{
  "id": 2805737,
  "title": "CrossCountry cancels almost all rail services after power cut hits control centre",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/23/crosscountry-cancels-almost-all-rail-services-after-power-cut-hits",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-08-23T14:25:18.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Guardian Business",
    "slug": "guardian-business",
    "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/aug/23/crosscountry-cancels-almost-all-rail-services-after-power-cut-hits-control-centre"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "CrossCountry has cancelled all but a few train services across Great Britain following a power outage at its control centre in Birmingham on Sunday. The operator expects a \"near normal service\" between Peterborough, Cambridge, and Stansted Airport, with a planned rail replacement bus service operating between Leicester and Peterborough. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander expressed concern over the power cut, which has disrupted a number of routes including Glasgow to Edinburgh, Manchester to Birmingham, Cheltenham to Cardiff, and Newcastle to Edinburgh. CrossCountry has offered customers the option to use their tickets on other train operators' services on the same route, valid until Wednesday. Chiltern Railways and LNER have also extended their services to help affected passengers. Customers can claim compensation if their train is delayed by 30 minutes or more, or receive a refund if they choose not to travel. CrossCountry has admitted to a series of recent delays and cancellations, with the passenger watchdog warning the company to improve its performance.",
  "summary": "Transport secretary asks ‘publicly owned operators to lay on extra services where possible’ CrossCountry has cancelled almost all of its train services in Great Britain after a power cut in Birmingham hit its control centre on Sunday. Most services have been cancelled until further notice, including routes from Glasgow to Edinburgh, Manchester to Birmingham, Cheltenham to Cardiff and Newcastle to…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "BBC News",
        "title": "CrossCountry cancels UK services after power cut",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/23/crosscountry-cancels-uk-services-after-power-cut",
        "published": "2026-08-23T08:18:31.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}