CrossCountry cancelled almost all of its train services across Great Britain on Sunday, 23 August 2026, following a power outage at its Birmingham control centre. This disruption affected multiple key routes and resulted in widespread cancellations until further notice.
Affected Routes and Replacement Services
Major routes impacted included Glasgow to Edinburgh, Manchester to Birmingham, Cheltenham to Cardiff, and Newcastle to Edinburgh. The service between Peterborough, Cambridge, and Stansted Airport remained operational. A rail replacement bus service operated between Leicester and Peterborough. CrossCountry announced a very limited number of trains would resume from around 6pm on Sunday, with a return to normal service expected on Monday,
24 August 2026.
Ticket Validity and Alternative Operators
Tickets purchased for CrossCountry services on Sunday, 23 August, were valid on other train operators running the equivalent routes. These tickets also remained valid on CrossCountry services until Wednesday, 26 August 2026. Chiltern Railways increased services between Birmingham Moor Street and Oxford and accepted CrossCountry tickets on any reasonable route. LNER likewise accepted CrossCountry tickets to assist affected passengers.
Passengers experiencing delays of 30 minutes or more were eligible for delay repay compensation. Refunds were also available to those opting not to travel on Sunday.
Official Responses and Previous Performance Issues
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander expressed concern over the power outage, stating, “The
service between Peterborough, Cambridge and Stansted is still running.” She added that publicly owned operators were requested to provide extra services where possible. Network Rail deployed power teams to the Birmingham site to restore systems swiftly.
CrossCountry apologized for the disruption and said it was working closely with partners to manage the situation. The operator previously faced warnings from passenger watchdog Transport Focus to improve performance and passenger information, particularly after a 2026 survey showed CrossCountry’s customer satisfaction at 79%, below the national rail average of 87%. Transport Focus had also urged improvements in handling delays and overcrowding earlier this
year.
