London travel news LIVE: M25 crash causes massive 10-mile tailback near Heathrow

A crash on the M25 caused a 10-mile tailback during morning rush hour on Tuesday as drivers suffered delays of over an hour.

Two of four lines on the motorway were closed clockwise between Junction 11 and Junction 12, with traffic queueing from Cobham Services to the approach to Heathrow.

It comes as major disruption to Great Northern and Thameslink trains due caused by a broken rail ended.

The broken rail at Hatfield in Hertfordshire brought chaos to services running between Finsbury Park and Stevenage throughout Monday.

In an update shortly before 7am on Tuesday, National Rail said the disruption had ended.

Meanwhile TfL was reporting a good service on all Tube lines except the Hammersmith & City, which was suffering minor delays due to a shortage of trains.

Follow the latest travel updates below...

Ongoing issues

Detectives appeal after fatal crash in Palmers Green

07:09 , Jacob Phillips

A pedestrian has died following a collision with a van in Palmers Green.Police were called at around 5.20pm on Sunday to reports of a collision between a van and a man in his 50s in Green Lanes.

The driver of the van stopped at the scene and the man was rushed to hospital, where he later died.

Police enquiries are ongoing to identify and inform his next of kin, as well as into what happened.

No arrests have been made yet.

M25 back to normal after crash

Tuesday 3 September 2024 08:54

Traffic on the M25 in Surrey appears to be back to normal after the earlier crash.

Inrix is now reporting only pockets of congestion on the 10-mile stretch where vehicles travelling clockwise were backed up.

M25 crash

Tuesday 3 September 2024 08:33 , Michael Howie

A crash on the M25 in Surrey has sparked huge tailbacks.

Two lanes of the London orbital were shut clockwise between J11.National Highways South-East reported 50-minute delays with 8 miles of congestion on approach.

However traffic monitor Inrix suggests the tailbacks are nearer 10 miles in length. It says the lanes have now reopened.

Hatfield broken rail disruption over

Tuesday 3 September 2024 07:08 , Michael Howie

National Rail has issued an update on yesterday’s disruption to Great Northern and Thameslink services caused by the broken rail near Hatfield.

It’s good news for morning commuters!

TfL dealing with cyber attack

Monday 2 September 2024 20:51 , John Dunne

TfL are dealing with an ongoing cyber attack.

At this stage they do not believe customer’s details have been compromised.

SWR trains at Waterloo station disrupted

Monday 2 September 2024 16:10

Disruption at Waterloo station is expected until 8pm.

National Rail said: “Whilst response teams assist the individual to a place of safety, power to the tracks has been switched off which means that all lines are currently blocked.”

Tickets will be accepted, at no extra cost to yourself, on the following services:

• London Underground via any reasonable route

• London Buses between London Waterloo and Wimbledon

• Southern services between Clapham and Dorking in both directions

Severe delays on Overground and line part-suspended

Monday 2 September 2024 15:05 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

There are now no Overground trains between Stratford and Richmond/Clapham Junction, and severe delays between Gospel Oak and Barking Riverside.

This is due to a signal failure at Richmond.

London Overground part-suspended

Monday 2 September 2024 14:37 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

TfL says the Overground has been part-suspended.

There is no service between Gospel Oak and Upper Holloway and no service between Stratford and Richmond / Clapham due to a signal failure at Richmond.

Severe delays on Central Line

Monday 2 September 2024 13:31 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

TfL says there are currently severe delays on the Central Line between West Ruislip and White City while it fixes a signal failure at Northolt.

Train services resume between Charing Cross and Hayes

Monday 2 September 2024 13:03 , Miriam Burrell

Southeastern trains are now running normally between London Charing Cross and Hayes after a lorry hit a bridge at Eden Park.

Pictured: Lorry hits bridge at Eden Park

Monday 2 September 2024 12:43 , Miriam Burrell

South-east London trains disrupted after lorry hits bridge

Monday 2 September 2024 11:52 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

A lorry has struck a bridge at Eden Park in south-east London, disrupting Southeastern trains.

No trains can travel between Eden Park and Hayes in Bromley until the bridge has been deemed safe, says National Rail.

Disruption is expected until 1pm.

“Services will end their journey at Elmers End and some services will restart their journey from either Elmers End or Clock House,” said National Rail.

Man taken to hospital after incident at Tottenham Court Road Tube station

Monday 2 September 2024 11:35 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

A man has been taken to hospital by paramedics after a “medical incident” at Tottenham Court Road Underground station.

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called at 9.12am on Monday 2 September to reports of a medical incident in Charing Cross Road.

“We sent resources to the scene, including ambulance crews, a paramedic in a fast response car and an incident response officer.

“The first of our crews arrived in five minutes

“Our crews treated a man at the scene, before taking him to hospital as a priority.”

The Northern Line was part-suspended while the incident was dealt with, but later fully reopened. There is currently a good service across the line.

Piccadilly and Metropolitan lines reopen with severe delays

Monday 2 September 2024 11:22 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

The Piccadilly and Metropolitan lines are now fully open after part-closing earlier following a signal failure, but are experiencing severe delays.

On the Metropolitan Line there are severe delays between Aldgate and Baker Street, and minor delays between Harrow-on-the-Hill and Uxbridge.

On the Piccadilly Line, there are severe delays between South Harrow and Uxbridge.

Major disruption to Southeastern and Thameslink trains after person hit by train in Kent

Monday 2 September 2024 10:38 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Major disruption is expect to affect Southeastern and Thameslink trains to and from Kent until 1pm.

All lines are closed after a person was hit by a train between Dartford and Strood. Paramedics are at the scene, says National Rail.

Services affected are:

• Southeastern trains between London St Pancras International and Faversham / Ramsgate / Dover Priory, and also between London Victoria / London Charing Cross and Gravesend

• Thameslink trains between Luton and Rainham

If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email jo@samaritans.org or visit their site to find your local branch.

Northern Line running but with severe delays

Monday 2 September 2024 10:17 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

The Northern Line has now fully reopened, after it was partly closed earlier this morning following a “customer incident” at Tottenham Court Road station.

Severe delays are still affecting services between Camden Town and Battersea Power Station via Charing Cross, says TfL.

Piccadilly Line and Metropolitan Line part-suspended

Monday 2 September 2024 10:15 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

The Piccadilly and Metropolitan lines have been part-suspended due to a signal failure at Rayners Lane, says TfL.

There is no Piccadilly Line service between South Harrow and Uxbridge, and no Metropolitan Line service between Harrow on the Hill and Uxbridge.

TfL says it is working to fix the signal issue.

Severe delays and part-suspension of Northern Line

Monday 2 September 2024 10:03 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

As we reported earlier, there is no service southbound on the Northern Line between Camden Town and Kennington via Charing Cross.

There are now also severe delays on to northbound services between Battersea Power Station and Camden Town, via Charing Cross, says TfL.

TfL says this is due to a “customer incident” at Tottenham Court Road, but details of the incident are not yet clear.

Person hit by train in Kent

Monday 2 September 2024 09:59

A person has sadly been hit by a train between Dartford and Strood in Kent, says Thameslink.“All lines are blocked between these stations whilst the emergency services work to deal with this incident,” it said in a post on X. “Service information will follow.”

Northern Line part-suspended

Monday 2 September 2024 09:30 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

The Northern Line is part-suspended due to a “customer incident” at Tottenham Court Road, says TfL.

There is currently no southbound service between Camden Town and Kennington via Charing Cross. There is a good service on the rest of the line.

Good service across Underground network

Monday 2 September 2024 08:39 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

On the TfL network, there is currently a good service operating on all Tube lines, as well as the DLR and Overground.

Major disruption to Great Northern and Thameslink trains expected until end of day

Monday 2 September 2024 08:38 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Great Northern and Thameslink trains running between Finsbury Park and Stevenage are expected to be disrupted until the end of the day, says National Rail.

As we reported earlier, these issues are being caused by a broken rail. National Rail says trains may be cancelled or delayed by up to an hour.

Services affected:

• Great Northern trains between London Kings Cross and Cambridge, and also between Moorgate and Welwyn Garden City / Stevenage

• Thameslink trains between Brighton and Cambridge, and also between London Kings Cross and Peterborough

Fire between Clapham Junction and Wimbledon

Monday 2 September 2024 08:28 , Miriam Burrell

A fire next to the track between Clapham Junction and Wimbledon means that trains running between these stations may be cancelled, delayed by up to 20 minutes or revised, National Rail said.

Disruption is expected until 11am.

Trains have to run at reduced speed on all lines between these stations.

Routes between London Waterloo and Chessington South, Dorking, Guildford, Hampton Court, Shepperton and Woking are affected.

Changes to Thameslink and Great Northern trains

Monday 2 September 2024 08:16 , Miriam Burrell

The following alterations will take place:

• Trains from Welwyn Garden City towards Moorgate will run non-stop from Hatfield to New Barnet, to reduce congestion

• Trains between Kings Lynn / Ely and London Kings Cross will divert onto another route between Stevenage and London Kings Cross, taking around 20 minutes longer than usual

• Peak-time trains between Peterborough and London Kings Cross will be cancelled (Horsham services will still run)

• Peak-time trains between Welwyn Garden City and Sevenoaks will not run on the part of the route between Welwyn Garden City and London Blackfriars

'Very limited' London-bound service between Stevenage and Finsbury Park

Monday 2 September 2024 08:14 , Miriam Burrell

Thameslink and Great Northern trains may be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised as major disruption continues on Monday, National Rail said.

There is “only a very limited London-bound service” between Stevenage and Finsbury Park via Welwyn Garden City.

Commuters are advised to delay travelling until later today, “once trains and crews are in the right places and a more stable service can run”.

There will still be changes to services all day.

Trains which do run may be delayed, National Rail said.

Thameslink and Great Northern trains disrupted between Stevenage and Finsbury Park

Monday 2 September 2024 07:48 , Michael Howie

Great Northern and Thameslink are working with Network Rail to repair the broken rail at Hatfield.

It means that, at least until 8am, there will be no London-bound trains between Stevenage and Finsbury Park via Welwyn Garden City.

Travel on this route will be extremely limited and it is recommended that you delay travelling until later today.

This affects Knebworth, Welwyn North, Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield, Welham Green, Brookmans Park, Potters Bar, Hadley Wood, New Barnet, Oakleigh Park and New Southgate stations.

Trains will be diverted via Hertford North where possible, but these services have been impacted as well. In turn, trains will stop at fewer stations on this route.

There could be severe delays at times across the whole network due to congestion.

Broken rail near Hatfield causing 'major disruption'

Monday 2 September 2024 07:43 , Michael Howie

National Rail is flagging “major disruption” to some Thameslink and Great Northern train services due to a broken rail near Hatfield.

Good morning

Monday 2 September 2024 07:41 , Michael Howie

Welcome to the Standard’s travel liveblog. We’ll be keeping you informed of the major news on the trains, Tube and roads as thousands return to the office after a gloriously warm and sunny weekend in the capital.