Bellenden Residents' Group (BRG)

by Michael Stringer, SLP 8 September 2009

Discussions have taken place about extending the Bakerloo Underground line further into South London from Elephant & Castle. TfL has made preliminary investigations, with three possible routes:

• Burgess Park, Peckham Rye, Rye Common, Honor Oak, Catford Bridge, Hayes in Kent.
• Camberwell Green, Herne Hill, Tulse Hill, Streatham Hill
• Burgess Park, Old Kent Road, New Cross, Ladywell, Catford Bridge, Lower Sydenham

TfL said "Preliminary work indicates that an extension could deliver significant benefits. However, much more detailed analysis is needed. ... any extension was unlikely to be happen before 2025. Read more...

by Reena Kumar Southwark News 10 Sep 2009

From the streets of Denmark Hill and London Bridge, the Southwark News reports on the views of patients and medical professionals about the planned closure of the SLL.  Read more

South London Line plans will anger passengers

Several thousand passengers each day will be severely affected if Transport for London (TfL) and the Government break promises over the South London Line, said London TravelWatch.

London TravelWatch has issued the results of its passenger survey on the South London Line, which proves that passengers using the line will be severely disadvantaged if the promised replacement service between Victoria and Bellingham (via Clapham High Street, Wandsworth Road, Peckham and Denmark Hill) does not go ahead. 
 

Southwark News 20 August 2009 by Val Shawcross

TfL have now decided that the new Surrey Canal Road station, on the new East London Line Extension pase 2, is not cost effective and are shelving the plans. They suggest it can be built at a later date. But this would cost much more, and if the station is not built now with the new line it may never materialise. Read more

Southwark News Editorial 20 August 2009

It doesn't come as a surprise when plans are mooted to axe a transport link ... and there's an immediate howl of protest... But the argument against the closure of the South London Line from Victoria to London Bridge isn't just for it to be preserved. There's actually a decent arguemnt for the service to be INCREASED... 

Read more

from: Kings College Hospital Foundation Trust Members’ Newsletter  summer 2009

By lobbying your local MP, you can help save vital local rail services which bring thousands of patients, staff and visitors to the hospital each day.

Thursday, 23 July 2009   South London Press

FEUDING transport bosses are blaming each other for the scrapping of a vital train line.

The Department for Transport (DfT) said the funding of the South London Line (SLL) is “a matter for Transport for London (TfL) to consider and fund”.  Meanwhile, TfL told the South London Press the decision on whether to pay for a replacement line “is one for DfT, not TfL”.

The South London Press is calling on the Government and TfL to reverse plans to axe the SLL – a train service which runs from Victoria to London Bridge through the heartland of our boroughs.

Jenny Clover South London Press  Friday, 17 July 2009

Campaigners are stepping up the battle to save a vital rail line from South London into the centre of town.  The South London Press is calling on the Government and Transport for London to back down over plans to axe the South London Line, which runs from Victoria to London Bridge through the heartland of our boroughs.  We are standing side by side with residents’ groups, MPs, politicians and King’s College Hospital in Denmark Hill to demand the authorities listen to the needs of South London.
 
So far, medical bosses, residents, politicians and a chaplain have spoken passionately about the loss to the thousands of people who rely on the service.  In today's South London Press we look at the impact on small businesses.  And earlier this week our photographer joined campaigners at Peckham Rye station, talking to commuters about services. 
 

Monday, 13 July 2009   by Jenny Clover  South London Press

A CHAPLAIN has denounced plans to cut a train service which serves staff and visitors at the hospital where he works.  Rev David Rushton, 39, works at King’s College Hospital in Denmark Hill.  He spoke out against plans to cut the South London Line (SLL) – the train service which runs from Victoria to London Bridge through Denmark Hill.
If the SLL is axed in 2012 as planned, Denmark Hill will lose all direct links into London Bridge and will have just two trains an hour to Victoria, which will not run past 7.30pm or on Sundays.
Mr Rushton said: “I know a lot of our patients, and particularly their families who need to get to see them, rely heavily on the SLL. Many families come to King’s from a long way out of London and we have quite a few from Northern Ireland.
“We have got used to living in London but for many people it's a daunting prospect.
“It isn't the easiest place to understand, especially if you are elderly and are going through the difficult time of a loved one being taken into hospital. 
 

 BATTLE CONTINUES TO KEEP RAIL LINE

16 July 2009  Anthony Phillips Southwark News                              

Campaigners were out in force this week, demonstrating against the planned closure of the South London Line (SLL).

Residents and politicians leafleted outside Peckham Rye Train Station and other stations on the line’s route, which connects London Bridge to Victoria, to gather support for the campaign. The ‘News’ has reported previously how a deal was struck between the Department for Transport and Transport for London, to divert £24m that was set to preserve the SLL and plug a funding gap in phase two of the extension to the East London Line.