A faulty rail in Hatfield is causing chaos on the railways in Hertfordshire today (September 2), with trains either cancelled or delayed by up to an hour.

National Rail said Great Northern and Thameslink services between Finsbury Park and Stevenage could be cancelled or delayed, with the problem affecting two routes via Welwyn Garden City and Hertford North.

Although work started yesterday to fix the broken rail, this is due to continue into this evening.

National Rail said it was working with Network Rail to fix the problem "as quickly as possible", but added it was "taking some time", with the following alterations to services in place for the rest of the day:

  • Trains from Welwyn Garden City towards Moorgate are due to run non-stop from Hatfield to New Barnet, to reduce congestion
  • Trains between King's Lynn/Ely and London King's Cross are diverting on to another route between Stevenage and London King's Cross, taking about 20 minutes longer than usual
  • Peak-time trains between Peterborough and London King's Cross are being cancelled, with Horsham services still running
  • Peak-time trains between Welwyn Garden City and Sevenoaks are not running on the part of the route between Welwyn Garden City and London Blackfriars