Trolley hit by train 'endangered everyone on board'

A Great Northern spokesperson said the abandoned supermarket trolley was "an act of vandalism"

A supermarket trolley hit by a train after being left on a railway line "endangered everyone on board", a train company has said.

A Great Northern train crashed into the trolley about a mile (1.6km) from King’s Lynn, Norfolk at 19:20 BST on Sunday night.

It became wedged beneath the train, blocking the line to and from London for about four hours.

The British Transport Police said it was investigating the incident.

“This was a mindless act of vandalism that endangered everyone on board,” a Great Northern spokesperson said.

“Thankfully, no-one was hurt.”

Following the collision, passengers on board the train were taken back to a previous station, Watlington, about six miles (10km) away, after the decision was made to separate the rear four carriages of the train.

From there, passengers were able to get a taxi to King’s Lynn which had been organised by Great Northern.

Services between King’s Lynn and London were affected.

'Owed compensation'

"We’re sorry our customers were delayed so much," a Great Northern spokesperson added.

"We worked as hard as we could to get everyone on their way as quickly as possible."

Great Northern said affected passengers could be owed compensation.

The British Transport Police said it was working to establish how the trolley ended up on the tracks.