London travel news LIVE: Heathrow Express and Great Western Rail services to grind to halt as strike continues

All Heathrow Express and Great Western Rail train services are due to grind to a halt from 7pm on Monday, as Aslef's strike continues.

Both operators were running restricted routes throughout the day, but are ending services early this evening.

Trains from London Waterloo towards Clapham were also being disrupted by a signalling problem on Monday afternoon, with South Western Railway said it hoped the disruption would end by 5pm.

Meanwhile no trains have run on the Chiltern Railways and CrossCountry networks all day on Monday, amid Aslef's strike over pay and conditions.

Live updates below...

Coverage ends

Monday 5 February 2024 22:38 , Matt Watts

That ends our coverage for the evening. Please call back tomorrow for the latest travel reports.

London Overground part suspended

Monday 5 February 2024 20:37 , Jacob Phillips

No trains are running between Stratford and Camden Road while TfL fixes a points failure at Hackney Central.There are also severe delays on the Overground between Camden Road and Richmond as well as between Camden Road and Clapham Junction.

Strikes bring more trains to a standstill

Monday 5 February 2024 19:15 , Jacob Phillips

Trains have stopped running on the Heathrow Express and across Great Western Rail routes as Aslef's strike continues.You can read more about Monday's strike action and why trains are not running here.

Trains running again between South Acton and Richmond

Monday 5 February 2024 18:40 , Jacob Phillips

Trains are now able to run as normal between South Acton and Richmond following an earlier operational incident.

National Rail warned that as the service recovers, trains may still be cancelled, delayed by up to 15 minutes or revised.

Trains out of London Waterloo to be disrupted until 7pm

Monday 5 February 2024 18:17 , Jacob Phillips

Trains from London Waterloo towards Clapham Junction are now facing delays until 7pm.

No trains between South Acton and Richmond until around 6.45pm

Monday 5 February 2024 17:30 , Jacob Phillips

Network Rail has said an operational incident between South Acton and Richmond means that trains are currently unable to run between the stations.

Disruption is expected until 6.45pm.

Minor delays on the Metropolitan Line

Monday 5 February 2024 16:39 , Jacob Phillips

There are minor delays on the Metropolitan Line between Wembley Park and Harrow-on-the-Hill due to a points failure at Wembley Park, TfL has said.

There are also minor delays on the Central Line due to ongoing issues due to a shortage of trains.

Charing Cross station briefly closed due to a police incident

Monday 5 February 2024 16:10 , Jacob Phillips

Some trains have been delayed or revised following a police incident at Charing Cross station.

The station was briefly shut but has since reopened.

Trains from London Waterloo to be disrupted until 6pm

Monday 5 February 2024 15:55 , Jacob Phillips

Trains from London Waterloo towards Clapham Junction may be disrupted following an earlier signalling problem.

South Western Railway has said there may be issues until 6pm.

Overground back up and running

Monday 5 February 2024 15:29 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Overground services appear to be back up and running, with TfL saying a "good service" is operating across the network.

It comes after services were halted between Willesden Junction and Richmond earlier today, due to a faulty track.

Londoners to have their say on plans to extend DLR

Monday 5 February 2024 14:20 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Londoners are being invited to have their say on a proposed cross-river extension to the DLR, which could allow up to 30,000 new homes to be built.

A consultation launched today by TfL has asked for feedback on the plan to extend the Docklands Light Railway to Thamesmead - with the potential for further extensions to Belvedere and beyond.

The scheme has been launched to connect Thamesmead with the rest of the city while allowing for a substantial number of new homes to be built.

Thamesmead currently has no Tube, DLR or railway connections to the rest of London, with buses providing the only means of public transport.

Read our full story here.

Trains from London Waterloo hit by disruption

Monday 5 February 2024 13:52 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Trains from London Waterloo towards Clapham are being disrupted by a signalling problem.

South Western Railway (SWR) says trains from Waterloo towards Clapham Junction "may be cancelled, delayed or revised", with the disruption expected to last until 5pm.

Overground suspended due to faulty track

Monday 5 February 2024 11:24 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

London Overground has been part-suspended, with no service between Willesden Junction and Richmond while Network Rail fixes a track fault.

Police appeal for witnesses after M25 crash left woman in hospital

Monday 5 February 2024 10:40 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Essex Police is appealing for witnesses after a crash involving a lorry and a car left two lanes of the M25 closed this morning, and traffic queuing for five miles.

The force said it was called to the scene near Epping at 6.50am.

"A woman in the car has sustained back injuries," said a spokesperson.

"If you have any information, CCTV, dash cam or other footage in relation to this incident, then please get in contact with us. Please quote incident 154 of 5 February."

Visit www.essex.police.uk/digital101 or call police on 101.

If you would like to make an anonymous report you can contact independent charity @Crimestoppers, by visiting their website or by calling 0800 555 111.

Woman taken to hospital following M25 lorry and car crash crash

Monday 5 February 2024 09:55 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

One woman has been taken to hospital following this morning's crash on the M25, an East of England Ambulance Service has confirmed.

"One ambulance and one ambulance officer vehicle were sent to the clockwise M25 near Epping this morning following reports of a road traffic collision," said a spokesperson.

"One woman was transported to Princess Alexandra Hospital for further assessment and care."

Passengers vent frustration as Central Line delays continue

Monday 5 February 2024 09:19 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

As the Central Line is hit by severe delays again amid train shortages, customers are expressing their frustrations on social media.

Gary Meadhust said on X, formerly Twitter, he is "really worried about getting to work" each day amid the chaos.

Another user, Martin Johnston, wrote: "Commuters are paying a heavy price for continuing service failure."

All lanes reportedly reopened after crash

Monday 5 February 2024 08:55 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Long delays continue, but traffic monitoring website Inrix is now reporting all lanes have reopened.

The crashed vehicles have reportedly been moved to the hard shoulder.

Traffic tailing back for five miles, as drivers warned of 45-minute delays

Monday 5 February 2024 08:34 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

National Highways says traffic is now tailing back for around five miles, behind the crash.

It shared a photo showing emergency services at the scene.

'Long delays' on M25 due to lorry and car crash

Monday 5 February 2024 08:22 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

We understand there are long delays on the M25 and two lanes shut due to a crash involving a car and a lorry.

According to live traffic website Inrix, the crash happened on the clockwise carriageway after J27, where the orbital joins the M11 near Epping.

Congestion is said to be tailing back almost to J26, at Waltham Abbey.

There is also said to be around two miles of traffic queuing on the opposite carriageway, caused by onlookers.

Severe delays on Central Line...again

Monday 5 February 2024 07:48 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

TfL is reporting there are now severe delays on the Central Line, between Leytonstone and Epping/Hainult via Woodford, as well as between White City and Ealing Broadway/West Ruislip.

There are also minor delays across the rest of the Central Line, due to a shortage of trains.

Delays on the Underground network's busiest line have unfortunately become commonplace in recent weeks.

The line is suffering a chronic shortage of trains and it has been operating at times with barely half of the 78 trains required to run a peak service.

Last month, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan apologised to passengers for weeks of delays and overcrowding.

Why is Aslef striking, and is the end in sight?

Monday 5 February 2024 07:41 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Aslef members at four rail networks (CrossCountry, GWR, Heathrow Express and Chiltern) are walking out today in a long-running dispute over pay and conditions.

The dispute started 20 months ago and remains deadlocked, with no talks planned.

Aslef says it has not met transport ministers for more than a year, and employers since last April, when the union rejected a pay offer linked to changes in working practices.

Train operators and the Government insist the offer is “fair and reasonable”, and have urged the union to ballot its members.

Aslef said regular reballots on continuing with industrial action, as required under law, have returned huge votes in favour.

No Chiltern Railways or CrossCountry services running

Monday 5 February 2024 07:20 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

There are no services running on Chiltern Railways or CrossCountry services today, due to the strike by Aslef union members.

There is also an "extremely limited" service operating on the Great Western Railway network, including services between London Paddington and Oxford, as well as Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads.

Many areas of the Great Western Railway network will be out of service, while trains that are running will only run from 7am to 7pm.

As mentioned in our previous post, Heathrow Express trains are also running from around 7am and finishing at 7pm, with a limited timetable between those hours.

Aslef strike leaves Heathrow services restricted

Monday 5 February 2024 07:10 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Heathrow Express services are restricted today as a rail strike by Aslef union continues.

The Heathrow Express will be slow to start, with no services before 7am.

The first Heathrow Express train then leaves Paddington at 7.25am, leaves Heathrow Terminal 5 at 7.57am, and leaves Heathrow Central at 8.02am.

The services - which are usually every 15 minutes - will then be running every half-hour.

There will be no Heathrow Express services running from 7pm to midnight on Monday.

Heathrow Express services will then stop at 7pm, not resuming until Tuesday.

Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry, and Great Western Railway services are also affected by the strike.

Good morning

Monday 5 February 2024 07:02 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Good morning, and welcome to the Standard's travel live blog.

Commuters are facing a number of delays on TfL services this morning, including severe delays on the Overground between Clapham Junction and Willesden Green.

There are also minor delays on the Central , Northern, and Metropolitan lines, while a rail strike by Aslef is affecting some national rail services.

We'll be bringing you everything you need to know throughout the day.