Hurricane force winds across great swathes of central and southern England on Monday morning led to the cancellation of trains and closure of several major roads.

More than 200 fallen trees were reported to have blocked rail lines and several train companies decided not to run any services at all.

A Network Rail spokesman said: "Owing to the forecast the decision to postpone train services was made as an industry with the safety of passengers in mind. Had we been running trains in these conditions we would have been putting lives at risk."

The Prime Minister was asked on Monday whether he felt train operators had over reacted by cancelling train services. He told the BBC: "Everyone has to act on the basis of the evidence that they are given."

But he then added: "Obviously afterwards we will be able to look back and see whether people made the right decisions."

Passenger Focus chief executive Anthony Smith added: "It is too early to tell if the industry made the right call when cancelling so many services. But the fact that major incidents have been avoided is good news."

On the roads several bridges were closed due to the strong winds, including the Dartford Crossing, the Severn Crossing, the A249 Sheppey Crossing and the A14 Orwell Bridge in Suffolk. An overturned lorry closed the southbound M11 in Essex and the A21 was closed in Kent due to a fallen tree.

The Highways Agency's crisis management coordinator Martin Hobbs said: “We are now inspecting our roads to check for any trees, or signs which may have become dislodged and may become a hazard, and we will take whatever action is necessary."

(Photo: Network Rail, @networkrailpr)

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