The line to Newquay is flooded at Roche this morning.   The line to Looe floods regularly, and flood between Swindon and Bristol Parkway are common enough for us to just roll our eyes - "again". The Barnstaple line has its issues and they seem to have been more of late.  More seriously, part of the Spey Bridge has collapsed - now a cycle way and footpath, and in the "care" of another party rather than Network Rail.

Are things getting worse?  Climate change? More cautious approach with more check and safety measures?  Modern trains not able to stand up to the water? Better information systems bringing us the news of problems we wouldn't have heard about in the past?  Reduced preventative maintenance? Something else?

 
Even after working on the Big Railway for some time, my move to the West Somerset Railway led to a much wider and deeper understanding of the infrastructure and and work needed to make, or keep, a railway in good fettle, sufficient for the safe working of trains

I guess the Minehead Branch is not unique in the number and complexity of the ditches, drains, culverts and other water channels that it has.  I was astonished to find out how much drainage infrastructure there is, and how much routine work is needed to keep it all working properly.  I was even interviewed for Points West, by Andrew Harvey, one time.  We were standing in a ditch at Woolston Moor, discussing how much work was needed.

I also discovered how easy it was for things to go badly and expensively wrong if the maintenance was neglected.  On the bit of the line that hadn't then been opened for traffic, near Washford, a blocked ditch at the top of the cutting by Bilbrook Bridge caused a landslip of the steep bank, in 1976.  Took weeks to fix.  And a similar thing happened near Lydeard Bridge, Crowcombe, a year later.

Keeping the water flowing is of paramount importance

I'm not at all convinced this vital work is done to the same standard on the Big Railway these days, as it used to be

 
The Gloucestershire and Warwickshire Railway have, in my opinion, a most interesting Drainage Blog at https://draingang.blogspot.com/?m=1

The work that they have to do to maintain what is a relatively short stretch of railway is really quite something.

 
The problem is not new, attached is a screenshot of a report of an accident near Cattistock Mill in 1882 after heavy rain. In addition there was a slip at Holywell tunnel.

100 years later persistent heavy rain would need the inspection of the line before traffic could resume.

 
Not railway specific but here in West Wales we're seeing areas being flooded that haven't flooded before. The local farmers who have been here ages say its never been this bad but I'm not sure human memory is that reliable. I think seeing roads blocked and parts of towns and villages under water that haven't been flooded before is probably a better indicator.

Subjectively based on being here for several years each year seems to be getting wetter. More and more rain but the lack of dry periods means the water table isn't emptying out which makes things worse. We also seem to have numerous amber/yellow flood warnings that I don't remember but that might just be better comms/more awareness.

Rainfall seems to be at or close to record levels (apart from where there's a hosepipe ban!) but there's also more concrete and houses so less places for it to go.

I think this is probably what climate change looks like - the seasons blurring into one another rather than us growing Olive trees and grapes instead of leeks and potatoes.

 
It is a pity that modern evolution can make technology winderful but often so sensitive. Trains are now especially so with all the electrics slung underneath.

Being old enough, I can recall my only return trip along the S&D branch to Highbridge in the middle of a cloudburst, c1964. Train (Ivatt 2-6-2?) plus basic coaches left Evercreech on time and then swam through 3ft+ deep water in the vicinity of Pylle with not a care. I observed very wet conditions along the Somerset Levels. On arrival at Highbridge it was still raining but we ventured to the main road/High Steet (A38 then). We found it so unexciting with nowhere to hide. So we simply had to return to the station and occupy the waiting room for around 2 hours to await the return trip. Travellers tales.   

 
This reminds me of living south of Aberystwyth, a field on a river bend that never flooded so was ploughed and a winter crop planted as the farmer didn't expect  what happened next - heavy rain saw the river take a short cut across the bend and took both crop and a lot of topsoil downstream and out of the estuary. This caused the finger to be pointed at forestry practices upstream by Pontrhydygroes - but then again, this did involve the river that was prone to surprises, e.g. it's the one that killed the railway south from Aberystwyth, so who knows.

(Unsupported assertion: the first diesel loco ever to arrive at Aberystwyth came via Lampeter etc...)

Mark