Travel chaos after rush-hour fatality
There was travel chaos at Wimbledon station on Monday (July 21) after a woman was hit by a train.
The 51-year-old Wimbledon woman was killed in the incident, which happened just before 9am.
Trains were cancelled while the emergency services were on the scene. By 11am, South West Trains said the lines were re-opened and a reduced service was introduced.
They initially warned of delays of up to an hour, and later warned of delays for the rest of the day.
In a statement they said: "Trains and crew that were scheduled to work on trains around our network were not able to get on to these trains due to the disruption. This has had a further impact on our service recovery and spread the problem from our Suburban train side to our Windsor Side (Waterloo to Staines).
"We have begun to phase each line of route affected back into service with the exception of London Waterloo to Salisbury train which will continue to start from Basingtoke in both directions. Disruption to all servies on the South West Trains network can be expected until the end of service today.
"While we work to introduce these service, customers may see further changes to trains that are still running on the routes listed above and further ad hoc alterations are also possible. Please check before you travel."
The fatality has happened not long after safety fencing was installed on platform six and seven to reduce the number of suicides at the station.
South West Trains apologised for the delays today (July 22) and issued the following statement:
"We apologise for the severe disruption that many passengers will have faced whilst travelling with us yesterday (Monday 21 July).
"Sadly, following an incident in which a person was hit by a train at Wimbledon, the railway line was closed by the emergency services whilst investigations took place. Our thoughts are with the family of the person involved in this fatal incident.
"Once the line reopened, it was unfortunately necessary to significantly reduce the number of trains through the station.
"Our busy rail network into London Waterloo is dependent on using the lines through Wimbledon and the closure of the line, coupled with trains, guards and drivers being out of position, had resulted in disruption for the majority of the day.
"We would like to thank our passengers for their patience and understanding yesterday. Once again, please accept our apologies for any disruption which was caused to your journey."
July 22, 2014