Railway fully reopens after Northampton and Long Buckby passengers affected by two days of cancellations

Train line reopens between Northampton and Coventry after passengers affected by two days of cancellations.

Rail replacement busses were running between Northampton and Coventry on Monday (February 12) and Tuesday (February 13) after heavy rain caused a landslip near Rugby.

The railway between London Euston and Birmingham has now fully reopened this afternoon, with reduced speeds, after rail engineers closed the line to secure the embankment.

Overnight, more than 800 tonnes of soil was excavated and transported away from site by rail.

Although the landslip affected only one of two tracks, engineers needed to close the line entirely to safely repair and fully reopen the West Coast main line for passengers and freight services.

Close monitoring continues and work is currently being planned to further stabilise the railway embankment which will be delivered in overnight closures to limit the disruption to passengers.

James Dean, route director for Network Rail, said: “I’m sorry to passengers who’ve been affected by the closure of the West Coast main line while we completed emergency repairs to the landslip between Coventry and Rugby.

“I’m pleased to advise that we’ve reopened both tracks this afternoon – with a reduced speed limit – which means passenger and freight trains can run again.

“I want to thank passengers for their patience and ask those travelling to check www.nationalrail.co.uk for the latest journey information.”

Jonny Wiseman, LNR customer experience director, added: “Safety on the railway is paramount and I would like to thank our passengers for their patience while Network Rail completed this important lineside earthwork.

“With the line now fully reopened our services between Birmingham New Street and London Euston can return to the usual timetable and we look forward to welcoming passengers back on board.”

For safety reasons trains will run at a reduced speed on the affected section of track while engineers monitor the embankment and complete further overnight repairs, so passengers should continue to check before they travel.

Check train travel updates at https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/.