Tube closed for being too noisy

One of London's busiest Tube stations was partly closed during rush hour because the trains were too noisy.

Transport chiefs shut Bank's Central line platforms for 90 minutes last night after complaints that decibel levels from screeching rails were too high.

The closure left thousands of commuters facing severe delays just after 5.30pm. They described the decision as "madness".

Transport for London admitted the problem, caused by a lack of lubrication on the tracks, could have been prevented but could not say how loud the screeching was.

A noticeboard at the station told passengers Central line trains would not be stopping because of "technical difficulties".

Transport sources told the Evening Standard that London Underground staff had refused to work on the platforms because of the noise but TFL claimed the closure was prompted by passenger complaints.

John Cooper, a City lawyer, who was on his way to a meeting, said: "We were all thrown out of the station. A member of staff told me it was because the decibel levels were too high. It was complete madness. Thousands of people were stuck and it was utter confusion.

"Some people were just laughing when the staff told them what was going on. It is health and safety gone mad."

Steve Cooper, 47, who works at John Lewis in Oxford Street, was trying to get home to Basildon. He said: "Someone came over the Tannoy and said the Central line was being closed due to squeaky tracks.

"How bad can it possibly be to disrupt thousands of people on their way home during rush hour? The noise is noticeable at Bank, but you couldn't call it unbearable. It's more of an irritant, really.

"Why didn't they just leave it another hour or so and avoid all that chaos? After a hard day at work all you want to do is get home."

Receptionist Kate Ward, 22, was on her way from Oxford Street to Bank when the driver announced the train would not be stopping.

She said: "It seems very odd for platforms to be closed because of noise. I had to walk here from St Paul's to meet my brother for dinner. He got held up by the problems as well."

Campaigners said it was the first time they had heard of noise levels closing down services. Jo deBank, from London TravelWatch, said: "I've never heard of anything like this happening before. The noise must have been bad. However, it is certainly problematic to have such a busy station close during rush hour for something that sounds like it could have been easily avoided.

"It was incredibly disruptive for passengers during an extremely busy time in the evening."

TfL said platforms had been closed before because of noisy trains.

A spokesman said: "We closed the platforms because passengers were reporting that they could hear a loud screeching sound.

"It does happen from time to time. You have metal rails running on metal tracks and they need lubrication. It would have been better to solve the problem before rush hour but our emergency team were on the scene quickly and were able to get the line running again."

www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23660804-details/Tube+closed+for+being+too+noisy/article.do