Around 200 travellers were stranded on a packed train for up to four hours today when it brought down overhead power cables just outside Chelmsford.
AROUND 200 rail travellers were stranded on a packed train for up to four hours this afternoon when it brought down overhead power cables just outside Chelmsford.
The 11.50am from Clacton was involved in the incident at 12.30pm and passengers were not allowed to leave the train because of safety concerns.
Several commuters to and from Ipswich were also caught up in the delays, which were expected to last until 11.30pm.
Delays then occurred because train operator One (National Express East Anglia) said it was “proving to be quite difficult” to find extra buses to ferry the passengers for the rest of their journey.
With power cut off, shuttle services between Stratford and Ipswich were cancelled and all trains were being forced to use one line, leading to delays of more than an hour.
The East Anglia main line had already been affected by engineering work in east London, forcing the closure of Liverpool Street station for the duration of the Christmas-New Year holiday, with through passengers from Norfolk and Ipswich being transported from Colchester to London by coach.
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