Trains between Portsmouth and London Victoria hit with major delays as electricity fault closes lines

Southern Railway (SR) reported problems on the Portsmouth Harbour to London Victoria route this morning (April 11). A problem was discovered between Horsham and Three Bridges, with routes at the stations having to be blocked.

Engineers discovered that there was an electricity supply failure. Network Rail workers are at the site trying to fix the issue, but trains may be cancelled, delayed or changed as a result of the problems. Passengers face delays of at least an hour.

An SR statement on its website said: “Failure of the electricity supply between Horsham and Three Bridges means that all lines are blocked. As a result, trains running through these stations may be delayed by up to 60 minutes, cancelled or revised.

“Services are unable to run in either direction between Horsham and Three Bridges until further notice. Please delay your journey until later this morning where possible. If you travel now then you'll need to allow plenty of extra time for your journey - we'd advise at least an extra 60 minutes as you'll need to use an alternative route.”

SR said anyone travelling from Portsmouth, Havant, or Barnham towards Horsham and London will need to complete their route along the coast via Brighton. They need to proceed up to London via Haywards Heath. Tickets will also be accepted on South Western Railway services to London Waterloo.

Anyone trying to get to London Gatwick airport, Crawley, Three Bridges, Littlehaven or Faygate, is advised to travel by bus - where tickets will be accepted on Metrobus services.

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SR added: “Staff been advised that the power has been switched off between Horsham and Three Bridges this morning, following tripping in the area. Network Rail colleagues are on site and investigating the cause at present.

“You may be entitled to compensation if you experience a delay in completing your journey today. Please keep your train ticket and make a note of your journey, as both will be required to support any claim.”

This incident will cause further misery for passengers, as no trains will run between Portsmouth and Southampton over part of the Easter Holidays due to engineering works.