Full East Midlands Trains timetable to London resumes following Freight Train Derailment

• Services to and from London St Pancras to run as normal from 11am on 1 January
• Trains unable to call at Barrow Upon Soar until further notice as Network Rail engineers continue repair works

East Midlands Trains has restored normal train services to and from London St Pancras from 11am Tuesday 1 January after emergency repair works were carried out by Network Rail following the derailment of a freight train at Barrow on Soar (between Leicester and Loughborough) on 27 December.

However, further remedial work by Network Rail at the site of the derailment is still required over the coming days and as a result, train services will be unable to call at Barrow Upon Soar until further notice. A replacement bus service will remain in operation between Barrow and Loughborough to connect with train services.

The freight train – operated by DB Schenker – was carrying over 1,000 tonnes of stone when it derailed. Network Rail engineers have been working to remove the stone and work to remove the wagons is being completed at night as the railway needs to be closed to allow them to be lifted safely.

Network Rail is also expected to carry out further work overnight on Saturday (5 January). Details of any further service amendments as a result of the planned work on Saturday will be published in due course.

Martin Frobisher, Route Managing Director for Network Rail, said: I apologise to all those who have been inconvenienced by this work and thank passengers for their continued patience. Removing the wagons safely is a complex job and this location is not easily accessible, all of which has added to the time it has taken to complete. We have deliberately worked through the night in order to minimise the effect upon passengers and expect to complete the removal of the wagons on Saturday night. Final repairs to the track and embankment will then be completed as quickly as possible.

A spokesperson for East Midlands Trains said: “We would like to apologise to our passengers for the inconvenience our revised timetable may have caused over the past few days. However, it was essential that Network Rail had full access to the line to allow them to make progress on the work that needs to be completed before all services can return to normal.