Disruption between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport expected until 12:00 

Route(s) affected

Between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport

Description

A points failure between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport means that some lines are blocked. As a result, trains running between these stations may be cancelled, delayed or revised.

Disruption is expected until 12:00.

Customer advice:

If you are travelling between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport you can travel on your normal route, but you will need to allow at least an additional 15 minutes to complete your journey.

Please talk to station staff, look at the information boards or check your journey planner for the most recent information.

Expected service changes:

There will be a reduced service between Three Bridges and Bedford. Fewer Thameslink trains than normal will run between Three Bridges and London via Redhill, and between London and Bedford.

There will be a reduced service towards London from Littlehampton, Bognor Regis, and Eastbourne during the morning peak.

Gatwick Express services will run between London Victoria and Gatwick Airport only.

Some Southern services will call additionally at Three Bridges, and some Thameslink services will call additionally at Salfords and Earlswood.

Travel advice:

You may need to travel on a different train to normal, or change trains at an intermediate station to complete your journey.

Please check station information boards, listen to announcements, or use journey planners for the latest information.

For journeys between the south coast and London, you can travel on either Thameslink or Southern services. You should change at an intermediate station, such as East Croydon, for a service towards your destination in London.

You can travel on the following services at no additional cost:

• Southern services between Haywards Heath and London Victoria

• Thameslink services between Haywards Heath and Bedford

Planning your journey:

You can see live departure boards, a live map of the network and an alternative route guide.

If you're travelling in the London area, you can plan journeys on alternative routes by using the TfL Journey Planner.

The app will also help you plan your journey.

Can you tell me more about the incident?

A points failure has been reported, and this is preventing trains from using some of the routes through this area.

Points are moveable sections of track which can send trains onto different routes at junctions. These are part of the signalling system, generally managed by Network Rail.

Points can stop moving correctly for a number of reasons. For example, there may be an obstruction in the moving parts, or the electronic control systems may have developed a fault.

There are various backup systems which allow signallers to try to "set" the points, and in some cases, the points may be available for trains in one of the directions they serve, but not another. However, with more severe failures, the line in question may be blocked entirely.

Network Rail will send their specialist Signalling & Telecoms teams to site, and they will set up a safe method of working on the track. To allow staff to access the railway, sometimes operators have to stop trains completely, which can lead to your train being held at stations or signals en route.

As soon as it's safe to go on the line, the staff will diagnose the fault and find any quick solutions to resolve it.

Whilst this is being done, progress will be monitored closely. At times, replacement parts may be needed, or specialist advice from suppliers, which is why some points failures take longer to resolve than others.

Check before you travel:

You can check your journey using the National Rail Enquiries real-time Journey Planner.

Compensation:

You may be entitled to compensation if you experience a delay in completing your journey today. Please keep your train ticket and make a note of your journey, as both will be required to support any claim.