Trains have begun to run again on a stretch of railway track in south London rebuilt following a freight train derailment last week.

 

More than 50m of line near Lewisham was damaged in the incident last Tuesday morning, sparking heavy disruption to services, overcrowding and six days of repair work.

 

Both Network Rail and train operator Southeastern have thanked commuters for their patience during the disruption, but some passengers felt the situation could have been better managed.

 

Sevenoaks Rail Travellers Association secretary Andrew Stott commented: “Sadly – and yet again – Southeastern failed to provide customers and their own front line staff with accurate, up to date and actionable information about disruption and diversions.”

 

A spokesman for London TravelWatch said: “In situations like this it is important that passengers receive clear and up to date information about delays and alternative ways of getting to their destination to minimise the inconvenience.

 

“In this case it looks like the operator did the best it could but there is always room for improvement in how disruption is handled.”

 

Recovery work by Network Rail involved moving two derailed wagons, shifting 30t of spilled sand manually with shovels, and fitting a new set of bespoke points in addition to relaying the track. Trains began running as normal in the early hours of Monday morning.

 

Southeastern managing director David Statham commented: “The freight train derailment led to a very difficult week for a large number of our passengers and I would like to thank them for bearing with us.

 

“We understand how frustrating this was and I am very glad that this is now resolved and we are now running a full service.”

 

Network Rail’s chief operating officer Andy Derbyshire added: “Southeastern worked very hard to rewrite their timetables with only half the number of tracks they need and our staff and our contractors worked round the clock to rebuild this railway.”

 

The train operator has offered ‘Delay Repay’ compensation at double the normal value to passengers who were delayed by 30 minutes or more as a result of the derailment.

 

The incident is being investigated by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch.