The West Highland railway line has reopened.
Train services to Oban and Mallaig faced delay or revision this morning after a maintenance train broke down on the west coast line.
The train, which is used for track maintenance, was travelling between Helensburgh Upper and Garelochhead when it developed a fault.
Onboard staff carried out a host of repairs in an effort to fix the problem on site and clear the line.
The West Highland Line has now reopened, however, rail bosses are warning customers to expect further disruption in the hours ahead as they work to return services to normal.
The train is the second of its kind to break down today. The Aberdeen to Dundee Railway line has experienced similar disruption as another maintenance train developed a fault.
UPDATE: The West Highland Line at Garelochhead has now reopened. Due to the scale of the disruption, our 1441 Oban to Glasgow Queen St will still be replaced by a bus today. ^Angus https://t.co/q9Xur0qTiK
— ScotRail (@ScotRail) September 28, 2022
Taking to Twitter, ScotRail confirmed the 2.41pm Oban to Glasgow service would be replaced by a bus service.
They wrote: “The West Highland Line at Garelochhead has now reopened. Due to the scale of the disruption, our 1441 Oban to Glasgow Queen St will still be replaced by a bus today.”
Network Rail engineers were called to the scene near Garelochhead Station this morning as the line remained blocked in both directions.
A second machine was dispatched to the area to recover the broken down vehicle.
Network Rail officials have confirmed the track has now reopened for business.
In a statement, published on Twitter, they wrote: “We’ve just had it confirmed by the team that the track machine has been removed and the line at Garelochhead has now reopened.”
Day of disruption for Scotland’s rail network
In a statement issued on their website this morning, ScotRail confirmed the nature of the disruption.
They wrote: “Because of a broken down train between Helensburgh Upper and Garelochhead the line is blocked. Disruption is expected to last until around 12:00 today.”
The fault led to significant disruption for scheduled rail services.
Early morning train services operating between Oban, Mallaig and Glasgow Queen Street were terminated at Crianlarich.
Meanwhile, the 8.21am service from Glasgow to Oban was terminated at Dumbarton Central.
ScotRail bosses added an additional train service at 10.15am from Crianlarich to Oban to compensate for the disruption.
Rail bosses were also forced to cancel a number of services to and from Oban.
The 10.36am service from Glasgow to Oban was pulled from the schedule followed by the return trip at 2.41pm.
NEW: A broken down track maintenance train between Helensburgh Upper and Garelochhead is currently blocking the line. Services between Glasgow Queen Street and Oban/Mallaig will be cancelled, delayed or revised. pic.twitter.com/U3zRP3HVsv
— ScotRail (@ScotRail) September 28, 2022
Replacement buses were organised by ScotRail as engineers worked to clear the line.
Similar disruption in the north-east
Commuters travelling between Aberdeen and Montrose have been enduring similar conditions this morning.
The Aberdeen to Dundee rail line was blocked after a maintenance vehicle broke down between Laurencekirk and Stonehaven.
Rail bosses have cancelled a number of services between the two areas as efforts to restore the days timetable continue.
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