Wimbledon tennis fans have been left battling both sweltering heatwave conditions and travel issues during the first few days of the 2025 tournament. Repeated problems on the London Underground have got so bad it has led to MP for the area to directly contact Transport for London (TfL) to call for the chaos to be solved.
Paul Kohler, the Labour MP for Wimbledon, posted a letter to X on Wednesday (July 2) addressing the Commissioner of TfL, raising concerns about repeated issues on the District line, including signal failures and a fire alert at Southfields and the “very crowded” Wimbledon station.
He said the problems had severely affected the journeys of residents, commuters and visitors, warning: “Attendees are now being caught up in cancellations and delays.” Mr Kohler said he had been told Wimbledon station was “very crowded” on Tuesday and called on TfL to outline what extra support is in place to keep services running smoothly during the rest of the tournament.
On Thursday, Campaign group Save Wimbledon Park, which opposes the All England Club’s expansion plans onto nearby parkland, said the tournament’s impact on the local area goes beyond the grounds themselves. “We love the tennis – we do,” the group posted on X.
“But there is a real cost to being taken over, even for just two weeks a year. Streets are closed, bus routes diverted, parking a nightmare, tube travel ridiculous and traffic at gridlock.”
TfL explains cause of District line disruption
A TfL spokesperson said: “We apologise to customers affected by the disruption on the District line, which is due to a track fault at Tower Hill. Our engineers are working hard to rectify the fault as soon as possible and restore a good service.
“District line customers are advised to allow extra time for their journeys and to check before they travel using TfL Journey Planner or the TfL Go app.”
Despite the travel disruption earlier in the week, conditions have brightened up for day four of the Championships. Sunshine and 24C temperatures returned to south-west London on Thursday, after rain caused delays and sent fans scrambling for umbrellas on Wednesday.
On Centre Court, Novak Djokovic continues his bid for an eighth Wimbledon title as he faces British number three Dan Evans in the second round. World number eight Iga Swiatek also returns to action, taking on American qualifier Caty McNally.
Number One Court hosts men’s top seed Jannik Sinner against Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic, before teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva plays Italy’s Lucia Bronzetti. Maria Sakkari will meet 2022 champion Elena Rybakina later in the day, while British hope Jack Draper faces a tough test against former US Open winner Marin Cilic.
Sign up for our London Underground newsletter for the latest travel updates to make your commute easier, plus a weekly fix of Tube trivia! Sign up HERE.
