Lines reopened: delays between London St Pancras International and St Albans City expected until 18:00 

Route(s) affected

between London St Pancras International and St Albans City

Description

Lines have reopened following a broken down train between London St Pancras International and St Albans City. Whilst service recovers, trains may be delayed by up to 30 minutes.

Disruption is expected until 18:00.

Customer advice:

Thameslink services which run towards St Albans City, Luton and Bedford will be delayed by around 30 minutes on the approach to West Hampstead Thameslink whilst congestion eases following an earlier broken down train.

Where trains were once using 1 line, they can now use the usual 2 to travel north and Thameslink are working hard to get trains back on time and ease disruption.

For the most part, you will be able to travel using your usual route - but some services could still face delays or be altered meaning you have to change onto more than usual trains or wait on the platform for longer than usual to get to where you need to be.

If you are travelling between Sutton and London Blackfriars, there is a reduced train service operating. You may wish to use an alternative bus route between these stations to decrease your journey time. Please see our ticket acceptance section below to see how you can make your journey.

Please check your journey in advance before travelling and allow 30-45 minutes additional time to travel. Journey planners and station screens are up to date with all the latest real time train running info.

Ticket Acceptance:

That said, to help you complete your journey, your ticket will be accepted at no additional cost on;

• Thameslink services via any reasonable route between London and Bedford

• Southern services via any reasonable route between Sutton and London (via East Croydon too)

• East Midlands Railway services between London and Bedford

• London Buses between Sutton and London Blackfriars

Planning your journey:

You can check your journey using the Live Departure Boards, and you can view a live map of the network.

You can also see 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 also use the Thameslink app to find up-to-date information.

Can you tell me more about the incident?

Unfortunately, a freight service has developed a fault. The nature of the issue means it can't move, so it's blocking the line through this area towards St Albans City. A rescue locomotive is on the way and will attach to it to move it out the way.

It's likely that in this case, we'll need to send our specialist engineers to site, known as "fitters". There are fitters based in key locations around the network, 24 hours a day, and they are able to attend anywhere on our routes. Once they are on site, we'll then monitor progress updates and ensure that the railway can be reopened as promptly as possible.

Thameslink may also need to send another train to tow the defective one away. This procedure, known as arranging a rescue train, will be done as quickly as possible, usually by sending a similar type of train to attach. The combined train will be taken out of use and sent to a depot.

Until the defective train can be moved, staff will try to find a way to get other trains around the issue. This depends how many lines are available, and whether the signalling equipment is set up to allow trains to be routed around the problem. This is more often the case on major routes, but not always. Thameslink will work with Network Rail's controllers to decide how many more trains can be sent through the area, and if this isn't possible, they'll see what alternative solutions are available to help you continue your journey.

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.