What next for the UK rail industry, with a significant proportion of the passenger fleet taken off line for urgent safety inspections? The shock news of hairline fractures in the 800 series Intercity Express fleet came just as passenger numbers were beginning to recover and has thrown the country’s travel plans into chaos. With almost 200 entire train sets – over 4000 units – taken out of service overnight, the blow to confidence in the rail industry has been massive. With the exception of election results across the UK, the story has been top of the news agenda ever since.