Cornish mainline and branch line delays - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[GBM]

08:50 Truro to Falmouth Docks due 09:14
08:50 Truro to Falmouth Docks due 09:14 will be cancelled.
This is due to engineering works not being finished on time.

08:10 Penzance to London Paddington due 13:24
08:10 Penzance to London Paddington due 13:24 will no longer call at Camborne, Redruth, St Austell and Bodmin Parkway.
It is being delayed at Penzance.
This is due to engineering works not being finished on time.

As at 0852, nothing has left Penzance.

[GBM]

Alterations to services between Penzance and Truro
Due to engineering works not being finished on time between Penzance and Truro all lines are blocked.
Train services running to and from these stations may be delayed or revised. Disruption is expected until 09:45 07/09.
Customer Advice
Owing to an issue with an engineering train the planned closure of the route between Penzance and Truro has not cleared at its scheduled time. It is regretted that early morning services in West Cornwall will be subject to delay / alteration.

Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

Last Updated:07/09/2025 08:54

[GBM]

Delays to services between Truro and Penzance
Due to a fault with the signalling system at Redruth trains have to run at reduced speed on all lines. Disruption is expected until 12:00 14/12.
Train services between Truro and Penzance may be delayed.
Customer Advice
-
What has happened?
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Several track circuits have failed in the Redruth area. Trains are being talked past signals in both directions, causing delays.

A track circuit is part of the signalling system. Track circuits tell the signalling system if a section of track has a train on it. If a track circuit stops working, trains need to stop at the local signal so that the Driver can speak to the Signaller to confirm if the track ahead is clear. This can lead to delays, especially if several track circuits have stopped working.:
_
What are we doing about it?

We are working with Network Rail to be able to return to running our normal timetable as soon as possible.

Network Rail are investigating the fault

Issued at 09h27

[GBM]

Cancellations to services between Par and Newquay
Due to flooding at Roche the line is blocked. Disruption is expected until 10:00 15/12.
Train services between Par and Newquay will be cancelled.
Customer Advice
-
What has happened?
-
The railway has flooded at Roche.
_
What are we doing about it?
-
Network Rail is monitoring the situation.

Issued 08h13

[GBM]

Cancellations to services between Par and Newquay
Due to flooding at Roche the line is blocked. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Train services between Par and Newquay will be cancelled.

Issued 10h03

[a-driver]

Cancellations to services between Par and Newquay
Due to flooding at Roche the line is blocked. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Train services between Par and Newquay will be cancelled.

Issued 10h03

Money well spent on a passing loop and reinstating the platform at Newquay!

[GBM]

Cancellations to services between Truro and Falmouth Docks
Due to a fault on this train between Truro and Falmouth Docks fewer trains are able to run on all lines.
Train services running to and from these stations may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Customer Advice
Due to a fault on one of our trains running between Truro and Falmouth Docks we have had to reduce the service to an hourly service.

[GBM]

Alterations to services between St Erth and St Ives
Due to a points failure at St Erth disruption is expected until 10:00 19/12.
Train services between St Erth and St Ives have been suspended.
Customer Advice
-
What has happened?
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There has been a points failure at St Erth, which means we are unable to get our train onto the line to St Ives. A points failure is a fault with the movable pieces of track that enable trains to change tracks.
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What are we doing about it?
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We have had to suspend our service between St Erth and St Ives. Network Rail will send engineers to site to investigate the problem.
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[GBM]

Major problems with cows on the line between Marazion and St Erth.
07:10 Penzance to London Paddington due 12:29
07:10 Penzance to London Paddington due 12:29 will be terminated at Plymouth.
It will no longer call at Totnes, Newton Abbot, Exeter St Davids, Tiverton Parkway, Taunton, Reading and London Paddington.
It has been delayed at St Erth and is now 86 minutes late.
This is due to animals on the railway.

09:11 Penzance to London Paddington due 14:29
09:11 Penzance to London Paddington due 14:29 was started from Plymouth.
It will no longer call at Penzance, St Erth, Hayle, Camborne, Redruth, Truro, St Austell, Par, Bodmin Parkway and Liskeard.
This is due to animals on the railway earlier today.
Will be formed of 5 coaches instead of 9. Service full and standing. There are no reservations on this service.

[GBM]

Our son was on the 0710 from Pz.
Noted the increasing delay in getting to St Erth.
He said it was cows on the line and we were going to be late.

He said an announcement went out for aid activation.
Any ideas what that was?

Terminated at Plymouth.
Then on to a full and standing 1115 from Ply to Paddington with 5 cars only.
This was originally bound for Pz from EXD^▸ (Exeter St Davids station ) but terminated short at Ply.

[GBM]

Cancellations to services between St Ives and St Erth
Due to a points failure at St Erth all lines are blocked. Disruption is expected until 09:00 27/12.
Train services between St Ives and St Erth will be cancelled or delayed.

Not the first time this month those points have taken a rest day!

[TaplowGreen]

Alterations to services between Bere Alston and Gunnislake

Due to a fault with the signalling system between Bere Alston and Gunnislake the line is closed.
Train services running to and from these stations have been revised. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

Customer Advice
Due to issues with the signal system, we are currently unable to run trains between Bere Alston and Gunnislake, therefore all trains between Plymouth and Gunnislake will run between Plymouth and Bere Alston only.

[Mark A]

Journeycheck explains

Heavy rainfall over the last few days combined with high tides has resulted in the water level at several bridges along the branchline being above the level which allows us to safely run trains. As a consequence Looe Branchline train services are Cancelled.
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What are we doing about it?
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We are working with Network Rail to re-open the line. The water levels have now dropped and Network Rail will need to inspect the bridges to make sure that the flooding has not caused any damage to the bridge structures.

As parts of the bridges below the water level need to be inspected, specialist divers are required.

There are no divers available until the 4th Jan 2026.

Even with Glanrhyd in mind (and with no familiarity with the structures in question) does anyone else consider this approach to be either (a) flawed or (b) an indication that NR^» (Network Rail - home page) does not know the condition of these structures or (c) they do know that below water they are in poor condition and do not offer the resilience they need to have to be effective? Also, rates of scour to foundations isn't necessarily related simply to water depth.

Journeycheck aside, would it be good if Network Rail put out a deep dive explaining the issue, the approach, and the horizon for a long term fix that will improve resilience.

Mark

[Trowres]

Due to a fault with the signalling system between Bere Alston and Gunnislake the line is closed.
Train services running to and from these stations have been revised. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

This problem first appeared yesterday, with the 12:24 from Plymouth terminating at Bere Alston, although RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) refers to the reason as "points failure".

Is this line worked by a single line staff/token, with the attached key being used to unlock the ground frame? - not a lot to go wrong.

[ChrisB]

Journeycheck aside, would it be good if Network Rail put out a deep dive explaining the issue, the approach, and the horizon for a long term fix that will improve resilience.

Elf 'n Safety, mate.....can't risk anything these days. Bad Press & mammoth fines from ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road, formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about).