Southeastern rail changes this month: A big improvement?

A number of rail changes are coming soon across the Southeastern rail network that will improve service after steep cuts in 2022.

One of the main changes for Metro services concerns the loop line, or rounder services, which link other lines towards Dartford to Abbey Wood and Elizabeth line services.

 

The press releases – dutifully cut and pasted by many media outlets – go big on 12 extra trains per day!

Yep, but look a bit closer.

Back in 2022, Southeastern, under pressure for cuts from government (they’ve been under Department for Transport control now for some years), axed all-day loop line services from the Sidcup line connecting to Abbey Wood.

Good news is that’s improving. There’s currently a meagre peak time service at these times from Sidcup in the morning peak:

• 6:42
• 7:07
• 7:37

And that was your lot.

Changes will see more services in the morning peak:

• 6:42
• 7:07
• 7:37
• 8:05
• 8:35
• 9:05

But still nothing after for seven hours until 4:30pm.

An improvement but hardly amazing. No return to all-day services as seen before those 2022 cuts.

You may think the incredible popularity of the Elizabeth line would see more services connecting from the Sidcup line to Abbey Wood – as well as from north Kent as once proposed – but this is the Department for Transport we’re talking about. Competent they ain’t.

The good thing is those extra three train services also continue along the Greenwich line improving peak time services at stations such as Deptford, Greenwich, Maze Hill and Westcombe Park.

That brings back peak time trains to every 10 minutes. The norm for many years until those recent cuts saw gaps increase up to 27 minutes.

But as said before, come 9am and it all ends. The DfT don’t seem to know – alongside the Treasury – that areas like Deptford are hotspots of housing development and improving services would encourage ridership.

So a welcome change in coming weeks when some reversion of recent cuts are made but it’s still a long way from services seen for many years until 2022 despite ample housing development around many Southeastern Metro stations.

Whether a change will be seen in 2025 under the new government remains to be seen. There-‘s clearly scope to improve services to capture extra custom given the popularity of the Elizabeth line in outer London and housebuilding – but whether existing the structures of DfT control can recognise and capitalise upon that is another matter.

 

 

 

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