Major rail disruption has caused travel misery for commuters in Croydon.
Network Rail closed all lines at Purley station due to urgent bridge repairs, halting all train services through the area and prompting a “do not travel” warning for passengers.
The closure has affected routes between London and the south coast, with heavy disruption expected until at least 4pm.
This is a breaking story. More to follow.
Southern Rail advised all customers not to travel due to the extent of the disruption, as no trains could run in any direction through Purley.
"No trains are able to run via Purley in any direction therefore, it is advised that you do not travel."
Southern services between London Victoria and destinations including Bognor Regis, Portsmouth Harbour, Ore and Littlehampton are not running between London Victoria and Gatwick Airport.
The only services operating are starting and terminating at Gatwick Airport.
Southern trains between London Bridge and Caterham are running, though delays are possible.
Services between Purley and Tattenham Corner are suspended.
Thameslink services between Horsham and London Bridge are also disrupted, with limited services running between Three Bridges and East Croydon.
The disruption stems from structural damage to a bridge in the Purley area.
Planned engineering works were already restricting train movements in the area over the weekend, forcing a complete closure once the bridge damage was identified.
Network Rail engineers will be on site to investigate.
Passengers have been warned that alternative routes are extremely limited and could add up to 90 minutes to journey times.
Even if travel is possible, services are expected to be extremely busy.
Tickets are being accepted at no extra cost on a range of alternative services.
Passengers can use:
- Great Western Railway services between Dorking Deepdene and Gatwick
- Great Western Railway services between Portsmouth Harbour and London Waterloo
- London Buses 166, 407 and 434 between Croydon and Tattenham Corner, Caterham, Epsom and Epsom Downs
- London Trams between East Croydon and West Croydon
- Metrobus route 200 between Horsham, Littlehaven, Faygate (Town), [Bewbush], Ifield, Gatwick Airport
- Metrobus route 270 between Brighton, Haywards Heath and Brighton
- Metrobus route 400 between Caterham and East Grinstead (you will then be able to get a Southern Service from East Grinstead towards London Victoria)
- Metrobus route 460 between Crawley and Epsom
Southeastern services are also accepting tickets via any reasonable route from Hastings or Tonbridge towards London, as are South Western Railway services between Epsom and London Waterloo.
For those travelling from Tattenham Corner, Southern advised travelling to Epsom Downs.
From there, services towards London Victoria are available via Sutton and West Croydon.
Customers starting their journey at Purley Oaks can travel to Sanderstead, which is around a seven-minute journey.
From Sanderstead, alternative services towards London are available.
Passengers have been encouraged to use live departure boards and journey planners on the Southern and Thameslink websites and apps for up-to-date information.
Transport for London’s Journey Planner can be used to find alternative routes within London.
Passengers are advised to check their journeys before travelling.
Compensation may be available for those delaying their journeys.
Passengers are advised to keep their train tickets and make a note of their journey details to support any claims.
The closure has caused significant inconvenience for commuters and those travelling between London, Brighton and the surrounding coastal areas.
