Call to restore axed Southeastern weekend trains to Elizabeth line and the Valley

Calls have been made to restore weekend loop line services connecting Southeastern’s Sidcup line with the Woolwich line enabling Charlton fans to reach the Valley and improve links to the Elizabeth line at Abbey Wood.

Rounder services previously operated between Slade Green and Crayford around the loop until they were switched to run from the Bexleyheath line instead – despite that line seeing better bus links to Abbey Wood.

Conservative councillors in Greenwich borough are calling for services to be restored after being cut by the previous government. The Department for Transport have controlled Southeastern since 2021 after the previous Govia contract ceased four years ago with franchising now dead.

The DfT hold all the purse strings.

However since Labour took power the message remains the same from Southeastern when asked about improvements and restoring cuts – there isn’t the money.

Service restoration

The Conservative claim on their page regarding loop line services isn’t entirely correct when they state “weekday commuter services on the loop – from Mottingham and New Eltham on the Sidcup line to stations on the Woolwich line – were reintroduced at the end of last year following the success of our “Save the Loop” campaign”.

Only peak time services were initially restored and then slightly increased again last year while much of the off-peak still sees no trains. They do mention “commuter services” but even then services are not extensive and they don’t cover much of the shoulder peak which is increasingly popular with commuters.

The petition last year was also a tad odd too given it’s the Department for Transport that determine funding and ultimately what trains can operate – and at the time it was the Conservative’s party colleagues in Westminster calling the shots.

Councillors do state “we’ve seen before that these decisions only get made when there is clear demand from passengers” which is sort of true in that small, incremental changes have been made such as a handful of services last year but the DfT hardly busted a gut to improve rail.

New government, same story

So will this Labour government be more receptive? Early signs aren’t good. Locally Southeastern continue to state they cannot afford to run other axed services such as between Lewisham and Woolwich on weekends.

Other cuts remain such as reduced services on the Bexleyheath line to Charing Cross remaining at one per hour instead of two before cuts. The Sidcup line hasn’t seen fast services from New Eltham to London Bridge return and services between Charlton and London Bridge via Greenwich still see half the trains they previously did. That’s quite a cut across the three Dartford lines.

Compounding the issue is that loop line trains are now just four carriages off-peak and often very busy. My memory may be playing tricks but previously they were 6-8 carriages. If they were previously that length we now see fewer services and shorter trains.

On a national basis the new government isn’t exactly sending pro-public transport signals given rail fares increased someway above inflation last week and even measures such as railcards, designed to entice people to travel off-peak and ditch cars, saw prices rise earlier this month.

It all adds up to a continuing short-term attitude from the DfT and Treasury. To bring up the government’s buzzword, it’s hardly “pro-growth” is it?

There’s little thought given towards wider economic benefits from restoring services and increasing ridership over time to increase revenue following investment. As often stated on this site the DfT and Treasury’s outlook since 2020 contrasted starkly with Transport for London’s London Overground services which post-pandemic jumped back to pre-2020 ridership levels by 2024, while Southeastern have lagged far behind as cuts hit the railway’s appeal.

New homes

Bringing back rounder services on a weekend (and possibly all-day during the weekdays too) would not only benefit existing residents but also help attract custom to Southeastern for new residents.

Crayford station, for example, is on the Sidcup line and has seen service reductions via loop line services yet is just four stops away from Abbey Wood for connections to the Elizabeth line. A major development near the station has now commenced with 569 homes underway.

London Square are developing the site and if Southeastern tap into potential custom such here they’ll be quids in – if the Department for Transport and Treasury are smart enough to permit increased services for long term financial gain.