Broken rail at Harlow causes major train disruption for Greater Anglia passengers between Liverpool Street and Bishop’s Stortford, Stansted Airport and Cambridge

Train passengers were advised not to travel as a broken rail at Harlow caused major disruption for people looking to get home to Bishop’s Stortford, Sawbridgeworth and Stansted on Sunday (August 25).

Travellers on their way to catch flights from Stansted Airport were also affected by the impact on Stansted Express services.

The issue was compounded by train operator Greater Anglia telling travellers waiting at Liverpool Street to use King’s Cross instead to get to Cambridge and then back down to Stortford – but that route was the subject of engineering works.

One irate passenger claimed she had been told to sleep at Liverpool Street station!

Greater Anglia first announced at 3.25pm: “Due to a broken rail at Harlow Town, some lines are blocked. Services between Liverpool Street and Bishop’s Stortford, Stansted Airport and Cambridge are being disrupted.”

An hour later it advised that its tickets were being accepted on Govia Thameslink Railway services between King’s Cross and Cambridge, although, because of engineering works, buses replaced trains between Potters Bar and Royston and as a result the journey between the capital and Cambridge would take longer than usual.

At 5.38pm and again at 6.03pm it advised customers not to travel between Broxbourne and Bishop’s Stortford “as there is not enough alternative route to travel until the track defect has been repaired”.

Passengers’ frustrations and annoyance at Greater Anglia were obvious on social media platform X.

One man, a husband and father, asked: “Assume you will be meeting the cost for taxis today. Wife and daughter currently stuck in London trying to get home to Stortford where the car is parked.”

Another trying to get back to the capital said: “We are stuck at Bishop’s Stortford and can’t get a bus. How do we get to London? Will you be putting taxis on?”

Passengers were told there was a “limited” replacement bus service running between Broxbourne and Stortford. But one customer disputed this: “There is no bus service running at all… we waited at [Stortford] station for over two hours, staff had no idea what was happening with buses, so we gave up waiting and got a taxi to Broxbourne.”

An understanding traveller commented: “I know sometimes these things can’t be helped, but it would be good if 1) staff at Liverpool Street hadn’t told us for several hours that there was no alternative way to Cambridge, so to wait, and 2) there had been buses at Potters Bar when we eventually got there.”

A passenger called Miss Lemon summed up: “Lazy and appalling response. When trains are cancelled, organise replacement services. It’s your job. I was told to sleep at the station. Ridiculous.”