Lines reopened between Purley and East Croydon: disruption expected until 18:45 

Route(s) affected

Southern between Bognor Regis / Eastbourne / Littlehampton / Chichester / Ore / Reigate and London Victoria, and between Caterham and London Bridge, and between Tattenham Corner and Purley

Thameslink between Brighton / Three Bridges and Bedford, and between Brighton / Gatwick Airport and Cambridge, and between Horsham and Peterborough, and between Brighton and Letchworth Garden City, and between Three Bridges and Luton

Description

A fault on a train at Purley has now been fixed allowing all lines to reopen. As service begins to recover, trains running between Purley and East Croydon may still be delayed or revised not to call at some stations.

Disruption is expected until 18:45.

Customer advice:

Trains can now run on all lines between Purley and East Croydon. There may be some residual delays while services return to a booked timetable. Services may also be subject to last minute alterations.

Please allow at least an additional 30 minutes to reach your destination.

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

Ticket acceptance:

You can use your existing ticket at no extra cost on the following services:

• Alternative Southern services between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria

• Alternative Thameslink services between Gatwick Airport and London Bridge

Can you tell me more about this incident?

There were earlier reports of a fault on a train, and this was causing delays to other services travelling through this area.

Normally, when a fault on a train occurs, our crews will gather details and report this to our Fleet teams. If possible, the defect will be fixed promptly, and we'll get the train on the way. Our initial steps are designed to take around 10 minutes.

However, sometimes the fault cannot be fixed in this time frame. In this case, wherever possible, the train will be taken out of use and sent to a depot. This does take additional time, as the crew will need to make sure that everyone's managed to leave the train.

This train has now been moved and services can start to run on all lines between Purley Oaks and East Croydon.

Ticket flexibility:

If your train is cancelled, you will be able to travel on an alternative service operated by any other participating train company, either two hours before or two hours after the original departure time of the cancelled service, in order to reach your destination.

If you decide not to travel or cannot complete your journey due to cancellations, you are entitled to a full refund from your original point of sale.

For further information and guidance please contact your train company or speak to a member of railway staff.

Check before you travel:

You can check your journey using the National Rail 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.