Calder Valley route reopened following heavy snowfall Date published: 02 February 2021
Photo: Sheila Rayner
With the line clear, services are now running between Leeds and Manchester, via Halifax and Bradford, though delays and cancellations are likely for several hours
Northern services have returned to the Calder Valley after customers were earlier asked not to travel due to heavy snowfall overnight.
Several trees had fallen onto the line between Halifax and Rochdale, but these have now been cleared by Network Rail.
With the line clear, services are now running between Leeds and Manchester, via Halifax and Bradford, though delays and cancellations are likely for several hours.
Several trees have fallen onto the line between Halifax and Rochdale meaning trains cannot operate
Northern is asking its customers not to travel on the Calder Valley route until further notice after heavy snowfall has caused significant disruption.
Several trees have fallen onto the line between Halifax and Rochdale meaning trains cannot operate and, with treacherous road conditions, it is also extremely difficult to run replacement bus services.
Adverse weather has also affected other parts of the Northern network with disruption affecting services in Cumbria, North Yorkshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester.
A spokesperson for Northern said: “Heavy snow has fallen across many parts of our network overnight and into this morning and is causing significant disruption in many areas.
Photo: Sheila Rayner
Snow, with a risk of widespread ice, is likely to bring difficult travel conditions (Pictured: snow on the railway line at Slattocks)
Monday 1 February is to bring an icy start to the month across the country.
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather alert for snow and ice from the evening of Monday through to night time on Wednesday 3 February.
Snow, with a risk of widespread ice, is likely to push slowly northeast from late Monday, bringing difficult travel conditions.
The Met Office says: “A band of rain, locally heavy in places, is likely to push slowly northeast across Wales and England late Monday. As this rain comes into contact with cold air in place, it is likely to readily turn to snow across parts of Wales, the Midlands, and later parts of northern England. 1-4 cm of snow is quite likely away from coasts, with 5-10 cm possible above about 150 metres. As well as snow, a period of freezing rain is possible for parts of east Wales and the West an