All train services to stop for second time this week as Storm Jocelyn set to hit on Tuesday

As the country prepares for the arrival of Storm Jocelyn on Tuesday, the rail operator has said it will suspend all of its services at 7pm tonight,

Further heavy rain and strong winds are expected across Scotland on Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning as the second storm in a matter of days is set to hit.

Storm Jocelyn follows closely in the path of Storm Isha which brought extreme weather conditions to all parts on Sunday night.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for wind for most of Scotland from 4pm on Tuesday to 1pm on Wednesday.

Forecasters say the strong winds could lead to possible disruption to travel and utilities.

A yellow warning for rain is also currently in place for parts of Scotland, including Falkirk district, with a risk of flooding and disruption to travel until 6pm on Tuesday.

ScotRail has said it will cancel all of its services in Scotland after 7pm on Tuesday for the safety of passengers and staff. There will also therefore be no rush hour services for commuters on Wednesday morning as engineers will inspect all routes in daylight before reopening them to services.

Phil Campbell, ScotRail Customer Operations Director, said: “The heavy wind and ongoing rain hitting most parts of the country mean that it will not be safe for our customers and our staff, and all ScotRail train services will be suspended from 7pm.

“This is the second withdrawal of train services this week, and we know the impact this has on customers, but the safety of staff and passengers will always be our priority.

“Our colleagues at Network Rail Scotland will again be working flat out to carry out safety checks, and assess what repairs are required to reopen the railway.

“However, customers will be unable to travel early on Wednesday morning, as trains will not be able to operate until the infrastructure has been made safe.”

It is a repeat of the situation from when Storm Isha happened on Sunday and Monday and services will not run until ‘later’ on Wednesday.

Trains departing prior to 7pm will complete their journey, but no services will begin their journey after that time and ScotRail has advised passengers that their last service may be earlier than 7pm. For example, the last services leaving both Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street on the main Edinburgh to Glasgow line will leave at 6.15pm from each city.

ScotRail has said tickets for travel dated January 20-26 can now be used any day this week, up to and including Friday, January 26. This means that these can be used before or after the date printed on the ticket.

Customers whose journey has been cancelled or disrupted can get a fee-free refund at scotrail.co.uk/refund.

Customer are advised to check the ScotRail website or app before travelling.

Storm Jocelyn is the tenth named storm to hit the UK this season and it comes just days after the whole country was battered by Storm Isha which brought winds over 90mph to some parts.

Storm Isha left a trail of destruction in its path. It claimed the life of an 84-year-old man who died after the car he was a passenger in hit a fallen tree in Grangemouth.

The storm also caused widespread damage to property, power cuts and travel disruption. Hundreds of homes in Kinnaird were still without power on Tuesday after a tree fell on top of an electricity substation.