thameslink

Charlton station garden gets boost from fund set up after Thameslink failures

Darryl Chamberlain
Charlton station
Charlton station will have £30,000 spent on it

Charlton station’s community garden will benefit from money from a fund set up after Thameslink made a poor start to its rail services through the new London Bridge station three years ago.

The messed-up introduction of new cross-London trains saw services cancelled and Charlton left with a less frequent service for months after Thameslink began using the line.

Thameslink took over what used to be the Charing Cross to Gillingham service in May 2018, converting it to a Luton to Rainham service.

In 2019 the company was told to set up a £15 million Passenger Benefit Fund to improve stations and facilities Initially, Charlton and other Greenwich line stations were left out of the fund, but were included after lobbying from local MP Matt Pennycook. Even then, the fund’s existence was poorly publicised and had to be reopened after a government minister stepped in.

Yesterday, it emerged that the £30,000 allocated to Charlton will be spent on the community garden, a new waiting shelter on platform 2 and waiting shelter improvements on platform 1. Work should be completed by September.

The news was broken on social media by Pennycook, who said: “I’m pleased we’ve secured £220k for a range of improvements across six stations.” Other work to be carried out locally includes landscaping at Westcombe Park and passenger information systems at Maze Hill. Woolwich Dockyard is not served by Thameslink trains so is not included in the fund.

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Charlton to appear on the Tube map for the first time

Thameslink class 700 trains
Thameslink is back on the Tube map, bringing Charlton with it

Thameslink will be temporarily added to the Tube map to give customers more options during the pandemic – putting Charlton on the map for the first time.

Services within Zone 1 and Zone 6, as well as Dartford and Swanley, will be reintroduced to Tube maps from next month to aid social distancing on public transport and reduce the number of car journeys in the capital, Transport for London confirmed this morning.

The service will also provide alternatives during the planned closure of the Bank branch of the Northern Line during 2021 while upgrades are completed.

The two SE London Thameslink routes (to Rainham and Orpington/Sevenoaks) appear

Julie Dixon, Head of Customer Information and Partnerships at TfL, said: “In light of the continuing coronavirus pandemic, and next year’s Northern line closures required to complete the Bank Upgrade works, Thameslink services have been temporarily included on the Tube map to help customers move around the city.

“This has been a complicated addition to make to the map, but one that we feel will benefit Londoners as part of our work to promote safe, clean and reliable public transport use across the city.”

The temporary change is expected to be in place until December 2021, but there are already calls to make the change permanent given the step-free access availability at many stations on the service.

Liberal Democrat Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon said there would be “long term benefits” to showing Thameslink services on the Tube map.

Pidgeon said: “At peak times Thameslink’s frequency is set to reach 24 trains an hour, offering a similar service to most London Underground lines. The stations, with the exception of Elephant and Castle, are also fully accessible for disabled people throughout central London.”

Alison Moore, chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee, echoed this sentiment, calling the change an “essential addition” to the Tube map.

Moore said: “The Transport Committee recommended that Thameslink be added to the Tube map to help Londoners with disabilities because these trains are designed for accessibility first and foremost. It is time for TfL to keep Thameslink on the map permanently for better accessibility across the city.”

Although the updated Tube map will provide more options for travelling around London, people are still being advised to only travel when necessary, given the rise in Covid-19 infections and London’s move into Tier 3 restrictions.

Both TfL and Thameslink are reminding customers to plan ahead and travel at quiet times when possible.

Central London Thameslink services appeared on the Tube map when they were introduced in 1988, but were taken off in 1999.

LDRS logoJoe Talora is the Local Democracy Reporter for City Hall. The Local Democracy Reporter Service is a BBC-funded initiative to ensure councils are covered properly in local media.
See more about how The Charlton Champion uses LDRS content.

No trains through Charlton for next two weekends: 7-8 and 14-15 March

Darryl Chamberlain
A train, seen on a weekday

There will be no trains through Charlton for the next two weekends as Network Rail is closing the line between Deptford and Plumstead for engineering works.

Despite the major closure, there has been little publicity about the works, which will affect fans this Saturday heading to Charlton Athletic’s match against Middlesborough – a team that traditionally brings a strong away following.

Two buses per hour will run between Lewisham and Plumstead, instead of the eight-train Saturday service and six-train Sunday timetable.

The Charlton Champion has asked Network Rail why the line is being closed and we’ll update this story when it responds. Update Wednesday: A Network Rail spokesperson would only say that the closure was “part of the Kent and South East London upgrade programme”. (see further update below)

There will be normal Jubilee line services to North Greenwich on the first weekend when the line through Greenwich is closed; however, on 14 and 15 March it will be closed between Waterloo and Stanmore, which is likely to mean a less-frequent service on the rest of the line. Docklands Light Railway services are also disrupted on 14 and 15 March, with no trains to Bank.

Disruption will also occur on Sunday 22 March, with no trains from Charlton before 9.15am and no Thameslink trains at all scheduled to run through the station.

The closures will cap a month of weekend service reductions on the line, with Thameslink services being reduced last Sunday despite The Big Half half-marathon taking place in Greenwich.

However, Charlton passengers will escape most of the disruption at Easter, when all lines through Hither Green will be closed as part of a major signalling project.

Friday update: Network Rail belatedly sent us an update yesterday to say the works will “lay nearly a kilometre of new track, sleepers and ballast on the line”.

“The work will allow the removal of speed restrictions which have been put in place because of worn out track, helping to speed up trains, reduce delay and give passengers smoother, more reliable journeys. Closing the line during the weekend means that the work can be done safely, in less time.”

“Fiona Taylor, Route Director, Kent. Network Rail said:

“‘While infrastructure faults are down by 30 per cent on this part of the network, we know that even a minor incident in this incredibly congested area will have a major impact on the train service. That’s why our upgrade work is so important to ensuring trains run reliably.

“‘We know it’s inconvenient for passengers when we close the railway and would like to thank them for their patience while we do this important work. Most of the network is open as usual but please check your journey before travelling.'”

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No trains from Charlton this weekend, 25/26 January

Darryl Chamberlain
Train at London Bridge station
Getting to London Bridge will be more difficult this weekend

Just in case you were planning to go somewhere this weekend, Network Rail engineering works mean there are no trains at all from Charlton, Westcombe Park or Woolwich Dockyard on Saturday and Sunday.

Trains (including Thameslink trains) will be running via Blackheath and Bexleyheath instead. Two replacement buses an hour are running from Lewisham to Plumstead, with a similarly infrequent train service between Plumstead and Dartford.

A normal service will run on the Jubilee Line and Docklands Light Railway.

Maddeningly, the rail closure had coincided with a London derby at The Valley – but Charlton Athletic’s match with Fulham, which had been scheduled for Saturday, was brought forward to tonight after the Cottagers won their third-round FA Cup tie earlier this month.

The closure comes ahead of the major works which will close the Bexleyheath line during the February half-term week, which will see busier trains through Charlton for nine days, as well as some extra services such as peak-hour trains to Victoria. More information at bexleyheathline.co.uk.

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Thinking of a bank holiday trip by train from Charlton? Forget it

Darryl Chamberlain
Thameslink class 700 trains
There are no trains from Charlton this weekend

Thinking of taking the train from Charlton this bank holiday weekend? Think again – there are no trains once again due to engineering work.

A half-hourly replacement bus will run between Lewisham and Plumstead on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Full services will run from Lewisham and Blackheath. Thameslink services will run from Lewisham and Blackheath but will only run north as far as Blackfriars.

The Jubilee Line and Docklands Light Railway are running a full service.

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The train arriving seven months late: Thameslink belatedly boosts weekday service at Charlton

Darryl Chamberlain2 Comments
Thameslink class 700 trains
A slightly less unusual sight from December – but don’t go banking on weekend trains

Charlton is due to get its full weekday train service back in December – seven months after the botched introduction of Thameslink services resulted in many trains to Kent being deleted from the timetable.

Changes to rail services in May saw the long-established Charing Cross to Gillingham trains operated by Southeastern replaced by two Thameslink trains per hour from Luton, St Pancras, Farringdon, Blackfriars and London Bridge to Rainham, one stop further down the line.

This followed the huge project to revamp London Bridge station to allow for extra services between north and south London.

While the service provided new links to north London and beyond, poor planning meant that many of the new trains did actually materialise. In July the service was cut back to to hourly to allow Thameslink to train drivers on the new routes – slashing the links to Dartford and beyond and leaving gaps in the timetable to central London.

Now the company, which operates a contract on behalf of Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, says the full weekday service will now be introduced in its winter timetable from 9 December – meaning Charlton should be up to its full complement of eight trains each hour once again.

Thameslink trains will run half-hourly to Rainham between 0604 and 2234, with two final trains at 2304 and 2334 terminating at Gillingham. Trains call at Westcombe Park two minutes earlier.

Heading to central London and beyond, Thameslink trains to London Bridge, Blackfriars, Farringdon, St Pancras and West Hampstead Thameslink will run half-hourly from 0540 to 2310, stopping at Westcombe Park two minutes later.

Most will run onto Luton – handy for the airport – although many will be skipping the useful north London stop at Kentish Town.

Weekend rail woe

However, the weekend trains remain at a miserly hourly frequency for the time being, mostly only running as far north as Kentish Town.

Thameslink says: “The weekend timetable will continue in its current format for now, with more services planned by May 2019.

“Our current simplified weekend timetable means engineering work alterations can be overlaid in a shorter than usual timeframe. There is every intention of returning to normal industry agreed timescales and both planning teams in Thameslink Railway and Network Rail continue to work to achieve this as quickly as possible.”

Full timetables – for Thameslink trains only – can be found at thameslinkrailway.com.

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Charlton’s trains change on Sunday: Do you know your new times?

Darryl Chamberlain1 Comment
Thameslink class 700 trains
These Thameslink trains will start stopping at Charlton this Sunday

The biggest shake-up in SE London’s rail services for many years begins on Sunday – with Charlton gaining Thameslink trains to Blackfriars, St Pancras and beyond but losing some trains to Cannon Street.

Completely new timetables come into force as London Bridge’s new central platforms formally open for business, allowing more trains from Kent, Sussex and south London to run through to Farringdon, St Pancras, Luton and Bedford, as well as new destination such as Finsbury Park, Peterborough and Cambridge.

Charlton will be on a new Thameslink service linking Rainham in Kent with Luton, which replaces the old Southeastern trains from Charing Cross to Gillingham, although will run via Greenwich rather than Lewisham.

Two Southeastern trains to Cannon Street via Greenwich remain, while a new service from Dartford to Charing Cross will run via Blackheath and Lewisham.

So while Charlton still gets eight trains per hour off-peak (six on Sundays) – all stopping at London Bridge – they will run to different destinations. The Thameslink trains will only run as far as Kentish Town on Sundays.

Expect some teething problems as the new timetable beds down – a few Thameslink trains appear to have been deleted from early timetables after reports of issues with getting new trains into service, so double-check if you are using the new route.

Separately, Sunday’s service will be disrupted by engineering works.

Heading into town, your service from Charlton should be…

00 to Cannon Street via Greenwich
06 to Charing Cross via Lewisham
10 to Luton via Greenwich, Blackfriars and St Pancras
20 to Cannon Street via Greenwich
30 to Cannon Street via Greenwich
36 to Charing Cross via Lewisham
40 to Luton via Greenwich, Blackfriars and St Pancras
50 to Cannon Street via Greenwich

Heading away from town, this is how the service looks…

05 Rainham (not calling at Woolwich Dockyard, Belvedere, Erith)
08 all stations to Dartford
15 all stations to Barnehurst
25 all stations to Crayford (and back to Cannon Street via Sidcup)
35 Rainham (not calling at Woolwich Dockyard, Belvedere, Erith)
38 all stations to Dartford
45 all stations to Barnehurst
55 all stations to Crayford (and back to Cannon Street via Sidcup)

This is what your new morning rush-hour service looks like…

0529 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0547 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0559 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0617 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0628 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0635 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0647 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0659 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0704 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0710 Luton via Greenwich, Blackfriars and St Pancras
0721 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0730 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0733 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0740 Luton via Greenwich, Blackfriars and St Pancras
0746 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0753 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0757 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0810 West Hampstead via Greenwich, Blackfriars and St Pancras
0813 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0820 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0830 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0840 West Hampstead via Greenwich, Blackfriars and St Pancras
0847 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0850 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0900 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0906 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0920 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0930 Cannon Street via Greenwich
0936 Charing Cross via Lewisham
0940 Luton via Greenwich, Blackfriars and St Pancras
0950 Cannon Street via Greenwich

For journeys home, and to double-check the above, use National Rail Enquiries.

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