Melbourne commuters have faced major peak hour delays after an overhead power fault forced the suspension of multiple train lines.
A wiring fault near Armadale led to the suspension of trains on the Cranbourne/Pakenham line between Caulfield and West Footscray and the Sunbury line about 5pm.
The suspension was impacting some services running through the Metro Tunnel.
By 8pm, the metro line was still facing delays up to 40 minutes with passengers between Hawksburn and Caulfield advised to switch to the Frankston line.
Passengers on the Sunbury line were advised to allow an extra half hour as buses replaced trains between West Footscray and Footscray, with delayed trains on to Sunbury.
V/Line services on the Gippsland line were suspended as buses replaced trains between Southern Cross and East Pakenham.
Passengers were asked to check station platform displays and allow extra travel time.
A meltdown of unbelievable proportions.
Why did it have 2 hours to get passengers off the train? The power had been cut to the network meaning it was safe power related but the running lines were still operating near the site. Is there too much planning and risk management at Metro trains?
How could this have occured when maintenance schedules should have ensured the network is in peak condition and fit for purpose.