DIRECT train services from Weymouth to London Waterloo are set to start again tomorrow (Monday) after a landslip caused travel chaos.

Commuters were advised not to travel last week after the large landslip took out the tracks near Hook in Hampshire.

The incident last Sunday left one of the tracks on the main line from London to Basingstoke hanging in mid-air and another damaged.

Work has been taking place throughout the week to fix the tracks and get services running again.

South Western Railway (SWR) has said it will restore 'some services' between the west country and the capital from tomorrow following the landslip.

It confirmed that whle a permanent repair of the area is likely to take a number of weeks, temporary emergency works will change the layout of tracks to provide two tracks for services to run on.

From Monday, subject to works being completed, two trains per hour will run between London Waterloo and Weymouth. 

"This short-term solution will increase the capacity of the line between Basingstoke and Woking, allowing some, but not all, direct services to be reinstated," SWR said.

"Whilst these changes will deliver a significant and very welcome increase in capacity from Monday, the short-term solution at Hook will not deliver the previous full capacity of the four-track railway, meaning customers should expect a reduced frequency of services and some alterations to service patterns until further notice."

Trains will be able to call at Hook, Winchfield, and Fleet stations again, however trains from London will not call at Hook due to the position of the landslip.

Peter Williams, customer and commercial director at SWR, said: "We are very sorry for the ongoing disruption caused by the major landslip at Hook last weekend, which has meant a severely reduced service on one of the country’s busiest railway lines. 

“With the permanent restoration of the embankment a number of weeks away, it is good news for our customers that Network Rail’s emergency works will increase the capacity of the route and enable us to reconnect London to the south west from Monday morning.   

“With a reduced timetable in place, we urge customers to check the latest travel information on our website before travelling on Monday and to allow extra time for their journeys. 

“We would like to thank customers for their patience and understanding.” 

People are urged to plan ahead before travelling and allow extra time for their journeys. Visit
www.southwesternrailway.com/plan-my-journey