Lines reopened: major disruption between Bedford and Luton expected until 13:00 

Route(s) affected

East Midlands Railway between Nottingham / Sheffield / Corby and London St Pancras International

Thameslink between Bedford and East Grinstead / Three Bridges / Haywards Heath / Horsham / Brighton

Description

Some lines have reopened between Bedford and Luton following the earlier incident where a person was hit by a train. The emergency services have safely completed their work but trains running between Bedford and Luton will be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised.

Trains running between Luton and London St Pancras International may be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised.

Major disruption is expected until 13:00.

If you've been affected by what happened on the network today, there is always someone to talk to. You can contact the Samaritans on 116 123 from any phone for a confidential chat.

Customer advice

East Midlands Railway

Rail replacement buses are runing between Corby, Kettering and Wellingborough until further notice.

Rail replacement buses are running between Wellingborough and Northampton until further notice.

Trains cannot run between Bedford and London St Pancras International in both directions.

East Midlands Railway have relaxed some of their usual ticket restrictions. If you hold an ‘Advance Ticket’ which is usually valid on a specific train you may use it to travel on any of our trains on this route.

If you have an ‘Off Peak’ or ‘Super Off Peak’ ticket you may use it on board Peak Time trains on this route today.

If you have a ticket dated for travel today and decide not to travel you may use your ticket to travel tomorrow instead.

Trains are likely to experience extended delays or alterations. You should use alternative routes which will be most comfortable and quickest way to get where you need to be. You may travel via the following alternative routes:

Sheffield

You may travel to Doncaster where you should change for a train to London Kings Cross. It is likely to take between 2 and 2.5 hours to complete this journey. LNER, who run the trains between Doncaster and London Kings Cross recommend booking a seat reservation. This can be done up to 5 minutes before the train departs. Visit East Midlands Railway's website for lots of useful information about what to expect when travelling via Kings Cross.

Derby / Chesterfield

You may travel to Birmingham New Street where you should change for a train to London Euston. It is likely to take between 2.5 and 3 hours to complete this journey. Visit East Midlands Railway's for lots of useful information about what to expect when travelling via Euston.

Nottingham

You may travel to Grantham where you should change for a train to London Kings Cross. It is likely to take between 2 and 2.5 hours to complete this journey. LNER, who run the trains between Grantham and London Kings Cross recommend booking a seat reservation. This can be done up to 5 minutes before the train departs. Visit East Midlands Railway's website for lots of useful information about what to expect when travelling via Kings Cross.

Leicester

You may travel to Nuneaton where you should change for a train to London Euston. It is likely to take 2 hours to complete this journey. Visit East Midlands Railway's website for lots of useful information about what to expect when travelling via Euston.

All of these alternative route options are available in the opposite direction too. Don’t worry about your ticket, East Midlands Railway have already made arrangements with other train companies for you to travel with your original ticket.

Thameslink

Some lines between Bedford and Luton have now reopened and trains can begin to run on this route once again.

We're working to return to our scheduled timetable, but please continue to check journey planners and station information boards before you travel. Trains currently in the area will still be disrupted, and your journey may still take up to 40 minutes longer than usual.

The first trains expected to run through the affected area:

• 11:48 departure from Bedford towards Brighton

• 09:58 departure from Brighton towards Bedford, which departs Luton station at 11:57

No trains will call at Leagrave until further notice.

You can use your ticket to travel at no extra cost on:

• Alternative Thameslink, Great Northern, and Southern trains on any reasonable route towards your destination - including routes between Peterborough, St Neots, Hitchin, and London

• London Underground services on any reasonable route across London

• East Midlands Railway between Bedford and London St Pancras International (for Luton and Luton Airport Parkway)

• London Northwestern Railway services between Milton Keynes and central London as well as between Bedford and Bletchley, and between St Albans Abbey and Watford Junction for services to / from London Euston

• Elizabeth line services between Farringdon, London Liverpool Street and Abbey Wood. This also stops at Woolwich which is a 10-minute walk to Woolwich Arsenal station

• London Buses on routes between Elstree & Borehamwood and London St Pancras International

• Uno Buses on routes:
  601 between Welwyn Garden City and Radlett (for Hatfield and St Albans City)
  602 between Hatfield, St Albans, and Radlett
  610 between Cockfosters, Potters Bar, Welham Green, Brookmans Park, Hatfield Business Park, Harpenden, and Luton Airport Parkway stations
  653 between St Albans, Hatfield, and Welwyn Garden City

Please note that if you have not yet started your journey, it will now be faster to wait for the next available train towards your destination.

To help you plan your journey, you can find the alternative route maps on the website here, and if you are travelling by TfL services, you can check your journey in advance on their website here

Please check journey planners and station information boards before you travel, and allow extra time to reach your destination.

Live departure boards can be found here and you can check the live map here to see if your journey has been affected.

You can also use the Thameslink app to find up-to-date travel information.

Check before you travel:

You can check your journey using the National Rail Enquiries real-time Journey Planner.

For helpful advice if you need to travel on a rail replacement service, including accessibility information, please use our travel information pages.

You can find the location of your replacement bus by checking station signs or by searching for your station on our station information pages.

Compensation:

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.