A fault with the signalling system between Bexhill and Hastings means that services running through these stations may be delayed by up to 20 minutes or revised. Disruption is expected until 10:30.
Customer advice:
You can continue to travel using your normal route, but it may take up to 20 minutes longer than usual to reach your destination.
Please check journey planners and station information boards before you travel, and allow extra time to reach your destination.
Live departure boards can be found here and you can check the live map here to see if your journey has been affected.
You can also use the Southern app to find up-to-date travel information
Can you tell me more about the incident?
Trains may be delayed due to a signal fault in the Bexhill area. In this case, the signal is unable to show the normal coloured light indications to drivers, which means that your train will need to travel at reduced speed on this part of the network.
Railway signals are designed to warn drivers that they have to stop because the system can't yet confirm that the route ahead is clear. In most places, the signalling system will show a green light, or aspect, when the track is clear for a long distance ahead, and drivers will then be shown one or two yellow lights to warn them when they are approaching a red signal. This means that they can anticipate the amount of braking that's required to stop before they reach another train or any form of problem on the line.
Signalling runs on "fail safe" principles, so if the signals can't step through the usual colours, they will instead show a more restrictive colour - for example, yellow instead of green. This means drivers will be expecting to come to a stop, but in fact, the route ahead may still be clear. This leads to delays whilst trains proceed more slowly than usual.
The signalling system is maintained by Network Rail, and Southern are working closely with them to diagnose the fault and make sure it is fixed as quickly as possible. Until this is done, they be closely monitoring the train service and doing their best to keep to the timetable.
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.