Rail services hit by broken, cracked or warped tracks hits five-year high
BRITAIN’S railways are buckling under pressure – as the number of services hit by broken, cracked or warped tracks hits a five-year high.
More than 100,000 train journeys were delayed or cancelled last year due to damaged lines.
Network Rail, the government-owned body responsible for maintaining the UK’s 20,000 miles of track, has to pay compensation to rail operators if faulty lines mean services can’t run.
Records show that in 2023 there were 938 separate buckling incidents – affecting 100,300 trains.
This led to almost 10,000 services being cancelled and caused delays of 7,000 hours.
On average there were 275 trains affected by faulty railway lines each day last year – holding up passengers for 18-and-a-half hours.
Experts estimate this cost the rail network around £47 million.
The figures are the worst in five years, with the number of trains impacted doubling since 2022.
Warped tracks are typically triggered by extreme heat, while temperature variations can grow and fracture a line.
In hot weather safety engineers restrict train speeds to reduce the possibility of buckling, causing further delays.
Network Rail pledged to invest billions in the network over the next five years.
A spokesperson said: “There have been around 34 million train services on Britain’s railways in the last five years.
“Of those services, around one percent were affected by broken or buckling rails, which are running at historically low levels.
“Britain’s railways are one of the safest major railways in Europe, but we are not complacent.
“Over the next five years, we will be investing billions to meet the needs of the railway, including substantial track renewal work and maintenance and doubling our investment in tackling issues caused by climate change that will help to keep our railway safe and performing well, and minimising disruption for passengers.”