Image source, PA Media

Train services in south-east England are not quite full steam ahead, but many are running again after a disruption this morning caused havoc.

As the commute home draws closer, here's all you need to get up to speed.

What happened this morning?

• Issues began after a Southern train derailed inside a depot in south-east London's Selhurst and a signalling fault occurred between London Blackfriars and Norwood Junction before the morning commute
• This severely disrupted services across multiple lines - Southern, the London Overground's Windrush line, Thameslink and Gatwick Express services
• A "do not travel" notice was issued but has now been called off. One customer described the scenes as "carnage"

What's happening now?

• Trains are mostly running again but Govia Thameslink Railway is warning customers that delays and disruption will remain in place until the end of the day across its services on the Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Express routes
• The busy routes from Brighton to both Bedford and Cambridge remain severely affected
• For the users of London's Overground, disruption will be in place on the Windrush line until midday on Thursday
• Was your train delayed or cancelled? You might want to see if you can get compensation - check our handy guide

You can check for any continued disruption for Thameslink, external, London Overground, external, Southern , externaland the Gatwick Express, external services on each of their websites.

We're pausing over live coverage now - safe travels.

An update from Southeastern services says that all lines have now reopened following an earlier obstruction on the track at Farningham Road.

Trains are running, however delays are expected up until 14:30 GMT, it warns, on trains between London Victoria and Faversham via Sole Street.

Some trains may continue to be revised until then. The affected routes are London Victoria - Gillingham, Ramsgate and Dover.

The disruption was caused by a low-hanging tree on the line.

To stay up to date, check disruptions on the website., external

Image source, PA Media

If you have faced cancellations or delays today as part of the ongoing disruption, you might be entitled to get some of your money back.

Guidance form National Rail says:

• If your train is delayed or cancelled and you choose not to travel, your unused ticket can be refunded without any fees by the original retailer
• If you bought your ticket from a train company, you can find their contact information on the dedicated page, external
• Tickets purchased from self-service vending machines at stations should provide information on how to refund a ticket
• If cancellations or delays mean you arrive late after travelling, you may be able to claim compensation. You will need to request compensation directly from your train company, external

Compensation depends on which company you travelled with, the type of ticket you hold and the length of delay.

For those using the London Overground between Highbury and Islington in north London and West Croydon, it's a slower fix.

National Rail's latest update says that disruption is expected until midday on Thursday 5 February, following the derailment of a train in Selhurst earlier today.

As a result, trains running between Highbury and Islington and West Croydon may be cancelled, revised or diverted to Crystal Palace.

Penge West, Anerley, Norwood Junction and West Croydon will not be served, it adds.

You can check the latest from them online., external

The latest from Thameslink's live map, as of 13:30, shows a change in where services are being affected:

• Severe delays on the entire Bedford to Brighton line, and almost the entirety of the line from Stevenage to Brighton. There are multiple cancellations on both of these lines
• On the Brighton to Bedford service, trains will divert after East Croydon/London Blackfriars and not call at London Bridge
• There's also severe delays between Epsom and East Croydon
• Minor delays are in place between Three Bridges and Horsham as well as London Bridge to Beckenham Junction

On the map, a red line marks where there are severe delays, orange signifies minor delays.

You can view the live map on the Thameslink website, external for the latest updates, as delays are expected until the end of the day.

Image source, Thameslink

Hsin-Yi Lo
Live reporter

Independent rail union Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) says there must proper explanation given about what led to major rail disruption during Wednesday’s rush hour into and across London affecting Gatwick Express, Southern and Govia Thameslink services.

They say a highly unusual "do not travel" warning was issued, adding this was normally used in a time of severe weather, and has remained in place for almost two hours.

TSSA General Secretary Maryam Eslamdoust says: "As ever our brilliant Network Rail members were at the heart of the operation to get services running again and they should be praised for their hard work in doing so.

"Our union looks at this through the lens of safety on the railways, that is and will always be the number one priority."

Nicky Schiller
Reporting from Luton

I'm at Luton station - one of the main stations on the Thameslink line and there are far fewer trains running into London than there would normally be at this time of the day.

The digital displays are warning of continued disruption but rather than showing lists of cancelled services they are only showing trains that are running.

Passengers here are lucky that East Midlands Railways services also stop at the station so many are opting to get into London that way - but they are only every 30 minutes and only stop at Luton Airport Parkway.

This means that places like Harpenden and St Albans, further down the line, will have to rely on the few Thameslink services running.

Joshua Askew
BBC South East

A lucky man travelling on the trains this morning says he "just sailed through" despite the major disruption reported.

Dr Joe Powell was heading from Brighton to Ramsgate, via London, at around 09:00 GMT.

He tells me his train - which went past the derailed one at the Selhurst depot - was one of the only ones not delayed or cancelled.

"My trip was all gravy," Dr Powell adds.

Major travel distruption is continuing to affect trains across south-east England. Here's a recap of what we know so far:

• Just after 07:00 GMT a "do not travel" alert was issued by the UK's largest railway franchise - Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) in a response to "multiple incidents"
• These incidents included a signalling failure and an eight-carriage Southern Rail train which came off the tracks near a depot in Croydon, south London
• The "do not travel" alert was lifted just after 10:00 - but disruption has continued throughout the morning on Southern, Thameslink, Gatwick Express and London Overground services
• Initially, National Rail said disruption would continue until 13:00 - but it is now expected until the end of the day
• A ticket acceptance schemeis in place to help passengers travelling north of London, through the capital and in Kent, Surrey and Sussex
• Gatwick Airport - which is served by the GTR services - says its station is operating as normal but passengers are advised to allow more time for their journeys

Rozina Sini
BBC News

Image source, Liz Wells/BBC

I've been speaking to Liz Wells who usually has a 20 minute commute, but this morning it took 90 minutes.

She was trying to get to London Bridge from East Croydon station at 08:30 GMT. "There were trains arriving but they were going backwards to go forwards," she tells me.

"The platforms were, in my opinion, dangerously over crowded and the trains were also so full. One train arrived and it had just three carriages," she adds.

Image source, Liz Wells/BBC

As we mentioned earlier, the derailment of the eight-carriage Southern train is at a point on the Brighton Main Line which carries a high volume of traffic in and out of London.

Sitting just north of East Croydon, the train has come off the tracks which head towards London Bridge.

The map below gives you a better idea of the location of the derailed train and why it is causing so much travel disruption.

Gem O'Reilly
Reporting from Selhurst train station

I am just outside the depot and in front of Selhurst station, where there is a panicked atmosphere.

People have been turning up to find out their trains have been cancelled or delayed and they are trying to re-route, which is likely to affect how their day will play out.

The no travel alert has now been lifted but the train derailment here at Selhurst is still impacting journeys, particularly those going north and south of London Bridge.

I spoke to one man who missed an important meeting at work and a school trip that had to take two buses just to get to Selhurst station.

Adi and Harry, aged 18, from the Brit School were not directly affected by the disruption, but saw the impact it caused.

Adi said: “One man was shouting down the phone about all the disruption. I can imagine it's caused a lot of chaos for travellers."

Harry added: "There was an hour delay from Streatham Common to Selhurst so that was annoying - it makes you late for stuff."

Alison Freeman
BBC correspondent

With this morning's major rail disruption, passengers are looking for alternative ways to get to their destinations on time.

Coach operator National Express says it has seen an "increased passenger demand" to and from London Victoria Coach Station, Gatwick Airport, and Luton Airport.

It warned journey times may also be longer than usual due to higher passenger numbers and more congestion on the roads.

A spokesperson for National Express, said: "Our coach station teams are monitoring the situation closely to ensure services run smoothly and customers are supported.

"Customers are advised to allow extra travel time, pre-book their tickets online to guarantee a seat for travel, and check our website for the latest service updates."

Tom Edwards
Transport Correspondent, BBC London

The lifting of the “do not travel” notice will be welcomed by commuters - but there will still be severe disruption across these lines.

Do not travel notices are usually reserved for disruption due to snow, wind, storms or extreme heat so it’s quite rare to get one over technical issues - I can not remember one being issued before today.

The problem was these two issues happened just before rush hour on a Wednesday - the network’s busiest time - so the train companies felt they had no option but to manage numbers - and this was their way of doing that.

The alternative can be overcrowding and more people stuck on the network.

Thomas Mackintosh
Live reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Built in the Victorian era, the Brighton Main Line is one of busiest railway routes in the UK.

It connects the capital with the Sussex coast via Gatwick Airport, serving 37 stations through Sussex, Surrey and south London. It has one terminus station in Sussex - Brighton - and two terminus stations in the capital - London Victoria and London Bridge.

Both of these London branches join up with the full Brighton Main Line just outside the Selhurst depot.

That is why this morning's disruption is so significant as the volume of trains normally using the Brighton Main Line have no other alternative to keep the same flow of services running.

The trains that have come to a standstill cannot reach their destination and that means drivers and crew are displaced. This has a knock-on impact for further services, leading to the delays and cancellations we are now seeing.

Gatwick Airport says it is aware of the disruption to the rail network in south-East England but its station is still in operation.

Passengers are able to travel to and from central London and other destinations to Gatwick Airport Station, but "they may experience delays," a Gatwick spokesperson says.

"We will continue to monitor the situation and are liaising with our rail partners. We will update if the situation changes.

“Everyone coming to the airport by rail is advised to check with their rail operator before travelling, and to make sure they and allow plenty of time for their journey", the statement says.

The "do not travel" advice issued earlier this morning has now been lifted.

However, Govia Thameslink Railway is still warning passengers that major disruption is expected until the end of the day.

This means trains across the Gatwick Express, Thameslink and Southern networks may still be cancelled, revised or severely delayed by up to 60 minutes.

With rail disruption expected until the end of the day, there is a ticket acceptance scheme in place in order to help passengers complete their journey at no extra cost.

According to National Rail, for passengers traveling north of London the ticket acceptance scheme is in place on alternative Thameslink and Great Northern services, and East Midland Railway services between Bedford and St Pancras.

For journeys through London, passengers can use alternative Thameslink and Southern services as well as London buses, the London Underground, the Elizabeth line and the south London trams between Wimbledon, Mitcham Junction and East Croydon.

South of London, companies Metrobus and Brighton and Hove Buses say they are part of the ticket acceptance scheme which covers various areas across Sussex, Surrey and Kent.

• You can read more here about the specific ticket acceptance schemes , external

As National Rail warn that the major disruption is expected to last until the end of the day, we have been looking at some of the latest images coming to us from south-east London.

The derailed Southern train is just outside of the Selhurst depot and is also causing disruption to London Overground, Gatwick Express and Thameslink services.

You can see some of the latest images below.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Has your train been cancelled or delayed? You can get in touch in the following ways: 

• Email: yourvoice@bbc.co.uk, external·
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