TRAIN operator East Coast said it was planning a “near normal” service from York to London tomorrow after passengers suffered nightmare journeys today.

It said northbound services from London would take 15 minutes later than normal tomorrow.

Earlier today overhead power cables collapsed in icy conditions leading to the suspension of services.

Four trains were stranded along the East Coast Mainline route yesterday morning, with 200 passengers on one of the trains evacuated and having to walk along the track to Huntingdon station.

East Coast managing director, Karen Boswell, said: "We apologise for the inconvenience experienced by passengers travelling today as a result of the disruption caused by overhead line damage at Huntington.

"We appreciate that many people are travelling home for Christmas over the next few days and our staff are working as hard as possible to ensure our passengers arrive at their final destination with minimal disruption."

An East Coast spokesman said Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak tickets valid today could be used for travel tomorrow on any Peak and Off-Peak trains.

Advance purchase tickets valid for today can also be used tomorrow - but passengers should travel as close to the original planned time as possible.

Passengers who have abandoned their journey can claim a refund without any administration cost.

There will be no services to and from Glasgow tomorrow, with the exception of the 6.50am service from Glasgow Central to London King's Cross.

Both the 6.55am Skipton to London King's Cross and 7.28am Harrogate to London King's Cross services will start at Leeds. A number of Leeds to London King's Cross services have also been cancelled.

Passengers are being advised to check travel information before they set off on their journey via eastcoast.co.uk or by phoning 08457 48 49 50.