Derailed Hitchin freight train causes commuter misery

The train derailed in a depot at slow speed, operator Great Northern said

Commuters are facing cancellations and delays to their journeys after a freight train derailed in the early hours of the morning.

Operator Great Northern said on Twitter the train had partially come off the tracks at a siding just to the north of Hitchin station in Hertfordshire.

The accident meant trains were unable to use platform one at the station.

Services from Peterborough and Cambridge to London were delayed or cancelled but all lines are now open.

Great Northern said train services towards London from those two stations, and from Hitchin, returned to normal at about 12:30 GMT.

Crowds packed the platform at Hitchin waiting for morning trains

A spokeswoman for DB Cargo, which operated the freight train on behalf of Mendip Rail, said it was carrying aggregates from Acton Yard to Hitchin, when it "experienced a three-wagon derailment at Hitchin Yard, damaging a signalling cable" shortly before 07:00.

"DB Cargo UK's breakdown and recovery vehicle was dispatched from Didcot to help recover the derailed wagons," she added.