'Derail risk' on Tube line

Tube drivers on the Northern line today raised safety fears over the state of their trains.

Delays to service as a result of trains losing power shoes or other equipment are now so frequent London Under-ground is demanding answers from maintenance firm Tube Lines.

On Friday evening the Northern line in south London was suspended after de-icing equipment broke away. The next day a driver lost a brake shoe after leaving Golders Green depot.

One Tube driver said: "Our fear is that when they break off, dragging whatever with them, they could get caught in the wheels and cause a derailment. Some of the track is in a terrible state... causing the shoes to break off."

A Tube Lines spokesman today said it was a "fairly common" for power shoes to shear off but that "it is not a safety issue".