Elizabeth line passengers travelling to and from Heathrow are facing severe delays on Tuesday 3 November after engineers found a defective section of track at Hayes & Harlington station, between Heathrow and London Paddington.
National Rail reported the incident at 03:42 and said a speed restriction is now in force over the faulty track, meaning trains on the route are running slower than normal. The restriction affects services between Abbey Wood and Heathrow Terminal 4, Heathrow Terminal 5, Maidenhead and Reading, as well as trains between Shenfield or London Paddington and Heathrow Terminal 5. National Rail said disruption is expected to continue until the end of the day.
Transport for London's live status page confirms the same fault, describing "severe delays" between Paddington and Heathrow Terminal 4 and Reading while engineers work to fix the track. TfL says the rest of the Elizabeth line, away from the affected section, has a good service.
Passengers travelling to Heathrow by rail should build in extra time. National Rail is accepting Elizabeth line tickets at no extra cost on a range of alternative routes while the fault is fixed, including London Underground via any reasonable route, London Buses between Paddington and the Heathrow terminals or West Drayton, South Western Railway between Waterloo and Reading, and Great Western Railway between Paddington and Reading.
For those travelling from west London, National Rail suggests heading for Ealing Broadway or Hayes & Harlington for the widest choice of onward bus and Underground connections, including bus routes towards Heathrow Terminals and Hayes & Harlington. Anyone relying on bus replacement options is advised to allow significantly more time than usual, as road journeys will be slower than the train and may involve changing buses.
Travellers who complete their journey later than planned today may be entitled to compensation, and National Rail advises keeping train tickets and a note of the journey to support any claim.
This is a live, developing situation and passengers should check National Rail's journey planner or TfL's status page before setting out, particularly if connecting to a flight.
What this means for your journey: if you are relying on the Elizabeth line to reach Heathrow today, build in extra time or consider the alternative routes above. For other ways to reach the airport while this is ongoing, see our /public-transport/ guide.