METROLINK services were thrown into chaos on Monday following the derailment of an engineering vehicle.

Passengers were seriously delayed during rush hour, and for several hours throughout the morning, after a technical fault caused a maintenance vehicle to become detached from overhead wires.

The vehicle, which had tipped onto its side between Dane Road and Stretford just after 1am, needed heavy lifting equipment to be removed and a section of overhead wire had to be taken down to allow access for the crane.

The trams running between Old Trafford and Altrincham were disrupted throughout the morning and buses were organised to replace the service.

One angry passenger, travelling from Altrincham to Sale, said: "I was dismayed by the size of the bus which Metrolink put on. It was totalling inadequate for the number of people queuing.

"About forty people were waiting and only a minibus turned up. It took me 40 minutes to do a journey, which normally takes about five minutes. I'm disgusted by the lack of organisation."

Another passenger, who was travelling between Stretford and Sale, said: "I got to Stretford station at about 9.15am and I didn't get into work until 11am. I wasn't happy and the replacement bus service was inadequate. It was very frustrating for everyone involved."

Normal services on the Metro were resumed at 12.15pm.