Landslide closes railway at Stainforth

Next to the staggering cost of a railway landslip which will cause massive disruption to passengers for months to come.

Network Rail today revealed the clear-up operation, on a stretch of track close to Hatfield Colliery near Doncaster, will run into tens of MILLIONS of pounds.

Engineers have only just been able to safely start work on removing the twisted and buckled rails. David Hirst reports

It's been revealed that a massive landslip from a colliery spoil tip in South Yorkshire has caused damage running into tens of millions of pounds. Network Rail now says that rail services won't be resumed on the busy Doncaster to Goole railway line until the end of June at the earliest.

The Doncaster to Goole and Scunthorpe line will stay closed until the end of June because of the Hatfield Colliery landslip. It's costing millions of pounds in delays and also in the repair work that needs to be done.

Repairs to a railway line in Stainforth that was damaged by a landslide 'could take some time', the rail minister has said.

The line between Doncaster, Goole and Scunthorpe was declared unsafe after the the track was left twisted two weeks ago, leaving passagers facing months of disruption.

Simon Burns told MPs in the Commons he 'fully appreciates the problems' that was caused by 'this unfortunate act of nature'.

Rail passengers face two months of delays after the line between Doncaster, Goole and Scunthorpe was declared unsafe. The track was left twisted after it was lifted by a massive landslip from a colliery spoil tip in South Yorkshire.

Now residents living near Hatfield Colliery are voicing concerns for their safety, as David Hirst reports

Rail users in parts of Yorkshire have been warned to expect weeks of disruption following a dramatic landslide in South Yorkshire.

The damage to the line in the Stainforth area is thought to have been caused by movement in a huge colliery spoil heap next to the railway.

It has left some of the track almost at right angles to its normal position and around 20ft in the air. David Hirst reports

The Doncaster to Goole and Scunthorpe railway line which runs alongside Hatfield Colliery has been damaged by a landslip from colliery waste and the line is expected to be closed for at least two months

A landslide has demolished a railway track at Stainforth affecting services between Doncaster and Goole/Hull and Scunthorpe/Cleethorpes. It will be closed until futher notice.

Network Rail say the landslide is still moving and it's too dangerous for engineers to start work on. Initial estimates are that the line will be shuft for about eight weeks from the point when the land stops moving. An amended train and bus timetable is now in operation.

Nick Donovan, FTPE Managing Director said:

"It is clearly major disruption and I want to assure passengers that we are doing everything within our power to make journeys as stress free as possible and return the line to normal service as quickly and safely as possible.

"We have relaxed ticket restrictions, produced an amended train and bus timetable and deployed additional management staff to stations. We are advising customers to check the details of their journey before they travel here