London Waterloo disruption: Signal failure causes widespread train cancellations

Highlights

• A major signalling fault disrupted services at London Waterloo on Monday
  
• Passengers were urged not to travel on South Western Railway (SWR) until 21:00 BST
  
• The fault affected train services across the SWR network
  
• The issue has now been fixed, but significant delays and cancellations continue
  
• SWR and Network Rail have apologised and are gradually resuming services
  

A major signalling failure at London Waterloo station caused significant disruption on Monday, with South Western Railway (SWR) advising passengers not to travel until at least 21:00 BST.

The problem, which emerged at around 05:30, involved a failure in the equipment that routes trains in and out of the station. This resulted in delays, cancellations and service revisions across the entire SWR network, leaving many passengers stranded.

SWR confirmed on Monday afternoon that the fault had been repaired, and services were being gradually reintroduced.

Full recovery expected later in the day

Although the signal issue has been resolved, SWR warned that full service recovery will take time, as crews and trains are repositioned. The operator said services on routes to Reading, Windsor & Eton Riverside, and suburban lines would be stabilised by late afternoon. However, long-distance services to Exeter St Davids, Portsmouth, and Weymouth are expected to remain significantly disrupted until the end of the day.

To support affected travellers, Monday tickets can be used on Tuesday, and tickets are being accepted on selected local bus routes and other rail services.

SWR and Network Rail issued a joint apology for the disruption, encouraging passengers to check for updates before travelling.

Ticket acceptance and travel alternatives

While SWR will not reimburse passengers for taxi fares, tickets are being accepted on:

• London Buses
  
  
• Falcon Buses
  
  
• Stagecoach South
  
  
• Morebus
  
  
• Specified journeys on the London Underground, Southern, CrossCountry, and Great Western Railway
  
  

Passengers voice frustration

Many passengers reported confusion and delays during the morning commute. Jessica Halstead, travelling with her two children, described the experience as “pretty disruptive,” saying:

“It’s quite hard trying to entertain children on a station platform… at what point do you just turn around and give up?”

Others, including Rory Smith, travelling from Southampton to Shropshire for work, noted that travel apps were not up to date:

“It would be ideal if things ran a little more seamlessly.”

Dan Cokely, visiting from the United States, shared his frustration after having to disembark multiple times en route to Southampton:

“This is my third time using British rail of some sort — and third disruption.”

Root cause traced to recurring weekend issue

According to Network Rail, the problem initially began on Saturday morning and had temporarily been fixed over the weekend, before reappearing on Monday. Tom Desmond, operations director at Network Rail, said:

“This was a technical fault we were working hard on throughout the weekend… I’m confident we’ve now fixed the root cause and will resume a reliable service.”

Context: SWR and public ownership

SWR was brought into public ownership by the Labour government in May 2025, becoming the first major rail operator to be nationalised under the new administration. Over the weekend, Labour also announced the nationalisation of c2c, which runs services between London Fenchurch Street and south Essex.