Disruption between Angmering and Littlehampton expected until 12:30  

Route(s) affected

Trains between Brighton and Chichester / Bognor Regis, and also between London Victoria and Littlehampton

Description

A points failure in the Arundel area means trains between Angmering and Littlehampton are being disrupted. As a result, trains may be cancelled, delayed by up to 30 minutes or revised.

Disruption is expected until 12:30.

Customer advice:

Trains cannot run between Littlehampton and Angmering due to a points failure in the Arundel area. Trains can still run between Brighton and Ford, but this will be a reduced services. Some services will terminate and restart early at Hove or West Worthing.

This will cause delays to your journey and you should allow at least 45 minutes extra to complete your journey.

Make sure to check before you travel using our online journey planners and live departure boards for the latest information.

Ticket Acceptance:

You may use your ticket at no extra cost on the following :

• Stagecoach 500 - Littlehampton, Barnham, Chichester

If you are travelling from Littlehampton:

Passengers travelling from Littlehampton for services towards Brighton / Horsham will need to use local buses. You can use Stagecoach Bus 500 and change at Barnham for Southern railway services to reach your destination.

If you are travelling from Brighton:

Passengers travelling from Brighton for services towards Littlehampton will need to use Southern railway services and change at Barnham. You can use Stagecoach Bus 500 from Barnham to Littlehampton to complete your journey.

If you are travelling from Horsham:

Passengers travelling from Horsham for services towards Littlehampton will need to use Southern Railway services and change at Barnham. You can use Stagecoach Bus 500 from Barnham to Littlehampton to complete your journey.

Planning your journey:

You can use live departure boards, a live map of the network and the alternative route guide to help you.

The Southern app will also help plan your journey.

Can you tell me more about the incident?

A points failure has been reported, and this is preventing trains from using the routes between Angmering and Littlehampton.

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 we 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, Southern will be monitoring progress 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.