Cold weather to ring in New Year as amber health alerts issued

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued two amber health alerts for parts of the country as cold weather is set to ring in the new year.

The alerts, which warn of a rise in deaths particularly among elderly and vulnerable people, cover the North East and North West of England from 20:00 GMT on Sunday to 12:00 on 5 January.

Temperatures in these regions are expected to fall to around -4C, with snow predicted in the North West on 3 and 4 January. The low temperatures are likely to affect health and care services, the agency added.

Overnight into Monday, temperatures are expected to fall to as low as -1C in Penrith, with northern areas of Scotland set for temperatures of -6C.

Other impacts include temperatures inside hospitals and care homes dropping below the levels recommended for assessing health risks, and challenges for people keeping indoor temperatures at the recommended 18C, the UKHSA said. Staffing issues, due to travel delays, may also arise from the cold spell.

Most of England will be cloudy overnight, and there will be patches of frost and fog which could mean "tricky travelling conditions" on Monday morning, the forecaster said.

Brisk northwesterly winds could bring wintry showers to the areas of northern England and drizzle in the lead up to New Year's Day.

Between 2 and 11 January, cold northerly winds in Scotland are expected to become dominant across the UK, bringing snow showers mainly to coastal areas that will work south, the Met Office said.

Inland locations across central and southern areas will remain mostly dry but cold.

On Friday, temperatures in the the North East and North West will feel colder due to the wind chill - a temperature of -4C could feel more like -8C, the Met Office said.

The agency also issued less serious yellow cold health alerts for the rest of England, covering the East Midlands, West Midlands, South East, South West, East of England, Yorkshire and the Humber, and London.

Temperatures in areas covered by the yellow warning are expected to fall to around highs of 6C and lows below freezing from New Year's Day.

Dr Agostinho Sousa, head of extreme events and health protection at UKHSA, said it was "vital" to check in on friends, family and neighbours that are vulnerable.

The predicted temperatures can have a "serious impact" on the health of some people, leading to increased risk of heart attacks, strokes and chest infections, particularly for individuals over the age of 65 and those with pre-existing health conditions, he warned.

17:44 Swindon to Salisbury due 18:55

17:44 Swindon to Salisbury due 18:55 is being delayed at Swindon.
This is due to a late running train being in front of this one.

Work under way to demolish historic bridge



Work is under way to demolish a bridge first built during the Second World War.

Winterstoke Road Bridge in Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset, runs over the mainline railway which connects Bristol and the South West of England.

Work to demolish the structure, which has reached the end of its life, began late at night on Christmas Eve - to coincide with seasonal railway closures.

It is being replaced with an £11m bridge which is due to open in spring 2027. If it was not replaced, North Somerset Council said the bridge would have had to be permanently closed due to its age and deteriorating condition.


Diggers are removing the bridge while seasonal railway closures are in place

Council leader Mike Bell said previously: "In recent years the bridge has enabled about 20,000 journeys each day, testament to the part it plays in our local transport network. It is a crucial route, which is why it's important that the ageing bridge is replaced with one built to last for the next 120 years."

Bridge demolition work is due to continue until 06:00 GMT on Saturday, with additional track works until 10 January.

Winterstoke Road Bridge was built during the Second World War to provide access to the Royal Air Force's aeroplane factories.

Due to this, the Ministry of Defence owns the bridge and is paying for its replacement. North Somerset Council has committed a further £450,000 to the project.

This problem first appeared yesterday, with the 12:24 from Plymouth terminating at Bere Alston, although RTT refers to the reason as "points failure".

Is this line worked by a single line staff/token, with the attached key being used to unlock the ground frame? - not a lot to go wrong.

Yes ORR have created a system where inconveniencing passengers ticks more boxes than waiting for every diver to finish their holidays.

No wonder other countries think UK has lost the plot

Elf 'n Safety, mate.....can't risk anything these days. Bad Press & mammoth fines from ORR.

13:49 London Paddington to Great Malvern due 16:16 will be terminated at Worcester Foregate Street.
It has been delayed at London Paddington and is now 25 minutes late.
This is due to a late running train being in front of this one.
Last Updated:28/12/2025 15:58

16:58 Great Malvern to London Paddington due 19:31 will be started from Worcester Foregate Street.
It will no longer call at Great Malvern and Malvern Link.
This is due to a late running train being in front of this one.
Last Updated:28/12/2025 15:58

14:49 London Paddington to Great Malvern due 17:16 has been delayed between Hanborough and Kingham and is now 17 minutes late.
This is due to a late running train being in front of this one.
Last Updated:28/12/2025 16:40

Is this line worked by a single line staff/token, with the attached key being used to unlock the ground frame? - not a lot to go wrong.

Journeycheck aside, would it be good if Network Rail put out a deep dive explaining the issue, the approach, and the horizon for a long term fix that will improve resilience.

Due to a fault with the signalling system between Bere Alston and Gunnislake the line is closed.
Train services running to and from these stations have been revised. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

Journeycheck explains

I certainly recall using Typex ... and a number of other "products gone" too like, err, typewriters, slide rules, calculators ... film cameras, etc.   What is to follow them?

The secretary who made millions from her typos

In the 1950s, secretary Bette Graham from Texas was struggling to cope with her new electric typewriter.  “My fingers would hang heavy on the sensitive keyboard and the first thing I'd know, I'd have a mistake with a deposit of carbon which I simply couldn't erase,” she said.  A budding artist, she wondered if there was a way she could paint over her typos.  At home, in her kitchen, the single mum cooked up the first correcting fluid. It was a hit with other secretaries and, by 1973, Bette had turned her creation into a multi-million dollar business.

Journeycheck explains

Cancellations to services between Liskeard and Looe
Due to flooding between Liskeard and Looe the line is closed.
Train services running to and from these stations will be cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day on 04/01/26.

Heavy rainfall over the last few days combined with high tides has resulted in the water level at several bridges along the branchline being above the level which allows us to safely run trains. As a consequence Looe Branchline train services are Cancelled.
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What are we doing about it?
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We are working with Network Rail to re-open the line. The water levels have now dropped and Network Rail will need to inspect the bridges to make sure that the flooding has not caused any damage to the bridge structures.

As parts of the bridges below the water level need to be inspected, specialist divers are required.

There are no divers available until the 4th Jan 2026.

Rail users hit by change to peak time ticketing

The expansion of contactless payments on trains has caused the price of travelling on some services to soar as they now require more expensive peak time tickets.

The change allows people to pay by tapping a bank card or contactless-enabled device on readers at stations, avoiding the need to manually purchase a ticket.

But Rebecca Paul, Conservative MP for Reigate, said the new rules - introduced to 30 more stations in the South East on 14 December - risked "pricing passengers out of rail altogether".

Train operator Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) said the changes meant many passengers would save money and insisted the process was not designed to increase revenue.

The first weekday London-bound Southern service from Reigate, Surrey, that can be boarded with an off-peak day travelcard ticket now departs at 09:28, compared with 08:58 previously.

But when the 08:58 train calls at Redhill just five minutes later, passengers are still able to board it with an off-peak ticket.

A day travelcard that can be used at any time from the stations costs £37.10 whereas an off-peak is £20.60.

There are also new restrictions on travel between 16:00 and 19:00.

"We understand how, for some people, this means fares will rise, but for many others they will fall."

It pointed to a number of savings, such as Reigate passengers making a single journey at weekday off-peak times now paying £7.60 compared with £14.60 previously.

Commuters travelling before 06:30 and returning either before 16:00 or after 19:00 now save £11.60, it added.

A total of 50 electric buses have started operating on Plymouth Citybus and Go Cornwall Bus routes

Dozens of new electric buses are now in service as part of a multi-million-pound project, a transport firm said.

Plymouth Citybus and Go Cornwall Bus said 50 zero-emission double-deckers were operating across routes in Plymouth and the Rame peninsula as part of a project to replace almost half of its fleet with "cleaner, quieter and more accessible vehicles".

The vehicles were added to the fleet through a £31.87m project jointly funded by bus operators, the Department for Transport, Plymouth City Council and Cornwall Council.

Richard Stevens, managing director of Plymouth Citybus and Go Cornwall Bus, said the electric buses marked an "important moment" for the firms. "This fleet brings cleaner air, quieter streets and an improved travel experience for our passengers," Mr Stevens said.

The project has also provided an upgrade to Milehouse bus depot in Plymouth.

Wrightbus, the manufacturer of the double-deckers, has also funded the planting of 500 trees - 10 for each electric bus - across Plymouth and south east Cornwall as part of the project.