Major disruption between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport expected until 07:45 

Route(s) affected

Gatwick Express between Brighton and London Victoria

Southern between Eastbourne and Haywards Heath / London Victoria / London Bridge, between Littlehampton and London Victoria / London Bridge, and also between Brighton / Hastings / Ore and London Victoria

Thameslink between Brighton and Gatwick Airport / Bedford / Cambridge, and also between Haywards Heath and Bedford

Description

The emergency services are dealing with an incident between Haywards Heath and Three Bridges. This has closed all lines running between these stations.

As a result of this, trains running between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport may be cancelled, severely delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised.

Major disruption is expected until 07:45.

Customer advice:

The emergency services are dealing with an incident in the Balcombe area. This means trains cannot run through this area until the situation is resolved.

It is strongly advised that you delay your travel until later. If you are already on a train your journey will take longer than usual. Trains may be subject to delays and cancel and restart at a different station to normal. This means you may need to use an alternative method to reach your destination. Please allow at least an extra 60 minutes additional time.

For the latest information, please check station boards or the online journey planners.

Service alterations:

The following changes to services are currently in place:

• Services between Littlehampton and London Victoria will be revised and will run between Littlehampton and Haywards Heath only. This will be an hourly service

• Services between Ore / Eastbourne and London Victoria will run between Ore and Haywards Heath only. This will be an hourly service

• Services between Brighton and Cambridge are suspended

• Gatwick Express services between Brighton and London Victoria will run between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria only

• Services between Brighton and Bedford will run between Brighton and Haywards Heath and Three Bridges and Bedford only

• Services between London Kings Cross and Cambridge will stop additionally at Ashwell & Morden

You will need to use local buses or rail replacement buses for connections between Haywards Heath and Three Bridges or Gatwick Airport. Please note this will extend your journey time. Please allow at least an extra 60 minutes to reach your destination.

Ticket acceptance:

Your existing ticket will be accepted on the below services at no extra cost:

• Southern services across the network

• Thameslink services across the network

• Gatwick Express services between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria

• Great Western Railway services between Dorking Deepdene and London Victoria

• LNER services between London Kings Cross, Stevenage and Peterborough

• London Buses route 405 between Redhill and Croydon

• Metrobus routes 100, 271 and 272 between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport

Replacement buses:

Some replacement buses have been arranged that you may be able to use to reach your destination. These buses will run between Haywards Heath and Gatwick Airport, calling at all stops.

Planning your journey:

You can use the following to assist you with your journey:

Live departure boards:

• Gatwick Express / Southern live departure boards

• Thameslink live departure boards

Live maps:

• Gatwick Express / Southern live map

• Thameslink live map

Alternative route guides:

• Gatwick Express / Southern alternative route guide

• Thameslink alternative route guide

Can you tell me more about the incident?

The emergency services are dealing with an incident in the Balcombe area. Power to the railway has been switched off in this area to allow response teams safe access to the track.

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.