- By Yasmin Rufo and Harry Low
- BBC News
Fourteen of the 24 platforms were closed
Rail passengers have been urged to avoid London Waterloo after major signaling problems, with disruption expected until the end of the day.
South Western Railway (SWR) has issued a warning for customers trying to travel to and from the station, which is Britain’s busiest.
A significantly reduced service runs on a very limited number of lines.
Fourteen of its 24 platforms are currently closed, the rail firm said.
Two services per hour run between Reading and London, while other stations including Queenstown Road and Hampton Court have no service.
Demand outstripped supply at the rail information desk throughout the morning, which was swarmed with customers unable to travel as new cancellations were announced.
The number of people arriving with suitcases indicates that most remain unaware of the disruption.
Waterloo station was the busiest in Britain last year
It tweeted: “Our team is on site monitoring the fault, which occurred just before 04:00, but although it will be fixed soon, there is likely to be disruption to the entire network for some time.”
Emma, from Southampton, told the BBC she was planning a day trip to London to visit the Science and Natural History museums with her daughter but, “everything has been canceled and we can only get to London if we’re willing to do three. turn time.”
The trip was postponed once as a result of train strikes.
Commuters also face difficulty getting to work. Martin Benko said: “I have a presentation in two hours,” and the signal failure at Waterloo will add “two to three hours minimum” to his journey.
Customers are urged to seek alternative travel routes
Peter Williams, customer and commercial director of SWR, said: “We are very sorry for the disruption this morning.
“Due to a major signaling problem, which is still under investigation, we are advising customers not to attempt to travel to or from London Waterloo this morning.
Disruption is expected until the end of the day
“While the problem is in the Waterloo area, we expect the wider network to be affected as trains and their crews will be evacuated.”
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