50 trains are currently in operation along the Central Line, but 71 trains are needed to run a full peak-hours service, causing regular delays for commuters, reports Marco Marcelline
Commuters who rely on the Central Line have complained of overcrowding at Leyton Station and delays that are regularly making them late to work.
Since last year, Transport for London (TfL) has taken ageing Central Line trains, some more than 30 years old, out of service for refurbishment. Called the Central Line Improvement Programme (CLIP), the £500million project will see all trains with faulty direct current (DC) motors replaced with new alternating current (AC) motors by 2029.
Only one train has re-entered service since being modernised under CLIP though the Echo understands a second is due to re-enter service shortly. 50 trains are currently in operation along the Central Line, but 71 trains are needed to run a full peak-hours service. This has meant that there is a chronic shortage of trains running through Leytonstone and Leyton at peak hours.
Yesterday morning rush-hour commuters trying to get to central London faced significant delays and overcrowding at Leyton Station.
The Echo understands that the reason for delays yesterday was due to two trains being taken out of service at short notice because of faults with their traction motors. Capacity issues were said to have been resolved after 9.30am.
On social media, commuters who use Leytonstone and Leyton stations have slammed TfL for regular rush-hour delays that have made them late to work.
One commuter told the Echo that overcrowding issues at Leyton meant he “rarely” took the Central Line to work in the morning. He said: “I usually have to wait four or five trains before there is one with any room to get on.
“The platforms and the trains are overcrowded and TfL doesn’t even take basic safety precautions like putting staff on platforms to manage the crowds, offering any crowd advice to people on platforms through announcements, or asking people to move down inside the trains. It’s an accident waiting to happen.”
In response to delays afflicting the line earlier this year TfL promised more consistent trains “by the summer”.
A spokesperson for TfL told the Echo that it is now expecting a new timetable “before” the end of the year. It will aim to provide a rush-hour train “every five to ten minutes” in East London. Presently, trains have been delayed by as much as 20 minutes, and by up to half an hour on the Hainault loop.
TfL has also stated it has increased the rate at which it can repair and replace defective motors, and is “working to reduce” the number of trains that are out of service for other age-related reasons. Speaking earlier this year to the Standard, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan blamed the state of the Central Line on “decades of neglect” and a “lack of investment from central government”.
TfL says it cannot afford to replace faulty trains with a new fleet, and has therefore had to compromise by replacing faulty motors instead. It is understood that a ‘ramping up’ of the amount of trains being fixed and re-entered into service is expected at the start of 2025.
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