With Storm Dudley set to bring heavy rain and high winds to Scotland tomorrow (16 February), ScotRail train services will cease running early on Wednesday afternoon as a safety precaution.
Domestic rail services will be wound down by 4pm on Wednesday when the worst of Storm Dudley is expected to sweep across the country.
ScotRail services on the Far North, Kyle of Lochalsh, and Aberdeen-Inverness lines will continue to run because these areas are outside of the weather warning.
The strength of the winds expected could damage infrastructure, blowing debris and trees onto tracks and damaging equipment such as overhead electric power lines and signals.
Network Rail will have additional engineers out across the network ready to react to problems and will check all affected lines for damage before reintroducing services as quickly as possible.
Disruption on some lines is expected to continue until mid-morning on Thursday and passengers are being urged to check their journey before travelling.
David Simpson, ScotRail Service Delivery Director, said:
"We know the impact that the earlier withdrawal of services will have on customers but it’s a necessary step to ensure the safety of our staff and customers due to the severe weather.
“If you have to travel tomorrow (Wednesday), please check the ScotRail app or website before heading to the station.
"With services being withdrawn in the afternoon, we’d ask all customers to carefully plan ahead.”
Liam Sumpter, Network Rail Route Director for Scotland, said:
“Storm Dudley has the potential to cause significant disruption to our infrastructure, blowing trees onto tracks and damaging equipment.
“A controlled withdrawal of ScotRail services on Wednesday afternoon is the safest way to manage the risks posed by the storm.
“We will be working hard on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning to respond to any issues caused by Storm Dudley and will reintroduce services as soon as lines are inspected for damage and we are sure it is safe to do so.”
Further significant weather is being forecast for most of Scotland on Friday (18 February) and our weather specialists are monitoring the conditions. Passengers are urged to continue to check their journey before travelling over the course of the weekend.