CrossCountry Trains has suspended most of its services after the outage struck its control centre, disabling key systems and prompting widespread disruption across the network.
Services have been withdrawn until further notice, as of August 23, with the only exception being the route between Peterborough, Cambridge, and Stansted Airport, where a near-normal timetable is expected to operate.
A spokesperson for CrossCountry said: “A power cut in Birmingham city centre has affected the building where our control centre is located.
“As a result, many of the systems our control teams use to manage the railway are currently unavailable.
“Although colleagues are working hard to safely operate services using alternative processes, CrossCountry services will be significantly disrupted on Sunday 23 August.
“While we will run as many trains as possible, passengers should expect significant reductions to services and cancellations across almost all CrossCountry routes throughout the day.
“We are sorry to passengers affected by this significant and unforeseen disruption.”
The disruption affects several key routes, including the Cardiff Central to Nottingham line, which passes through Newport, Severn Tunnel Junction, Caldicot, Chepstow, Lydney, Gloucester, Cheltenham Spa, Birmingham New Street, and Derby.
The Cardiff to Cheltenham Spa route, which also travels through the Severn Tunnel and Gloucestershire, is similarly impacted.
CrossCountry has confirmed that ticket acceptance is in place with other train operators.
Passengers should check their journeys before travelling, as further cancellations and delays are expected.
Those delayed by 30 minutes or more may be eligible for Delay Repay compensation.
Passengers who choose not to travel can claim a refund from their original point of purchase.
The company said it is working closely with partners to resolve the issue and will provide updates as soon as possible.
Travellers are strongly advised to check the latest service updates on the CrossCountry website or through National Rail before setting out.
