Northern train delay a 'British comical parody' of the Speed movie
- Published
James Storer (sort of) likened his Northern rail journey to the Speed movie starring Sandra Bullock
A commuter whose train could not travel at more than 10mph has described his experience as a "British comical parody" of the Speed movies.
James Storer hoped his 08:29 BST train from Liverpool Lime Street would get to Manchester Deansgate on time at 09:23.
But after leaving Whiston station "it stopped every 50ft or so" and passengers were told a "brake fault" meant it was restricted to 10mph.
Northern apologised for the fault and any impact on passengers.
In Speed a bomb was set to detonate on a bus if it went less than 50mph.
A spokesman said: "The 08:29 service from Liverpool Lime St to Crewe developed a fault with its brakes after leaving Whiston station.
"The train's speed was severely restricted as a result of the fault and arrived at Earlestown station shortly after 10:05, where it subsequently terminated."
Northern's ageing Pacer trains are being phased out
Mr Storer said that while some of his fellow passengers were "very angry" about missing appointments, flights and job interviews, he "chose to laugh and liken it to Speed".
The 1994 Hollywood blockbuster starred Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper and Sandra Bullock and was much parodied.
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Referencing a deliberately lame version in Channel 4 comedy Father Ted - in which a bomb on a milk float was set to detonate if the vehicle travelled at less than 4mph - Mr Storer said it "wasn't quite as funny" as that.
The 32-year-old from Oxton, Wirral, further complained that Northern "could have stopped at any of the next three or four stations to let passengers off to make their own way but they wouldn't".
"They said they would let everyone off at Earlestown and we got there nearly two hours after the train left Lime Street," he said.
Northern said it was "impractical to disembark customers before Earlestown" because other trains were stuck behind it.
Any passengers delayed by at least 15 minutes can seek compensation.
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Father Ted ran from 1995 to 1998
- Published12 August 2019
