British struggle with mounting rail woes

This locomotive ran into the back of a coal train in southwest England after it passed two red lights. The crash is one in a string of alarming rail accidents in Britain

In this story: Flooding aggravates problems Track to be replaced RELATED STORIES, SITES

LONDON, England (AP) -- It's rush hour at London's Victoria Station, and the scene is familiar: Rail passengers stare in disbelief at cancellations and delays, trying to work out an alternate route home.

The public address system announces that a train heading south is finally ready for departure, triggering a stampede of suits across a concourse made treacherous by a leaking roof.

The shorter-than-usual train then stands for 30 minutes at the platform, packed. Another announcement follows: Nobody can find the driver. Midway through the journey, it appears the rear braking mechanism is falling off. Further delay.

Rail commuters in Britain have long suffered in silence, paying for a high-priced and wildly unpredictable service.

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They thought it couldn't get worse. But it has.

The network has been in disarray since October 17, when four people died in a derailment in Hatfield, north of London, the latest in an alarming spate of crashes. Investigators believe the cause was a broken rail at a curve. Network-wide safety checks and slowdowns have left rail travel in chaos.

Then it started raining.

Widespread flooding -- the worst in Britain in 50 years -- has hit the railways particularly hard in the past few weeks.

Passengers were warned to avoid train travel last weekend or risk major disruption.

"I'm not risking it," lawyer Debbie Peters said Friday evening at Victoria Station. "By the time I get to work, I'm often a nervous wreck and frequently miss meetings. When I get home I'm exhausted, so this weekend I'm staying home."

The Hatfield derailment was the third fatal train crash in Britain in three years. In October 1999, 31 people died and more than 200 were injured near London's Paddington Station when one train jumped a red light and hit another.

Shortly after the Hatfield crash, another train derailed in western England. On Wednesday, two freight trains crashed in the southwest after one ran two red lights.

Startled rail bosses, wanting a closer look at the network and facing mounting public anger, imposed speed restrictions across the country, in some parts at least doubling commuting times.

One busy stretch in Scotland was closed down overnight with only a two-hour warning, causing huge problems for travelers.

Authorities announced Thursday that they had discovered a total of 170 miles of faulty track that needs replacing -- the distance from London to Manchester.

The head of Railtrack, Sir Gerald Corbett, said disruption will last six more months. And that was before the rain.

Britain invented railway travel and exported its know-how worldwide. But it now can only look with envy at its European neighbors.

The Eurostar train service under the English Channel hits record speeds in northern France. Once in England, it winds slowly along outdated tracks.

Many critics blame the privatization of British Rail in the 1990s. It was broken up into a number of competing companies -- some operating trains while others were responsible for infrastructure.

Along the much-maligned south-coast route from London, passengers found some consolation in October when the operator, French-owned Connex, had its franchise withdrawn by the government because of its poor record.

But few expect overnight miracles from the new operator.

"Everything needs ripping up," said 41-year-old Peter Nuttall, who has commuted to and from London for the best part of two decades. "The only way I have kept my sanity is by not letting it get to me. I expect nothing -- and that's what I get."

Copyright 2000 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

UK train passengers face more delays
October 29, 2000
Closure of main UK rail line causes chaos
October 25, 2000
Railway crash track 'not good'
October 18, 2000
Report: Train passed red signal before London crash
October 8, 1999
British government vows to make rail firms pay for safety upgrades after fatal crash
October 7, 1999
At least 70 believed dead in London commuter crash
October 6, 1999

BritRail Ltd
Eurostar
Connex
Railtrack

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