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Flights, ferry crossings, and rail journeys face cancellations and delays
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Thousands of travellers face delays and cancellations on Tuesday as Storm Bram sweeps the UK.
The Met Office has forecast gusts up to 90mph in northwest Scotland and up to 100mm of rain in south Wales and south Devon.
Amber weather warnings have been issued for parts of southwest England, south Wales and the northwest of Scotland, with yellow warnings for wind and rain covering Northern Ireland, Northumberland and parts of northwest England.
Flights, ferry crossings, and rail journeys are all expected to see disruption, as airports ground flights, sailings are suspended, and speed restrictions apply on Scottish railway lines.
British Airways cancelled its first wave of domestic departures from London Heathrow this morning, as Belfast City grounded at least 18 departures and arrivals due to the “adverse weather conditions”.
Dublin airport has also been hit hard, with 73 flights cancelled because of strong winds, including links with Paris and Amsterdam.
Rail services between Swindon and Bristol Parkway are likely to be cancelled, delayed by up to 25 minutes or diverted until the end of the day due to severe weather, said Great Western Railway.
Drivers have encountered severe delays of up to 90 minutes on the M4 approaching the Prince of Wales Bridge this morning.
National Highways said: “There are severe delays approaching the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge in Gloucestershire in both directions due to emergency roadworks.”
It added: “Road users travelling to Wales may wish to follow the M5 and M50 due to the M48 Severn Bridge also being closed due to strong winds.”
Avanti West Coast, which runs trains on the West Coast Main Line connecting London Euston with the West Midlands, northwest England, North Wales and southern Scotland, has issued a warning for passengers in the northern part of the network: “We strongly advise you to check before you travel on Tuesday 9 December as significant disruption is expected on the rail network, particularly north of Preston.
“The Met Office has issued weather warnings due to Storm Bram, with strong winds and heavy rain affecting large parts of the UK. As a result, we’re running a reduced timetable north of Preston, further to speed restrictions applied by Network Rail.
“Fewer trains will run, and journeys will take longer. There is then a risk of further disruption on the rail network due to this extreme weather.”
Storm Bram has cancelled 73 flights at Dublin airport so far today.
The airport said on X: “As of 12.00, a total of 73 flights have been cancelled by airlines, including 36 inbound and 37 outbound.
“Further disruption is possible later today as wind speeds are expected to increase.”
Traffic Scotland forecasts several bridge closures from around 2pm Tuesday through to Wednesday evening due to high winds.
These include Skye Bridge, Kessock Bridge, Dornoch Bridge and Cromarty Bridge.
Due to flooding between Par and Newquay, the line is closed, said Great Western Railway.
It added: “Train services running to and from these stations will be cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.”
All 30 Caledonian MacBrayne ferry routes in Scotland are currently affected by “adverse weather”.
Passengers are advised to check service status before they travel.
Heavy rain has flooded the railway between Holyhead and Bangor, disrupting all lines connecting the stations in North Wales.
Transport for Wales said: “Train services running to and from these stations may be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised.”
Disruption is expected to continue until 3pm.
According to the National Grid, around 3,300 properties in England and Wales are currently without power.
An alert on the National Grid website said: “Storm Bram is affecting South West England and South Wales today. Our engineers are monitoring the network and standing by to restore your power quickly if needed.”
It is unclear how many of the outages were caused directly by the storm.
Devon and Cornwall Police have told motorists to “only travel if absolutely necessary” during Storm Bram.
It said on Facebook: “We’re already receiving lots of calls about incidents on roads across Devon and Cornwall this morning. Please only travel if absolutely necessary; drive at an appropriate speed and allow extra distance between other vehicles.”
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