Shropshire train services being hit by Champions League Final
Passengers in Shropshire were today left without certain rail services – because of the Champions League final which was taking place 100 miles away.
The rail timetable on the Shrewsbury line was being heavily disrupted in the hours before and after the Juventus v Real Madrid match in Cardiff.
The cancellations are because trains normally serving Shropshire will be sent to the Welsh capital instead, to help supporters from Juventus and Real Madrid travel between airports and the National Stadium of Wales.
Services to and from Shrewsbury and beyond will be cancelled, with a five-hour black hole in the Arriva Trains timetable on the route that connects the town to Crewe.
Normally evening services on the line operate up to every 30 minutes, but today the last train to Crewe from Shrewsbury was being run at 6.25pm and the next one is not scheduled until 11.30pm.
The cancellations will have a knock-on effect for travellers from stations across the county such as Wem and Whitchurch.
The last train to Shrewsbury from Cardiff Central is at 5.21pm. There will be no more services on the Cardiff to Shrewsbury route until 8.30am on Sunday.
One Shropshire train user who campaigns online for better services and is known as Gibby, complained to Arriva.
He said: “On a normal Saturday, the trains run at least hourly from Shrewsbury to Crewe until 11.30pm with several going onto Manchester.
"The last Manchester express to Crewe is 4.55pm, there is a gap until 6.25pm and then a five-hour gap until the final train slow train to Crewe at 11.30pm.
"This means that all the local stations such as Wem and Whitchurch will also lose most of their evening trains.”
He said people trying to get to Manchester or Manchester Airport will have to take alternative routes and journeys from the south to Shrewsbury will also be affected.
Arriva Trains director Gareth Thomas urged customers to check online before travelling, adding: “We have worked closely with our partners to deliver an unprecedented amount of additional capacity around Cardiff to support the event.
"Around 60,000 rail journeys around Cardiff are expected to be made for the match on June 3, and in order to support this, We have had to take some difficult decisions.”
