TRACK MOUSE: District Line new trains, Croydon Trams, Victoria-London Bridge, TfL seeks control of West Anglia and Southeastern

Bright, new, ‘walk-through’ S-Stock tube trains, increasingly in use on the Metropolitan Line, will be running on the District Line next year, reports TRACK MOUSE.

  Also, six new five-car Stadler Variobahn trams entered have entered service on London Tramlink in south London, complete with ‘Love Croydon’ livery.

  Train passengers who use South London Line services between Victoria and London Bridge will switch to new East London Line trains from this December. Transport for London say trains will run every 15 minutes calling at Wandsworth Road, Clapham High Street, Denmark Hill, Peckham Rye, Queens Road Peckham, Surrey Quays (passing Millwall Football Club), and then all ELL stations to Highbury and Islington. Some 50 new drivers and other staff have been hired as the culmination of a £75 million project to run the services which will mark the completions of London’s ‘orbital’ overground rail network. Funding came from central government, TfL and Network Rail. (Above photo shows ELL from train cab).

  ELL expansion is part of Mayor Boris Johnson’s ‘masterplan’ for TfL to take control of London’s privately run inner-suburban commuter train services.

The Mayor wants to take control of West Anglia services from Enfield Town, Cheshunt and Chingford, and Southeastern’s network that includes stations such as Herne Hill, Bexleyheath and Catford and north London stations such as Stamford Hill and Highams Park.

TRACK MOUSE, reporting from Limemouse Station, will scurry back soon with more London rail news...

Top Photo: Copyright Paul Coleman, 2010

Paul Coleman, London Intelligence, July 2012