The different stages of A421 in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, after flooding.
One unlucky car was trapped on the A421 last week before tankers were brought in to empty it out (Picture: PA/X)

The road and rail network has felt the brunt of a week of heavy rain – and now further flooding wreaks havoc on travel.

If you thought the downpours were gone, think again. Dozens of flood warnings and alerts are still in place across the country and the Met Office has forecast more wet weather.

In Devon, a car and a bus got trapped in floods today while some roads are blocked in Birmingham and Hitchin, Hertfordshire.

The A421 remains closed in Bedfordshire after flash flooding trapped cars last week. The deluge is now gone after days of pumping, but the road will need fixing before reopening, National Highways said.


Which roads are flooded in Birmingham and West Midlands?

Some hotspots have cleared in Birmingham, but localised flooding remains across West Midlands as flood warnings and alerts are in force.

Birmingham

  • Bournville Lane is blocked in both directions after floodwater between Oxford Street and Franklin Way. Bus number 27 is forced to use a diversion

Evesham

Two roads near River Avon are closed west of Evesham.

  • Flooding on Mill Bank both ways between Church Street and Church Leys across the Jubilee Bridge
  • The B4080 Eckington Road is partially blocked in both directions between Roman Meadow and New Barn Road. Traffic is able to pass the location, traffic analyst Inrix said

Hundreds of drink-drivers caught at least four times

Shocking figures have revealed that hundreds of drivers got behind the wheel at least four times after drinking.

Several motorists were prosecuted seven times for drink-driving.

Read more about it below.

London Underground and Overground update

The coast is not quite clear yet on the Tube as we approach lunchtime.

The good news is that the earlier London Overground signalling fault appears to be sorted after trains were severely delayed between Stratford, Richmond and Clapham Junction throughout the rush hour.

However, District and Metropolitan lines continue to have severe delays, the latest TfL update shows.

  • Metropolitan line – Severe delays due to an earlier faulty train at Finchley Road
  • District line – No service between Dagenham East and Upminster due to an operational incident at the depot. There are also severe delays between Richmond and Turnham Green due to the earlier Network Rail signal failure at Kew

Man in his 20s dies after being hit by driver

A 22-year-old man has died after a crash with a driver in Murton, Durham, yesterday.

The driver had crashed with a pedestrian shortly before 11.50am on the A19.

Durham Constabulary said: ‘Paramedics also attended, but the 22-year-old pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene, the driver did not receive any injuries.

‘An investigation is now underway and collision investigators are keen to speak to anyone who witnessed the incident or with dashcam footage.’

Anyone with information is asked to contact the force’s serious collision investigation unit via e-mail at sciu@durham.police.uk or by calling 101 and quoting incident number 163 of September 29.

Car and bus trapped on flooded Devon roads


Dozens of flood warnings still in place as heavy rain swells rivers
Where flood warnings and alerts are in place (Picture: Metro.co.uk)

Dozens of flood warnings mean roads could become waterlogged, spelling more misery for drivers.

In Devon, several roads are closed due to flooding in the Axminster area.

  • A bus is reportedly stuck in the floodwater on the A358 Chard Road. It is blocked both ways from Second Avenue to Goldsmith Lane
  • One car is stuck on the B3261 Trafalgar Way which is closed in both directions between the A35 and A358 King Edward Road
  • The A3052 Boshill Hill near Seaton is closed both ways due to flooding between B3172 (Axmouth turn) and B3161 Coly Road

A road near Exeter Airport has been submerged. Station Road near Cranbrook is ‘impassable’ due to floodwater, an alert from traffic analyst Inrix shows.

Major disruption on East Midlands Railway and Thameslink trains

An emergency incident has closed all railway lines in Bedford.

It means trains running between Bedford and Luton could be axed, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised.

Severe disruption is expected until about 1pm, National Rail warned.

Here are the affected routes.

  • East Midlands Railway between Nottingham / Sheffield / Corby and London St Pancras International
  • Thameslink between Bedford and East Grinstead / Three Bridges / Haywards Heath / Horsham / Brighton

Is the A421 still closed?


Floods on the A421 in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, with tankers pumping water as the road remains closed.
The tankers have pumped millions of litres of water out of the A421 (Picture: Lee Elliot /PA Wire)

The carriageway in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, made headlines after it turned into a tea-coloured mini-Venice, trapping cars in the flash floods.

Tankers have pumped around 60 million litres of water for the past week to get the road ready to reopen. Highways bosses urged people to stay away from the flooded road on Friday after swimmers and canoeists dipped into the water.

At its peak, the water was 8ft deep.

Further rain has not helped the clearing and recovery work, National Highways’ regional director Martin Fellows said.

Water has now been cleared – but it doesn’t mean the road can reopen immediately.

Now highways officers will assess to check if the floods damaged the road and what repair work is needed.

Until National Highways gives an all-clear, the carriageway will remain shut between the A6 Bedford and the M1 junction J13 near Broghborough and Marston Moretaine.

Delays on trains between Westbury and Castle Cary

Great Western Railway and South Western Railway trains have been hit by disruption after a high voltage power cable fell on the tracks in Somerset between Frome and Bruton

All lines have now reopened, but residual delays, revisions and diversions are still likely until 11.15am.

Here are the affected routes.

  • Great Western Railway between London Paddington and Paignton / Plymouth / Penzance, and also between Gloucester / Bristol Temple Meads and Weymouth
  • South Western Railway between London Waterloo / Salisbury and Yeovil Pen Mill

Specialists from Network Rail along with SSEN staff attended the location where they found the high-voltage cable which they removed safely.

Road in Clapham remains shut after fatal ‘knife fight’

One person died and two were injured after a triple stabbing in Clapham yesterday.

Part of Wandsworth Road A3036 remains closed after the incident yesterday at about 4am.

A police cordon is in place on A3036 Lavender Hill and Wandsworth Road between Wickersley Road and The Chase.

The road remains closed both ways and buses 77, 87 and 452 have been rerouted.

Read more about what happened below.

Poor weather affects travel today

The summer has truly ended as the UK has been swept by heavy rain, flooding and cooler temperatures.

And it’s not set to end anytime soon after the Met Office forecasts further downpours along with dozens of flood warnings.

The A421 remains closed in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, after flash flooding left cars trapped on the carriageway.

Here are disruption affecting train travel this morning.

  • Flooding between Bletchley and Bedford means trains could be cancelled until 9am
  • No Transport for Wales and West Midlands Railway trains between Shrewsbury and Wolverhampton until the end of the day due to flooding
  • Lines have just reopened after earlier disruption between Birmingham Snow Hill and Dorridge

Motorway closes after crash on A1(M) in Hertfordshire


Traffic camera showing queueing cars on the A1(M) after a crash.
Drivers on the A1(M) face delays – and wet conditions (Picture: Highways England)

Part of the A1(M) has shut for an investigation following a crash near Welwyn Garden City overnight.

The crash happened between junction J4 and J6 last night northbound and the carriageway has been closed since with diversions in place.

National Highways said the incident involved ‘a vehicle that left the carriageway.’

Drivers heading north should follow the solid diamond diversion symbol and exit the A1(M) at J4.

Hour-long delays on Chiltern Railways trains

Severe delays and cancellations have hit travel between London, Buckinghamshire and Hertforshire after a fault with the signalling system in northwest London.

All lines are blocked between Amersham and London Marylebone, and trains between these stations could be an hour late or diverted.

The disruption is expected to last until 9am, National Rail said.

Passengers can use tickets on London Northwestern Railway on any reasonable route.

London Overground travel status


A view of a London Overground Train at Hampstead Heath Station, London. Picture date: Thursday May 2, 2019. Photo credit should read: Gareth Fuller/PA Wire
Prepare for disruption on the TfL network this morning (Picture: Gareth Fuller/PA)

Part of the Overground has also been hit by the Network Rail signal issue at Kew.

There is no service between South Acton and Richmond, while the rest of the line has good service on all other routes, the latest TfL travel status update shows.

National Rail said trains between Gunnersbury and Richmond will be cancelled or revised to start or terminate at Gunnersbury.

Disruption is expected to last until 12 midday.

District and Metropolitan lines suspended

The London Underground lines have severe delays and both are partially suspended, causing havoc to rush hour journeys.

  • District line – No service between Richmond and Turnham Green while Network Rail engineers fix a signal fault at Kew Gardens. The rest of the line has minor delays
  • Metropolitan line – No service between Northwood and Chesham, Amersham and Watford while TfL repairs a signal failure at Rickmansworth


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