There was chaos on the train lines today as almost half of Northern Rail and Transpennine Express services failed to operate on time.

The disruptions, which are thought to have been caused by leaves on the track caused misery for commuters across the North West, including many who were travelling on East Lancs services.

According to a train performance website, only 56% of the services ran as scheduled with the remaining trains being late or completely cancelled.

Northern Rail's journey checker website stated that more than 45 services had been affected, with disruptions being worst around the busy rush hour period.

Services on journeys through Blackburn, Rochdale, Clitheroe, Colne and Manchester were cancelled or running as severely reduced, with many others between Preston and Ormskirk disrupted as well.

The chaos is set to last until the final services of the evening with some journeys being completely cancelled tomorrow (Tuesday) as well.

Posting on Twitter, one commuter said: "How in the world are @northernassist still getting away with all of this?

"My journey everyday to and from work is affected.

"How I haven't been fired yet is beyond me #northernfail"

Northern Rail said they've had to take 20 units off the network to repair wheels damaged by leaves on the line.

The rail operator, which has faced heavy criticism lately for it's continued service disruption, posted a statement on their website earlier today, urging customers to plan their journey's carefully.

A spokesman for Northern said: "We would like to apologise to any customer who face delays, cancellations or a reduction in carriages.

"Issues related to the time of year – excess leaves on the line and damp weather – continue to cause problems for the rail industry and have caused several carriages to be taken out of service.

"Large numbers of leaves on the track, as well as other seasonal problems, can cause damage to train wheels. When wheels are damaged (wheel flats) the carriage has to be taken out of service and the wheel repaired before the problem becomes more serious.

"We currently have more trains out of service than normal and have had to alter some of our services deal with the reduced number of carriages.

"To keep such disruption to a minimum we're working hard to keep the tracks in the best possible condition."

Services on the Preston to Ormskirk line will be cancelled tomorrow and anyone travelling in East Lancs is asked to check their journey details well in advance and make alternative arrangements where possible.