Changes to your train times from Monday

[A Cinderella Line]

We did it! Thanks to everyone who put their names on petitions, filled in surveys and came along to the meetings, from Monday 21st May we will see 4 trains an hour on the Cinderella Line!

This is huge achievement and we wouldn't have got anywhere without the amazing local support so thank you all!

This does mean that the times of all of the existing service are due to change, so please read the article on our website for more information, if you use Nunhead, Crofton Park, Catford, Bellingham, Beckenham Hill or Ravensbourne stations.

The changes will be released in a phased approach, but everything is explained in the article:

http://www.acinderellaline.com/single-post/2018/05/16/4-trains-an-hour-coming-right-up

[JohnL]

Peckham Rye's been hit it seems - Half stop at Blackfriars :(

[PK36]

Is fitting in all the extra Cinderella Line stops, part of the reason why the morning rush hour trains from Denmark Hill to Blackfriars are going to be a lot less frequent with the new timetable? Currently there are seven direct trains between 8am and 9am (8.04, 8.13, 8.19, 8.26, 8.32, 8.39, 8.45), but from Monday it will be down to five trains (8.07, 8.17, 8.23, 8.37, 8.47)!

[victorialucy]

Looking at Monday 21st, there now also seems to only be one direct train running from Denmark Hill to Farringdon between 8-9am (at 8.37) whereas there used to be five - 8.04, 8.19, 8.26, 8.39, 8.45. Surely this is going to cause problems as the 8.26 I used to catch was often near full as it was. Does anyone know anything more about this?

But putting that to one side, I'm pleased you successfully managed to get more, much needed trains on your line!

[Cardelia]

PK36 Wrote:

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> Is fitting in all the extra Cinderella Line stops,

> part of the reason why the morning rush hour

> trains from Denmark Hill to Blackfriars are going

> to be a lot less frequent with the new timetable?

Yes. It's also the reason why Denmark Hill has lost a few rush hour trains to Victoria, plus there's now a huge 22 minute gap between services at 08:20. If it wasn't for the fact that I only have a couple of months left on this particular journey I'd be a lot more pissed off about it.

[EDPineapple]

Is 4 trains an hour a step forward? As others have highlighted, those of us who get on at Denmark Hill are used to far more than 4 trains during the morning rush hour...and most of them are so full it's already a real job to squeeze onto them.

I guess we'll find out how well it works from Monday. But would be great if the Cinderella Line could explain how this will benefit anyone using Denmark Hill.

[Tractorlad]

Would this be a good time to recommend cycling?!

[Applespider]

Cinderella is posting their excitement to all the the local forums whether ir not they benefit. Most others are losing trains so suspect joy will be in the low side. Denmark Hill May now be the Buttons line.

Tractorlad - I cycle most days but there are times (really wet with an important meeting, going out for drinks etc) where having the back up of a reliable train service is welcome.

[hpsaucey]

Anyone know why trains will now take longer from nunhead to Victoria??

HP

[Mrs D]

Is four trains in the morning rush our from Denmark hill a permanent change? (Please tell me it?s not!) we need more, not less trains!

[Bic Basher]

Mrs D Wrote:

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> Is four trains in the morning rush our from

> Denmark hill a permanent change? (Please tell me

> it?s not!) we need more, not less trains!

It's four trains per hour on the Thameslink line, of which two will terminate at Blackfriars.

[Jim1234]

Sorry what is this? Cinderella line?

[Renata Hamvas]

The good thing with this new timetable, 2ph extra off-peak trains on the Thameslink service, but these are only as far as Blackfriars. The timing is poor there are two trains in a 10 minute slot with the Victoria train in between. Yes, three trains in 10 minutes and then a 20 minute gap. Ridiculous.

I agree what Residents are saying on here lots of residents want to go past Blackfriars. It is outrageous that the the number of trains going through in rush hour have been cut. This is when most people need to get to work! I checked from Nunhead to City Thameslink. From 7.31 to 9.01 there are three trains instead of six! It was on the original plans to have all the trains from the Catford Loop to go through up to Farringdon. The Wimbledon trains were going to stop at Blackfriars due to the track layout. This was changed and the Catford loop lost half it's through trains. All the through trains were under threat, it was only with lobbying that we still have some through trains.

Thameslink have listened to the extent they want to listen. They ignored that everyone wants through trains, they ignored about the timing. The consultation on the new timetable was a joke. They did not act at all on how lobby groups such as the Cinderella Line (who have done fantastic work), Councillors, Local Authority Officers and residents responded. The 20 minute gap was apparently put in to enable another train operator put in extra trains- who is this potential invisible operator? Is there capacity for these invisible trains to run past Blackfriars?

This new timetable is not geared up to inner London users, its for the commuters from the home counties and beyond. One second good thing, the Victoria service was under threat for I think the 4th time since 1999; at least that seems to be relatively unaffected. It's crazy that residents living 5 miles from the heart of the city can't have a decent and frequent service.

As you can probably tell in my posting, I very much have bittersweet feelings about this new timetable. It's going to make to much harder for many of my residents to get to work.

Renata

[NewWave]

Renata Hamvas Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> The good thing with this new timetable, 2ph extra

> off-peak trains on the Thameslink service, but

> these are only as far as Blackfriars. The timing

> is poor there are two trains in a 10 minute slot

> with the Victoria train in between. Yes, three

> trains in 10 minutes and then a 20 minute gap.

> Ridiculous.

>

> I agree what Residents are saying on here lots of

> residents want to go past Blackfriars. It is

> outrageous that the the number of trains going

> through in rush hour have been cut. This is when

> most people need to get to work! I checked from

> Nunhead to City Thameslink. From 7.31 to 9.01

> there are three trains instead of six! It was on

> the original plans to have all the trains from the

> Catford Loop to go through up to Farringdon. The

> Wimbledon trains were going to stop at Blackfriars

> due to the track layout. This was changed and the

> Catford loop lost half it's through trains. All

> the through trains were under threat, it was only

> with lobbying that we still have some through

> trains.

> Thameslink have listened to the extent they want

> to listen. They ignored that everyone wants

> through trains, they ignored about the timing. The

> consultation on the new timetable was a joke. They

> did not act at all on how lobby groups such as the

> Cinderella Line (who have done fantastic work),

> Councillors, Local Authority Officers and

> residents responded. The 20 minute gap was

> apparently put in to enable another train operator

> put in extra trains- who is this potential

> invisible operator? Is there capacity for these

> invisible trains to run past Blackfriars?

>

> This new timetable is not geared up to inner

> London users, its for the commuters from the home

> counties and beyond. One second good thing, the

> Victoria service was under threat for I think the

> 4th time since 1999; at least that seems to be

> relatively unaffected. It's crazy that residents

> living 5 miles from the heart of the city can't

> have a decent and frequent service.

>

> As you can probably tell in my posting, I very

> much have bittersweet feelings about this new

> timetable. It's going to make to much harder for

> many of my residents to get to work.

> Renata

The transport in this part of south London is appalling.

I get the impression that the transport operators must think we either all work from home or locally.

I work in a West end store so my working week can be any 5 days out of the 7.

and any 8 hours between 9am and 10pm.

Too frequently there are no weekend trains, or no trains on Sunday.

Now a fair few trains are stopping short in the evenings.

I'm sick of it! I can't ride a bike and am too old to want to learn on the streets of London,

I feel at the mercy of an increasingly overcrowded expensive train service.

Wish I could afford to move closer to work but that isn't an option.

I am at my wits end with the deterioration of the service which as more development occurs in the area becomes more and more overcrowded.

[Sally Eva]

Would it help to get further in? To the Elephant and then get on the Tube?

Believe me, I am not trying to be annoying when I say that the Elephant is a short, safe bike ride from Peckham, probably two-thirds off-road through parks and on-pavement.

PM me if you would like assistance to do this

[JohnL]

There's could be chaos on Monday - I wouldn't be surprised the entrances are shut - hope the management are prepared.

[edcam]

Yep, nightmare for me, travelling Denmark Hill to Farringdon every day. Half the direct trains are cut and there weren't enough as it is. I predict that Blackfriars will be a bunfight. As if travelling on these trains wasn't depressing enough. This is by no means an "achievement" unless you like horrible journeys.

[Earl Aelfheah]

Renata Hamvas Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> This new timetable is not geared up to inner

> London users, its for the commuters from the home

> counties and beyond. One second good thing, the

> Victoria service was under threat for I think the

> 4th time since 1999; at least that seems to be

> relatively unaffected. It's crazy that residents

> living 5 miles from the heart of the city can't

> have a decent and frequent service.

We need the tube extended into SE London (as it is in every other section of the Capital), boris bikes (again, every other part of London has them), cycle superhighways (again....) and secure bike parking at Elephant, Brixton, Oval and Kennington.

[Earl Aelfheah]

I don't know whether anyone has noticed, but we pay taxes in SE London too. So perhaps we could get the same transport infrastructure as the rest of the Capital?

[Sqiggles]

Yep the rest of us have been shafted! Herne Hill, currently 6 trains an hour through to Farringdon etc - all crammed to the rafters - from next week 4 trains an hour. Blackfriars is going to be chaotic on Monday morning as everyone gets thrown off terminating trains. And whilst the niterchange going north at Blackfrias is just crossin gthe platform, has any tried it going south? It is not straightforward, becasue the station is built over the river and so you have to go right to one end or the other to cross over.

[victorialucy]

Sqiggles Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Yep the rest of us have been shafted! Herne Hill,

> currently 6 trains an hour through to Farringdon

> etc - all crammed to the rafters - from next week

> 4 trains an hour. Blackfriars is going to be

> chaotic on Monday morning as everyone gets thrown

> off terminating trains. And whilst the

> niterchange going north at Blackfrias is just

> crossin gthe platform, has any tried it going

> south? It is not straightforward, becasue the

> station is built over the river and so you have to

> go right to one end or the other to cross over.

Squiggles, I didn't realise they had actually reduced services from Herne Hill too. That's beyond a joke. I now avoid getting the train from Herne Hill to Farringdon wherever possible at rush hour (choosing to walk further to Denmark Hill instead) because of the amount of times I've been unable to actually get on the train - the 8.32 being a particular pain point...

[kford]

Pathetic. Unimprovements all round.

[Bic Basher]

The Thameslink 'improvements' are to benefit long distance customers, so they can travel to far flung places like Peterborough and Cambridge.

Suburban TL and Southern customers are largely worse off under the changes. For example, Honor Oak Park and Forest Hill no longer have any early morning peak through services to East Croydon, the earliest being 0823 from HOP.

School children who go to school in South Croydon lose their through trains to stations between Balham and Selhurst requiring three changes.

Norwood Junction sees their services cut to East Croydon to 4tph and so on.

[JohnL]

Thameslink obviously have no interest in inner London as customers.

[ed26]

I *think* the trains stopping at Blackfriars is a temporary measure until the full Thameslink service comes into play in December. Last I read, there is due to be a Maidstone - Cambridge service that will stop at Peckham Rye and Denmark Hill.

Also, there are due to be a lot more trains on the main drag through Blackfriars / City Thameslink / Farringdon, so it should only be a few minutes' wait for the next through train if your train terminates at Blackfriars, and it's just across the platform.

It's not ideal but hopefully it will be an improvement in the long term.