The great Christmas getaway has descended into chaos for thousands of passengers hoping to fly from London Stansted airport.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, thieves stole signalling and power cables from the Stansted Express rail line in Hertfordshire causing the tracks to be closed to trains.
While Network Rail engineers worked to repair the damage, the first 17 departures of the airport express train were cancelled.
At London Liverpool Street, passengers were told Stansted Express services would resume with the 8.25am train – but, like the previous trains, it was axed.
The following train, due to depart at 8.40am, left late and was expected to arrive at the airport about an hour later. No trains left Stansted before 9am.
The line closure also affected commuters from Cambridge, western Essex and Hertfordshire to London.
National Rail said: “Trains may continue to be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised whilst service recovers.
“Major disruption is expected until at least 10am. Due to train and crew displacement, it may take longer than anticipated to restore all train services to normal.”
Stansted airport is expecting around 40,000 departing passengers on Thursday, of whom about a quarter would plan to use the train.
National Express coaches run from various locations in London to the airport, but with around 50 seats they have extremely limited space compared with a capacity of more than 1,000 on each of the Stansted Express trains.
Network Rail says: “The theft of metal is a big problem for the railway as thieves target signalling cables, overhead power lines and even metal fences to sell for scrap.
“Cable theft costs us millions of pounds each year. The total cost to the economy – taking into account the impact of freight delays to power stations and supermarkets, and on passengers who miss appointments or have their day ruined – is even higher.”
Ryanair, the biggest airline at Stansted, said normal policies will apply. A spokesperson said: “It is each passenger’s responsibility to ensure they present at the boarding gate on time for their flight.
“If passengers do not present at the gate in time for their flight, they can pay a Missed Departure Fee [£100] to move onto the next available flight.”
Passengers travelling between London and Gatwick airport also encountered problems on Thursday morning due to what National Rail called “a fault with the signalling system”.
All southbound trains to the Sussex airport until around 9.30am were delayed.
