A LARGE number of rail services in Wales faced disruption yesterday afternoon after a fire on a Transport for Wales (TFW) train on Sunday evening (May 22).
A major road was also closed on Monday morning because of the ‘operational incident’.
The fire occurred after the 20:43 Crewe to Cardiff Central service made contact with an object near Craven Arms in Shropshire.
A spokesperson for Transport for Wales said: “The 20:43 Crewe to Cardiff Central service was terminated after making contact with an object near Craven Arms.
“All 49 passengers on board were safely evacuated and replacement road transport was arranged.
“Disruption to services is expected to continue into Monday afternoon and passengers are advised to check the latest travel information before starting their journey. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.”
Trains between Hereford and Shrewsbury have been suspended and replaced with buses ‘until the end of the day’, impacting a number services from Cardiff, Carmarthen, Llanelli Maesteg and Holyhead.
One passenger shared a photo on Twitter of a fire under a train and said “we are safe”.
The National Rail Enquires website says: “An operational incident between Hereford and Shrewsbury means all lines are blocked. Trains running between these stations will be revised or cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.”
It says the operator affected is Transport for Wales and lists the routes affected as between Cardiff Central and Crewe / Holyhead / Chester / Shrewsbury / Manchester Piccadilly, and between Carmarthen / Milford Haven and Manchester Piccadilly, and between Llanelli / Maesteg and Holyhead.
