UPDATE: Doncaster rail passengers warned of delays after problems on East Coast Main Line

Virgin Trains East Coast services between Doncaster and Peterborough may be cancelled or delayed by up to 50 minutes after overhead electricity lines were switched off at Retford for safety reasons.

The problems are expected to continue until later this afternoon.

A spokesman for Virgin Trains East Coast said: "The power to the overhead electric wires has been switched off for safety reasons on the line towards London in the #Retford area.

"Trains running from Doncaster towards Peterborough which are powered by electricity are currently unable to run between these stations."

“Our services are subject to delays or cancellations today due to problems with the overhead lines and also damage to the track in the Retford area.

"We apologise to customers for any inconvenience and hope to return to a full service once repairs have been carried out by Network Rail.

"We’re advising customers to check before they travel and that their journeys may take longer, however they can claim for compensation if their journey is delayed by more than 30 minutes.”

Passengers have been told they can use ticket on TransPennine Express services via Manchester, Virgin Trains via Manchester, East Midands Trains via Sheffield and CrossCountry from Leeds to Birmingham New Street.

You can check your journey using the National Rail Enquiries real-time Journey Planner or follow the incident on Twitter using the hashtag #Retford