Network Rail I know are working on the impacts of climate change, I was involved in some of the working groups before I retired.  It is not as simple as the track engineers changing their standards, higher ballast shoulders for instance can burry other infrastructure (drainage, S&T and E&P cables) increasing the stressing of the rails could mean replacing the type of sleepers; track has a 30 plus in service life it is prohibitively expensive to just change things.  And sure stressing the rails for a higher ambient could cause problems in the winter
 

 

Strikes? In Italy? Surely not! 

 

And you would hope that NR will be replacing crossing with equipment with higher temperature tolerances to mitigate against future issues.  As we discussed, Dolphin Junction at the eastern end is up for replacement very soon.  I can't remember when it was last replaced, but you're typically looking at a 20-25 year life expectancy and the top ten warmest summers ever have all occurred since the turn of the millennium.

 

data please - I think you'll find Italy (north) does experience colder weather than the south (quelle surprise), and they likely stress different areas to different temperatures.

Most of GWR problems are in the Thames valley....plenty of serious frost pockets there that don't get above freezing on some winter days.


No it's not "freak", agreed. But not happening often enough (yet) to actually make changes to maintenance schedules. I suspect that may come under GBR.

 

Looks like Italy has its own problems!

https://help.raileurope.com/article/41616-italy-delays-disruptions#current

Lots of BBQ's there by the looks of it.

 

I'm sorry but that simply isn't true - Italy for example has a wider spread in temperatures over the year as do a number of other European countries, it's nowhere near unique or "almost" unique to the UK, and certainly not Southern and Western England.

Perhaps we should look at good practice elsewhere.

This heat is not freak weather, it's been building for years, but we seem to have done very little to make the railway more resilient to it.

 

I'm not sure what doesn't add up?  Ambient temperatures are above 30 degrees and track temperatures will also be high enough that Network Rail have imposed the KRS again.  The KRS means that one of the two OXF<>PAD services per hour is cancelled and the PAD<>DID services stay on the main lines between London and Reading and don't serve SLO/MAI/TWY.

We're hardly talking massive changes and cancellations here.

This is to avoid the risk of severe disruption if the points at Dolphin Junction, and to a lesser extent at Stockley Bridge Junction, fail.

However, I would support a change in the wording to replace the phrase 'extreme weather' with 'high temperatures' which is the phrase used later in the explanation.

Expect this to happen whenever the temperature is over 30 degrees, so the remainder of this week.  My weather app is saying +33 in London today, +34 tomorrow and +31 Friday...and possibly into next week as well, though currently that is maxing out at +29.

 
But we aren't talking *average* temperatures...a couple of hours at below zero or above 30 degrees will damage unstressed rail.

As I said, the spread in *actual* temperatures is our almost unique problem. Ideally, we'd stress every spring & autumn.

 

The average winter temperature in the Thames Valley over the last 10 years has sat between 4-7 degrees, with a warming trend, and the summers have also been getting progressively warmer over the same period.

There have only been around 15 days in the last decade across most of the Thames Valley where the temperature has failed to rise above 0 degrees all day.

The narrative, as well as the infrastructure, needs to be a great deal more resilient in order to stand up to challenges.

 
Because they have also to be handle below zero temperatures (more often until this year than 30-plus degrees.....

Few places in Europe get the spread of temperatures that we are now seeing....

 

But that happens multiple days most years, not exceptional once a decade stuff, so why do they install points that are only good for 93-97% of days in our climate.  We are at about 10th day already this year, and not workable about 20 days out of 365 really isn't the correct spec.

 

An educated guess would be that the temporary changes will not extend to national databases such as ticketing.  The GWR website is offering me tickets to plain ole Bellingham.

 
Because the Met Office don't put out rail heat warnings.

30 degrees full sun will mean 50-plus on the rails....but that doesn't affect the weather, so to speak

 

More disruption, due to expected heat.


But Met office do not even think warm/hot weather even justifies a yellow warning, there are no warnings, no severe weather is forecast

https://weather.metoffice.gov.uk/warnings-and-advice/uk-warnings#?date=2026-07-08

So why do team that update the headline disruption banner on GWR website think there will be severe weather when Met Office doesn't (or have they simply cut and paste wrong excuse)

There is however a Health heat warning (which doesn't affect points) risk factor 12, (medium risk, 60-89% probability of affecting those with poor health)

https://ukhsa-dashboard.data.gov.uk/weather-health-alerts/heat

Has someone misinterpreted a health warning as severe weather ?

Something doesn't add up here

 
Will the train tickets be issued from/to Bellingham station or Jude Bellingham station?

 
Ah, that picture brings back nostalgia - it was my local station where I was brought up in London, and I have happy memories of taking the basic but reliable half-hourly 4-EPBs on the Catford Loop line, up to 'the Elephant' (officially called Elephant and Castle), Blackfriars or occasionally Holborn Viaduct, or down to Shoreham in the quiet countryside of the North Downs.

 
From the BBC:

 
No sooner asked for than done, JohnM: they have both been added to our Coffee Shop forum 'abbreviations and acronyms page'. 

 

 

Reminds me of the Kilmersdon Quarry incline - https://www.mnrjournal.co.uk/news/entertainment/norman-andrew-to-share-kilmersdon-colliery-history-at-radstock-museum-talk-755446 - but is there really plenty-enough snow and ice?   Me thinks you might be pulling a leg or two!

 
I read of somewhere in Europe with uncomfortably hot summers, but not far from cold mountains with plenty of snow and ice.
It was proposed to carry snow and ice from the mountains to the hot areas, by train.
Up the mountain a twin track railway was proposed, with the descending loaded wagons hauling the empties up. On the levelish bit steam power was proposed.
Don't know if it ever worked.
Would have soon been killed off by the invention of mechanical cooling.

 
I am departing for Istanbul next Monday on a 12 day intinerary using Interrail. I will fly back to Bristol on 25 July. I have visited Denmark and Sweden recently using the same ticket which was only glanced at by a conductor once in 4 different journeys.

This trip might be more challenging and "interesting" but my route is Portsmouth, Caen, Paris (on Bastille Day!), Stuttgart, Budapest, Arad, Bucharest, Sofia and Istanbul.  Bold = 1 or more nights stay. I will use 3 sleeper services, one in Romania is an open access "luxury" service!

Like Graham I have first class ticket which is required for some single occupancy sleepers. 1st value in Eastern Europe might be questionable and some routes are 2nd only. I have paid directly for three of the later legs including the long run in from Sofia to Istanbul because they are quite cheap and one cannot obtain a "reservation only" booking online. It seems clear that there is a limited allocation of Interrail ticket use on certain services (especially sleepers) whilst fully paid tickets are still available. I had to juggle dates to achieve a suitable itinerary but booked at relatively short notice. Seems sensible to the operators since they must receive relatively little monies from Interrail.

So I am looking forward to this but might need a long rest afterwards. Since it is Bastille Day SNCF are doing engineering works which means  limited services over a longer route, Caen to Paris. Only the first train will work for me at 08.46, some 2 hours after Brittany Ferries arrives. Let me hope there are no failures at the second hurdle - otherwise then a rapid rethink!

I will report on some highlights when I get back.   

 
At https://grahamellis.uk/blog2014.html in answer to questions such as
What does it cost?
Is Interrail worth it?
Is first class worth the extra?
Is Interrail complicated?
Should I reserve seats if they are optional?
What travel is not included in the pass?
Does the pass include everything I need for my holiday?
Does the Interrail pass include travel all the way from my home station?
Can I get help / support from Eurail / Interrail?
Once I have added a series of trains to my trip, can I be sure they will run and connect?
What luggage am I allowed / what should I take?
I have limited mobility, senses or stamina - can I go?
Would you recommend I go Interrailing?

Comments / corrections / missing bits welcome.

 
Delays to services between Hungerford and Newbury

Due to a fault with the signalling system between Hungerford and Newbury trains have to run at reduced speed.
Train services running through these stations may be delayed by up to 15 minutes. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

Customer Advice
-
What has happened?
-
There is a fault with the signalling system in the Hungerford area, affecting trains towards Newbury, Reading and London Paddington.

 
I'm sure I'll work it out eventually... but could 1U1 and FWF be added to the abbreviations list?

Ah - should have started at the top

 
No need to 'sit on the fence' there, TG. 

 

No.