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District line Tube passengers are hit by more delays sparked by signalling problems than on any other line, the Standard can reveal.

Commuters on the route have lost 228 hours due to more than 900 signalling problems over the last two years, according to TfL figures.

Across the London Underground network there has been a total of 884 hours of delays as a result 4,000 signalling issues between January 2016 and February 2018 – an average of more than five signal failures per day.

The Piccadilly line suffered the second highest number of issues, although this was significantly lower than those on the District line.

There were a total 597 signalling problems causing 142 hours of delays, while on the Metropolitan line 143 hours were lost due to 529 failures.

Commuters on the Victoria line lost the least amount of time due to delays (22 hours) while the Waterloo & City had the fewest signalling problems (63).

TfL insists that Londoners will reap the benefit of a vastly improved service across a swathe of three major Tube lines from this year as a £5.4 billion transformation is rolled out – involving a new computer-based signalling system.

From early summer, commuters using the Circle and Hammersmith & City lines will enjoy a more reliable service and better customer information between Hammersmith and Euston Square.

Line Number of signalling issues Delay (hours) Bakerloo 218 34 Circle and Hammersmith & City 358 75 Central 537 90 District 924 228 Jubilee 422 59 Metropolitan 529 143 Northern 230 56 Piccadilly 597 142 Victoria 95 22 Waterloo & City 63 35

Passengers on the Metropolitan line also will see an improvement between Finchley Road and Euston Square.

Over the next five years, changes will be implemented across the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines, encompassing 113 stations and involving 192 brand new S stock trains, with a new control centre operating from Hammersmith.

New signalling systems will also be introduced on the Bakerloo, Central, Piccadilly and Waterloo & City lines, with the first line to benefit expected to be the Piccadilly line.

A spokesman for TfL said: “There is a variety of signalling systems in use on the Underground network, some dating back to the 1950s and some having gone into use in 2012.

“The range of different eras that the technology comes from presents different challenges in ensuring signal reliability. However, we are tackling this problem in a number of ways.

“The Four Lines Modernisation programme will transform the signalling on the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines.

“New signalling will also be introduced onto the Bakerloo, Central, Piccadilly and Waterloo & City lines as part of the upgrade of Deep Tube lines. The first line to benefit will be the Piccadilly line, with the next phase of the project set to start later this year.

“We have also created a team as part of our organisational change whose sole focus is working on signalling issues.”