A London Overground line was part-suspended for over an hour while a railway employee coaxed an injured swan from the tracks.
The swan was trapped on Monday on the tracks over Chelsea Bridge with an injured wing.
Mildmay line services were part suspended from 1.10pm to 2.30pm between Clapham Junction, one of London’s busiest commuter stations, and Shepherd’s Bush while Network Rail’s mobile operations manager was tasked with catching the rogue swan.
Following a successful rescue operation, the swan was coaxed off the tracks into a swan-rescue bag.
Trains had to be suspended because unmarked ‘mute swans’, the UK’s resident species, are protected in the UK.
As a result, killing or injuring a swan can amount to criminal damage or a wildlife-related offence.
Following the incident, the swan was being driven to the Swan Sanctuary in Shepperton by a Network Rail employee, where it will be looked after and nursed through its injury.
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “We’re really sorry for the delays passengers experienced on the line between Clapham Junction and Shepherd’s Bush.
“We had to close the railway while our colleague rescued a swan.”
Last year animals trespassed on Network Rail 1,432 times, with creatures ranging from deer, to donkeys, mice, and even a hedgehog.
Swans are the animal which caused the largest number of delays on Network Rail services last year, with 172 trespassing incidents reported.
The birds can become aggressive when approached and much of the railway is electrified by third rail, making removing them difficult.
To alleviate delays, network Rail partnered with the Swan Sanctuary in Shepperton last year to provide front line railway workers with “beak-spoke” training on how to quickly and safely remove swans from the tracks and release them back into the wild.
Tom Desmond, Network Rail’s Wessex route operations director, said: “Our first priority is to ensure everyone gets home safe, every day, be it humans or animals. Swans are the most impactful animal trespassers for disrupting passenger services and our partnership with the Swan Sanctuary provides our front-line teams with invaluable skills and training to tackle the challenge of quickly and safely removing our feathered friends from the railway.”
