26.01.17
Lewisham derailment to disrupt Southeastern commuters for days
Southeastern services are set to be disrupted for the rest of the week following the partial derailing of a freight train in Lewisham, south east London.
Network Rail has confirmed that a 50-metre stretch of railway is being “completely rebuilt” round-the-clock by engineers after the incident in the early hours of this past Tuesday morning.
The infrastructure owner found “extensive damage” to the railway after using cranes to return the rear two wagons of the train to the track which had derailed in the incident.
Andy Derbyshire, chief operating officer for Network Rail’s south east route, said: “We know that this incident is disrupting many peoples’ journeys and I’m sorry it will be a few days yet before services return to normal.
“We are doing everything we can to get the site clear and our repairs under way as quickly and safely as possible.”
Services are now up and running once again but are severely disrupted as the incident site lies metres from one of the busiest railway lines in the south east.
No Southeastern services are running from Lee, Mottingham or New Eltham stations and some trains between Cannon Street and Tunbridge Wells are running from London Victoria.
Most evening peak trains between Cannon Street and the Medway Towns are departing from London Blackfriars.
Passengers delayed by 30 minutes or more as a result of the incident have been invited to claim ‘delay repay’ compensation, which Southeastern have offered to double until the issue is resolved.
Richard Dean, train services director at Southeastern, said: “We would like to thank those who travel with us for their continued patience while the emergency repair work is completed as quickly as possible during this time.
“We would also ask our passengers to please continue checking before you travelling and to allow more time for your journeys.”
The partial derailment occurred at around 5.30am on Tuesday between Hither Green and Lewisham stations. The freight train was a 1,000m long locomotive hauling 18 wagons in total. Only the driver was on board the train.
(Image c. Network Rail)
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