Lines reopened: disruption between Bexhill / Battle and Hastings expected until 13:00  

Route(s) affected

Southern between Eastbourne and Ashford International, and between Brighton and Hastings / Ore, and also between London Victoria and Ore

Southeastern between London Charing Cross and Hastings

Description

Following a fault with the signalling system in the Hastings area all lines through this station have now reopened. As service recovers, trains may still be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised.

Disruption is expected until 13:00.

Southern Customer Advice:

Network Rail engineers are on site and working on repairs. To allow safe access to the track, all lines between Bexhill and Hastings are currently blocked.

If you are travelling now, you will need to use an alternative route to complete your journey and allow up to 30 minutes more time to arrive at your destination.

Service Alterations:

Services that normally run between Brighton/London Victoria and Ore will run between Brighton/London Victoria and Bexhill only.

Services that normally run between Ashford International and Eastbourne will run between Ashford International and Hastings only, however please note that this service may be reduced.

Ticket Acceptance:

You can use your ticket at no extra cost on:

• Alternative Southern and Thameslink services on any reasonable route

• Southeastern services between Hastings, Tonbridge and London Bridge, as well as between Tonbridge and Ashford International, excluding high speed services. Please note however that Southeastern services have also been affected by this disruption

• Stagecoach buses on routes:

  • 11, 11a & 11b between Ashford International and Ham Street

  • 99 between Eastbourne and Rye

  • 100 & 101 between Hastings and Rye

Rail replacement buses are running between Hastings and Bexhill as well as between Hastings and Ashford International. Please check with station staff for further information.

Travelling now:

Train services continue to operate up to Bexhill and Hastings, however the service between Hastings and Ashford International will be reduced.

If you are travelling between Hastings and Bexhill, you may need to use rail replacement buses or Stagecoach services to connect to a station from where train services continue to run. Travelling via this alternative route will extend your journey by at least 30 minutes.

Planning your journey:

You can see the live departure boards, and view a live map of the network.

You can also view 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.

You can use the Southern app to find up-to-date information.

Can you tell me more about the incident?

This part of the network uses track circuits to detect trains. If a circuit fails, the system may think a train is still there, blocking others from moving forward.

Drivers must stop at red signals and get verbal permission to proceed at a reduced speed, which can cause significant delays, especially in areas with long track sections.

Faults can be caused by electronic issues or track obstructions. Network Rail is investigating, and we’ll share updates as soon as we have them.

Southeastern Customer Advice:

What's happened?

A fault with the signalling system has been reported between Hastings and Battle. This had blocked the line between Hastings and Battle.

Response staff have manually operated a set of points; this means services can now depart/arrive at Hastings, albeit with delays.

The line will be blocked between the passage of trains to allow response staff access to investigate the signalling problem.

How does this affect my journey?

Services between Hastings and Tonbridge are expected to be delayed, altered or cancelled.

What should I do?

You can use your ticket at no extra cost on Southern services between Hastings and London, and on Stagecoach bus route 1066.

Alternative routes:

For details of alternative routes that may be available to complete your journey, please refer to our Alternative routes during disruption maps.

How can I stay up to date?

You can follow Southeastern on Twitter (X) @SE_Railway or follow the Southeastern WhatsApp channel.

Check before you travel:

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

For helpful advice if you need to travel on a rail replacement service, including accessibility and bicycle information, please use our Rail Replacement Services page.

You can find the pick-up and set-down location of rail replacement services by checking station signage or by searching for your station on our Find a Station page.

Please be advised that replacement vehicles may be busier than usual, and you should allow extra time for your journey.

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.