Since the railway line closed in December, Network Rail engineers and contractors BAM Nuttall have been working to repair the landslip, one of the largest in the history of this region's railway, and the rail franchise, Southern, that operates on the line has been running weekday shuttle trains from Edenbridge to Tonbridge, and buses over the rest of the route.

The Redhill-Tonbridge line, which was commissioned in 1836 and is one of the oldest in the country, is constructed of Wealden Clay, which is not used in modern railway building, and it slid towards the river Eden following a prolonged period of heavy raid. Over 40,000t of stone have been brought in to repair the landslip, delivered on 40 trains.

Work continues on the line at the landslip at East Grinstead and a further 400m of railway is being shored up to prevent any further problems in the area.

Network Rail's route director for Kent, Fiona Taylor, said: "This has been an incredibly challenging landslip for us to repair and it has been a difficult time for passengers too. I'm so grateful to them for their patience and understanding they've shown to us this winter and I'm really pleased we are able to open their railway sooner than we expected. It's a huge tribute to all the people who are working so hard on site to get this job done."