Britons warned of New Year travel chaos after £100k worth of cables stolen

December 29, 2024
Theft of cables

Following the theft of high-voltage power lines valued at £100,000, passengers have been warned to prepare for travel mayhem in the new year.

Cables, a crucial component of a significant rail expansion project, were stolen in the heist that occurred shortly before Christmas.

By switching to electric trains from diesel engines, the £100 million project aims to modernize train travel in Greater Manchester.

In order to give engineers time to improve the tracks, it has led to multiple weekend closures in recent months.

Engineers realised the cables were missing in Lostock, near Bolton when they arrived to carry out work in the area.

They provide power to the overhead line equipment which powers electric trains across the tracks.

On New Year’s Day, the line was due to be energised for the first time, and workers are now scrambling to restore power before Tuesday.

TransPennine Express services linking Manchester with Glasgow and Edinburgh will not stop at Bolton until after 6pm, and local services will also be impacted.

Christian Irwin, Network Rail's capital delivery director, said: “I am very sorry to passengers who will be impacted by the rail closure.

“It is extremely frustrating for this crime to take place so close to the energisation of the line.

“Our teams have been working very hard to deliver this upgrade for passengers over several years including over this Christmas period.

“We are working closely with the British Transport Police to provide additional security measures and to find and prosecute those accountable.”

Passengers have been advised to check the National Rail website on how best to travel to avoid disruption.

Network Rail also said that travellers should exert caution when using electrified routes, and they have a deadly 25,000 volts running through them.