A power outage at CrossCountry’s control centre in Birmingham resulted in widespread cancellations across the train operator’s network on Sunday. The majority of services were suspended until further notice, affecting major routes including those connecting Glasgow to Edinburgh, Manchester to Birmingham, Cheltenham to Cardiff, and Newcastle to Edinburgh. The operator indicated that a near-normal service would continue on the Peterborough-Cambridge-Stansted Airport line, while a replacement bus service operated between Leicester and Peterborough.
CrossCountry stated that a very limited number of trains would resume operation around 6pm on Sunday, with expectations to return to normal service the following day. The operator allowed customers to use tickets on alternative train operators on the same routes, with validity extended through 26 August. Other rail operators, including Chiltern Railways and LNER, announced they would accept CrossCountry tickets to assist affected passengers in reaching their destinations.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander expressed concern about the disruption and confirmed that publicly owned operators were being asked to provide additional services where feasible. Network Rail power teams were deployed to the site to restore electrical systems and operations. Passengers entitled to compensation for delays of 30 minutes or more could claim delay repay compensation, and those choosing not to travel were eligible for refunds.
The incident represents the latest in a pattern of service issues for CrossCountry. Earlier in the year, passenger watchdog Transport Focus had issued guidance to the operator regarding performance improvements, noting that customer satisfaction with CrossCountry stood at 79 percent compared to an 87 percent satisfaction rate across the broader rail industry. The watchdog identified overcrowding and passenger communication during disruptions as specific areas requiring attention.
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