http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/apr/20/jubilee-line-disruption-olympics-tube
Jubilee line disruption prompts Olympic fears after thousands trappedProblems continue for London Underground line, key to Olympic games, after commuters stuck for one hour after power failure
Share Haroon Siddique guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 20 April 2011 10.33 BST Article history
Mayor Boris Johnson has been criticised for the ongoing problems on the Jubilee line, crucial for connecting London to the Olympic games site.
Commuters in the capital are facing fresh disruption on a London Underground line that shut down during Tuesday night's rush hour, trapping thousands of commuters for over an hour.
After being reopened on Wednesday morning, the Jubilee line was then suspended between Willesden Green and London Bridge stations, with severe delays occurring on the rest of the line.
The problems have renewed concerns that the Jubilee line, one of the main routes to next year's Olympics, will not be able to cope when the games start.
Five trains crammed with passengers were stranded between Kilburn and Canary Wharf on Tuesday night, the hottest day of the year so far, after the entire line shut down shortly after 7pm due to a power failure. Some passengers had to endure sweltering temperatures for over an hour before being evacuated along tracks and through tunnels.
Teams of paramedics were sent to meet them over fears of dehydration but Transport for London (TfL) said no passengers needed medical assistance.
The power failure during the Tuesday evening commute came hours after Kulveer Ranger, who had been transport adviser to Boris Johnson since the London mayor took office, was moved to a position as director of environment. While, the move was presented as a promotion, it was seen by some at City Hall as a demotion.
The Jubilee line, which is already used by more than 650,000 passengers a day, is being upgraded ahead of next year's Olympics, when it will be used as a key route to link central London with the stadium at Stratford.
Earlier this month, Johnson pledged that the Underground would be ready by July next year with new signalling and increased capacity.
Gerry Doherty, leader of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association, said it was time Johnson "got a grip" on the tube service. "He keeps claiming that these failings are temporary and everything will be alright on the night when the Olympics gets underway next summer," said Doherty. "With 500,000 extra visitors expected, he cannot afford to get it wrong. Talk is cheap – we want action now."
Ken Livingstone, Labour's London mayoral candidate, said: "The Olympics are little over a year away, fares are soaring over inflation and yet delays and chaos on the tube are unresolved. It has become a fiasco, an embarrassment to a world city."
A TfL spokeswoman apologised for the disruption to commuters caused by the problems on the Jubilee Line. "A fault in the power supply system at Canning Town led to loss of power causing the Jubilee to be suspended on Tuesday evening," she said.
"The emergency services were despatched to stations as a matter of course and staff worked to detrain all passengers as quickly as possible."
She said staff "worked flat out" to restore services for Wednesday morning, but the fresh disruption had been caused by a signal failure at Baker Street that was unrelated to the problems on Tuesday. "The part suspension has been put in place to ensure we can continue to run reliable services at the busy ends of the line," she said. "Alternative tube services are available in central London and there is a good service running on other lines." She added that all customers affected by the disruption would have their fares refunded.
Yet more trouble on the Jubilee line. What is new is that Kulveer Ranger has been "demoted" or moved sidewards to Director of Environment. Is this warranted?