Landslip cancels trains in West Sussex until New Year

It was first discovered on Boxing Day

Author: Ryan BurrowsPublished 28th Dec 2020

Trains will be unable to run between Horsham and Dorking until the New Year due to a landslip on the line discovered over the Christmas break.

The line had been due to reopen on Monday (December 28th) after being closed for engineering works.

But Network Rail teams have put that back to at least the end of January 2nd after the problem was found at Ockley on Boxing Day.

The problem is also affecting services which had been diverted onto the line due to work taking place on other lines.

It means no direct trains are currently running between Bognor, Horsham, Portsmouth or Southampton and London Victoria.

A Southern Rail spokesperson said:

"On Boxing Day, Network Rail staff were carrying out safety checks of the track near Ockley. A landslip has been discovered, and this has prevented the line being reopened as planned today.

"Engineers are now working on a technical solution to deal with this.

"Unfortunately, a quick repair is not possible, so additional engineering works will take place during this week."

What does it mean for my journey?

The following amendments have been made following the landslip:

There will be no direct Southern services between London Victoria and Horsham, Bognor Regis, Portsmouth or Southampton

Thameslink trains will run between Horsham and London Bridge

Southern trains will only run between Horsham and Portsmouth, Bognor Regis and Southampton

If you're travelling between coastal stations and London, you will need to change trains at Horsham and again at East Croydon if you wish to travel to London Victoria.

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

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