Three horrific rush-hour deaths at Wimbledon station have prompted passengers to call on the authorities to do more to stop suicides and accidents.

A 45-year-old man, who has not yet been named, was killed at 5.20pm after being struck by a train travelling to Waterloo from Poole via Wimbledon.

It is the third death on the line at Wimbledon in the past four months, following the suicide of Major John Moir from Morden on March 31 and the death of Wimbledon businesswoman Jean Gaunt on July 6, the cause of which is the subject of an inquest.

A spokeswoman for the Samaritans, which will be giving out leaflets at the station on Sunday, said it worked closely with rail operators, including training station staff to prevent suicide attempts by spotting warning signs. She said: “When there is a fatality at a station the aim is to get volunteers to come into the station and offer support.

“These deaths do not just affect the victims’ families, it affects the unsuspecting passengers who witness these tragic incidents as well as staff and train drivers.”

A spokesman for South West Trains (SWT), which runs services at the station, said: “As well as the human consequences, the knock-on effect of a fatality on our network can result in major and extended disruption for our customers.”

Several passengers reported their distress at seeing the dead man’s body being cleared by station staff.

Commenting on our website, Luisa from Mitcham, said: “I think something needs to be done to prevent this happening.

“Some trains speed through the stations if they don’t need to stop there and it would be the perfect opportunity for someone to jump out in front.

“Maybe they need to get speed restriction limits when a non-stopping train is passing through stations.” But an SWT driver, who did not want to be named, said despite the speed limit through Wimbledon station being 75mph, a person on the line can be killed by trains going as slow as 20mph.

He said: “It doesn’t seem to matter what speed the train is travelling, or the maximum line speed, as people just jump or fall anyway.

“I hope the driver is able to recover from this terrible situation and work again. I also send my condolences to the man’s family.”

As part of a national awareness day, the Samaritans will be at the station for 24 hours on Sunday where they will be giving out leaflets.