Train services between London Paddington and Reading have resumed after a grass fire near a railway track caused major disruption on Saturday afternoon. The blaze at Scrubs Lane in North Kensington led to an electricity supply failure, halting all lines between Paddington and Heathrow and causing hours of delays for travellers.
Fire and evacuation details
London Fire Brigade said six fire engines and around 40 crew members tackled the blaze, which was called in at just after 4.10pm on Saturday. The fire service, along with Transport for London (TfL), evacuated 380 passengers who were left stranded on an Elizabeth Line train. Photos on social media showed large plumes of smoke rising from the Paddington area.
Passengers heading to Heathrow Airport were caught up in severe delays on the Paddington to Heathrow line, with the disruption affecting the Elizabeth Line, Heathrow Express, and Great Western Railway (GWR) services.
Service restoration and ongoing works
In an update on Sunday morning, National Rail said disruption to the Elizabeth Line, Heathrow Express, and GWR had ended. GWR reported on Sunday morning that it was running a “good service” across most of its network after the earlier disruptions.
In a separate issue, National Rail said pre-planned engineering work between London Paddington and Burnham would close some lines on Sunday morning. As a result, Elizabeth line services did not run between London Paddington and Ealing Broadway between 2am and 7.40am. After 7.40am, Elizabeth line trains to and from Maidenhead and Reading ran to an amended timetable, and GWR services were also impacted, with some early services retimed.
A reduced local service will also run between London Paddington and Reading/Didcot Parkway on Sunday.
