Bellenden Residents' Group (BRG)

NEW THAMESLINK FRANCHISE
The Government is consulting about the future Thameslink franchise. This franchise will start in October 2013 and at the start will cover all the services currently run by FCC (First Capital Connect). These do not include services running through our SRUG stations (ie Peckham Rye, unhead, Denmark Hill, North Dulwich, East Dulwich, Queens Rd Peckham, Sth Bermondsey). However many of our services will be transferred to this new franchise after that:

• in 2014, services to St Pancras and beyond from Sevenoaks via Nunhead, Peckham Rye, Denmark Hill, Elephant & Castle and Blackfriars;
• in 2015, to London Bridge from Tulse Hill and beyond via North Dulwich, East Dulwich, Peckham Rye, Queens Rd Peckham, South Bermondsey.

The Government's information about the consultation is here:
Http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/dft-2012-23/
The full consultation document is available here: http://goo.gl/oTjXp 
 
HOW TO IMPROVE OUR SERVICES
We are putting together some detailed comments for the deadline 23 August. If you are interested
in seeing these in advance please email for a copy. All our comments are based on removing the deficiencies in our services. It is basically quite simple - we are an inner London area without the Tube and we use our local rail services as a substitute. These are in theory well able to serve that purpose as they are directly connected within 10 to 23 minutes to several Tube lines at main Tube stations London Bridge, Elephant & Castle, Blackfriars, St Pancras, and Victoria. The problem is that the services are in part infrequent, irregular and not every day or every evening. So our continuing campaign is for our services to be Tube-like in their frequency and regularity - 7 days a week, early morning to late evening, and for off-peak 4 trains per hour (tph) to Victoria, 4tph to St Pancras, and 6tph to London Bridge, (& more tph on-peak).
 
The good news is that TfL (Transport for London ) shares that Tube-like aspiration for all services within the TfL transport area which includes all our stations and services. But TfL does not control these services - they are part of the rail franchises that are specified by the Department for Transport, like the new Thamselink franchise.
 
EMAIL YOUR COMMENTS
If you want to comment on the consultation, email: thameslink@dft.gsi.gov.uk.
The key things are:
 1. to ask for the off peak rail services:

• from Nunhead, Peckham Rye and Denmark Hill to be increased to 4 tph to St Pancras 7 days a week, and [though not part of this franchise, mention it to support our campaign to fill the gaps after Dec 2012] to 4tph to Victoria 7 days a week;
• to London Bridge via N & E Dulwich, Peckham Rye, Queens Rd, Sth Bermondsey to be no less than 6 tph 7 days a week.

 2. If you have particular points to make about peak hour trains or your station you can also include them in your email.

If appropriate explain why the services are important to you.
 
If you miss the deadline of 23 August because you are on holiday, email your comments instead to the transport minister: theresa.villiers@dft.gsi.gov.uk This is part of our continuing campaign to press home the point that the solution to the loss of our services to Victoria when the East London Line arrives in December 2012 is to get Tube-like frequency and regularity 7 days a week in all our services into central London. That would fill those Victoria gaps as well as bring our other services into line.
 
It is helpful if you copy your emails -

• to us at: SRUG@southwarkrailusers.net
• and to your MP and other elected representatives. Their email addresses are here: http://www.bellenden.net/victoria#emails.

Getting letters published in the local press is very important to keep alive in public the issue of our
direct links into central London. Email them at: letters@slp.co.uk, letters@southwarknews.org
If you have any queries, please email us to ask.
 
PS for background & info on the SRUG campaign about filling the gaps in the services to Victoria after December 2012, which are not covered by the Thameslink franchise, see :
www.bellenden.net/victoria