Trains are running a normal service after two days of disruption following a mudslide.

Thousands of passengers faced travel chaos in the sweltering heat after a burst water pipe caused a mudslide on rail tracks near East Croydon Station.

Commuters faced hours of delays after flooding from the burst pipe in Stanhope Road, Croydon, blocked the lines between East Croydon and South Croydon, suspending southbound services.

Passengers struggled in temperatures of more than 25 degrees as they queued for nearly a mile to get on to rail replacement buses to Gatwick, Victoria and Three Bridges.

South Croydon and Purley Oaks stations were closed and trains run by Gatwick Express, Southern and First Capital Connect services were cancelled or delayed.

The enormous queue stretched more than half a mile from East Croydon station winding down to Lower Addiscombe Road.

Irritated travellers could not hide their distress standing at the top of Cherry Orchard Road and realising people lined the wall for as far as the eye could see.

There were sympathetic smiles all round, as passengers discussed their journey destinations and holidaymakers came to accept there was a real possibility they could miss their flights.

Police and staff from Southern Railway's head office, which is conveniently based in Croydon, managed the queue and handed out water as temperatures rose.

A spokeswoman for Thames Water, said: "We are really sorry for the disruption caused as a result of a burst water main in Croydon yesterday.

"Repairing this main and assisting Network Rail to get things back to normal as quickly as possible has been our number one priority."