Plan to run service only during rush hours and at weekends
During lockdown, Southern services on the “loop line” between London Bridge and Victoria were suspended, leaving only two Southern trains per hour running between London Bridge and East Croydon. There was an expectation that the service would return to normal this autumn. But when the new Southern timetable was released two months ago, the loop line service began operating an intermittent service at weekends only.
A meeting with Southern to discuss the situation was convened last week with our local MP Ellie Reeves and the Forest Hill and Sydenham Societies. Present at the meeting from Southern were Olivia Barlow - Stakeholder Manager; Chris Fowler- Customer Services Director and Paul Codd - Stakeholder Manager for timetables.
The good news is that Southern intend to reintroduce services between London Bridge and Victoria on 4th January. However, this will only be a partial service, running throughout the day on Saturday and Sunday but only during rush hours on weekdays (7.30-9.30am and 4.30-6.30pm).
Train occupancy levels (which Southern presented at the meeting) show that passenger numbers remain stubbornly under 60% of pre-Covid levels. Southern also reported that they were suffering from significant staff shortages due to Covid-affected drivers having to isolate, and this is the main issue for reduced service, rather than budgetary constraints or train occupancy rates.
In the meantime, Southern’s advice is to travel to Norwood Junction and change there for trains to Victoria.
Your Neighbourhood Matters
A Society for Forest Hill, London.
To contact the Society about our activities please email email@foresthillsociety.com
Support the Forest Hill Society - become a member today.
08 November 2021
Southern Rail Services – London Bridge to Victoria service update
08 October 2020
Transport Concerns from Forest Hill
At our AGM on 7th October, we were delighted to welcome Ellie Reeves MP to speak and take questions. A number of people expressed concern about the lack of train services through Forest Hill at weekends due to engineering works and the 'temporary' loss of all direct Victoria service, which is a well used route by many Forest Hill residents.
We are pleased that Ellie has written to TfL raising the issue on behalf of her constituents. Below is the text of her letter to members of the Forest Hill Society and we look forward to hearing when the services will be more adequate for residents.
Dear Society Members,
Many thanks for inviting me to speak at your AGM. I am always glad to attend and be involved in these community based events particularly during this challenging time.I am aware that many of you raised the issue of a lack of weekend Overground services from Forest Hill station, and I have also been contacted about this issue by other constituents.
I fully appreciate that these closures have significantly reduced your transport options at a time when we are all being encouraged to use our cars less. Furthermore I am also aware that this reduction of services to two trains an hour may have ramifications on passengers ability to social distance whilst using these services.
I have written to Transport for London on your behalf, in my letter I have outlined your case and have requested an update on when regular weekend Overground services from Forest Hill will resume. I have also asked them to respond, more generally to the individual concerns raised by many of my constituents on this issue.
I will of course let you know as soon as I receive a response. I will also write to Network Rail and the Department for Transport. Please be assured that I and my team will continue to follow up on this issue to ensure that Forest Hill receives an adequate service from London Overground and all other forms of public transport.
Best wishes,
Ellie Reeves
Member of Parliament for Lewisham West and Penge
23 May 2020
10th Anniversary of London Overground Reaching Forest Hill
After ten years, it is a route that many of us take for granted (or at least we did until Covid-19) but the Forest Hill Society and Sydenham Society were there on the first day; leading a group of intrepid explorers into the unknown realm of North East London, and to such enticingly names places as Haggerston and Shoreditch High Street. All returned from the adventure safe and well - leading the way for closer ties between these previously unconnected communities.
Below are a few photos from that first trip 'Up North' on Day One of the Overground service on the East London Line.
10 December 2019
Train Services on New Year's Eve
The Forest Hill Society complained and this year they are running all night long!
Full details at https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/172218.aspx
11 September 2017
Fewer Trains — Not If We Can Help It!
Initially, Southern were planning to remove extra peak services from our line, leaving just four trains per hour from Forest Hill to London Bridge. Local residents responded that they did not wish to lose peak services of six trains per hour, and these now appear to be safe.
The first draft of the consultation included plans to scrap all direct services from Forest Hill to East Croydon — diverting the existing services to West Croydon. Following our representations, we understand that the existing half-hourly services to East Croydon will be retained.
Nevertheless, three outstanding issues remain where we need to ensure that Southern does not cut our services, as proposed in the latest draft timetable:
Although most East Croydon trains will be retained, no trains are scheduled to run between Norwood Junction and East Croydon before 8:30am. At certain times of the day, particularly in the morning peak, passengers from Forest Hill would need to travel via London Bridge to get to East Croydon and beyond.
In the opposite direction — from East Croydon to Forest Hill — there will be no direct trains during the evening peak (as is the case today), but services between East Croydon and Norwood Junction will be reduced to half-hourly, making it harder to connect from East Croydon to Forest Hill.
There is to be a reduction in late-evening trains from London Bridge to Forest Hill, resulting in a half-hourly service after 10:30pm.
We had hoped that the completion of the Thameslink upgrade would mean a better service for South Londoners, but in the latest plans this is not the case. We will continue to fight to retain our train services and look for further improvements, such as upgrading all Southern’s services via Forest Hill to 10-carriage trains.
08 November 2016
Southern Rail - Consultation on Cuts to Services
These proposals include:
a) Diverting all our East Croydon services to West Croydon - making it take longer to get to Gatwick and other destinations in Sussex.
b) Reducing our peak services to London Bridge to four trains an hour (the same capacity as the rest of the day). These services would be replaced by five carriage Overground trains to Dalston Junction.
c) Increasing services via Crofton Park to four trains per hour
The Forest Hill Society opposes the first two of these changes and supports the third. But it is important that local residents respond to this survey to show the strength of feeling.
Survey responses should be completed at https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/2018timetableconsultation
To help you respond to the large number of questions across all the Southern, Thameslink, and Great Northern Services, we have compiled a list of the nine questions we believe you should answer, with some explanation of each.
Q No.
|
Our
View
|
Notes
|
14
|
We
recommend you respond to this based on your circumstances, but in favour of later running services on Friday and Saturday
|
We support the introduction of late night services from London Bridge or Canada Water. However, early morning services may be important to you.
Please mention late night services on Friday and Saturday in the comments section of this question. |
17
|
We
recommend you select Yes
|
This supports services through Crofton Park
|
29
|
We
recommend you support this
|
This supports services through Crofton Park
|
30
|
We
recommend you support this
|
This supports services through Crofton Park
|
58
|
We
recommend you select No
|
These services would replace Forest Hill services to East Croydon
|
59
|
We
recommend you select No
|
This makes more services fast on our line rather than stopping at Forest Hill
|
60
|
We
recommend you select No
|
Unnecessary
duplication of London Overground services to West Croydon.
Enforced
interchange at Norwood Junction, a station that has no step free access for
interchange (on the way to Gatwick Airport).
|
61
|
We
recommend you select No
|
These services world replaces Forest Hill services to East Croydon
|
67
|
We
recommend you support SN3.1 and reject SN3.8. We also recommend you reject
the reduction in peak hour services to London Bridge
|
12 June 2016
Transport Update
Part of the new underground concourse will open beneath Southern Rail’s platforms. Passengers will be able to alight from their trains and then use the new escalators, stairs or lifts — which are currently boarded up on each platform — to reach the new concourse, which connects with the new platforms for Charing Cross.
However, work will then start on rebuilding the Cannon Street platforms. This means there will be no interchange at London Bridge with Southeastern rail services to Cannon Street from late August until 2018. As with the Charing Cross services, National Rail tickets will be valid on London Underground to complete your journey.
Once the work is completed, London Bridge should have all of its services restored (we will be keeping an eye out for the return of the 08:32 from Forest Hill), as well as a much-increased and improved Thameslink rail service, giving us more rail connections than before.
On the Buses
Route 185 has been re-awarded to Go-Ahead London with new battery-hybrid buses. This new contract will begin in October, so we should start to see new quieter, less-polluting buses appearing on this route.
The peak-hour vehicle requirement on this busy route is going up from 24 to 25, which would suggest a slight increase in peak-hour buses, possibly to one every 7 minutes towards Victoria in the morning and towards Lewisham in the evening.
The 363, which runs along Wood Vale and Sydenham Hill, is also going hybrid from October this year.
03 June 2016
New Waiting Room at Forest Hill Station
The waiting room contains quite a few seats, is sheltered from the elements and even has automatic doors. However, as yet they do not appear to let people in or out!
So, the next time you’re waiting for a train, why not turn right onto the platform and explore this new area on the platform!
01 April 2016
Croydon Canal to be Reinstated after 200 years
The Forest Hill Society have been working hard since last April on a great scheme to replace the existing railway line with the old canal as a step towards a speedier and more reliable commuter service.
The basic plan will be to remove the slow and rather cumbersome railway line and reinstate a large section of the Croydon Canal. We know there is a lot of support in the local community for the environmental and health benefits of the canal as a primary means for transportation in South East London.
* Press release issued by the Forest Hill Society on 1st April 2016. Some of the details in this article may not be valid on any other day of the year.