London Waterloo station disruption triggers ‘do not travel’ warning

A major signaling fault at London Waterloo has caused widespread disruption, with 14 platforms currently out of use.

South Western Railway (SWR) has urged passengers not to travel, issuing a statement on social media early Monday morning. The company apologised and asked travellers to keep checking for updates.

National Rail also warned that “major disruption is expected until the end of the day”.

SWR said: “Engineers are on site attempting to restore the use of the platforms, but with very few trains able to move in and out of London Waterloo and trains and crew already displaced, services across the network are severely disrupted.

“While we are hoping to restore some services later in the day, these are still likely to be subject to delays and alterations.”

The fault was first reported around 5.30am, according to National Rail.

Passengers will not be able to claim for taxi fares, but unused tickets from Monday will be valid on Tuesday “due to the level of disruption”.

Report says that tickets will also be accepted at no extra cost on other services, including CrossCountry between Reading and Bournemouth, Southern trains between Victoria and Portsmouth Harbour or Southampton Central, and Great Western Railway between Salisbury, Westbury and Weymouth.

Travellers can also use London Buses between Waterloo and Zone 6, and some Falcon Buses, Stagecoach South and Morebus services.

SWR said: “Customers should please check back for updates. We are very sorry for the disruption to journeys this morning.”

London Waterloo was the UK’s fourth busiest train station last year, with an estimated 62.5 million entries and exits, according to the Office of Rail and Road.

The disruption comes shortly after SWR became the first train operator taken into public ownership by the Labour government in May. Another operator, c2c, which runs services between London Fenchurch Street and south Essex, was also brought under public control on Sunday.

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