Great Western Coffee Shop

I'm surprised that NR didn't insist on checking for themselves that there wasn't any damage to their rails / equipment before services were allowed to resume.

Also, it's reasonably easy to alight from a train not at a platform - I wonder how they all got back onboard?

Passengers clambered down onto the tracks today to help staff clear a fallen tree of a rail line in Warwickshire. This occurred on a day when Network Rail were stretched to the limit as trees came crashing down across the region.

As a result of the passengers actions, the line was re-opened after only 40 minutes.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-16422955?

5 January 2012 Last updated at 21:11

West Midlands road and rail hit by storm force winds

Storm force winds battered the West Midlands, damaging power lines and knocking trees on to roads and rail lines as they caused travel misery across the region.

Train passengers and staff escaped injury just before noon yesterday when a tree fell on to London Midland^s 10.27am service from Redditch to Lichfield Trent Valley, between Sutton Coldfield and Four Oaks.

Overhead electricity cables were understood to have broken the tree^s fall as it landed on the northbound train, with passengers eventually escorted on foot to a coach waiting in Boswell Road.

Buses were put on with dozens of services affected as the line was closed while engineers worked throughout the day to clear the tree.

It was the day^s second incident involving a London Midland service. Train users had helped clear a line after gusts of up to 55mph knocked a tree onto tracks at Wood End station, between Stratford-upon-Avon and Shirley, at 7am.

Line operator London Midland said that because Network Rail staff were overwhelmed with incidents, the train^s crew and some of the passengers helped to clear the line. Another tree was blown onto the line near Stourbridge Junction, causing rush hour delays, while Western Power Distribution confirmed around 6,000 properties in the Walsall area were left without power as debris damaged power lines in the early hours yesterday.

Gales cause misery for Birmingham rail commuters

Gales of up to 60mph caused misery for rail passengers trying to make their journey to work in the region this morning.

Trains travelling from Stratford to Birmingham Snow Hill were delayed by up to 30 minutes after gusts of up to 55mph knocked a tree onto a railway line at Wood End station, between Stratford and Shirley. Passengers were even roped into action to help clear the tracks.
 
A London Midland spokesman said Network Rail was dealing with a large number of incidents at the time and so the train crew and passengers worked together to shift the debris, which shut the line for 40 minutes.