Storm Eowyn Disruption - 24/1/25

[800001]

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed. Just when it might have been a useful service with any surface transport disruption.

Because Glasgow is in the Red Warning area, do not travel, that includes the staff that would be needed to staff the system?

 

[EMU303]

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed. Just when it might have been a useful service with any surface transport disruption.

​

Essential update regarding SPT services, including Subway, during red weather alert.​

Due to the rare red weather warning issued by the Met Office for Scotland, Friday 24 January from 10 to 5pm, Police Scotland and Scottish Government advice is to avoid travel in the affected areas. For the safety of both our passengers and staff who need to travel to and from work, the Subway will not open tomorrow morning and services will not operate until the red weather warning is lifted. We expect Subway services to resume at approximately 6pm.
SPT bus stations, including Buchanan Bus Station will be open to receive the limited number of bus services which plan to run. Local SPT subsidised services are suspended from 9am until 6pm and all My Bus services are suspended for tomorrow.
SPT Chief Executive Valerie Davidson.
“The decision to not open the Subway has not been taken lightly but recognising the severity of the extremely rare red weather warning, we must do all we can to ensure the safety of passengers and importantly of our own staff. We cannot expect staff to travel during the height of the storm when the advice from all agencies is very clear that you should not travel.”

https://www.spt.co.uk/about-us/news/spt-update-storm-eowyn/

 

[CJSwan]

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed. Just when it might have been a useful service with any surface transport disruption.

I’m guessing there might be issues with staff getting into work in order to operate the system.

 

[43055]

I'm guessing there won't be any passenger and few, if any, freight ferries in the Irish Sea tomorrow?

I believe there is currently 2 Stena ferries (Stena Embla and Stena Superfast VII) sheltering off Belfast with passengers on.

 

[Magdalia]

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed.

SPT Chief Executive Valerie Davidson.
“The decision to not open the Subway has not been taken lightly but recognising the severity of the extremely rare red weather warning, we must do all we can to ensure the safety of passengers and importantly of our own staff. We cannot expect staff to travel during the height of the storm when the advice from all agencies is very clear that you should not travel.”

I was beaten to it!

 

[739678]

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed. Just when it might have been a useful service with any surface transport disruption.

Presumably because 1) Their depot is above ground, so the trains have to run outside to get to the tunnels; and 2) because the staff don't live in the tunnels and the instruction from government is do not travel...

 

[Taunton]

​

“The decision to not open the Subway has not been taken lightly but recognising the severity of the extremely rare red weather warning, we must do all we can to ensure the safety of passengers and importantly of our own staff. We cannot expect staff to travel during the height of the storm when the advice from all agencies is very clear that you should not travel.”

Presumably all the power stations, water pumping stations, and other such services in Scotland have been closed as well then ... ?

 

[Jan Mayen]

Presumably all the power stations, water pumping stations, and other such services in Scotland have been closed as well then ... ?

Or maybe arrangements were made for staff to arrive before the red warning kicked in, and to stay on site? I've no idea, just wondering.

 

[Davester50]

Presumably all the power stations, water pumping stations, and other such services in Scotland have been closed as well then ... ?

Hospitals too...

 

[Porty]

Slightly baffled by the mismatch on different data sources. Looked at the map on Signalbox and trains are apparently running south of Edinburgh and Glasgow (LNER, Lumo, TPE, Avanti) but they don't exist on RealTimeTrains nor on national rail arrivals/departures. I had always assumed that the Signalbox map was showing "real time" locations of actual trains, but apparently not.

 

[SCDR_WMR]

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed. Just when it might have been a useful service with any surface transport disruption.

If it's in a Red Warning Area then it's not safe for the staff to travel into work is it

 

[Scotrail84]

Slightly baffled by the mismatch on different data sources. Looked at the map on Signalbox and trains are apparently running south of Edinburgh and Glasgow (LNER, Lumo, TPE, Avanti) but they don't exist on RealTimeTrains nor on national rail arrivals/departures. I had always assumed that the Signalbox map was showing "real time" locations of actual trains, but apparently not.

No services in or out of Edinburgh are currently operating.

 

[Class 317]

Hospitals too...

The red warning covers non essential staff. At National grid we make options for people to stay within sites and or work longer shifts to cover those unable to make it in which is appropriate for what is an absolutely essential service.

Transport is not absolutely essential service under red warning conditions except for the roads for emergency services etc

 

[Bletchleyite]

Suggest that the window should be widened to at least a week afterwards (and before if known about long enough in advance) or at least allow a no-fee, no extra cost swap to advances for the same journey. More people are more likely to heed the advice if they’re not going to have to shell out a lot more to postpone to “this time next week” because advances are already 3 times what they paid. OK, so that’s the risk of buying an advance, but if the main aim is to make deciding not to travel (on the periphery) as painless as possible…

Agree on this - it's basically what even the cheapest airlines do. If you're postponing a weekend away, Monday isn't going to be much use, you want to postpone it to another weekend in a few weeks or months.

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed. Just when it might have been a useful service with any surface transport disruption.

Safety of staff travelling there to work? Safety of above ground buildings?

A red warning is very serious - it's very close to a COVID lockdown to be honest (controversial though that may be) - don't be out unless you absolutely need to. We aren't used to this sort of weather but take a look at how the US does it in places like Florida where they are.

 

[Howardh]

One wonders how the Glasgow Underground, which runs entirely in tunnel, has needed to be closed. Just when it might have been a useful service with any surface transport disruption.

Staff getting there on cancelled trains etc?

Meanwhile, Brighton to Bolton today - 1016 to Cambridge cancelled so in the 0958 to Bedford. Hope to arrive at St Pancras with an hour to spare!

Euston to Manchester looks OK at the min. Fingers crossed

 

[pokemonsuper9]

Slightly baffled by the mismatch on different data sources. Looked at the map on Signalbox and trains are apparently running south of Edinburgh and Glasgow (LNER, Lumo, TPE, Avanti) but they don't exist on RealTimeTrains nor on national rail arrivals/departures. I had always assumed that the Signalbox map was showing "real time" locations of actual trains, but apparently not.

Signalbox makes things up, RTT, traksy, etc are the actual sources.
Signalbox has the same data as Traksy, but if it doesn't hear from the system is just guesses the train is running as planned, making it useless in disruption.

 

[CJSwan]

There’s a Ryanair flight from Stansted to Edinburgh, which after circling a bit and then attempting to land, is now being diverted to… Cologne*! Give them their due for trying, but jeez.

*according to what is shown on Flight Radar 24 at the moment

 

[mpthomson]

Teeside and the North Yorkshire moors should be fairly protected from the worst of the winds. I don't think there's a risk.

I thought it was a nice touch to run the school services, we're talking about a really rural area where hiring taxis or a replacement bus would have been difficult.
The reasons why there can't be a passenger service are probably complex. It's never as easy as saying "Well, the weather's fine here, let's run a train service".

Indeed, I'm in East Yorks in the Wolds, there's certainly a stiff wind here, but it's nothing like as bad as what we had last autumn. We're lucky this time round compared to what others are having to deal with.

 

[Davester50]

Transport is not absolutely essential service under red warning conditions except for the roads for emergency services etc

It was essential during Covid.

 

[Bletchleyite]

There’s a Ryanair flight from Stansted to Edinburgh, which after circling a bit and then attempting to land, is now being diverted to… Cologne*! Give them their due for trying, but jeez.

*according to what is shown on Flight Radar 24 at the moment

Wow. Surprised no UK airport can take them even if one down south. Luton for instance won't be particularly windy, it's almost completely still here.

It was essential during Covid.

COVID was long term. The economy doesn't collapse because of Christmas Day. What you're basically doing with a red warning is creating an artificial Christmas Day.

If there's going to be more of this (and all indications is that there is) there's probably a need for national discussions about how a red warning should be handled, e.g. should it perhaps mean an additional public holiday for the affected area so businesses don't force people to travel and put their lives at risk unnecessarily, and so the likes of hotels are forced to refund or rebook even non-flexible rates?

 

[Class 317]

It was essential during Covid.

It was essential not to shut down for months on end but that's different to shutting for a few hours or a day.

It's not absolutely essential over that time frame.

 

[Davester50]

COVID was long term. The economy doesn't collapse because of Christmas Day. What you're basically doing with a red warning is creating an artificial Christmas Day.

Only part of Scotland is Red. Many places are closed outside of the Red areas.

 

[AndrewE]

There’s a Ryanair flight from Stansted to Edinburgh, which after circling a bit and then attempting to land, is now being diverted to… Cologne*! Give them their due for trying, but jeez.

*according to what is shown on Flight Radar 24 at the moment

was its next trip to be Edinburgh to Cologne, by any chance?

 

[Wivenswold]

Really good news coming from the weather models this morning, Sunday/Monday storm now not looking as violent (though I won't rule out an amber warning on exposed coasts) and the worrying sting jet scenario for the South East has now disappeared from the models.
Interesting radar evidence of an area of rotation forming over SE London this morning as the squall line went through but so far, no reports of small tornadoes.

 

[Bletchleyite]

was its next trip to be Edinburgh to Cologne, by any chance?

If it was then Cologne to Stansted and it had enough seats to consolidate the flights that might be sensible!

 

[rg177]

Tyne & Wear Metro is suspended between Regent Centre and Airport due to a tree touching the overhead lines. Already been several reports of branches on the line on that route.

 

[dk1]

So lucky here in East Anglia. GA only cancelled some first trains to use as proving runs but some of those even got reinstated for passengers. Standby coaches provided but not needed at principal locations. My trains so far have run with the normal Swiss style precision this morning.

 

[AndrewE]

. What you're basically doing with a red warning is creating an artificial Christmas Day.

Except that we have just had lots of post delivered - but then we are just outside in the red warning area.

 

[PyrahnaRanger]

Or maybe arrangements were made for staff to arrive before the red warning kicked in, and to stay on site? I've no idea, just wondering.

Local to me, the nuclear power station and it's ancillary facilities had a limited number of beds for people. In this weather, non-essential staff are told to stay away, and only process workers turn up for shift, with a one-in one-out process so critical processes are never unattended.

The water processing facilities don't have any accommodation like that, but now all have Remote Access to SCADA, so staff can monitor and control processes from home, and most will alert staff if there's an issue - they already do this overnight as they aren't (generally) 24/7 staffed. Most site staff will have some form of 4x4 transport provided, as well as comprehensive training on using it, including when it's better to leave systems tripped out than travel.

(I've not worked for either directly, but have supported both)

Hospitals too...

Similar. Office staff will be off/WFH if possible. Medical staff such as Nurses, Drs, HCAs, midwives are expected to get to and from hospital. During the last bad spell, one of the gynecology Registrars couldn't make it home from our local hospital so he went back to offer assistance and the midwives shoved him in a spare delivery room for a sleep with the threat they'd kick him out if they needed all 6 rooms - unlikely given the weather!

should it perhaps mean an additional public holiday for the affected area so businesses don't force people to travel and put their lives at risk unnecessarily,

Tesco announced they were closing all stores in red areas today for staff and customer safety. Seems fairly sensible to me.

What doesn't is my LA, who despite telling their own staff to work from home today were telling schools they shouldn't shut today and pupils should go in as normal. Utter folly, predicted windspeed of over 85MPH at my kid's school. Times like this I really miss my weather station - the anemometer seized up as it wasn't as waterproof as it needed to be for Cumbrian weather!

 

[Donny Dave]

It has been fairly calm in Doncaster so far, but the wind speed is increasing, with some strong gusts.

Everything seems to running OK fir now through the station, but with the wind getting stronger, I expect that to change.