New report into January chaos at Merseyrail identifies issues with how new £500m train fleet responded to ice and snow and it warns of a repeat next winter if a new plan is not put in place. Tony McDonough reports
There could be more cancellations and chaos on the Merseyrail network next winter if lessons from a day of disruption in January aren’t learned.
On January 9 Liverpool city region was hit by snow and freezing conditions. This led to multiple delays and cancellations across the Merseyrail network. For several hours on January 9 there were no services on either the Northern or Wirral lines.
Despite rail bosses being aware of snow and freezing conditions in advance they failed to organise rail replacement buses leaving travellers fuming. Mr Rotheram said the chaos was “unacceptable”.
Following the chaos Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram appointed transport industry expert Vernon Everitt to conduct an urgent review. That report is now published and Mr Everitt warns this “unprecedented failure” could happen again next winter.
He concluded that the new £500m train fleet responded to ice in a different way to the old rolling stock and a new de-icing product was being used which had not been tested against snow on the network.
He has set a deadline of June 2025 for the relevant authorities to work together and come up with a new plan for winter..
The report found that the main problem was ice on the third rail, which supplies electricity to the new 777 model trains built by Swiss manufacturer, Stadler. The old trains “sheered off” ice from the third rail.
However, when the new trains came into contact with ice they ‘lifted up’, no longer making contact with the third rail, and coming to a stop.
Mr Everitt said: “You will never eliminate all risk of this because third rails are inherently open. You can get to the conditions where ice does form, but you need the anti-icer and the train working in harmony to minimise that risk to the lowest possible level, and you need to start work on that now.”
He recommends the appointment of one single person with sole responsibility for the issues, and suggested Liverpool City Region Combined Authority should appoint someone with accountability for new winter travel plans.
In a joint statement, Merseyrail, Stadler and Network Rail said: “We welcome the findings of the review of the disruption on the 9th January 2025. As the report makes clear, Merseyrail is a well-managed and high performing network.
“It’s right, therefore, that when things don’t go to plan that we review and learn from them. Merseyrail, Network Rail and Stadler are committed to working closely with the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, to ensure that the plan for winter resilience is the best it can possibly be.”
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Mr Rotheram added: “The disruption on January 9 caused serious inconvenience for passengers. It had to be a line in the sand which is why I stepped in to convene partners and commission an independent review.
“While the network is fragmented and we don’t operate the trains, we still have a responsibility to hold those who do to account.
“I’d like to thank Vernon Everitt for his comprehensive, honest and no-nonsense report. Collectively, we’re accepting all of its recommendations.
“We have already begun working with Merseyrail, Network Rail and Stadler to put them into action – from improving planning and communications to making sure there’s clear system-wide accountability in place.”
