Rail passengers faced widespread disruption on Friday morning due to a nationwide fault with the GSM-R radio system, which allows communication between train drivers and signal operators. National Rail reported that the issue caused delays to services starting their journeys and led to some cancellations.
Services across the Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southern, and Thameslink networks were affected, with delays of up to 15 minutes or more. Southeastern, South Western Railway, and Elizabeth line trains to Heathrow also experienced disruptions. Network Rail has since confirmed that the fault, traced to a major hub near Stoke, has been fixed, and the system is now operating as normal.
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “An overnight fault with our railway radio system in England and Wales has been traced to one of our major hubs near Stoke, which has now been fixed. The fault meant that train drivers were having to manually log into the national radio network rather than it happening automatically. The system is now working normally. We’re sorry if your journey has been affected today as a result of this issue.”
Southeastern Railway announced it expects delays to reduce on its lines following this morning's disruption. “Whilst the fault is not fixed, trains are now able to set up the radio systems when being prepared for their journey, so we are expecting the delays caused by this to begin reducing,” the operator said. Southeastern added that it anticipates its services will return to normal by around 11.30am.
Passengers are advised to check for updates as services recover. Meanwhile, the Jubilee line is experiencing severe delays on the southbound service due to a passenger taken ill on a train at West Hampstead. The Piccadilly line is facing major disruption, with no service between Rayners Lane and Uxbridge due to leaf fall, and severe delays elsewhere due to a points failure at Cockfosters and a shortage of trains. Tickets are being accepted on London Buses.
