Major disruption to the Brighton main line, until April

[San Perregrino]

not sure if it's the right place to post this, mods please move if you want to: 

 

if you're planning to attend the final performances of R&J, Swan Lake on March 5th or the opera, i just received this from Southern Rail:  

 

"We wanted to let you know that there will be no trains this weekend (Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 February) between Three Bridges and Brighton / Lewes due to engineering work taking place. There will also be no trains for nine days from Saturday 19 to Sunday 27 February, when further work will take place."

 

 

What dates are affected?

• Saturday 12 – Sunday 13 February 2022
• Saturday 19 – Sunday 27 February 2022 (9-day blockade, including weekdays)
• Saturday 5 – Sunday 6 March 2022
• Sunday 3 April 2022

Please note services on the Brighton Main Line may be affected outside of these dates for other engineering work and the current reduced timetable. We ask you to plan and re-check before you travel.

What does this mean for my journey?

There will be changes to train services across the Southern and Thameslink networks and significantly longer journey times for some passengers, so please allow extra time if travelling on these dates.

While the work takes place, a train service will run between Brighton and London Victoria in both directions, using a diverted route via Littlehampton and Horsham. If you are travelling between Brighton or Hove and London, you can use this direct train service to avoid the need to change between buses and trains at Three Bridges.

On all dates, replacement buses will be running across the closed sections of line to help you complete your journeys.

 

 

Edited February 9, 2022 by prs59

[LinMM]

To be honest this happens every year more or less! 
They work on the Brighton line between November and April on many weekends and then have this 9/10 day onslaught in February. It usually coincides with the half term week but this year it doesn’t it’s the week after or perhaps London has a different half term than Brighton this year?  
There’s an added difficulty this year because there is an ongoing shortage of drivers so since December there have been no direct trains into Victoria you have to mess around changing trains at East Croydon! And it’s not Omicron either the Companies just haven’t invested in enough or trained enough new ones so at the moment they can’t say when trains will run into Victoria directly again.
Usually when this happens the bus to Three Bridges plus train is much quicker than what they recommend eg: a train going via Littlehampton …that takes three hours!! But this year with the added East Croydon scurry around I don’t know. 
I use Thameslink all the time now to go to London but unfortunately in the big 9 day event you still have to get a bus to Three Bridges ( near Gatwick) to pick up a Thameslink train so no London for me that week! 
This would affect anybody living between Brighton and Gatwick  so people in Haywards Heath Burgess Hill Hassocks and Lewes etc will all have to get buses to Three Bridges. 

People further west in Worthing but use that line up to Victoria would also end up having to go via Littlehampton 

 

[zxDaveM]

6 hours ago, LinMM said:

There’s an added difficulty this year because there is an ongoing shortage of drivers so since December there have been no direct trains into Victoria you have to mess around changing trains at East Croydon!

 

why don't you go to London Bridge (on the Thameslink)? Then just pop along from platorm 5 to platform 8/9 to go to Charing Cross. Much easier to get to ROH from there than from Victoria

[LinMM]

Thanks Dave but I find the easiest route to ROH is Thameslink to City Thameslink and then bus down to Aldwych or Strand. 
The bus stop is literally directly outside the station (get off at the back of the train) and it’s only about 4 stops down : the No. 11, 15, 76, and 26 all do the job. Sorry I’m a bit nerdy around London travel lol! 
I hate London Bridge station even since the refurb so avoid whenever I can! And also I hate East Croydon station as well. These days I can’t do the rushing up and down steps trying to reach a platform when a train is just coming in…. in case it brings on one of these fainting attacks which were 90 percent associated with travelling with  as yet unexplained sudden drops in blood pressure when rushing to get transport. I had quite a number of them about three years ago which is why I ( luckily) stay up in London now rather than rushing home late at night etc. Just thinking about the Three Bridges travel arrangement disruption is almost enough to bring an attack on lol!  

 

[zxDaveM]

yes, East Croydon a bit grim - and whenever I have had to go there, the trains always seem to be late! Or missing!

I've gotten used to LB now, and the way they have streamlined all the routes to Charing X, Blackfriars and Cannon St is quite remarkable. The reason I suggested Charing X, is that it is classed as a London terminal, so that you don't have to pay anything more (for tube or bus). And plenty of trains run through LB, so you rarely have to wait more then 5mins

[Beryl H]

I had my Raymonda performances ruined as that week they changed the engineering to weekdays instead of weekends,

and the bus from Three Bridges was prominent, it didn't get into Brighton until 1.49am, and then I had another journey

home by night bus, and there are less of them at the moment!  

 

[LinMM]

That sounds dreadful Beryl. 
Since I had these attacks mostly in tube passage ways or on railway platforms (only one wasn’t but connected to catching a bus in Brighton on my way back from London)  I have definitely lost a bit of confidence with travelling. 
Where I stay in London can mostly only be in the week so all theatre visits revolve around staying arrangements now (as the attacks were getting more frequent) or I can do matinees if at weekends. At that time I was still with a performing group once a week and not finishing rehearsals until 10pm and then trying to get back to Brighton after that and in the winter it was awful when late trains were cancelled!!! Usually when the Three Bridges do-da is on the buses are waiting but a bit of a dash across that car park but once there were no buses and had to wait 45 mins for one to turn up!   There was a group of us all moaning lol so not too bad but that put me off.  

I know Southern Rail are not the only ones giving problems and travelling in general seems to have got worse in last 5-6 years or so! When I first moved to Brighton you could get to London Victoria in 50 mins as the faster trains only stopped at East Croydon but now the fastest is an hour if you are lucky!  Though I suppose the extension of Thameslink line to Brighton has been a bonus and now I’ve got used to their stations and bus connections etc I use this more than the Southern service. The trains have more carriages so helpful when pandemic at its worst as plenty of space on board!! 
I hate it when at the theatre worrying about the journey home. I suppose have been spoilt by 30 years of living in London when going home hardly came into the equation much at all.