Trains heading to Inverness from Glasgow and Edinburgh were cancelled or delayed today after three bridges were damaged near Perth.
The damage was caused by a freight train coming into contact with the bridges over the railway between Perth and Dunkeld.
ScotRail services that left both cities for Inverness on Thursday morning terminated at Perth and Pitlochry as a result – with all trains originally hoped to return to normal by 12pm.
Network Rail’s bridge examiners were deployed to the scene and the Highland mainline remained partially closed for several hours, with only southbound services running.
We've received reports of a bridge being damaged in the Perth area. This will need to be examined before a decision is made regarding services passing over the bridge again.
We're heading to the site and will update you once we receive more information from staff on the ground.
— Network Rail Scotland (@NetworkRailSCOT) June 30, 2022
ScotRail said on its Twitter page that a limited number of buses were on their way to Perth and Pitlochry for stranded passengers, but that people should make alternative travel arrangements wherever possible.
Phil Campbell, head of customer operations at ScotRail, told the Courier: “We’re sorry to our customers who have experienced disruption to their journey as a result of this incident.
“The safety of our customers and our people is always our number one priority, so it’s important that the bridge is fully assessed for any damage before any trains are able to cross.”
Today’s disruption to services happened amidst already reduced train timetables across the country due to strikes.