A triumvirate of deep depressions hit British railways on Friday. Commuters into London Paddington and airline travellers heading for Heathrow were grounded by a freight train derailment just after sunrise. In addition, pickets were on duty at Euston and elsewhere, in pursuit of the latest strike by drivers. To cap it all, there was a warning of severe weather, with winds worsening throughout the day, to culminate in snow in parts of Scotland. The end of the week may have seemed to some like the end of the world.

Not the best day for a freight train to derail on the Great Western Mainline. That however was the news that greeted early travellers intending to use Paddington station in London, and Reading station in Berkshire, one of the busiest provincial stations in the UK. This fresh disruption came after a series of signal failures on Thursday, which threw the West Coast Main Line and other routes into disarray. All this in the middle of widespread strike action by drivers, and widespread weather action by nature.

Trains delayed and cancelled

A freight train derailed just after sunrise on the lines out from London Paddington. The location given by most news services pinpoints the incident to West Ealing station. The leafy outer London suburb is effectively on the final approach to Paddington. There is still a degree of speculation as to the nature of the incident.

National Rail Enquiries the official information service for the network said there was ongoing disruption. “An operational incident involving a derailed freight train at West Ealing is causing disruption to journeys running between London Paddington and Heathrow Airport / Reading”, said an online statement. “As a result, trains may be cancelled, delayed by up to 40 minutes or diverted. We anticipate disruption will continue until 12:00 [London time; 13:00 Rotterdam].”

Aviation fuel train fails to take off

The incident has international implications. The lines affected include those serving Heathrow Airport, causing an extra headache for airline passengers. Alternative for those travellers from London exist via the Underground service, but those approaching Heathrow from the west will likely be required to use alternative road services which, although plentiful from Reading, do take longer.

Freight train derailment at West Ealing: first pic of @GBRailfreight aviation fuel train pic.twitter.com/8dHorEcoy5

— Paul Clifton (@PaulCliftonBBC) April 5, 2024

It’s understood from eyewitness accounts that the train involved was an early morning return working of an aviation fuel train, returning from the fuelling terminal at Colnbrook Heathrow to Grain Oil Terminal in Kent. For an as yet unaccounted reason, the locomotive (a GBRf Class 66 diesel) has become derailed on exit from sidings at West Ealing. The train was scheduled to pause in a passing loop for about fifteen minutes to allow faster services to pass. Although empty tanks, the train is designated as carrying dangerous goods. As for all such incidents in the UK, officers from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch are on site.

The accident comes on a particularly troublesome day for the British network. Drivers belonging to the ASLEF trades union, working for several passenger operators, are on strike in large parts of the country – notably those operators serving the West Coast Main Line. Add to that, there is an unpleasant storm approaching the UK – designated Kathleen in Ireland, where it is already disrupting travel and operations. The main thrust of the weather system will hit Scotland, with snow forecast for the Highland Main Line, north of Stirling.