival of Storm Eunice – and diversions are now under way.
British Airways alone has cancelled at least 80 flights to and from London airports: 44 serving Heathrow, 36 at London City.
All the cancellations so far are domestic and European.
Several other airlines have cancelled some flights in and out of Heathrow, including Aer Lingus from Cork and Dublin, Swiss from Zurich, Lufthansa from Frankfurt and KLM from Amsterdam.
Also at Gatwick, easyJet has cancelled flights to Amsterdam and Belfast.
Wizz Air has grounded its departures from Gatwick to Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria.
Read the full story:
All the flights that have been cancelled and diverted as Storm Eunice hits UK
Train operators urge people not to travel
People are being urged to postpone travel plans as Storm Eunice moves across the UK.
Train operators across Britain have warned passengers against travelling on Friday as emergency 50mph speed limits have been put into place in many areas.
These speed limits have been established to make it easier for train drivers to brake if they spot objects on the track or damage to overhead wires caused by strong winds.
Great Western Railway said that it expects to “significantly reduce” the number of long-distance services it runs. The main line through South Wales and some branch lines in Devon and Cornwall will also be closed.
Firms advising customers not to travel on Friday include Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, Great Northern, London North Eastern Railway, Southern and Thameslink.
Storm Eunice is a ‘really, really serious situation’, says Environment Agency spokesperson
Roy Stokes, the Environment Agency spokesperson for the Midlands, has called Storm Eunice a “really, really serious situation” and added that some people may have to leave their homes.
Speaking on Sky News, he said: “What I would stress as well is that, folks, listen to the advice from the emergency services.
“This is a really, really serious situation and I know that people don’t always want to leave their homes but in this case it might be the best advice, so listen to what you’re being told on the ground.
“Keep an eye on things and we’ll just watch this come through now and hopefully it won’t be as bad as we’re all expecting but we always prepare for the worst and hope for the best.”
He added: “People talk about the perfect storms, so the high spring tides combined with this storm that’s moving in now, it’s just the worst possible thing really for the [Severn] Estuary so the worst case scenario is that some of those flood defences that have protected people over the years could be over topped.”
Bridges closed, train services impacted and warnings issued for drivers as Storm Eunice hits
The National Highways has said high-sided vehicles and other “vulnerable” vehicles such as caravans and motorbikes should avoid bridges and viaducts as they risk being blown over in the high winds of Storm Eunice.
National Highways head of road safety Jeremy Phillips urged those travelling to “plan your trip and take extra care, allowing more time for your journey”.
He said: “In high winds, there’s a particular risk to lorries, caravans and motorbikes so we’d advise drivers of these vehicles to slow down.
“Drivers of other vehicles should be aware of sudden gusts of wind which can affect handling and braking, and give high-sided vehicles, caravans, and motorbikes plenty of space. In the event of persistent high winds we may need to close bridges to traffic for a period, so please be alert for warnings of closures and follow signed diversion routes,” he added.
Those travelling between England and Wales overnight faced difficulties with the closing of the Severn Bridge, while the alternative Prince of Wales Bridge was expected to be closed about 6am.
National Highways announced the Orwell Bridge in Suffolk was closed in both directions with the Dartford Crossing joining it in shutting about 5am.
People have been warned to “tie down” objects in their gardens and be wary of fierce winds which could cause trees to topple over and tiles to fly off buildings.
A number of attractions including the London Eye, Legoland and Warwick Castle are temporarily closing.
Severn Bridge closed due to strong winds
Three major road bridges have been closed to traffic as strong winds brought by Storm Eunice began to cause travel disruption across southern England on Friday.
The closures came as the Met Office also took the unusual step of issuing a severe weather alert with National Highways for strong winds covering the whole of the country’s strategic road network – which includes all motorways and some A roads – from 6am to 6pm.
In the southwest, the Severn Bridge between J1 and J2 was closed due to strong winds. Motorists were being urged to use the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge as an alternative route.
Tom Batchelor has more:
Severn Bridge closed and severe alert issued for England’s motorways
Storm Eunice could be one of the most impactful storms UK has seen, says Met Office chief
Met Office chief meteorologist Paul Gundersen has said Storm Eunice could be one of the most impactful storms in the UK as warnings are issued for motorists.
“After the impacts from Storm Dudley for many on Wednesday, Storm Eunice will bring damaging gusts in what could be one of the most impactful storms to affect southern and central parts of the UK for a few years.”
“The red warning areas indicate a significant danger to life as extremely strong winds provide the potential for damage to structures and flying debris.”
London added to red weather warning
A red weather warning is now in place across for the East of England including London ahead of the arrival of Storm Eunice.
The rare highest alert – meaning a high impact is very likely – was issued just before 4am to run from 10am until 3pm on Friday due to fears of the storm “causing significant disruption and dangerous conditions due to extremely strong winds”, the Met Office said.
The warning covering Greater London, Kent, Surrey, Essex and East Sussex joined an earlier red weather warning starting from 7am along the coastline of Devon, Cornwall and Somerset as well as the south coast of Wales due to the combination of high tides, strong winds and storm surge.
More details here:
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