Rail passengers in North West left stranded as Northern struggles with flooded railways across rail network

Passengers have been left stranded at stations across Cumbria, Greater Manchester and Cheshire, with heavy flooding forcing rail bosses to close lines between Wigan Wallgate and Salford Crescent, Holmes Chapel and Crewe, and Carlisle and Skipton.

The cancellations are expected to have an impact on some services in Lancashire, as train lines become congested and trains are diverted.

Disruption is expected to last until at least 11am.

Train delays between Wigan Wallgate and Salford Crescent

Disruption to services between Wigan Wallgate and Salford Crescent has now ended. The disruption had been due to heavy rain flooding the railway, leading to a number of services being cancelled on the line.

Train delays between Holmes Chapel and Crewe

A spokesman for Northern said: "Northern services will not be able to run between Holmes Chapel and Crewe in both directions due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

"Services running through these stations may be cancelled, delayed or suspended between Holmes Chapel and Crewe.

"Services running between Alderley Edge and Holmes Chapel are also subject to delay due to a speed restriction because of flooding.

"Some road transport is in place to run between Holmes Chapel and Crewe, please note journey times will be extended when using road replacement transport."

Train delays between Carlisle and Skipton

Elsewhere in the North West, trains have been cancelled between Carlisle and Skipton due to a landslip.

The landslip has blocked the rail line, with train services running through these stations suspended between Kirkby Stephen and Ribblehead.

Disruption is expected on this line until the end of the day.

Buses will replace trains between Kirkby Stephen and Settle in both directions for the rest of the day. But Northern have warned that "journey times will be extended by using rail replacement transport."

Trains can still run between the following stations:

- Carlisle to Kirkby Stephen (In both directions)

- Ribblehead to Skipton/Leeds (In both directions)

Customers are advised to change at Appleby or Settle (where there is a member of Northern Rail staff and facilities) for onward rail replacement transport as follows:

Between Appleby and Ribblehead (and set down to Skipton)

Between Settle and Kirkby Stephen (and set down to Carlisle)

TransPennine Express are accepting Northern Rail only and Route Via Appleby tickets between Carlisle and Lancaster/Preston.

Northern Rail will be operating services from Lancaster to Leeds and Preston to Leeds to help continue passengers' journeys.

Remember, if you've been delayed by 15 minutes or more, hold on to your tickets and claim compensation by visiting northernrailway.co.uk/delayrepay