Lift off: special cranes were needed to recover the derailed carriages outside Lewes, with the first one being moved on Thursday
It will be Tuesday September 1 before services between Haywards Heath and Lewes will resume, following the passenger train derailment on August 13.
Network Rail and train operators Southern have been continuing the work to recover the derailed carriages and restore and repair the track and embankment at the scene of the derailment.
The train involved was the 14:24 London Victoria to Eastbourne service on the approach to Lewes station.
The train companies advise that passengers should continue to check online at southernrailway.com for the latest travel advice.
“Since the derailment, a complex programme of work has been under way to move the train and to understand the full extent of the damage to the track and embankment. This will enable engineers to safely repair the railway, including replacing track and reinstating signalling systems,” according to Network Rail.
“Network Rail and Southern Railway can now confirm that the railway will reopen in time for customers returning to their regular travel patterns at the end of the summer holidays.”
Network Rail’s Lucy McAuliffe said:“The location of the derailment, which happened in close proximity to the River Ouse, means that reinstatement of the site is particularly complex… The recovery is being carried out with careful consideration for the area around the derailment site, ensuring the area’s ecology is protected and being mindful of residents living nearby.”
- A full investigation into the causes of the derailment is being carried out by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, which published its initial findings earlier this week.
PAID ADS: To advertise your services or products to our 10,000 weekday visitors to the site, as featured on Google News Showcase, email us inside.croydon@btinternet.com for our unbeatable ad rates
- If you have a news story about life in or around Croydon, or want to publicise your residents’ association or business, or if you have a local event to promote, please email us with full details at inside.croydon@btinternet.com
As featured on Google News Showcase
- Our comments section on every report provides all readers with an immediate “right of reply” on all our content. Our comments policy can be read by clicking here
Inside Croydon is a member of the Independent Community News Network
My wife, travelling on her weekly visit to our daughter to assist in childcare, was on the train preceding the one that derailed, and remarked when she arrived that she and other passengers had been alarmed by the violent shaking and rocking of the train at one point, joking amongst themselves that they needed seat belts and crash helmets. She also noted that the train had announced a delay and speed restrictions around Gatwick, but that it then speeded up faster than normal, perhaps to make up time on the timetable. My question is, why were those unusual track conditions not reported by the driver and speed restrictions applied to the following train?
Do you know that they were not?
While there is an on-going investigation, such speculation is, at best, unhelpful.
Perhaps your wife should submit a statement to RAIB.