Enlarge imageLONDON (Reuters) - A London underground train has derailed on the same line where a train went off the track a year ago.
British Transport Police said no one was injured after the front part of a car derailed as the train approached White City station, west London, at 11.30 a.m. on Tuesday.
About 150 passengers were evacuated from the train, London Underground said.
"The derailment was at the relatively low speed of around 15mph. As a precautionary measure, emergency services are on the scene," it said in a statement.
The incident happened on the Central Line, London’s main east-west rail artery, where at least 32 people were hurt when a train derailed in 2003 at Chancery Lane station.
The line was suspended in both directions from North Acton to Marble Arch. "We are working to restore services as quickly as possible," London Underground said.
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Metronet, a private company, is responsible for track maintenance along the line.
The company took over responsibility for maintaining and upgrading the network early last year along with Tube Lines.
The head of the Tube’s biggest union said it was lucky that the derailment happened in an area where a speed restriction was in place.
However, RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said the derailment pointed to the poor state of the track.
"This particular speed restriction has been in place for months, and serious questions need to be asked about why remedial work has not been carried out by the privatised infrastructure companies now responsible for maintaining the Underground," he said in a statement.
The underground network has been plagued by a series of derailments since underground maintenance was privatised, a move against which London Mayor Ken Livingstone unsuccessfully launched a legal battle.
He has always argued that the part-privatisation, under which private firms maintain track, signals and stations, would be more dangerous than leaving the creaking, 140-year-old system in state hands.
