Rail passengers face heavy delays due to worldwide IT outage

Rail passengers are being warned of potential last-minute cancellations of trains due to a worldwide disruption after a global IT outage.Greater Northern has advised passengers via the social media platform X (previously Twitter) that the company is unable to access driver diagrams at certain locations.The rail company said: “We are currently experiencing widespread IT issues across our entire network.

⚠️ We are currently experiencing widespread IT issues across our entire network. Our IT teams are actively investigating to determine the root cause of the problem.We are unable to access driver diagrams at certain locations, leading to potential short-notice cancellations,…— Great Northern (@GNRailUK) July 19, 2024

“Our IT teams are actively investigating to determine the root cause of the problem.“We are unable to access driver diagrams at certain locations, leading to potential short-notice cancellations, particularly on the Thameslink and Great Northern networks.”Some trains running to and from Lynn to London King’s Cross are showing as being delayed by almost an hour, while others have been cancelled. Greater Northern is also advising that due to the major IT issue, station departure boards may not be showing correctly.Businesses and institutions around the world have been knocked offline due to the IT outage. Around the world banks, supermarkets and other major institutions reported computer issues disrupting services, with some airlines warning of delays and some airports grounding flights.Overnight, Microsoft confirmed it was investigating an issue with its services and apps, with the tech giant’s service health website warning of “service degradation” that meant users may not be able to access many of the company’s most popular services, used by millions of business and people around the world.