South Western Railway passengers urged not to travel between Eastleigh and Brockenhurst

A library image of a red signal with a South Western Railway train in the background. Credit: PA

Rail passengers have been warned not to attempt to travel on one of the UK's busiest rail lines due to a signalling failure.

South Western Railway says it cannot run trains between Eastleigh and Brockenhurst, and says disruption is expected until the end of the day (Sunday 23 June).

The operator has told passengers they should only travel if absolutely necessary, and tickets will be accepted on the local bus network.

It is also unable to run trains between Fareham and Southampton Central due to the fault.

A Network Rail spokesperson said: “Following planned overnight work, teams are currently working hard to resolve an issue with the signalling system between Eastleigh and Brockenhurst.

"Train services in the area are facing disruption, with delays and short notice cancellations likely.

We are urging passengers to check their journey before travelling via www.nationalrail.co.uk or their train operator."

Services from Portsmouth towards London are unaffected.

Tickets will be accepted on Bluestar bus routes 1-18, as well as Uni-Link services and Salisbury Reds X7 services.

Passengers will also be able to use their tickets to travel tomorrow instead, the operator confirmed.

Southern Railway, which also operates trains into Southampton, confirmed its services were also suspended.

Its trains will terminate at Fareham. However, there is a reduced service between Havant and Fareham, which Southern says will extend journey times by 60 minutes.

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