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We own, operate and develop the rail infrastructure connecting the South East of England. We tweet Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm. 24/7 helpline: 03457 11 41 41
Aug 1 5 tweets 1 min read
UPDATE: Power cables, which feed the third rail that powers trains, were damaged overnight following an incident in Brighton Depot. Engineers are on hand and are working as quickly as possible to try and fix the problems. A train had hit a buffer stop at low speed at the train depot. The driver is uninjured and the incident is under investigation.
The collision has disrupted power to the depot and some of the adjacent train lines to and from Brighton.
Jul 21, 2023 7 tweets 3 min read
❗️🔥We’re really sorry about the disruption passengers are experiencing in the Whitstable area due to a cable fire at the station.

👩‍🚒@kentfirerescue are on-site and the line remains closed for now. Please follow @Se_Railway for the latest travel advice. https://t.co/POFM2bKRMx
📷 The fire has caused significant damage to both the rails and third rail which provides power to the train.

🔧Our engineers need to replace 50ft of rail & third rail + 11 sleepers.

❌ The railway in this area will be closed both directions until at least early evening

/1 Image
Jun 9, 2023 8 tweets 3 min read
⚠️ In the early hours of this morning, a train derailed in Plumstead at low speed when it was passing over a set of points, the equipment which allows trains to move between tracks. /1 If you look closely, you can see the train isn't sitting correctly on the rails and became stuck, blocking the North Kent lines in both directions between Charlton and Slade Green. /2 Image
Jun 7, 2023 6 tweets 2 min read
❗️ London Victoria is currently closed due to a fire alarm sounding within the station.
⚠️ Trains in the area are being held and cannot currently run to or from the station. ➡️We're working closely with the local emergency services to reopen the station as quickly as we can, but in the meantime, please check with @Se_Railway and @SouthernRailUK for the latest journey information. More info to follow as we have it.
Jun 6, 2023 9 tweets 4 min read
⚠️🔥We're really sorry for the disruption to passengers through #Gillingham because of a track fire. We believe the problem is linked to the third rail, the electrified rail which feeds power to trains.
We have engineers on site now looking to get the railway open again ASAP. /1 ⚡️It looks like there's damage to an insulator pot, the ceramic gadget that keeps the third rail off the ground. If they are damaged, and the third rail touches the ground, electricity can earth through the pot and cause a fire. /2
Jun 6, 2023 5 tweets 3 min read
We're really sorry for the disruption caused by a signalling fault at #HitherGreen.

Engineers are investigating the issue and have found an axle counter failure.

Some @Se_Railway services will be affected between Tonbridge and Ashford and Sidcup and Grove Park.

/1 ⚙Axle counters work by counting train axles (wheels) into and out of separate sections of track, helping tell us where trains are on the line.

🛠They form a key part of our signalling systems and when there is a failure, this results in the signals turning red as a failsafe.
May 19, 2023 4 tweets 3 min read
❗️🔥We are sorry for the disruption to @Se_Railway passengers travelling into and out of London Bridge while @LondonFire deal with a track side fire. All lines are currently blocked. Please keep an eye on @Se_Railway for updates 👇 Here’s some photos from the fire at London Bridge, which is stopping trains from using platforms 6&7. Please keep checking with @Se_Railway for the latest advice. ImageImage
Dec 31, 2022 10 tweets 5 min read
1/ We are in the final days of a major project to rebuild the complex and busy Lewisham Junction, #London

This thread will look at the various stages of work over the past 8 days, and why the project is important for @Se_Railway passengers. 2/ In the early stages of any track or junction replacement, after disconnecting power and signalling, we rip out the old rail, sleepers, and ballast.

The vast majority of the old materials will be recycled.
Dec 7, 2022 16 tweets 6 min read
Our friends @Se_Railway have been contacted by passengers who regularly ride on the line from #Margate to #Faversham via #Whitstable as to why their trains are running at a reduced speed in some places on the route.
They should be fixed soon but in the meantime, here's why... /1 @Se_Railway The route from Margate takes passengers from the chalky Isle of Thanet down to sea level near Birchington and then across a part of Kent that features a great deal of London Clay (a sort of yellowy gooey soil). /2
Nov 30, 2022 8 tweets 3 min read
📢Posted on behalf of our colleagues at Network Rail High Speed (who maintain the high speed railway but aren't on Twitter!):
We’re sorry for the disruption experienced by @Se_Railway passengers on High Speed services yesterday and today. /1 @Se_Railway At around 0930 on Tuesday, circuit breakers in the power supply to the railway around Ebbsfleet opened, much as they do in your house when there is a problem, and cut the electricity supply to trains. /2
Jun 21, 2022 8 tweets 3 min read
We’re so sorry for the disruption to all our passengers’ journeys this week while the #RailStrike continues. Here’s our boss John and a short thread about why the impact is so great: /1 On Sussex Route, we need 138 operational staff to run trains every 24 hours. On Kent Route, that number is 125 staff, over 53 locations. We have contingency staff trained for this but they only make up 33 of those roles in Sussex and around a quarter of the jobs in Kent /2
Jun 20, 2022 6 tweets 3 min read
Important information for @Se_Railway passengers in #EastKent travelling on Wednesday. Owing to electrical supply issues, train services inside the red box (see pic) will not start running until later in the day. #RailStrike /1 We’re really sorry. Service / travel info available here southeasternrailway.co.uk/travel-informa…
Jun 1, 2022 11 tweets 4 min read
We’re really sorry for the ongoing disruption to @TLRailUK services north and south of London, owing to a problem with our signalling equipment between City Thameslink and Farringdon. Here’s what’s going on.../ /1 @TLRailUK A “track circuit” that tells the signalling system where trains are has been failing intermittently for some time now. It operates fine for a while and then fails, putting an associated signal (red in the picture courtesy @traksyuk ) to red and stopping trains. /2 Image
Mar 31, 2022 9 tweets 5 min read
⚠️🚦 Sorry to say we have a signalling problem in one of the worst places it could be - right outside #Lewisham station. We've got a team on site investigating the issue but it means disruption to @Se_Railway services this evening and we advise people check before they travel. /1 @Se_Railway A detection circuit that tells us where trains are has failed on the scissors crossover in the picture, putting all signals on the approach to red (as you can see in this @traksyuk graphic). We are having to talk each train past those red signals manually. /2
Jan 2, 2022 11 tweets 6 min read
⚠️🌧. We’ve had to slow @SouthernRailUK and @TLRailUK London-bound trains down near to #HaywardsHeath tunnel just outside the town after our earthworks alarms sounded a warning. A team is on its way to investigate and will make sure it’s safe before we speed things up again. Our first responder is walking to site now and we have moved all trains to 1 (of 2) track to give them a safe walking route, meaning there will be disruption to services while this goes on. Sorry for the delays and keep checking before you travel on the Brighton Main Line.
Nov 22, 2021 8 tweets 3 min read
⚠️🍂We're really sorry for the disruption @Se_railway passengers are experiencing today. It's due to a signalling problem at Hayes because of heavy autumn leaf fall. Leaves on the line are no joke for us, autumn is our most challenging season and here's why... 👇 🍂Every autumn, thousands of tonnes of leaves fall onto railway lines. High winds can cause heavy leaf fall very quickly and rain means they are more likely to stick to the rails...
networkrail.co.uk/stories/how-do…
Oct 22, 2021 7 tweets 3 min read
⚠️⚡️ Were so sorry for the disruption to @Se_Railway + @TLRailUK passengers on the Orpington/Charing Cross line this morning - this is the problem right here, at #PettsWood. It’s a “blown insulated block joint”, although actually two of them have gone. /1 You can see the blocked lines just outside #PettsWood as they have BLOC in their train indicators. We’re able to run on the other 2 lines and the connecting loops at the bottom of the picture, which is why there is still a train service, albeit not a normal one. /2
Oct 20, 2021 7 tweets 3 min read
⚠️🌧️ We're sorry to say that disruption is expected tonight and tomorrow morning across parts of South London, Surrey, Kent and Sussex, affecting @Se_Railway , @SouthernRailUK + @TLRailUK . Predicted rainfall means we are having to put a 40mph speed limit on some routes. /1 Vulnerable earthworks on certain lines are already saturated after last night's heavy rain, and with this storm on the way - and a yellow weather warning - we have to protect trains from the prospect of landslips or washouts. /2
Oct 19, 2021 5 tweets 2 min read
👷We're really sorry for the frustrating delays into London today for @Se_Railway & @TLRailUK passengers. The delays were caused by a cracked rail on a set of switches & crossings (S&C) (like the one pictured) near New Cross, which is a really busy part of the network. 👇 In the S&C are points which are movable sections of track which allow trains to move lines. Our engineers knew of the fault and were running trains at a reduced speed, so we could keep passengers moving, albeit slightly delayed, until we could get into fix the problem tonight. 👇
Sep 14, 2021 4 tweets 2 min read
⚠️We’re sorry to say that despite our best efforts the derailed loco remains at #Lee, blocking the @Se_Railway Sidcup line this morning. The rescue team encountered serious problems last night with soft ground as it wasn’t solid enough to provide a stable base for the jack. /1 We’ve got 4 of 6 wheels on now and a new plan will see the involvement of another loco in dragging the engine back onto the rails. We’re just awaiting the arrival of that extra loco and driver and will be underway when they arrive. /2
Sep 13, 2021 4 tweets 3 min read
⚠️Sorry to say @Se_Railway's Sidcup line is likely to remain blocked for most of the day while we work to re-rail a locomotive that came off the tracks at #Lee yesterday. The plan is to jack it up and move it back onto the rails from its current position (pictured). /1 @Se_Railway The location of the loco means it's impossible to run trains on the line as there's nowhere to switch tracks, so tickets are valid on some London buses (for full details see @Se_Railway ). We're checking over signalling and track at the same time as re-railing so... /2