Reading to Paddington rail disruption continues

Elizabeth Line and Great Western Railway passengers are being warned to expect disruption

Trains between Reading and Paddington continue to be delayed or cancelled due to a broken rail crossing.

Disruption is expected to continue throughout the day as fewer trains than normal are able to run on some lines.

Elizabeth line and Great Western Railway passengers are being warned to expect disruption.

Network Rail - responsible for the UK's rail infrastructure - said it was sorry for the ongoing issues.

It urged passengers to check their journeys before they travel.

A Network Rail spokesperson said: "As part of our proactive track inspections, overnight our maintenance teams identified what looked like a crack in one of our rail crossings near Slough.

"Our first priority is safety, so a speed restriction has been introduced on the line, which may result in trains being delayed or revised.

"Services between Newbury and London Paddington will only run between Newbury and Reading, passengers travelling to or from Paddington should change at Reading for trains into London."

Great Western main line, which runs to and from Paddington, has suffered many problems in recent months.

Yesterday, speed restrictions were imposed due to a broken rail crossing, which is used to transfer trains from one line to another.

On Sunday, passengers were delayed due to damaged overhead electric cables on the route.

Thousands of passengers were stranded on trains for several hours because of a problem with overhead wires on 7 December, while four damaged rails were discovered within eight days in November.

An investigation into the performance of the route was launched by the Office of Rail and Road in the same month.

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