Construction starts on 200 homes near Thames Barrier in Charlton

Construction has begun on a development at the Charlton Riverside masterplan site near the Thames Barrier.

Plans for 202 homes went in almost six years ago back in August 2020 and covered on this site at the time. That was subsequently whittled down to 188.

Plans on an adjacent site was submitted around the same time and is now complete. That includes 67 homes.

Both neighbouring sites sit between Eastmoor and Westmoor Streets with the Thames Barrier a short distance away.

Moore Park is immediately to the east. It’s close to the boundary with Woolwich.

Nearby sites a major estate redevelopment project where more than 700 homes. Taken as a whole alongside other smaller sites  – such as The Victoria Inn extension – a total of around 1,000 homes have either recently been built or now underway in the vicinity.

There’s also an approved tower on the former Albion pub though that’s yet to commence.

Transport cuts

This area of town is one that recently saw a substantial reduction in buses when TfL cut the 472 and replaced it with the SL11. As highlighted many times on this site, it’s the only Superloop route introduced in all of London that resulted in an existing route entirely cut.

Rather than take the opportunity to rework the 472 by serving new developments – eg Lombard Square in Plumstead where 2,000 homes are underway – or bringing back a bus link from Charlton to Lewisham that was lost when the 180 was diverted to north Greenwich – TfL simply axed it.

What that means is 1,000 new homes now see fewer buses in this part of south east London, while other major developments such as in south Thamesmead also saw a reduction in stopping buses despite 800 homes at the first two phases of a wider masterplan either built or underway.

Changes also mean fewer buses outside a college building in Plumstead which opened the same month reduced bus services were introduced. A total of 282 are also being built as part of that project.

When TfL proposed bus cuts it was supported by Greenwich Council. Only one councillor raised issues of fewer buses serving thousands of new homes. That was Labour cllr for Charlton Jo Van Den Broek.

Now we have the SL11 running every six minutes often carrying fresh air and skipping thousands of new homes while remaining buses are extremely busy.

Serving new homes

A far better solution would have been have the Superloop route bus running around every 12 minutes while retaining and altering the prior 472 route to assist new housing running at a frequency around every 12 minutes.

Bizarrely TfL keep insisting the SL11 is to benefit Thamesmead despite not calling at more than 800 homes in south Thamesmead nor 2,000 homes in west Thamesmead.

Taken as a whole, cutting buses doesn’t suggest TfL nor Grenwich Council were – or are – on the ball regarding numerous new developments rising at various towns in the area.