As has been reported on Twitter and elsewhere, the Victoria Line is currently suffering delays due to concrete damage in a signal control room at Victoria. Whilst we cannot confirm these apparent photos of the incident on usvsth3m, TfL have indicated the following:
Nigel Holness, LU’s Operations Director, said: “This afternoon our contractors were working on the new station in an area next to the Victoria line signal control room. These works involved the use of water and cement which leaked into the room, damaging equipment. This has meant there are no signals working on the southern section of the line.
“The line is currently suspended between Warren Street and Brixton. Our engineers are working hard to resolve the situation as soon as possible to get services back up and running, but the line is expected to be affected for the remainder of the day while repairs are carried out.
“I am sorry for the delays which will result and I would ask that passengers seek alternative routes on the Northern and Bakerloo line.”
In contrast to reports on Twitter, it is worth noting that this has not resulted in the closure of the entire line. Nonetheless, until the scale of the damage is known – and the level of damage caused by concrete will likely be different to that caused by regular flooding – the indicated reopening date should probably not be treated as being set in stone.
The complexity of the work necessary to upgrade Victoria and some of the tolerances (or lack thereof) within the project is highlighted very well by this article from the ICE, from which the image below is taken.
The various drillings required at Victoria
When a full report into the incident is released, we will cover it here.
Thanks to Windsorian for highlighting the excellent ICE piece
The two ticket halls are now linked at Victoria, no mention of this incident though…
Breakthrough!
So, now, even on the Underground, the line is immaterial!