Tube boss says sorry to the thousands of commuters forced to walk on tracks
THE HEAD of the London Underground apologised for a second day of Tube chaos yesterday, which saw thousands of commuters forced to climb out of trains and walk to safety through pitch-black tunnels.
The Victoria line was suspended after a train broke down near Seven Sisters station at peak rush hour, stranding around 400 passengers in the tunnel for two hours before TfL staff led them through the tunnel. The Northern, District and Circle lines also suffered delays due to myriad signal failures and defective trains.
The chaos followed Monday’s power failure on the Jubilee line, which also led to thousands of passengers escaping by walking down the underground tracks.
“I am sorry that for a second day many of our customers have had difficult and in some cases severely interrupted journeys to work,” said London Underground managing director Mike Brown. “I know that having to walk along the track through a tunnel is distressing.
“Our customers deserve much better than the service they have had in recent days and all our energies are focused on delivering a fast, reliable and safe service.”
The rail union RMT said the breakdowns illustrated the dangers of cutting staff.