• Horror: Armed man targets moped rider in police chase

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I must say that this is a very serious incident and most important of all the gentleman is safe.
I'm a train driver on the Piccadilly Line and must add that I am very careful when closing the doors and departing the platform. That is one of if not, the most important safety checks I do as a driver, which I strictly follow. But I must also say that when you have an overcrouded platform it's almost impossible to see if someones strap does get caught because of the sizes of the screens. It's essential that people take extra care and stand well behind the yellow line.

- Train op, London, 28/04/2010 10:32
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I 99% guarantee that this man did not place his bag by his feet when he got on as he claims, and in fact kept it over his shoulder. If he had placed it on the ground, then surely when he was forced back off the bag would have remained on the train? And for arguments sake let's say the bag did remain on the train but he managed to retrieve it, even though he makes no mention of this, are we to believe he then turned his back to the train while remaining inches away from the door before slinging it onto his back?

All that aside, expecting the staff to hold back the next train, which would result in thousands of commuters being delayed in the tunnel, so that he could retrieve a magazine and a laptop charger reeks of the most incurable arrogance.

- Martin, London, 26/10/2009 11:08
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Presumably the driver was too busy sleeping/ counting his vast salary/ filling in a ballot paper for the next strike to use his mirrors to check if anyone was trapped? I mean its not like Clapham North is a very busy (and dangerous) station is it?

Of course any action against the driver will be met with an immediate strike by that fat union dinosaur, so lets not expect the tube driver to do his job.

- Mr Opinion, london, 08/10/2009 13:06
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It appears that a number of people have focused on the minors issues in this article in order to have a go at the poor man who was dragged along a platform by a train. Why are people focusing on back packs and the fact that he wanted to retrieve his articles from the track when he was dragged down the platform by a train which should have some kind of fail safe to protect people against this happening. If he was a child or a woman with a hangbag I wonder if the same focus would be paid to the irrelevant aspects in this article.

The majority of people who catch the tube at this time have bags with them, he took it off his back and put it at his feet, are the idots who complain about back packs suggesting that all women with hangbags, people with laptop bags etc should not bring them on the tube as well?

You must be very sad individuals if all you read from this article was a man tried to get on the tube with a ruck sack rather than potential safety issues that have arisen from this incident.

- Commuter, London, 08/10/2009 11:14
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and boris, of course, has cancelled the north-south tram that might have done something to ease the overcrowding..

- Fred, london, 08/10/2009 00:29
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"He resorted to lying on his stomach on the platform and stretching down to retrieve his belongings"

Only ever so slightly dangerous then, did he forget that the rails are electrofied? And that the Control Room won't have shut them off.

Next time this guy will carry his bag, rather than with it on his back when trying to board the train. As for the papers, provided there was no obstruction to the track then there's no good reason for LUL to immediately close the line, so I think they were correct in offering to retrieve it later.
By leaving it later, the effect of shutting off of the power to the track to allow the staff to retrieve the stuff, then the time to re-energise the track, would have had less impact in the non-peak period - disrupting fewer people.

- Andy, Essex, 07/10/2009 23:58
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The comments on here are utterly ridiculous!

1. Clapham North is extremely busy between 8.15 - 9.00, if you don't push on you simply won't get on for nearly an hour. They never become 'less busy' until after 9.00 am.

2. As packed as the trains are, there's ALWAYS more room on them if people would just move down - thus I find it totally acceptable for people to push into them, especially as half the passengers get off at the next stop, Stockwell, anyway!

3. All this talk about people with rucksacks are the worst arguments ever. Have you never had a bag before? Of course they shouldn't be banned, what a silly thing to suggest. Most people with bags are quite respectful, including this guy!

4. It's terrible no one offered to help. I get on at Clapham North and I would have at least helped him up and checked if he was ok. I actually find it very hard to believe this didn't happen.

5. The guy is ok and it is still a funny story. I'd laugh at myself.

- Jack Wallington, Loveclapham.Com, Clapham North, 07/10/2009 23:08
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“When the fourth train arrived and the doors opened I squeezed on board and put my rucksack by my feet but I got pushed back again on to the platform."

that just tells me that he was being arrogant and pushing himself onto the train, which we all know is a great thing when the train is packed and the one person just has to get on with a big bag..
Sorry no sympathy here.

- Josh, London, 07/10/2009 22:55
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Idiot probably ignored the "door closing" signal.

- Michael, London, UK, 07/10/2009 19:10
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Blame the driver. They have mirrors but rarely use them or ignore the dangers. Same on the buses. Trying to catch the 149 outside Liverpool Street yesterday and the driver closes the front door on me as I step in with a suitcase and briefcase and duty-free bags. He saw me coming in his mirror but tried to shut me out - not opening the door when realising I was trapped. I stuggled in manfully (I had no choice) and his only response was "break the doors, why don't you". Thanks mate. I wish you an appalling life of misery and frustration - oh great, I see that's what you already have!

- Digger, London, 07/10/2009 18:10
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There are just too many people in London now. I cannot stand the place any more. The limit has been reached and over-reached. I'm just so glad I'm not one of the poor sods who has to live and work in the sinkhole that it's become over the 30 or so years since I first moved there.

- David Short, Tunis, Tunisia, 07/10/2009 18:01
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I for one am glad Mr Roberts went to the Standard, as are some of you I'm sure as you wouldn't have had the chance to belittle the incident and appear so smug. This has certainly provoked a much needed debate on tube safety (38 comments so far ... ). Thankfully Mr Roberts is unharmed and after reading his story I will definitely be more aware of my own safety next time I travel rush hour.

- Ac, London, 07/10/2009 17:55
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HELP, HELP, HELP...

Most of you are being completely insensitive to this poor man's ordeal. The fact that many of you have focussed on his rucksac, sums up the mentality of the london commuter as a whole.

1. The rucksack was between his legs on the train
2. The rucksack only caught in the dooor after he exited
3. At this point, he was dragged along by train and...
4. It was then, that he realised he was in a near death situation...
5. From what I have read, the rucksack handle snapped and that saved his bacon
6. Following a ripped rucksack laying on the tracks, he wanted help from 'anyone' to retrieve it

I have only summarised the key FACTS from the written article. I hope if any of you are in this situation you will be a lot more empathetic

- Incensed, unfortunatley London, UK, 07/10/2009 17:17
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This guy clearly doesn't value his life. I mean lets gets things in perspective what's more important - his rucksuck, some work papers & some personal possessions or his life. He should stop whinging & be thanking his lucky stars that he wasn't seriously injured. As to expecting TfL staff to stop the Northen Life & inconvenience hundreds of thousands of people at the peak of the rush hour just so he could reclaim his stuff get real. How selfish would that have been?

I suggest that in order to avoid a repeat performance of this event this guy gets out of bed an extra 15 mins early so that if the first train is full he has set enough time aside so that he can just get on the next one & still make it to the office on time.

- Rupert, London, 07/10/2009 17:01
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I don't know about that D Woodstock, the bag looks like it's gone to the great bag boutique in the sky...

- Kc, Upminster, 07/10/2009 16:51
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"“It was terrifying, I thought I was going to get killed as there was only about 100 feet between me and the wall before the tunnel.” Nor exactly Die Hard is it 100 feet! Im surprised he could fit on the other end. Get your bag off your shoulder and get real.

- James Davies, london, 07/10/2009 16:27
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Well as this has turned into a 'bash the people who use rucksacks' discussion - some people have to carry heavy items and a rucksack is best. They could alternatively be a 'huge shoulder bag' person (this has the advantage it can be used as a battering ram to get through crowds) or a 'trolley case' person, causing havoc as they drag the thing across a crowded platform.

- Andy, southend, essex, 07/10/2009 16:26
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Some minor incidents that have befallen me in times past:

- Getting arm trapped in a bus's door
- Being fallen on by other people on an escalator with result of my coat being ruined
- Getting trapped up to the knees in a whicker wastepaper basket when entering my flat through the window late at night due to losing my keys

Now the moral of the story here, folks, is I did not run screaming to the Evening Standard or any other newspaper screaming about how I was treated over any of these incidents and you know why? Because I am a big boy and know that these little mishaps are all part of LIFE! And as to those of you asking what people would be saying if the bloke had died - well, he didn't, did he? He is OK, the bag is OK, the train is OK, and all 3 shall live to fight another day! Amen!

- D Woodstock, London, 07/10/2009 16:08
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That would never of happened if TFL/London Underground Limited had removed Guards from the Underground trains.

- Perry Scarbrow, Luton, 07/10/2009 15:33
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After being shoved off the train he was rather foolish to have attempted to raise his rucksack to his shoulder whilst still in the process of removing it from the carriage. Being dragged along by the train must have been extremely frightening.

Some previous incidents:

1993 at Hounslow East. Elderly woman killed as she was dragged by the departing train with her coat caught in the doors.

1994 at Ealing Common. 73 year old man dragged along the platform as the train departed with his walking stick caught in the doors.

1997 at Holborn. 11 year old boy killed as he was dragged along the platform and into the tunnel with the toggle of his anorak trapped in the doors.

Don't be too hard on this man. Take your mind off your own safety for just a second and it could be you being dragged along the platform.

- Douglas, Gerrards Cross, England, 07/10/2009 15:04
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I had a right laugh at some of the comments made on this article. They criticise the chap about wearing his rucksack whilst on the train itself?

Can you folk's not read? I know this country has dumbed down significantly but the article clearly states he rested the rucksack by his feet (to logically challenged people, that means to took it off his back).

- Decency, London, UK, 07/10/2009 14:31
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Clapham North and Clapham Common - scarily narrow platform stations. They were the same when I lived in the area a few years back, if there were delays you were always desperate to get on a train in the morning peak just to get off the congested platform. By the time the trains had reached Clapham North, you were lucky to squeeze on. There needs to be a train every minute on the Northern Line, like on the Central, but its strange split structure and ancient signalling system just does not allow that capacity.

- David, N10, 07/10/2009 14:26
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I wonder if Lee Roberts has realised yet how foolish this makes him look? Mewling on because he lost a few papers and a magazine! I mean to say, he should be grateful he didn't die or get maimed! He's probably stuck that backpack in thousands of doors down the years, knocked over old grannies galore, and the ONE TIME something happens to him what does he do, maintain a stiff upper lift? No, he runs bawling to the papers! Tut!

- Sarah Bradshaw, Enfield, Middx, 07/10/2009 14:04
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Paul B - yes it is perfectly reasonable to wait 20 minutes for a train if the alternative is to risk your life due to an arrogant opinion that the world will collapse if you're not at work on time!!!

- Nick, Battersea, 07/10/2009 13:44
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Shiddy says: Its always men with big ego's and limited manhood that display arrogance on the trains and tubes.
It's a dangerous thing to start a sentence with "It's always......" - particularly when in my experience the most likely people to ram their bags into you are women with doing that "over the shoulder thing" with their huge handbags. Why they cannot just put them on the floor and show some consideration for others is beyond me.

- Tj, London, 07/10/2009 13:43
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I can understand the staff refusing to stop services if they believed it was just to retrieve papers but did any of them check to make sure there wasn't an obstruction to the track? So much for health & safety.

Of course we don't know what he said to station staff, but some pure customer service wouldn't have gone amiss.

- Lone Gunman, Anywhere but Here, 07/10/2009 13:33
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I always feel sad and angry when I read the comments on here. The majority of commentors just dont care. Dont forget, as silly as this man MIGHT have been (were you all there, did you witness what happened??), he was dragged along a packed platform and could of suffered a serious or fatal injury. Regardless of the type of bag he was using, platforms should not be dangerously overcrowded and trains should not be dangerously overcrowded AND if anyone has had to get into work for an important and urgent meeting, they have pushed themselves onto trains too. "Mr Roberts said no other passengers offered to help him." - I wouldnt be surprised if you's lot were the other passengers actually! Just wait until you all suffer an accident, and see how it makes you feel when everyone comments so negatively.

- Nat, London, 07/10/2009 13:14
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You'd all be singing a different song had this poor man been dragged to his death!

This was the 4th train he tried to board - that sounds reasonable enough to me!

- Sanjay, Hounslow, UK, 07/10/2009 13:08
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Had a right idiot push his rusack in my chest and didn't give a damn about anyone's discomfort. Its always men with big ego's and limited manhood that display arrogance on the trains and tubes.

- Shiddy, Edgware, 07/10/2009 12:56
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If this man had been seriously hurt would you be writing such flipant comments?
This must have been terrifying and lets face it, could have happened to anyone carrying a handbag with long straps. Obviously shutting the line down would have been a mistake but surely one of the stations TFL staff should have at least offered to help him get the bag off the tracks - or were they too busy writing negative comments online about commuters ... ?! I use the station everyday too and am increasingly concerned about the safety of it. In our ever growing world of ridiculous health and saftey rulings, surely tube doors that indicate an obstruction to the driver should be top of the list.

- Fd, London, 07/10/2009 12:49
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I used to commute on the Waterloo and City Line. It always amazed me how people would cram themselves on instead of waiting just TWO minutes for the next train.

The funniest one I saw was one dunce try to stop the closing door with his rolled up morning newspaper. The look on his face as the door closed on it and moved off, battering it against the tunnel wall, was priceless.

Commuters of London, there WILL be another tube along in a few minutes. If you are in a rush to get anywhere, I suggest leaving a few minutes earlier, or an effective time management course.

- Anthony, Esher, Surrey, 07/10/2009 12:48
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The service should not have been stopped for just belongings, although the station staff should be more helpful the guy was probably in shock! I got threatened once on the tube (everyone else ignored what was going on) but they didnt stop the service to arrest the guy, performance over safety is obviously more important. As for over crowding.... I think id be annoyed if 4 trains went passed and I still couldn't get on, over crowding needs to be addressed, but no doubt the next 10 years of tory government will mean no improvements to services.

- Simon, London, 07/10/2009 12:33
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So most of you so far can' read properly then ???

The article clearly states
"and put my rucksack by my feet"

It was after he got off and pulled the rucksack back up to his shoulder that the strap became caught in the door.

We're all selfish when it comes to travelling on the crowded tubes. This morning I had to let 3 tubes go on the Jubilee line due to over-crowding. When the 4th came in 8 people got off from the doors where I was standing yet the people still inside all selfishly grabbed some extra space so only 3 people managed to get back on leaving others still on the platform.

None of us like it when it's packed but let's all try and have consideration for others rather than the all right Jack attitude shown here by a lot of the commentators

- Jl, London, 07/10/2009 12:27
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How would I feel if I was waiting for the tube and an announcement came over the tanoy like, "Services will be delayed due to staff having to retrieve a member of the public's magazines and paperwork from the track".... nah, don't think that would get my day off to a good start!

I think those who opt for rucksacks should have the courtesy to take them off and carry them in their hands while on public transport. I KNOW that some do, but not enough. As a small lady myself I have lost count of the times I have had people (mainly men) either squash me or one occasion tip me over entirely. And is it just me, or do rucksacks appeal predominently to those with uber-pushy personalities??

- M Farbiash, Highgate, 07/10/2009 12:12
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Clapham North station is a total joke and im always suprised by the numbers waiting on the platform, the trains are packed to capacity before they even get to Balham!

Its (sometimes) quicker just to get an equally overcrowded and dangerous Bus instead or walk down to Stockwell for the viccy line.

I will echo the comments below about people with rucksacks swinging them around but this sounds like a terrifying situation thank god for his shoddy bag!

- Alan, London, 07/10/2009 12:04
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He expected them to stop the Service for his bag? Ridiculous, quite clearly this was his own doing, if a train is that busy then you just wait.

- Adam, London, 07/10/2009 11:27
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Its surprising how carrying these bags was not banned after the 7/7 Tube bombings.

As for this dangerous station well Boris getting applause from a Tory Conference for talk of cutting billions from TFL budget shows how he and his party care about investing in a better, safer UndergrounD for London!!!

Clapham North needs the same style rebuilding as was done at Angel, Islington which also used to have a highly dangerous small central platform. Many a time have I used this station with trains speeding in opposite directions on each side.

I also agree on the menace these people cause to other passengers and its time something was done about it!!

- Melvyn Windebank, Canvey Island, Essex, 07/10/2009 11:25
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You see it all the time, geezer wants to stop the train pulling off so that he can squeeze on. What does he do, swings his case/bag into the closing door.
I always think, one day it will close on your bag and drag you down the platform....
Not saying that was the case here, but I doubt he was quite the 'victim' he seems to be claiming. He certainly does not look like an easy guy to push off a train.

- G,, London, 07/10/2009 11:03
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What sort of city are we becoming? Seven replies so far and not a single word of sympathy for something that could have happened to any of us. None of the the abuse directed at this poor guy ("Idiot!" "Get real mate!" "No sympathy at all!") comes from anyone who actually know him or who witnessed the incident. What has got into us that reading this article only prompts us to stop whatever we're doing and give vent to our spiteful and bad-tempered - and ill-informed - opinions.
Come on Londoners, surely we can do better than this!

- Freddo, London, 07/10/2009 11:00
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I am surprised by the comments here, very selfish, we have all been in his position, we all commute together. TFL is a joke the way they run the underground, decades of underfunding and what do you expect.

- Mike, London, 07/10/2009 10:37
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The overcrowding at Clapham North is shocking and it's only a matter of time before someone is pushed onto the tracks. It sounds like this man was being a bit of a pillock though. They were right not to stop the trains, that would have made everything worse.

- D.W., London, 07/10/2009 10:36
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I can't stand people who commute with rucsacks on their backs. They manage to clobber anybody who is near them and take up twice as much room.

While I'm having a whinge why do women have to carry so many bags when they commute? Ditto getting clobbered etc!

- John Bull, London, 07/10/2009 10:33
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- Nick, Battersea

"seems you can't be bothered to wait another five or 10 or 20 minutes for a train!"

You say that as if you think it's reasonable to have to wait 20 minuets to get on a train?

- Paul B, London, 07/10/2009 10:31
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I can't say I'm surprised that they wouldn't halt the service for this man's documents.

However, the fact that the guard (assuming there was one at the platform during rush hour) and the train driver didn't realise something was caught in the door and being dragged along is worrying. People have been dragged to their deaths or injured badly as a result of being dragged by tube trains in the past. Makes you wonder whether the drivers can get any decent view along the platform when it is overcrowded (most rush hours is my guess).

- H, London, 07/10/2009 10:26
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Now that the boom years are over, some City types need to realise that the world no longer revolves around them. There are other mortals on the planet. As was said by others, people who wear rucksacks on the tube are hateful. That all said, one wonders if the Tube's management ever do passenger flow analysis given the same bottlenecks occur every day without being remedied.

- Tony Mcmahon, London, UK, 07/10/2009 10:19
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I wholeheartedly agree with all the comments below about not wearing a rucksack on your back. BUT everyone seems to be missing the point. There is a huge overcrowding problem, and what will it take for someone to sit up and notice? Does someone have to be crushed next time in order for things to change?? I'm not saying I know what the answer is as London is overcrowded as a whole, but I'm sure there are improvements to safety that TFL can make. It must have been terrifying and I'm sure the people who have written below would not be so blaze about the matter had it happened to them. Don't forget we all have jobs to get to and bosses to answer to if we are constantly late for work. Once one or two trains pass by, most people have no choice but to squash themselves on board.

- Jc, London, 07/10/2009 10:15
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This bloke wanted to halt a whole rail line so he could get his belongings back? Get real mate! I also can't stand people who try and board packed trains, you just make it uncomfortable for yourself and everyone else.

- Paul B, London, 07/10/2009 09:57
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Seems he is more concerned that nobody stopped the service to let him pick up his precious papers than about a "terrifying" ordeal.
The Tube is full of people like this - think the world revolves around them. He should do what everyone else does on a busy day - go south to a station that is less packed then come back OR walk to Stockwell from Clapham North - that would take a whole 5 minutes and the trains are easier to board as so many people have got off to change to the Victoria Line.
No sympathy for him at all - he brought this on himself.

- Tj, Clapham, 07/10/2009 09:54
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The number of people I see daily who refuse to take their rucksacks/bags off of their shoulders/backs smacking all and sundry with it rather than putting it on the floor out of the way I'd be very surprised if this was the first time it has happened. Perhaps if these people applied some common sense when getting on the tube rather than trying to force their way onto an already overcrowded tube with body weight alone then they might enjoy a safer and more pleasant journey, as it is, I doubt anyone has any sympathy for these idiots.

- Bob, Cheam, 07/10/2009 09:33
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Can't really blame TFL for refusing to stop the trains to pick a few bits of paperwork off the track. If he was hurt then he should've sought medical assistance. Sounds as though the station was jam packed anyway, so I doubt his fellow commuters would've been less than impressed at being made to wait even longer due to paperwork having to be retrieved from the line.

- Kc, Upminster, 07/10/2009 09:30
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Sorry - it's your own stupid fault. Why be so impatient as to "squeeze on board" (risking you life and squashing everyone inside even further), rather than waiting for a less-packed train. It helps not to be selfish in situations like this - seems you can't be bothered to wait another five or 10 or 20 minutes for a train! And the station staff were 100% right - as a commuter from Clapham South, I'd have been very annoyed to have the whole line halted in rush hour because of your crass stupidity and selfishness.

- Nick, Battersea, 07/10/2009 09:21
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He should be more careful when carrying a bag with loose straps. Passengers are responsibility for their own safety as well as TFL.

- Dannyp, Egham, 07/10/2009 08:48
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So he tried to shove his way onto a crowded train wearing a rucksack and we are supposed to feel sorry for him? Move along now.

- Carl, London, 07/10/2009 08:46
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