MERSEYRAIL has activated its cold weather plans, ahead of an expected drop in temperatures overnight going into Tuesday, 19 November 2024, to help ensure services continue to operate safely.

Temperatures are expected to fall to -3°C overnight with the metal rails set to be even colder. The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning across the North West of England, meaning Merseyrail’s preventative measures have been activated to deal with the potential for snow and ice on the tracks tomorrow morning.

The 1st service of the day on each line will therefore run without customers, enabling the rail conditions to be checked before services can begin as normal. However, if the predicted ice and snow fails to arrive, Merseyrail and Network Rail will work together to run as many 1st trains as possible.

Customers planning to travel in the morning should check for the latest travel advice before starting their journey by using the Merseyrail app, website or ‘X’ account (@merseyrail).

Greg Suligowski, Head of Communications at Merseyrail, said:- “We are sorry for the disruption this cold weather will cause to our customers intending to travel on the first services tomorrow morning. We do everything possible to avoid cancelling services, but given the weather warning, it’s important we check that subsequent services can operate safely. Merseyrail and Network Rail teams will be out during the night, working hard to reduce the impact the forecasted weather has on the network. Ultimately the goal will be to provide a normal timetable as soon as possible. I’d encourage anyone wanting to travel on our 1st services tomorrow to check for the latest updates before heading to the station”.