Direct London rail link to go

Passengers heading for places like Gatwick , Croydon, Victoria and Brighton will have to change at Eastbourne as of May 1.

Only weekday commuter trains leaving before 9.30am will benefit from the straight-through service.

The shock news was announced by rail operator South Central this week and is a huge setback for Bexhill's already-poor transport links.

South Central says the changes are necessary while new rolling stock is introduced onto the rail network and hopefully normal services can be resumed at the end of the year.

A spokesman explained: "Currently trains running direct from Hastings to London Victoria join up with other carriages at Haywards Heath. From now until December we are phasing out the 600 old slam-door carriages and replacing them with 700 new ones.

"There are logistical problems because we can't join the old carriages with the new ones.

"The changes are unfortunate but they are our only option while the new trains are introduced. Hopefully we will be able to return to the old system in December. We have consulted with local user groups and the Rail Passengers Council.

"In the meantime we are doing our utmost to ensure disruption to journeys is down to a minimum and change-over times at Eastbourne will not delay passengers too much."

Commuters travelling from London to Bexhill from 4pm-7pm will also enjoy a straight-through service.