Commuters face misery as Circle, Hammersmith & City and District lines grind to halt – while separate power failure hits Overground services
Hundreds of thousands of London commuters were thrown into travel chaos this morning as a catastrophic points failure at Edgware Road brought multiple Underground lines to a standstill during the peak rush hour.
The meltdown has caused severe delays across the Circle line and Hammersmith & City lines, while parts of the District and Metropolitan lines have been left with no service at all – leaving frustrated passengers stranded on platforms across the capital.
In a double blow for travellers, the London Overground’s Windrush line is also reporting major disruptions due to a separate power supply failure in the New Cross Gate area, compounding the misery for those trying to navigate the capital.
Circle Line in Complete Chaos
The Circle line continues to experience severe delays following the points failure at Edgware Road, with services running at a crawl throughout the morning rush hour.
Transport for London (TfL) has warned passengers to expect significant journey times as engineers scramble to fix the damaged infrastructure that connects trains between different tracks.
Hammersmith & City Line Suspended
The Hammersmith & City line – which serves 29 stations across its 15.8-mile route and carries over 141 million passengers annually – was completely suspended for several hours this morning.
While services have now resumed, severe delays continue to plague the pink line, with packed platforms reported at major interchanges including Baker Street, King’s Cross St Pancras, and Liverpool Street.
District Line Partially Paralysed
District line passengers face a particularly challenging commute with no service whatsoever between High Street Kensington and Edgware Road due to the points failure.
The knock-on effects have also caused severe delays between High Street Kensington and Wimbledon, affecting thousands of commuters trying to reach central London from the southwest.
Metropolitan Line Hit by Knock-On Effects
The Metropolitan line is partially suspended between Baker Street and Aldgate as a result of the Edgware Road points meltdown, with minor delays reported on the rest of the line.
The disruption is particularly problematic as the Metropolitan line shares significant portions of track with the Circle and Hammersmith & City lines through central London.
Overground Windrush Line Power Failure
As if the Underground chaos wasn’t enough, commuters on the London Overground are facing their own nightmare due to a separate power supply failure in the New Cross Gate area.
The Windrush line – which was only given its new name in November 2024 as part of Mayor Sadiq Khan’s initiative to reflect London’s diversity – is experiencing severe delays between Sydenham and Crystal Palace.
The power failure has left thousands of south London commuters struggling to reach the city centre, with packed replacement buses struggling to cope with demand.
What Are Points and Why Do They Fail?
Points are the movable sections of track that allow trains to switch from one line to another – essentially the railway equivalent of a junction on a road.
When points fail, trains cannot be routed correctly, causing massive bottlenecks as services back up behind the blockage. At a major interchange like Edgware Road, where multiple lines converge, a single failure can have catastrophic knock-on effects across the network.
TfL’s Advice to Passengers
Transport for London is accepting Underground tickets on London buses as desperate commuters seek alternative routes to their destinations.
A TfL spokesperson advised: “We apologise for the severe disruption across multiple lines this morning. Our engineers are working as quickly as possible to fix the points failure at Edgware Road.
“We strongly advise customers to seek alternative routes where possible and to allow extra time for their journeys.”
Commuter Fury
Social media has been flooded with complaints from angry passengers, with many reporting being stuck on stationary trains or facing dangerously overcrowded platforms.
One frustrated commuter tweeted: “Another day, another complete meltdown on the Tube. How is it possible that a single points failure can bring half of London to a standstill?
Another added: “Been waiting 45 minutes for a Circle line train. This is absolutely ridiculous. London’s transport system is not fit for purpose.”
The Bigger Picture
Today’s chaos highlights the fragility of London’s ageing transport infrastructure, with the sub-surface lines – including the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan – all sharing track and therefore vulnerable to single points of failure.
The Hammersmith & City line, which began life as part of the world’s first underground railway in 1863, operates on infrastructure that in some places dates back over a century.
Despite ongoing modernisation efforts, including the recent completion of new signalling systems on parts of the network, the fundamental challenge of maintaining Victorian-era infrastructure while carrying 21st-century passenger loads continues to plague the system.
When Will Normal Service Resume?
While TfL engineers are working to resolve the points failure, no timeframe has been given for when normal service might resume.
Passengers are advised to check the TfL website and app for the latest updates, and to consider working from home if possible as the disruption is likely to continue into the evening rush hour.
With two separate failures affecting both the Underground and Overground networks, today’s travel chaos serves as a stark reminder of how quickly London can grind to a halt when its transport arteries are blocked.
For the hundreds of thousands affected, it’s yet another frustrating chapter in the ongoing saga of the capital’s creaking transport infrastructure.
