Passenger fury reached a new low as hundreds of Travellers spent hours stuck in "absolute terror" on a crammed train.

One girl fainted during the two-hour journey which should have taken 15 minutes.

Travellers said there was a feeling of "absolute terror" due to the lack of air and overcrowding.

Carriages were so full passengers could not get in or out of toilets.

An off duty police officer on the train said he was concerned about passenger safety and was planning to take up the issue with the rail operators.

Trains across Sussex were delayed on Sunday due to a displaced control rail near Redhill, Surrey, at 1.45pm.

It caused train delays to escalate and led to overcrowding at many stations.

One of the few trains still running close to schedule was the 4pm Gatwick Express from East Croydon to Gatwick.

Passengers were encouraged to catch it and change at Gatwick for destinations including Crawley, Lewes, Brighton and Hastings.

Passengers crammed into the packed carriages at East Croydon but the train, normally a fast service straight through to Gatwick, stopped several times on the way in an effort to clear frustrated travellers from crammed platforms.

The police officer, who did not wish to be named, helped calm passengers, including children. He said: "It was a nightmare. It was chaotic. I was off duty but I felt I had to make my presence known to try to calm people down.

"More people were trying to get on at each station.

"Two ladies by my side had children with them and the young girl started to get very distressed. She said she felt sick and needed to go to the toilet, but there was no way she could get there.

"Even if she did there was a young man in the toilet who couldn't get out because there were so many people on the train.

"At one stage somebody had to urinate in the corridor. They were speaking about it before and were joking about it but they couldn't get to the toilet."

The officer said he will pass on his concerns to Gatwick Express and Connex via his senior officer.

One passenger said she did not reach her home in Lewes until 7.55pm after leaving East Croydon on the 4pm train.

A Connex spokesman said: "There was no compromise of safety, although we acknowledge overcrowding is uncomfortable."

No one from Gatwick Express was available for comment.