An apology and explanation for our customers on the Uckfield line
Firstly, we want to acknowledge that our service on the Uckfield line has not been good enough in recent weeks and that too often services have been delayed or cancelled.
GTR (Southern) and Network Rail would like to apologise to you, our customers, who travel on the Uckfield line and have had difficult journeys recently. We understand the impact that disruption has on people and their work, education, appointments, and families.
We know that our customers need a service they can depend on and confidence that the railway is tackling the underlying causes of the recent poor service, so we wanted to set out some of the things we are doing to provide a better service in future for you.
We’ll be holding some Talk to the Team sessions on the below dates. We'd love to hear your feedback, so please drop by and speak to one of our senior management team.
Uckfield station – Friday 25 September (07:30 – 09:00)
Crowborough station - Friday 2 October (07:30 – 09:00)
What’s been happening and why?
The Uckfield line runs through areas where the ground contains a lot of clay. Clay reacts to changes in the weather. It absorbs water and expands when it's wet, but during long periods of dry weather it shrinks. The hot and dry conditions we have seen this summer have caused the ground beneath some sections of track to shrink, which can make the track move slightly and become uneven. When this happens, we introduce temporary speed restrictions so that trains can continue to run safely.
These speed restrictions are essential for passenger safety, but they do mean that trains take longer to complete their journeys. If we continued to run the normal timetable while trains were travelling more slowly, delays would quickly build up throughout the day. This could lead to more disruption and short-notice cancellations.
Temporary changes to our timetable
So that we can provide a more reliable service for our customers, we have introduced a temporary timetable from 1 September.
For the latest service information and travel advice please check the yellow disruption banner on our website homepage.
We know these service alterations will mean changes to journeys, and we appreciate your patience and understanding while these temporary arrangements are in place.
What is being done to remove the speed restrictions?
To help restore the full timetable, Network Rail engineers are carrying out targeted repairs across the Uckfield line during overnight engineering work. Using specialist equipment, they're working to level sections of track that have been affected by the dry weather so trains can safely return to running at normal speeds.
We're also looking ahead to next summer. Teams are already working to identify and introduce measures that will help reduce the impact of prolonged hot weather and make the railway more resilient to extreme weather in the future.
Other issues affecting our service
Unlike most of the Southern network, the Uckfield line is not electrified and is operated by a small fleet of diesel trains. We have 13 Class 171 trains available to run the service, although some need to be taken out of service each day for planned maintenance and repairs. This means that when a train develops a fault, we have limited spare trains available to replace it. Wherever possible, we'll continue to run services using shorter trains to help keep customers moving. However, there may be occasions when a train has to be cancelled if a replacement isn't available.
We also know that problems with air conditioning on some of our trains have made journeys particularly uncomfortable during the hot weather this summer, and we're very sorry to everyone affected. Although temperatures are now starting to fall, both the heating and air conditioning systems remain a key focus for our maintenance teams as we continue to improve the reliability of the fleet.
We're also working to improve the reliability of the signalling system on the Uckfield line, following a number of faults that have caused disruption in recent months. In some cases, services had to be suspended while engineers located and repaired the problem.
One of the challenges on this route is that some of the existing signalling cables are difficult to access, making inspections, maintenance and fault-finding more complicated and time-consuming.
To address this, engineers have recently installed around 10 kilometres of new signalling cable along the Uckfield line. The new equipment will be much easier to inspect, maintain and repair, helping our teams respond more quickly when faults occur and reducing the impact on services.
We recognise that passengers on the Uckfield line need a reliable service and that recent performance has not been good enough, so we are working hard to provide better journeys in future. If any journey you have made with us recently has been delayed by 15 minutes or more, please remember that you may be eligible for compensation through Delay Repay.
