Huntingdon practice stabbing: What safety is there on trains and which providers are disrupted right now?

Passengers anticipating to journey on East Coast Main Line providers have been warned of continued disruption after Saturday night’s mass stabbing onboard a practice from Doncaster to London.

British Transport Police (BTP) have confirmed that two individuals stay in a life-threatening situation following the bloody rampage, whereas two British nationals have been arrested on suspicion of tried homicide.

LNER, which operates most intercity trains on the UK’s flagship route, mentioned disruption to its providers between London Kings Cross and Yorkshire was prone to final till Monday.

David Horne, managing director of LNER, mentioned “We are deeply shocked and saddened by this critical incident, and our ideas are very a lot with everybody concerned.

“The safety and wellbeing of everyone affected will remain our priority. We will continue to do everything we can to support our customers and colleagues during this difficult time.”

What do we know about the train involved? What measures are in place for passenger safety? And what is the impact on train services today?

Simon Calder is at London King’s Cross station – the intended destination for the train.

What service was involved?

The train involved in the 1 November incident was the 6.25pm LNER departure from Doncaster in South Yorkshire to London King’s Cross. It left on time and called at Retford, Newark, Grantham and Peterborough.

The service departed from Peterborough on time at 7.30pm. One more call was expected 28 minutes later at Stevenage, with arrival in the capital scheduled for 8.23pm.

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The train was planned to travel through Huntingdon at 125mph on a fast track that does not have access to a platform.

While the attack was happening, the LNER train driver, their control room and Network Rail signallers were able to divert the train to the slow line and bring it to a halt at the first available station within 14 minutes of departure from Peterborough, with armed police attending.

This was an extraordinarily swift response. The outcome could have been far worse, had the train either stopped short of the station – with access and escape difficult – or continued to Stevenage, .

What security is in place on trains?

CCTV cameras are standard onboard trains, but passengers are especially vulnerable to attackers while travelling at 125mph in a confined space.

Currently the only pre-boarding check for passengers happens at London St Pancras International, with all Eurostar passengers and their baggage checked before departure to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam. This is because the Channel Tunnel is perceived to be a key terrorist target.

For trains within the UK, British Transport Police patrol trains and stations, but the force has fewer than 3,000 officers – on a network with five million journeys a day. The BTP says patrols will be stepped up in the next few days.

Transport secretary Heidi Alexander said passengers would see “a excessive visibility presence” of police at railway stations and on trains on Sunday “to reassure the general public”.

She added: “My ideas are with those that have been impacted by the stunning incident in Huntingdon final evening, particularly these nonetheless in hospital right now.

“I’d like to pay enormous tribute to the staff and officers who responded, and the public for their patience and cooperation.

“Trains at the moment are operating within the space, nevertheless Huntingdon station stays closed with trains passing via.

“Passengers will see a high visibility presence of officers at stations and on trains throughout today who are there to reassure the public.”

Rail companies will take into account growing the variety of safety workers on trains. There are prone to be requires airport-style safety checks earlier than boarding trains. But given the sheer variety of travellers and the constraints at stations, that appears impractical.

What are the unions calling for?

The chief of the most important rail union, the RMT, has praised “the professionalism, bravery and steadfastness “ of the workers who responded to the knife attack.

General secretary Eddie Dempsey added: “I will be seeking urgent meetings with government, rail employers and police to ensure that we have the strongest possible support, resources and robust procedures in place to protect our members and the travelling public.”

The TSSA union, representing white-collar rail workers, highlighted “the urgent need for preventive measures, heightened security, and zero-tolerance towards aggression on our transport system”. The union is in search of assurances “that the rail workforce receives all necessary support, including counselling and time off when needed’.

What is the effect on travel today?

As police continue to investigate the knife attack on a train that ended at Huntingdon station, rail passengers have been warned: “LNER services between London Kings Cross and Peterborough may be cancelled, revised or delayed.”

National Rail issued an early morning replace about disruption on Monday after the weekend’s knife assault on a practice travelling from Doncaster to London.

The practice was diverted to Huntingdon, the place the emergency providers helped passengers and crew.

The LNER practice stays a criminal offense scene that police are investigating.

Passengers are warned: “The emergency services are continuing to deal with a major incident between Hitchin and Peterborough. Whilst they carry out their work some lines are still closed. Great Northern and Thameslink services will not call at Huntingdon.”

LNER posted on X: “We expect to run a normal service today. We still recommend checking your journey closer to the time, using our journey checker. If you have an Advance Single ticket [for Monday] then please travel on your booked service.”

The practice operator says unused LNER tickets for 1-2 November are legitimate for journey as much as and together with 7 November.

“You don’t need to change or amend your ticket, but LNER recommend making a seat reservation before you travel,” the rail agency mentioned.

Weekend engineering work within the York space has now ended which means trains can now run between London, northeast England and Scotland as soon as once more.

The practice, a criminal offense scene, continues to be blocking one observe on the East Coast Main Line at Huntingdon, slowing providers.

The route usually connects London King’s Cross with Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland, however deliberate engineering work within the York space means no trains are operating past Doncaster.

With a variety of cancellations, some LNER trains are making extra calls, which is including to delays.

The rail agency says: “Rail replacement buses will run between Newark Northgate and Lincoln in both directions in placed of cancelled train services on this route.”

LNER tickets for Saturday or Sunday can be utilized on Monday or Tuesday, although the practice operators recommends making a contemporary reservation.

Services between London King’s Cross on Grand Central to West Yorkshire and Hull Trains are close to regular.

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Are practice drivers taught to take care of conditions like this?

Train drivers are extremely educated to deal with all method of bizarre circumstances and emergency situations. Everything is rooted in security, and getting passengers to the most secure doable location as swiftly as doable is paramount.

On this event the motive force, together with LNER crew and management room workers, in addition to Network Rail, responded with nice talent and professionalism.