A MAJOR landslip in Hampshire has severely reduced the number of trains that can run safely on the London line. 

South Western Railway (SWR) has warned commuters travelling between Basingstoke and Woking this week to only do so if absolutely necessary after a landslip in the Hook area left one of the tracks hanging in mid-air and one other track damaged.

As a result, all services to London Waterloo from Exeter, Salisbury, Weymouth, Bournemouth, Southampton, and Winchester will terminate at Basingstoke, where an extremely limited shuttle service will connect with trains at Woking.

On Tuesday January 17, there will be no through trains to London Waterloo from Exeter, Salisbury, Weymouth, Bournemouth, Southampton, Winchester or Portsmouth via Eastleigh (or stops on those lines). Instead:

  • Services from Weymouth to London Waterloo will now terminate at Basingstoke and then run back to Weymouth.
  • Services from Portsmouth Harbour to London Waterloo via Eastleigh will now terminate at Basingstoke and then run back to Portsmouth
  • Services from Exeter St Davids and Salisbury to London Waterloo will now terminate at Basingstoke and then run back
  • The stopping services that usually start from Basingstoke to London Waterloo are cancelled
  • An extremely limited shuttle will operate between Basingstoke and Woking, calling at Farnborough Main and Brookwood, connecting with other services from Woking to London Waterloo
  • Trains are unable to call at Hook, Winchfield or Fleet stations.

SWR are working with Network Rail, but given the scale and complexity of the works at Hook, customers are urged to continue checking before they travel.

Sunday’s landslip was one of 11 separate incidents that affected infrastructure on SWR’s routes overnight on Sunday and into Monday. This included major flooding in the Sway area, which added to disruption on already revised services between Weymouth and London Waterloo.

A further severe landslip occurred in Addlestone, on the line between Virginia Water and Weybridge, which means trains were unable to run on Monday. This is likely to continue on Tuesday, but customers are advised to keep checking ahead of travelling.