A tree blocking the railway between Sevenoaks and Swanley means some lines are blocked. As a result, trains may be cancelled, delayed by up to 30 minutes or revised. This is expected until 19:00.
Customer Advice:
A tree is blocking the railway between Sevenoaks and Swanley and is causing some disruption to services. Your train may be held on approach to the area, and your overall journey time may take at least 30 minutes longer.
You should check station information screens prior to boarding a service, or see Thameslink's app for a list of individual service changes. Thameslink services are being diverted to run non stop between Sevenoaks and Bickley. This means that train services towards London will be unable to call at Bat & Ball, Otford, Shoreham (Kent), Eynsford, Swanley and St Mary Cray towards London. Thameslink services towards Sevenoaks are not being affected by this incident. What should I do?
If you are travelling on a train towards London Blackfriars from Sevenoaks, and you want to alight at one of these stops, please continue to Bickley and change there for a service in the opposite direction. If you are travelling towards London Blackfriars from Bat & Ball, Otford, Shoreham (Kent), Eynsford, Swanley and St Mary Cray you should travel to Sevenoaks and then catch a return service towards London from there. For some of these stations, alternative public transport options are also available. You may find these quicker for some journeys, although it will still take longer to get to your destination.
Can I use my ticket with another operator?
You can use your ticket at no extra cost on Southeastern services between Sevenoaks, Otford, Swanley, Bromley South and London to help you complete your journey.
Planning your journey:
Live departure boards can be found here.
You can view a live map of the network here.
You can see an alternative route guide here.
If you're travelling in the London area, you can plan journeys on alternative routes by using the TfL Journey Planner here.
You can also use our app to find up-to-date information.
Can you tell me more about the incident?
We've recently been advised that a tree is blocking the railway between Sevenoaks and Swanley, this is preventing Thameslink services from running between these stations.
Network Rail staff will be attending to remove the obstruction as quickly as they can. Unfortunately, it's not possible to try to run trains past this. We're closely monitoring progress updates.
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.