28th February Update
I start this week with the positive news that the Brighton Main Line Improvement Project 2022 has successfully been completed. Thank goodness on time and as planned, as travel has been horribly difficult with this alongside the London Bridge only service leading up to this. Like many commuters, I am so fed up with the situation and have been very robust with the train companies, alongside my fellow West Sussex MP colleagues, including Andrew Griffith MP.
I understand last week constituents faced some great difficulties getting to London, as did I. I wanted to summarise the feedback I received from GTR regarding these ongoing issues:
I have heard from several constituents who have written to me about the ongoing cancellation of the 07.15 train to London Bridge from East Grinstead. I am informed by GTR that the service ‘had not been planned to run’ although they are aware this was showing on journey planners as ‘cancelled’. This was a truly deeply unhelpful mistake and from this week I am told there will be the 06.36, 07.06 and 07.36 trains running for the morning peak. I will continue to push for the ongoing missing service on your behalf.
Another issue I had challenged is the fact the trains were only running 8 carriages opposed to 12, adding to the daily congestion. GTR have said: ‘Regarding the fleet, this week to support the Three Bridges blockade, carriages will be 8 car at East Grinstead but from next week more of the peak services will be 12 car’. The running of 12 cars have now resumed today.
The final issue I have recently raised – thanks to the constituents for flagging this with me - is the feeling of overcrowding both on the trains and at East Croydon station. According to GTR, their station/operations team looked at gate line data at the station following our previous emails about this and made it clear they 'haven’t logged any reports of significant overcrowding from staff’. I understand it is believed that, due to the pandemic, our awareness of overcrowding has increased and we are more aware of people around us than ever before. I have also felt the same and have noticed this a lot, particularly on the London underground. We want busy and buzzy trains going at the right times, not overcrowded ones, so I will be keeping a strong eye on these figures, my constituents' feedback and will continue to check in with GTR on this matter and challenge them.
The £15 million pound investment means an improvement to reliability and safety for Brighton Main Line passengers, and I am keen to see this in full effect. If you are like me and use the travel time to catch up on work, you will be happy to hear that the new works installed means improved internet and mobile phone connectivity through the fibre optic installation. Let’s see what this means when we hit the tunnels!!
10th February Update
On Tuesday 8th February, Great British Rail (GTR) held their annual stakeholder conference, and we were joined by the Minister for Rail, Wendy Morton MP. The meeting focused on the GTR’s merger with the Great British Railway. In Mid Sussex, we have had a continuous problem of reliability and frequency of trains as more have returned to work from the pandemic and Ms Morton made it clear this was absolutely unacceptable and that customer satisfaction was at a real low.
I will be having a separate meeting on these ongoing performance matters to make progress on these with the Managing Director of GTR and my West Sussex MP Colleagues this Friday 11th February, after which I will provide another update. I have been standing up continually for constituents who are fed up about this limited local service. I am determined to make this better for us all as we move on and push back towards normality.
Meanwhile, GTR set out its plans for flexible and digital tickets, including upgrades at rail stations, as well as an increase in accessibility. I know constituents are very keen to understand how this will work. Staffing issues were also raised and the transition team at GTR highlighted how this would be able to improve through using DWP & Government schemes which I have been personally managing, such as Kickstart and SWAPs. This includes encouraging more women into the sector and a push to achieve a higher retention rate. Overall, the transition to Great British Railway is welcome news and part of a longer term solution we have been looking for.
LATEST ON THE UPCOMING BRIGHTON MAIN LINE CLOSURE
Issues regarding the Brighton Main Line upgrade work, which takes place from Saturday 19th February to Sunday 27th February were raised. The team highlighted how this was a £15 million investment into the railway so that Network Rail can renew a junction near Haywards Heath, carry out track replacements in the Burgess Hill area and upgrade some drainage systems near Balcombe, all work that can only be done when trains are not running. These improvements will help to avoid future disruption to journeys in the area.
I know this is very disruptive news and the best way to manage it is to be prepared. Like you, I’ll also be affected and this is a massive headache we can all so without, on top of these deeply frustrating few months.
There will be no train service from Balcombe, Haywards Health, Wivelsfield, Burgess Hill, Hassocks, Preston Park, Plumpton, Cooksbridge. Replacement buses will run between Three Bridges and Brighton / Lewes.
While the work takes place, a train service will run between Brighton and London Victoria in both directions, using a diverted route via Littlehampton and Horsham. If you are travelling between Brighton or Hove and London, you can use this direct train service to avoid the need to change between buses and trains at Three Bridges.
TICKETS & CAR PARKING
Thameslink and Southern tickets will be accepted on both services via any reasonable route for journeys affected by the closure.
The entire car park at Three Bridges station will be closed from 22:00 on Friday 11 February until 05:00 on Monday 7 March 2022. Staff will need to move any vehicles left causing a blockage.
Alternative car parking facilities are available at The County Mall shopping centre which is close to Crawley station. The postcode is RH10 1FP.
Parking at The County Mall will be available between 06:00 and 20:00 on Mondays to Saturdays, and between 08:00 and 19:00 on Sundays. Pedestrian access to and from the car park outside shopping centre trading hours will be via the Bus Station doors, with full access to the ‘South’ car park via the escalators.
Parking at The County Mall will cost £5 per day. You will need to pay for parking using the machines at the car park which accept credit and debit cards only.
WEEKENDS
The upgrade also means the lines between Three Bridges and Brighton/Lewes will be closed on the weekends of 12/13 February, 5/6 March and 3 April for preparation and follow up works.
For more information: https://www.southernrailway.com/travel-information/plan-your-journey/brighton-main-line-improvement-project?utm_source=BenchmarkEmail&utm_campaign=In_Touch_January_2022&utm_medium=email
This is another bitter pill to swallow, and I know with the school holidays coming up in East Sussex and West Sussex many of our children will be affected, both for their journeys to and from school as well as half-term breaks/trips. Please allow for longer journeys or work with each other to find suitable transport for children.
From Monday 28th February, after the construction work previously mentioned, direct services to London Victoria will be restored both on the East Grinstead line and services from Haywards Heath, meaning customers will no longer have to change at East Croydon for onward travel to Victoria.
For East Grinstead, these changes will also see additional early morning service options for commuters with the first service beginning at 05:36, in comparison to 06:36 presently.
We have also been able to extend the fleet to twelve carriages on some services meaning there will be more space onboard for customers.
Unfortunately, this does mean we cannot provide a Thameslink service from East Grinstead which we know will be disappointing for constituents following our discussions about this last year. As mentioned at our last meeting, our driver unavailability is higher than it was in Autumn last year, which means the service would be subject to a high level of cancellations.
Whilst this timetable will be in place until May, we are continually reviewing this and may look to restore more services, subject to our crew position improving.”
GTR continue to express that their network we have an average of 17% driver unavailability, with Thameslink facing the highest percentage of unavailability across the brands.
This is again a very disappointing and frustrating situation which is having such a large scale impact and must be tackled.
I will be speaking to them tomorrow about the need for Thameslink services to be addressed and what they are doing urgently to fix these issues but I thought you would appreciate the updated news of a direct service restoration which is a welcome positive in this ongoing gloom.
28th January Update
From my recent appearance on BBC South Politics on Sunday 23rd January, I think it has become even more apparent that the problem with the rails is not restricted at all to Mid Sussex. I have reached out to my West Sussex MP Colleagues, to make sure we make joint representations on this matter and we will be meeting formally about a group approach very shortly.
I have highlighted this ongoing huge frustration with the Minister for Rail, Wendy Morton MP, and waiting on a response from her office regarding the continuous problem GTR are facing in terms of staffing and its impact on commuters and my formal letter to DFT on behalf of constituents after discussing this matter.
We still do not have an update as to when the direct service from Brighton and Haywards Heath to Victoria will resume. This is a really very disappointing ongoing situation and I am determined to get clarity as soon as possible
On a small positive note, from Monday 31st January there will now be a direct train from East Grinstead to East Croydon at 06:06. We have been requesting an additional early morning train for many months now, which will help City workers get to the office for 8am, I am glad this train is now introduced and hope that this will turn into a direct service as soon as possible. This is a step in the right direction but obviously far from enough progress. I believe the Secretary of State needs to be part of the solution and I will be asking for his involvement. I will keep you updated on this next step.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday 1st February, I will be joining Transport for the South East (TfSE) about wider transport developments and plans for the South East. They have set out an ambitious strategic investment plan which will be the blueprint for future investment in strategic transport infrastructure for the next 30 years. In addition to taking place in GTR Stakeholders meeting on Tuesday 8th February. I will be making sure Mid Sussex has a strong voice at this forum.
!4th January Update
Many constituents (as well as myself) have been significantly affected, fed-up and angry with the ongoing, severely reduced weekday timetable Southern and Thameslink have been running since the beginning of the new year, due to a high level of absences, as a result of positive Covid results and long term illnesses among critical railway staff.
I met with Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) again this Tuesday (11th January 2022) to re-emphasise the vital need to find a long term solution to the continuous, knock-on effects of these debilitating staff shortages.
By running a reduced service, GTR explained they hope to provide more certainty and fewer unplanned cancellations so customers can plan their journeys. However, I have expressed that the journeys are much longer for customers and are pushing them into peak travel times, thus costing them considerably more money and time.
The main positive which came out of our conversation is that GTR confirmed they will be adding extra services imminently, with the next additional services planned to come in on Monday 17th January.
Pleasingly, a glimmer of progress – further services to and from London Victoria will be added to the current timetable, which currently provide six direct Southern trains per hour to London Victoria - this number will increase to 8 direct trains from Monday 17 January.
Additionally, from next Monday, Arun Valley line services will terminate at London Victoria between 07:00 and 20:00. For constituents in Haywards Heath, this means there will be options to change at Gatwick Airport to join these services as opposed to changing at East Croydon.
Furthermore, ticket acceptance is in place with TfL for customers who wish to travel from London Bridge or Blackfriars to London Victoria. Personally, I was unaware of this and had been unnecessarily purchasing additional travel cards in order to travel from London Bridge. So, I thought it would be helpful for you to know your tickets will be accepted on TfL and here are some useful alternatives:
- Jubilee Line, LBG to Westminster and then change to Circle/District line to Victoria (14 minutes travel time)
- Jubilee Line, LBG to Green Park and then change to the Victoria line (14 minutes)
- Northern Line, LBG to Stockwell and then change to the Victoria line (19 minutes)
- Circle/District line, Blackfriars to Victoria (9 minutes)
It was also very good to hear GTR confirm they will always prioritise and protect the last train services from cancellations, so customers and constituents can get home. I know this is a big worry for many commuters across Mid Sussex – so it was reassuring to have this clarification. I’m often using these services and I can see why constituents are so frustrated.
However, I understand this is still not at all the outcome we all urgently want to see. I made it abundantly clear to GTR that the longer they continue to provide significantly reduced services, the more likely it would be they lose their long term, loyal and high-paying customers from Mid Sussex and beyond as working from home increases and people behave differently as they have to react, including taking the car.
Meanwhile, I have a crucial meeting with the new Minister for Rail, Wendy Morton MP, forthcoming on Monday 17th January. There is clearly a lot of long term planning which is needed, but this does not mean it is acceptable to have a consistently reduced, unreliable service.
As always, I will continue to keep you updated on my discussions and strong representations on your behalf, including my aforementioned, upcoming meeting with the Minister for Rail.
Thursday, 30 December, 2021
I have received today (30th Dec), as I expect many constituents have, the following urgent notice from GTR about changes to services from Tuesday 4th January as a result of high levels of staff absence due to Covid. As a regular commuter into London Victoria myself, I fully recognise that this will cause disruption for many and it will be important to plan ahead which services are available. I understand that the National Rail site has already been updated to reflect these essential changes and a summary of the changes is included below.
They write:
We are sorry to update you that Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern services will run to a reduced weekday timetable from Tuesday 4 January 2022 until further notice. Gatwick Express services will be suspended with trains and crew used to support Southern services.
We know this will be difficult for our customers and we are very sorry.
This change is in response to a significant reduction in traincrew, service planning, controllers and other critical staff availability as the rise in coronavirus cases sees more staff needing to isolate. We understand how disappointing this news is, and our colleagues are working to find the best possible solution.
By reducing the size of the planned service in proportion to the number of staff expected to be available, we reduce unexpected cancellations, which we know are frustrating to our customers, and provide greater certainty over which trains will and will not run so customers can plan their journeys.
However, with the limited time available, which is insufficient to design a new timetable, the only option available is to continue the weekday service that was planned to run between the 29th and 31st of December.
This means that trains will start and finish earlier than usual and will mostly run to Saturday-style timings.
Importantly, as this timetable was originally designed to support the closure of London Victoria, many Southern trains will remain on diversion, including to London Bridge. It means there will be no Southern or Gatwick Express service at London Victoria, Battersea Park, Clapham Junction or Wandsworth Common until Monday 10th January. Services will be progressively reintroduced from Monday 10th January.
Customers will need to allow additional time and may need to take alternative routes, such as travelling via London Bridge or taking a Thameslink train onto other parts of central London. Some school journeys may be affected, and we are working to add additional station calls and similar wherever we can using the information that stakeholders have helped us to develop over previous years.
Customer communications will start today to provide as much notice as possible, train times have been updated at www.nationalrail.co.uk
We will modify this timetable as best we can in response to feedback and will be in touch again during the week of the 4th January to detail changes to London Victoria services from Monday 10th January 2022.
A summary of the main changes for the week of the 4th January 2022 is below. From Monday 10th January, services will start to be reintroduced to London Victoria.
Southern / Gatwick Express
No services to or from London Victoria
There will be no Southern or Gatwick Express services at London Victoria, Battersea Park, Clapham Junction or Wandsworth Common. Southern services on the following routes will be diverted north of East Croydon to London Bridge:
- Ore – Hastings – Eastbourne – London
- Littlehampton – Hove – London
- Southampton/Portsmouth Harbour/Bognor Regis – Horsham – London
- East Grinstead – London
- Horsham – Dorking – Epsom – London
In addition, Southern Metro services via Streatham Common/Streatham Hill that normally run to/from London Victoria will terminate at/start from Balham. There will be no direct service between Mitcham Junction and Balham.
Brighton to London Victoria Gatwick Express services will be suspended in the week of 4th January 2022.
Reigate to London Victoria services will remain on diversion to form an hourly service between Reigate and Tonbridge.
London Bridge to London Victoria
This service is suspended.
Epsom to London Bridge via Carshalton Beeches
This service is suspended.
Milton Keynes Central to Clapham Junction
This service is suspended.
London Bridge to East Croydon via New Cross Gate, Brockley, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill, Sydenham, Penge West and Norwood Junction
This service is suspended. Alternative Southern services will call at New Cross Gate. For travel between London Bridge and Brockley, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill, Sydenham or Penge West, customers are to use London Overground, changing trains at New Cross Gate or Norwood Junction.
Redhill to Tonbridge
Redhill to Tonbridge services will run Reigate to Tonbridge via Redhill on an hourly basis.
Caterham / Tattenham Corner to London Bridge
Caterham to London Bridge services via Tulse Hill will run and will split and join with another train at Purley to provide a service to Tattenham Corner on a half-hourly basis.
Uckfield to London Bridge
Services will run between Uckfield and East Croydon only every hour.
Beckenham Junction to London Bridge via Tulse Hill
Two trains per hour will run on this route.
Great Northern
Welwyn Garden City / Stevenage to Moorgate
Two trains per hour will run on each branch, combining to provide up to four trains per hour between Moorgate and Alexandra Palace.
Thameslink
Cambridge to London King’s Cross – stopping service via Potters Bar
Two trains per hour will run in the Royston to London King’s Cross section of this route. One train per hour will continue between Royston and Cambridge serving Meldreth, Shepreth and Foxton.
Orpington to Luton – peak only
Peak only services between Orpington and Luton via Catford will not run.
Sutton to St Albans / Luton
Four trains per hour will run between Sutton and London Blackfriars via Tulse Hill. Two trains per hour will continue to Luton via St Pancras International.
Luton to Rainham
Luton to Rainham services will run in the Dartford to Rainham section of the route only.