Commuters today faced delays after a broken rail disrupted rush-hour services.

Anglia Railways passengers were left waiting for more than an hour for some trains after 8am today and Great Eastern customers were also affected.

A train driver spotted the problem with the rail on the main line into Liverpool Street between Manningtree and Ardleigh and services were suspended until the damage was assessed.

Railtrack have introduced single-line working on the line into London while the broken rail is being fixed.

An Anglia Railways spokesman said: "There have certainly been some serious delays - some in excess of an hour - but work is under way on the broken rail and delays are decreasing."

A spokeswoman for Great Eastern said delays to its trains were mainly limited to ten minutes although one service had been terminated at Colchester.

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