Commuters face travel chaos over Christmas after a railway bridge collapsed into a river during heavy rainfall.

A train driver raised the alarm at around midnight on Saturday after crossing the 100-year-old bridge over the River Crane, in Feltham.

Maintenance staff rushed to investigate before closing the line. Passengers have been hit by severe disruption this week after South West Trains cancelled all services between Feltham and Waterloo.

Simon Butler, 49, of Cygnet Avenue, Feltham, said a tree fell across the river in August causing a deviation in the water flow.

He said: “The water running under it caused a hole to form in the river bed, which is what the bridge has fallen into. It was a 4ft wide hole.”

Mr Butler, who regularly walks by the river, added: “Christmas is going to be murder. It’s huge, all of one corner of the bridge has just collapsed into the river.”

Network Rail said inspectors last visited the bridge in February, and it had not recieved reports of any problems since. Specialist divers have also examined underwater foundations every three years.

A spokesman for Network Rail said: “The railway bridge over the river Crane on the southern edge of Hounslow Heath was damaged over the weekend after heavy rainfall caused the river to swell.

“The increased speed and turbulence of the river washed away some of the foundations of the 100-year-old bridge, damaging the main arch.”

He added: “We are working on a temporary solution to enable trains to start running again which we hope to have in place next week. Work to repair the original structure will then take place and is expected to take a number of weeks to complete.”

Passenger Gillian Brookes, a human resources manager, said: “It is having a knock on effect to other commuters who generally use the slow train into Waterloo. I live near north Sheen station and it’s so busy now that not everyone is able to board the train, which is unheard of usually.

“Maybe there should be more trains put on that line while the repairs take place, as it’s a nightmare getting into London now.”

Jocelyn Pearson, manager of Passenger Focus, said: “For passengers disrupted by this incident, timely, accurate and coordinated information from the industry must be the priority.”

For details of alternative travel arrangements, visit www.southwesttrains.co.uk

• For all the latest traffic and travel news, see our Local Information section