FURTHER disruption to rail services in the Fife circuit has been announced as Storm Babet brings more weather warnings. 

Yellow warnings for wind will remain in place until midday tomorrow while yellow warnings for rain will continue until 11:59 pm on Saturday, October 21. 

As a result of this, Network Rail has announced that several railway lines in the north and north-east of Scotland, including the Fife circuit, will remain closed on Saturday. 

Liam Sumpter, Network Rail Scotland route director, said: “The safety of passengers and colleagues continues to be our top priority during this extreme weather.

“As a precaution we need to keep lines in the worst affected areas closed until it is safe for our engineers to inspect and re-open the network in these areas.

“Our specialist weather team will be monitoring conditions throughout the weekend, while our ground teams remain ready to deal with any issues caused by Storm Babet.”

The line closures and speed restrictions are in place as a precaution against potential flood damage to the railway.

Heavy rain can cause landslips on the tracks or wash the stone ballast away from beneath the rails.

Network Rail will deploy additional engineers across Scotland’s Railway to inspect lines, repair damage, and reopen routes as quickly as possible for passengers and freight customers once the weather clears.

But disruption is expected to continue until at least Sunday 22 October on some routes.

David Simpson, ScotRail Service Delivery Director, said: “The impact of Storm Babet, with heavy rain across eastern Scotland, and heavy rain and high winds in central and northern Scotland, has been extremely challenging.

“We want to thank customers for their continuing understanding as we make all possible efforts to inspect routes for damage, before reopening them when it is judged safe to do so.

“We know the impact the withdrawal of some train services has on customers, but our first priority is always to ensure the safety of our staff and customers.

“For routes in the south and west of Scotland, customers are encouraged to check their journey before setting off, and keep an eye on our website, mobile app, or social media channels for live updates.”

Passengers are advised to check their journey before travelling using the Network Rail Enquiries site, or with their train operator.