Major disruption affecting six railways across England after electrical fault

| Senior Live News reporter Published August 6, 2026 3:23pm Updated August 6, 2026 4:04pm Passengers should brace for severe delays set to last all day after a fault affecting rail communications (Picture: Bloomberg via Getty Images) Rail passengers face mayhem on some of the UK’s busiest routes after an electricity supply meltdown. Trains in Greater Manchester, the North West and Midlands were thrown into chaos this afternoon after the electricity supply at a rail communications centre broke down. This is causing major disruption to services in the region, with Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, London Northwestern Railway, Northern, TransPennine Express and Transport for Wales slated for issues until the end of the day. The fault is affecting essential rail communications, and trains are unable to run safely. If you are travelling on these services today, brace for cancellations, delays of up to 60 minutes and revisions. Sign up for all of the latest stories Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens. Northern told passengers ‘do not travel’ as services are unable to run on many lines in the North West, and it has no replacement buses or trains operating. The rail firm told passengers on social media it has no replacement services because it is unable to recruit drivers because the outage affects control and communications. TransPennine Express also advised people not to travel as ‘all trains will be stopped due to a failure of the communication systems on the network’ and that ‘trains are unable to run safely.’ Avanti West Coast customers can use their ticket on one or two services before or after their booked train if their service is cancelled. It is worth noting down your train details and the length of the delay if you are affected, because delays exceeding 15 minutes usually qualify for delay repay. How to claim delay repay The scheme known as delay repay has streamlined getting some money back if your train is delayed or cancelled. Depending on the severity of the delay or cancellation, you might be entitled to a full refund or compensation. For delays, note down the length of the delay and keep hold of your ticket if it’s not an e-ticket. You will usually have to claim refunds and compensation directly from your train company. A full list of train operators can be found on the National Rail delay repay website. Have you been affected? Please email noora.mykkanen@metro.co.uk Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here. For more stories like this, check our news page. Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here. Arrow MORE: Robotaxis nearing London debut after Uber nabs minicab licence Arrow MORE: London bus drivers are going on strike over ‘completely unacceptable’ heatwave conditions Arrow MORE: Another UK holiday company shuts down after 8 years and enters liquidation News Updates Stay on top of the headlines with daily email updates.