Evening Standard Homes & Property 18 April 2012 By Ruth Bloomfield
South-east London has always drawn the short straw when it comes to transport links — until now. From December a new train line will launch, bringing with it the promise of gentrification and house price rises. Peckham Rye, until now best known as the home of Del Boy and Rodney Trotter, will be a key beneficiary of the second phase of the East London Line extension, which will link Surrey Quays and Clapham Junction. Not only will Peckham get a direct link to Docklands, but its notoriously grotty railway station is set for a £10m facelift. The work also include a new public square in front of the station, full of shops and restaurants. “Peckham Rye Station is a beautiful Victorian Grade II-listed building, but it’s hidden away from view behind a tatty shopping mall,” said Councillor Fiona Colley, Southwark’s regeneration chief.
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“What we really want to do is knock down the mall and create a fantastic new public square in front of the station - a grand entrance is just what Peckham needs to welcome residents and visitors alike and to help kick start the local economy.”
Meanwhile, from December, four trains an hour will travel between Clapham Junction and Surrey Quays, via Peckham Rye. From Surrey Quays passengers can also travel onwards to north London – the £75million service links up with the first phase of the East London Line extension, and terminates at Highbury and Islington. Trains will also stop at Wandsworth Road, Clapham High Street, Denmark Hill, and Queen’s Road, Peckham.
Lucian Cook, director of residential research at Savills, said the new services could have a major impact on the area. At present the average property in Peckham sells for £287,604, up almost two per cent on the last year but still marginally down on the peak of the market in 2007.
“Better transport links could help Peckham Rye do a Brixton or a Hoxton,” said Cook. “The big questions are – does it have decent housing stock and will the new lines bring you into major areas of employment and amenity? If the answer is yes then it has the capacity to bring new buyers in which will push up prices.”