Sponsored by
Brighton Line safety fears after joint breaks
London to Brighton line just north of the Balcombe viaduct
NETWORK Rail has sent part of a conductor rail for laboratory tests after a joint broke unexpectedly during Friday night’s rush hour.
A joint in the conductor rail which powers the trains came apart less than three weeks after it had passed an inspection.
A Network Rail spokesman said: “Four trains passed over the broken joint, which was between Merstham and Earlswood, and in doing so damaged the equipment they use to pick up the electrical current as well as further damage to the conductor rail itself.
“Unfortunately, this happened at one of the busiest times of the day, causing significant disruption for passengers for which we apologise.
“This section of conductor rail was last inspected at the end of January and was found to be in full working order.
“It is very rare for a joint of this type to break and we have sent the affected pieces of metal to a specialist laboratory to understand the cause and what steps can be taken to reduce the chances of it happening again.”
The breakage caused delays of half an hour for homeward bound commuters and came two days after engineering works to mend a broken rail in Balcombe Tunnel overran, causing delays of up to an hour.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Haywards Heath
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 26 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 13 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North west
