Night Tube set to launch on Piccadilly line despite weeks of chaos

Debut: The Night Tube is set to launch on the Piccadilly line
TfL
Jamie Bullen13 December 2016

The Night Tube is set to launch on the Piccadilly line this weekend despite weeks of travel chaos sparked by repairs to damaged trains.

Tubes will run every 10 minutes between Cockfosters and Heathrow Terminal 5, barring Terminal 4, on Friday as the 24-hour service continues to be rolled out across the capital.

The launch comes amid severe disruption on the Piccadilly line which has been hit by major delays since half its fleet of trains were taken off the tracks to fix worn-down wheels.

But transport bosses said they are confident the problems would have no impact on the Night Tube ahead of its debut.

A TfL spokesman said enough working trains were in operation to roll out the eagerly anticipated service and added the authority is not “anticipating” any issues.

Long wait: Passengers on a Piccadilly Line platform as severe delays hit rush hour
MelissaGethinClarke (Twitter)

As of Tuesday, 64 out of the 79 Piccadilly line trains are in full working order – 80 per cent of its entire fleet.

At the end of November, only 40 trains were running.

The lack of trains sparked scenes of underground chaos as commuters crammed onto platforms to board packed trains during rush hour.

A Transport for London spokesman said: “Delays are still severe but the situation has improved and we hope to get more and more trains out on the line.

“It has gone from about half the fleet to 64 so delays are going down but they are higher than what we would like and our customers as well.”

The Piccadilly line is the latest to introduce the 24-hour service after it already launched on the Northern, Victoria and most of the Central line.

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