Broken Rail Near Hazel Grove Disrupts Trains Into Manchester Piccadilly

Train services into Manchester Piccadilly have been disrupted after a broken rail was identified in the Hazel Grove area, blocking lines towards the city.

The fault is affecting services operating between Sheffield or Buxton and Manchester Piccadilly, with passengers warned to expect alterations, diversions or delays of up to 15 minutes. The disruption is expected to continue until at least 21.00 while repairs take place.

Network Rail have engineers on site and are working to fix the issue as soon as possible.

TransPennine Express is currently advising that trains are able to operate between Sheffield and Manchester Piccadilly in the Manchester-bound direction only. Some of these services may be diverted, meaning they will not call at Stockport.

Passengers are being advised to continue with their planned journeys, but to allow extra time as services may be delayed or rerouted at short notice.

East Midlands Railway said its Manchester Piccadilly-bound services will be diverted via Romiley where possible and will also miss out Stockport, adding up to 15 minutes to journeys between Sheffield and Manchester. Trains travelling in the opposite direction, from Manchester Piccadilly towards Sheffield, are running as normal.

The above can change at short notice, always check with your operator before travelling.

The incident remains ongoing and Northern has yet to issue formal advice. However, the operator has already cancelled dozens of services today due to severe staff shortages, compounding disruption on what is expected to be the busiest shopping day of the year. The combination of infrastructure failure and staffing issues is likely to make it a challenging day for passengers across the North West.

Image: Network Rail