Track vandalism stops trains between Birmingham and Coventry

Track vandalism between Canley and Tile Hill train stations meant that all trains between Coventry and Birmingham were cancelled for a whole day.

The West Midlands Fire Service were called during the early hours of Monday the 16th of November. When they arrived, they saw several small fires along the railway near Wolfe Road.

The response was to cancel all trains that would normally have used that section of the rail, including services going towards Coventry and Birmingham. This affected CrossCountry, London Midland and Virgin Trains.

Virgin trains, London midlands and Cross country couldn’t run Photo: JamesZ / Flickr

A Network Rail spokesperson did not confirm the cause of the fires, but said: “It does appear to be vandalism.”

Passengers that were caught up in this had to take buses instead. While a train journey from Coventry station to the Birmingham airport can take 15 minutes, a bus can take up triple that time.

One of the bus drivers had to be diverted from his normal Birmingham route to accommodate the new influx of passengers.

My class was at 1:30pm so I gave up.”

Irene, Coventry University Student

To catch the bus, however, passengers had to line up outside the Coventry station, and boarding a bus could take more than an hour due to queues.

This meant that countless passengers were inevitably running late. Irene, a Coventry student, said: “My class was at 1:30pm so I gave up.”

As the train journeys to Birmingham International were cancelled, many travellers almost missed their flights. Those who opted for taxis from Coventry station to the airport paid an extra £30.

Network Rail has reportedly paid £1.1 million in compensation. The reward for finding the arsonists is currently at £30,000.