Southeastern rail have announced that they will be running a reduced service on their London and Kent journeys from next Monday.
The company says the number of staff affected by Covid and the “government advice that where possible people should work from home,” is the reason behind reduction, which they say is just seven per cent of the timetable.
The company has not said when normal service will be resumed, but claims that as passenger numbers have reduced significantly in response to the latest advice, the change will enable them to operate a more resilient train service and is designed to prevent short notice cancellations.
David Wornham, Passenger Services Director, Southeastern, said: “Like many other operational businesses, many of our frontline colleagues are being affected by the virus, and this in turn impacts the train services we can reliably operate for passengers. We’ve therefore decided to bring in a reduced timetable, which affects around seven per cent of our train services, so that we can offer passengers more certainty that trains will be operating and on time.
“We’ll keep the reduced timetable under constant review, alongside reacting to any updated travel advice and guidance when this is issued.”
Full details of the reduced timetable will be available in online journey planners, Southeastern’s website and National Rail Enquiries from Friday 7 January 2022.
Southeastern is urging all passengers to check before and on the day, they travel by visiting the Southeastern website, contacting them on WhatsApp (07866 002 690) and by following us on Twitter (@Se_Railway) for the very latest travel information.
Summary of changes from Monday 10 January 2022
- There will be hourly services via Rainham, Gillingham, Chatham and Rochester to London Cannon Street during peak times
- Peak-time mainline trains from Ashford International and Hastings via Tonbridge to London Cannon Street will not run
- There will be no service on the Bexleyheath line to London Cannon Street and a reduced service from Slade Green via Woolwich and Greenwich to London Cannon Street – passengers should change at London Bridge to make connections.
- Some trains between Gravesend and Dartford via Sidcup to and from Charing Cross will not run
- There will be an hourly off-peak service from Ashford International to London Charing Cross
- Off-peak London Victoria to Dover Priory services will only run between Faversham and Dover Priory
- Off-peak services from Hayes to London Charing Cross will not run
- Services have been reduced during peak times on High Speed routes
Passengers can easily check how busy a train might be with our SeatFinder tools, and catch the train that works best for them.