Only travel if necessary during heatwave, Thameslink tells Bedford passengers

Only travel if your journey is truly necessary on Monday and Tuesday (July 18 and 19).

That’s the message coming from Govia Thameslink Railway, which runs Thameslink trains.

The Met Office has issued a red warning for Bedford for Monday and Tuesday – which means extreme heat could lead to “widespread impacts on people and infrastructure”.

This means there is a substantial risk of disruption to the train service.

Thameslink will be running a significantly reduced service across all routes with speed restrictions in place. Trains that do run will be busy and travel is expected to be disrupted with a high chance of incidents that cause cancellations.

The news comes as Bedford Hospital warned patients of huge delays due to the heatwave and pressures from Covid

Angie Doll, Govia Thameslink Railway chief operating officer, said: “Please think carefully about your options and travel only if absolutely necessary on Monday and Tuesday.

“With the Met Office issuing warnings for extreme heat, speed restrictions are being put in place across our network to keep trains and passengers safe.

“This means we’ll have far fewer services for people to catch and there will also be at very real risk of substantial disruption.

"Even if you are able to travel in the morning, you may need to consider alternative ways to get home as a result.”

Trains listed in online journey planners will be updated here on Sunday